The Stang Totaled

That's too bad. Hate to hear of another one gone.

You'd be surprised at what they won't total. The damages generally must be 50% or more of the retail value (as in, from a dealer) fo rthemt o total it. Even then, they might not. I tell you that you want to hope they don't because you can be guaranteed that you won't get enough money to replace it proper...oh wait NM that's just my sorry insurance company that does that crap.

Sorry to hear about your car. I used to work for an insurance company here in California where I specialized in total losses. If you have any questions, let me know. The laws might not be the same between the two states, but I can try and help you out as much as I can.

For starters, you need to find out 2 things. The cost for repairs and the value of your car. Don't just rely on the insurance company to come up with a value for your car. Try to find similar cars in your area to determin a value. If you can't find any, look on the internet. If the value that you come up with and the one the insurance company comes up with are far apart, check to see if your policy (ask your agent) has any provisions in having the car appraised. This cost was always absorbed by the insurance company I worked for. The only thing is, we used our own appraisal service. 99% of the time, it was a fair value. Sometimes, it was more than generous, especially when it came to classic cars like Mustangs, Chevelles, etc. After all is said and done, they might actually just repair the car.

Another thing to consider is you may want to keep the car even if it's totalled. I had a piece of junk car ('86 Honda my stepdaughter drove) that got totalled and I kept it, which decreased the money I got from the insurance company by $50 or something. Basically I'm buying it back from the junk yard, but the car never left my possession. The car I had I just continued driving even though it was damaged.

If nothing else, you should be able to end up with a very cheap parts car, plus a new Mustang.

Also, I firmly believe that every insurance company will negotiate. It seems to me that they typically start off with an unfair deal. If you just accept it, they're that much ahead. They know a certain number of people will just go along, because they hate to argue, are nonassertive, or whatever.

DON'T let them take advantage! Be very polite, but firm. Insist on a fair deal. From my experience they will come around. Sorry for the long dissertation. I hope it helps.

Dude, Sorry to hear about the Grande. I remember reading about all your experiences with it.

Well, if you end up staying with it as a parts car let me know.