Prius in accident--total loss

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(klf214 @ Jul 26 2007, 11:03 PM) [snapback]485910[/snapback]</div>

Ouch... sorry to hear about the loss, though glad to hear everyone is ok, since that is most important.

Unfortunately, I can't comment your HOV question, though I seem to recall reading that they are registered to the car and are not transferable. :huh: I am sure some fellow Californians will chime in soon to let you know.

PS - I visited Irvine, CA last January on business. Nice place! B)

 

Our 2005 Prius was in an accident a couple weeks ago when someone pulled out in front of my wife. It was declared a total loss and they settled with us yesterday.

Since you're not at fault you should have a better case for increasing the actual cash value of the car. The insurance company has to make you whole again which normally includes aftermarket additions and that should include the HOV stickers.

But you do live in California so who knows what will happen, that place is like another country compared to where I live.

 

Hi klf214. I'm glad to hear that everyone was ok following the accident. I stupidly totalled my first Prius in June of 2006. It was a 2005 with approximately 10,000 miles on it. I was driving on some unfamiliar back roads in southern PA and ran a stop sign that I failed to notice until the last second. It was a side road intersecting with a rural highway, unfortunately. There was only one car on that road and we just happened to be in the right place at the right time for a beautiful collision. I was only traveling at 25mph but the car that I collided with was going around 50 or so. The side of his car was pushed in a bit, but the nose of my Prius was essentially cleaved right off. The bumper and cover were torn off, the frame rails were bent at 90 degree angles to the left, and all engine compartment components were displaced up, back, and to the driver's side. It was ugly. Thankfully, the other driver was not injured, and I managed to walk away with only a sternal contusion from the seat belt impact. If the air bags had not deployed, you would never be able to tell from the passenger compartment that the vehicle had been in an accident. Hats off to the inventor of front crumple zones!

Damage photos:
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/5720/img0035qq1.jpg
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/6430/img0036oa9.jpg

The estimator stopped adding to the damage estimate once the total hit $25,000. It would have been even higher, but it was pointless because the repair cost was more than the value of the vehicle. My insurance (State Farm) paid out the entire cost of a new Prius (same package), plus the applicable sales tax. I ended up getting a shiny new black Prius after that, and I've become much more observant when driving, especially on unfamiliar roads. I ended up with a citation and fine for the accident, but I consider that to be minor compared to what could have happened if the accident was worse. There is no way that I'm going to make a stupid mistake like that twice. I was very lucky with how everything turned out, and it was a valuable lesson learned.

Hopefully things will go smoothly with your insurance. Good luck!

 

My accident case involving total loss & carpool sticker.

In summary:
- AAA lowballed me & quoted ~23.5K before tax (25+K after tax) for the total loss. I strongly disagreed with the value espc with the carpool stickers, mine was ~6 months old.
- We (AAA and I) separately did our research on the value of the car (edmunds, cars.com, auto-trader, craigslist). I compiled the list cars with carpool sticker which are $3-4K higher than non stickered cars. I also provided the KBB article on sticker added value. Linky.
- Luckily the police report came, and pointed I was at 0% fault, so AAA won't have to pay a dime. Only then the AAA agent said "I was able to get you a good price quote of Prius with carpool stickers on it" I think it was ~26K + tax
- The last post in that thread by snowwhite indicated he's going to try to apply for sticker replacement (I doubt it a success, but who knows)

Insurance companies has their own database to determine the value of cars, however I don't think they have carpool stickers as added value. You are entitled to get the replacement value of the same car, a stickered and a non-stickered car are definetely different in value, so don't settle the value if he's quoting the price from a non-stickered prius.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(klf214 @ Jul 26 2007, 08:03 PM) [snapback]485910[/snapback]</div>

Go to the DMV and apply for replacement stickers NOW. Go Go Go. Stick em' on your new Prius. It's not entirely legal however.

 

Sorry to hear about the car, but I am glad you two are ok.

 

you know, it never ceases to amaze me. with the accidents that have been reported here on PC for the last year or so, I've noticed several things. One, most prius drivers seem to be pretty safe drivers, and two, the Prius really seems to protect us very very well in crashes.

I'm really glad it protected you as well as it did. Looks like a rather nasty smash!! so now you can shop for an '07 or wait a month or two and get an '08 !!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Rangerdavid @ Aug 10 2007, 09:53 PM) [snapback]493847[/snapback]</div>

I wouldn't say it's just the Prius that protects well, I'd say it's most Toyota cars and trucks. I had the unfortunate experience of rolling a Tacoma this year, it's an experience I would prefer not to have again. However, other than totaling the truck, I walked away without a scratch, so all was good.

State Farm made everything right, and in the end I was able to put $6k down on the Prius. I went from filling up 3 times a week with 20 gallons to filling up once a week with 10 gallons, so I'm definitely better off in the end.

 

I agree that the Prius has come through for us in accident situations. I was rearended from a person going about 45 when I was going 25 (she was under her dash reaching for her cell that fell...driving 45 mph) and my Prius took the impact very well! Her car didn't look so good....also when my son had the accident when the brakes failed (Toyota problem) the front end collapsed and took the impact. I DO love the safety features of my beloved car. Let's just get the rest of the issues fixed.

BTW I have had all three of the issues noted in the recent LA Times/ Seattle Times article: brake issues, headlight issues, and random stalling (had to have it towed to the dealer and they found nothing wrong with it! I drove it home! But let me tell you, stalling on a hill, having to roll it back down the hill to safety, not a great situation).