[adi_sun]

I write this post on behalf of my brother who has happened to have a rather unpleasant experience with his Audi A4. He was driving down his 4 months old car on the highway when out of nowhere a cow dashed though the divider, trying to avoid the collision the car landed on the side of the road and turned turtle.
Fortunately, no one was seriously injured but the car took some beating. Due to the nature of the damage none of the airbags were deployed. The car was towed back to Lucknow and then the ordeal began. The first quote was of 38lacs, this made case of a total loss which was also accepted by my brother.
Then began the long series of inspection from the insurer (Reliance) and after multiple inspections the quote was revised to 28 lacs and finally to 21 lacs. Puzzled with the to and for and given no option he finally agreed for the repair which costs about 50k from his own pocket as well.

Now the question he carries is will the car with such extensive damage be as good as it would have been given that she is barely six months old and what to check and ensure that there is no further hassle to face.

Attaching the pictures of the car and the estimates. Looking for advice! Thanks in advance

[BlackPearl]

Please ask your brother to push for total loss. There is no point in repairing this car. Since it is less than 6 months old there should not be any depriciation.

[adi_sun]

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

Please ask your brother to push for total loss. There is no point in repairing this car. Since it is less than 6 months old there should not be any depriciation.

We tried and were unsuccessful at it, since the engine isn't damaged the claim amount is not exceeding the threshold for the total loss case

[Palaver]

So sorry to hear about your brother's ordeal. But the silver lining is of course no one got hurt. Thank your lucky stars for that.
As for the insurance denying your claim for total loss - I guess you dont really have a choice unless you think you can take them to court but that would turn this into a long painful experience and should be avoided especially since you guys must be eager to get back to driving the new Audi.

As for the repairs, well it's like with everything else in life - you can never make it same as the new car but if they do a good enough job, it can come pretty close to that. I don't think you should worry about the bodywork, they can iron out the dents and do a great job of painting your car back to the glory of the day when you first got it. The tricky bit is the mechanicals, and only time will be the best judge of that. It's hard to comment on it. And since, you don't seem to have any other options I suggest just let them fix it and see how it goes. If you are not happy with the repair job, then you can look for other options later.

All things considered it's only 50k which seems alright given the pics that you posted. As I said, it could be a lot worse.
On a side note, I am curious what sort of insurance he had? Can't be zero dep if they asking for 50k and for the regular comprehensive insurance it seems very reasonable. I remember once we had to get the headlights changed on our Audi and the estimate for that was very high but zero dep insurance saved the day.

[androdev]

Don't get it repaired. Ask the insurance company to pay you 21L (their repair liability) and sell the car to anyone in as-is condition. This is called "cash settlement" or something like that and you can negotiate the total payout.

[vinay_ss]

An option is to approach the Insurance Ombudsman if you believe the insurance company is treating you unfairly. They are much faster than courts and i have had good experience. Of course I'm assuming the Company doesnt go into appeal etc.

Structural rigidity of the car may also have been impacted, so would be best to sell in a as is condition , although i dont think you may get anything more than what the insurance company has approved. Wasnt it a zero depreciation insurance?

[sudev]

First understand what total loss would mean. It does not mean full value of car or a replacement car. AFAIK in insurance parlance it usually means market value or cost of car whichever is LOWER. A car out of showroom losses substantial market value. Sharing from experience.

Second while the car turned over it does not seem to have structural damage so repairs would be acceptable.

Best course... Get it repaired and in case you don't want to keep it sell it.

[KMT]

Sudev, look closely it appears that the roof is bent, see the area around the windshield, it has lost its shape. It will always leak around the windshield.

It has to be a writeoff or someone else will be lumped with an unsafe car.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by adi_sun

We tried and were unsuccessful at it, since the engine isn't damaged the claim amount is not exceeding the threshold for the total loss case

Try to approach the nodal officer, make him/her aware that because the structural integrity has been impacted, it is not safe to drive this car, hence you demand for a total loss claim settlement.

Else, you can politely and firmly say up front that you are going to the court.

A question to BHPians - If the entire body shell is changed, will the car be safe to drive? I personally think so, but it won't be factory spec as it will be done at dealer level.

[sudev]

Originally Posted by KMT

Sudev, look closely it appears that the roof is bent, see the area around the windshield, it has lost its shape. It will always leak around the windshield.

It has to be a writeoff or someone else will be lumped with an unsafe car.

Have seen but its nothing that side frame replacement will not take care. My point being that 50k loss by OP's brother includes replacements of these elements ( see estimate list around #57 onwards ) leaving the car completely restored with full safety.

This is cheaper option

[adi_sun]

Thank you for the responses, to answer some of the questions :

-The insurance is zero dep (Reliance) would have pulled him away from this company had I known this when he picked up the car

-The payout of 50k is for the liquids and other ancillary items. Given the quantum to total damage did not get into this much

-Cash settlement or called by any other name means a loss I suppose to me, we might be able to get 21lacs but getting this repaired for 50k and selling might fetch me higher I hope

-Structural damage is debatable, the roof I agree. But then the entire thing is to be replaced. Should we worry more?

-Reaching out to the higher ups in Reliance wasn't that helpful in this case. Ombudsman were evaluated but then since we know that the company is right in offering repair and not total loss this wasn't pursued further

[IshaanIan]

Is it not possible to compare the initial 38 lakh quote to the revised 21 lakh one? That way you would be in a better position to judge exactly what has been left out in the "revised" quote and how comfortable you would be with that depending on whether key parts are not being replaced.

[anjan_c2007]

Sad to read about the accident. Nevertheless, all the occupant/s are safe, which is a blessing.

About the car, I am also of the opinion that it needs to be sold off. The driver's side "A" pillar has bore the brunt of the impact, apart from the front portion. The door on the driver's side is also a write off.

Their estimate has quoted so many spares that need to be totally replaced. The repair and painting costs appear to be the cheapest, as compared to the prices of the spares.

It would be OK if you are able to get it declared a total loss through the insurers or otherwise the ombudsman. Even if the car is not declared a total write-off, you can get it repaired. Thereafter, you/your brother can sell it to a willing buyer, telling him about the unfortunate incident. If need be, it can be priced a upto 1- 1.5 lakhs below the current resale price for the particular model.

And if it gets sold, your brother is free to buy a new replacement of his choice.

[RajeVenu]

Originally Posted by adi_sun

-Cash settlement or called by any other name means a loss I suppose to me, we might be able to get 21lacs but getting this repaired for 50k and selling might fetch me higher ,,,

Sorry to hear of the incident but since no injuries happened all is good. What you are talking about is called cash loss I had got it done for a Car in the family. In cash loss the insurer will pay you whatever amount is the repair liability in this case it is 21L. The car remains in your possession if you choose or can be sold off with the proceeds also coming to you. There is no obligation for repair. You can choose this route if the dealer can arrange for a buyer (for the car in present state) at good price so as to reduce your total loss. Remember however good the repairs may be, the car will never come back to the factory spec. The fact that the car has been repaired will always be in the back of your mind and will negate the driving pleasure. So take any call with lot of forethought.

[GTO]

Wow! Glad to hear no one was seriously injured. Says a lot about the safety offered by these Germans.

Originally Posted by Palaver

The tricky bit is the mechanicals, and only time will be the best judge of that.

I would say that the mechanicals would be the easy part; the tricky part would be the structure. The car has done its job in protecting its occupants. I wouldn't consider it safe anymore and would get rid of it.

Originally Posted by androdev

Ask the insurance company to pay you 21L (their repair liability) and sell the car to anyone in as-is condition. This is called "cash settlement" or something like that and you can negotiate the total payout.

Originally Posted by RajeVenu

What you are talking about is called cash loss I had got it done for a Car in the family. In cash loss the insurer will pay you whatever amount is the repair liability in this case it is 21L. The car remains in your possession if you choose or can be sold off with the proceeds also coming to you.

100% agreed with both these posts. This is the way to go.