[Project] FB Appraisal

[Chicklet]

So I checked out my insurance and it said my car's only worth $2475. F that! I called 3 times in the past and asked about an appraisal. The dummies said "no" every dam* time! IDIOTS!

So now I have to get it appraised. It'll be about $150 or so for the initial inspection, he'll make it a WIP so I can continue after my interior's finished. (It will be another $75-ish after that.) I had to compile a list of all the modifications and it turns out I have almost $11K invested so far in vanity mods.
After the interior, I'll have over $15K into it!

[meissen]

Let us know how it goes. When my car was totaled from my accident two years ago the car's KBB value was 3000 but after it was appraised they bumped the value up to 6500 or so. Not bad for a v6.

[white96TA]

I had to compile a list of all the modifications and it turns out I have almost $11K invested so far in vanity mods.
After the interior, I'll have over $15K into it!

that is alot

[81DaytonaPaceCar]

So I checked out my insurance and it said my car's only worth $2475. F that! I called 3 times in the past and asked about an appraisal. The dummies said "no" every dam* time! IDIOTS!

So now I have to get it appraised. It'll be about $150 or so for the initial inspection, he'll make it a WIP so I can continue after my interior's finished. (It will be another $75-ish after that.) I had to compile a list of all the modifications and it turns out I have almost $11K invested so far in vanity mods.
After the interior, I'll have over $15K into it!

Forgive me in advance, but as someone who has done appraisals and inspections in the past, the amount of money invested into a vehicle often has very little bearing on what it's appraised value is at the end of the day.

Example...there's a guy in the local Muscle Car Trader that has a pro-street 1978 Chevette.

Full tube frame, tubbed, high $$$ suspension, blown small block, high $$$ paint job...but at the end of the day it's still a Chevette (no, I am not comparing your car to a Chevette...lol...).

He claims he has $80K into it, and is trying to sell it for $35K...for a Chevette.

A very general rule of thumb is "can I build the same car for less than what the selling price is?". If the answer is yes, then the owners perceived value is way too high. Could you build your own blown, tubbed and tubed pro-street Chevette for $35K? Hell yes.

Appraisals are good for two things.

1. To get an independant second party to give you a value for which the vehicle should be insured for (certainly higher than the true selling value of the car).

2. A snapshot in time for an estimated true value of the car...and this will be purely based on the opinion of the appraiser...it can't be taken as gospel...true value is only what a vehicle sells for at the end of the day.

A couple of suggestions:

1. Appraisals are easily rigged and bought...many will write it up for whatever you want. Work with an established and recognized firm that will give you examples of appraisals they've done previously, and the detail that is included. If all they offer is a single piece of paper with a value on it, move on to the next company. Detail and exactness is important, and will go a long way in working with an insurance company to agree on a value.

2. Only get an appraisal if you can find an insurance company that will carry a TRUE agreed-upon value for your car...and the traditional insurance companies leave a lot of gray area on this intentionally. Hagerty, Grundy, and other "collector" car companies are some of the more reliable ones. And ask hard questions to the insurance company you're working with. Ask all of them "We have an agreed-upon value for this vehicle to be $10,000. Will you put that in writing that, if the vehicle is totaled or stolen, that is the amount I will receive in payment?". If they won't put it in writing, walk away.

3. I hate to throw this in there...but I have to. You have a very unique vehicle, designed to your tastes. The actual value of the car will be impacted by it's uniqueness...good or bad. So actually being able to determine a value for a "one off custom" is going to be exceedingly difficult. One persons tastes cannot determine the value of a car. You need a minimum of two people who share the same ideals behind the design, and WANT to own the vehicle (i.e. long story short...willing to fight over it).

Long story short, just getting an appraisal is not going to be the end of your struggles. It's a newer, unique "one-off" design, that I think you may have problems getting insured for an agreed-value policy.

You'll have to do your homework and find a company that will work with you on that.

Just my .02...o.k....maybe a quarter...lol...

[BP_Z28]

damn good read Jeff

[mikek18]

very good info, thanks. Good luck robin

[MP81]

Good luck.

Good post, Jeff.

[92conv]

Good luck, Robin.

Jeff gave you a good list of insurance companies, and I would add one more to that list State Farm. I will agree with him too that the uniqueness of your car may make it harder to find an agreed value policy.

[Chicklet]

Just my .02...o.k....maybe a quarter...lol...

HOLY CRAP DUDE!!! Thank you so much! That was a lot of helpful information. I will definetely reseach and follow up on all that stuff. I am a little skeptical just because I have never done this before, so I need to collect all the info I can before I take any action.
Will Haggerty insure vehicles that aren't technical classics?

I need to contact my insurance (progressive) ASAP to find out if they'll cover what the appraised value is.

I just want it appraised at what I put into it/what it would cost to replace it. I sent my receipts and that guy's gonna come out and inspect. My painter recommended him. I hope he can get it done right.

[meissen]

Unfortunately, I doubt you'll get "what you put into it." I would be surprised if it appraised over 7,000 and that - in my opinion - is being quite generous. I've put about as much into my car as you have (money wise) and I was really happy that my car appraised at 6500.

[Gottork]

From what I have seen progressive is one of the WORST companies for lying to you about whats really being done and whats really being covered.. Had more than one issue with them.

I will be going through Haggerty this year and from now on with all my classics.. My wife was not happy about the extra but understands completely..

Make sure you ask all the questions you can and even start listing them on paper now so you do not forget..

Thanks alot Jeff that was awesome info..

[Chicklet]

From what I have seen progressive is one of the WORST companies for lying to you about whats really being done and whats really being covered.. Had more than one issue with them.

I will be going through Haggerty this year and from now on with all my classics.. My wife was not happy about the extra but understands completely..

Make sure you ask all the questions you can and even start listing them on paper now so you do not forget..

Thanks alot Jeff that was awesome info..

That's a good idea - to write the stuff down that they tell me. So far, I have it all in writing in emails.
I might just end up going with Haggerty afterall, but I do like the multi-car discount at Progressive. We will have to see.

Thank you! You've all been so helpful!!!
I <3 the mifbody family!

[Gottork]

you can have stated value insurance from what I was told, but its alot more expensive..but I think that and appraisals are the same thing..

from the satisfaction and all you will have from haggerty-know tons of people that insure through them and very satisfied- the multi car discount will not bother you.. if it REALLY bothers you get another car,lol

[81DaytonaPaceCar]

you can have stated value insurance from what I was told, but its alot more expensive..but I think that and appraisals are the same thing.

Nope...totally different.

At the end of the day, all an appraisal is is one persons opinion about a car's value, and opinions always vary. And the only appraiser an insurance company is really going to care about is their own. Appraisals really don't mean much because they can vary so much.

Example...Brian's story...correct me where I go wrong here, B, but after the accident the first appraiser from the insurance company came out and said RA was worth $3500, and you threw a fit and protested to the insurer. Appraiser #2 came out and readjusted the appraisal to $6500.

A stated value policy is what you want (need) for your collector vehicle.

I have Hagerty. Signing up was about as hassle free as you can get, but Hagerty does have it's limitations. A big one for many people is that your car MUST be stored inside a secure structure (a carport doesn't cut it). Another one is that they usually only take cars that are 25 years old or older. They made an exception for the 89 and put that on the policy, but only because of being a "specialty" vehicle. The kicker is that you don't get the really good price break until it does get to 25 years old, so I'm paying twice the amount for the 89 that we pay for the 81 even though they're insured for the same amount.

I called them up told them what I have, sent them 3 pictures of each car in the garage, told them that I wanted to insure each for $28,000 (they didn't even quibble...no, I couldn't sell either of them for $28K...although the 89 might be getting closer...but you should always insure the car for more than it's worth), they took my payment over the phone, and I had e-mails of the policy within an hour. I have heard (but haven't confirmed) that the magic number for Hagerty to start taking a more detailed interest in your car is $30,000...then they alledgedly send someone out to "appraise" it.

And Hagerty has a smokin' kick-ass towing package for roadside emergencies. For $80 a year, it covers ALL the cars in the family, for up to 3 emergencies per car, and towing of up to 125 miles for each claim.

And we do have State Farm for the other cars and the house...been with the same agency for 20 years.

[Phantom409]

Wow, Hagerty sounds really good.

Chicklet