You are probably too late as you have likely signed an agreement to take the money, but you could have sent those comparison vehicles to the insurance company as proof of value. Insurance companies hire appraisers (like Mitchell) to put a value on your car when it is a total loss ... they work for the insurance company.

Also, you can (could have) attempt to dispute the total loss or having your car "totalled" and force a repair instead. The insurance company looks at a cost benefit analysis when it determines that it is cheaper to total your car. So they look at their own appraisal of your vehicle to determine if they should repair it or total it.

Every state in the US gas laws regarding this cost benefit analysis, you DO NOT legally have to take a "low ball" offer ... but the whole system is rigged on the "neutral" total loss appraiser keeping the numbers low and also making sure appraisal numbers fall in line with KBB and the like.

Solution: Get your own local comparison vehicles and ask to see theirs. Request a specialty appraisal if they didn't pull comp vehicles. Make sure the comps are LOCAL, if the use comps from other states they can find abberant vehicle prices.

Did you talk to the insurance adjuster to increase their payout?

What they first offer you is just that, an offer. You can absolutely come back and say fuck off the car is worth more you just need to be able to provide proof.

They try and pay as little as possible. Never take their first offer.

My car was totaled recently. Fucking loved that car. They first offered me 19k for it. I found similar cars for sale for 24k. Same year. Same trim, close miles. They argued that what I see is the listing price not what they actually sold for.

I told them to fuck off 19k will not buy me a replacement and if they can find me a similar car that a dealer will actually sell for 19k locally I will take the 19k. Took them a week to come back to me and they offered me 22k. I told them I just put new tires on the car and gave receipts from a month ago. They upped it to 23k. +Tax and title.

Point is, it's a nagitiation. They will try and screw you if they can. Don't let them

Also. They owe you for taxes. That's IN ADDITION to the value of the car. So if they say the car is 20k according to them. Make sure you are getting roughly 21.5k from them.

The hopefully only car I'll ever total was about 20 years ago. I bought it for 7k and drove it for 5 years. They initially lowballed me at like 3k. I was able to show them Kelly blue book values and current used market it was closer to 6. Ended up getting a little over 5k.

Of course in the 5 years since I got the car the used market was nothing like it previously was. A comparable purchase would have been 12k not 7k.

One thing to keep in mind is that the used car market is fucked right now because of the tariffs. You're going to pay a premium for any used car from a dealership for the next long while.

My advice? Get a gray title on the car and sell it to someone who will fix it up. I hit a deer with my old 99 contour, and the insurance adjuster totaled it because my back seat was messy (I wouldn't have believed it if he hadn't said it to my face; the whole story is a trip). They gave us $2400 for it, we kept the car, and sold it to a family friend for $1200 because it just needed new headlight assemblies. We only paid $1200 for it in the first place, but my step dad knew the dealer and got it for what he paid.

The only thing that will fix that is “like for like” replacement coverage. Some insurances offer this, and of course it costs more, but if your older car gets wrecked and it only has a value of say $7,000 with 80,000 miles the insurance company will have to replace your car with the same model and mileage. Not sure what they do with older cars that might be harder to find replacements for.

Just watched someone explain this but it was about house insurance. When you sign up they give you a replacement dollar amount. Should your house burn to the ground they deduct money from that amount due to depreciation.

Just here to commiserate. I am currently dealing with a total loss settlement myself.

I hope you, your wife, and any other involved parties are well.

Lastly, if you are an American, do NOT settle medical claims. You have a long time to figure that all out and the insurance company wants to give you as little as they can possibly get away with and what ever you sign is the final amount they will help with. In Texas, you have 2 years to settle bodily injury claims. Take the time you need before you settle.

If the car is still drivable, there are work arounds to still being able to drive a totaled car. When the insurance totals a vehicle, it just means that the repairs are more expensive than the value of the car. You may have to get a salvage title and assume ownership of the vehicle from the insurance. They'll also still give you the money for the car. If the accident wasn't your fault, also beware of the other persons insurance trying to settle with you. When I was in my 20s and young and dumb, I had that happen to me. The other persons insurance adjuster literally came to my apartment to negotiate a settlement with me and I took it because I was broke.

Hail messed up my paint and the insurance company wanted to total my car. It’s well maintained and still worth $11-13K. No way was I doing that. Found a place that would paint it for me at a cheaper price & paid out of pocket. I just need my car to take me to & from work.

You can appeal a total loss settlement. They’re supposed to take into account the cost to replace the car at local rates, so unless that 16k model you’re looking at is in dramatically better condition or has way way less mileage on it, they need to justify that.

Needing to own a car to exist in society is a tax.

If you can afford to, you should go for liability only coverage. We recently bought a new car and have comprehensive on it. But for years we just had a single old Toyota as our only vehicle. And we didn't keep comprehensive on it. Instead we purchased the highest liability policy the insurance company sells. A car that cheap is a small part of our financial world; we can afford to replace it. But the potential damage a vehicle can cause? It's very easy to cause a million in damages with any vehicle. Long term care and medical bills add up quick.

I recommended just sticking to liability if you can otherwise afford to replace a vehicle. It's a lot easier to figure out what you're buying when you're buying liability coverage as well. If I cause an expensive accident, the company will be liable for it. They can't easily weasel their way out of paying a fake amount. If I have a $1 million liability policy, and I lose a judgment for $1 million, there's not much the insurance company can do but pay for it. In fact, their lawyers will be fighting the case for me, as they're the ones who will ultimately have to pay if it fails. From an insurance purchase point of view, liability insurance is a pretty good deal. It's easy to know what you're purchasing, and it's hard for the company to weasel their way out of payment on the back end.

To be salty: you seem kinda bad at math.

2019 was.six years ago, not "basically ten". Which wouldnt matter, if the rest of your post didn't have such "if the raise put me in the next tax bracket I'd actually lose money" energy.

Car insurance is typically for the market value of your car as-s. Not the price for a car from the same model year that has a dealer's warranty behind it.

Or to put it another way: insurance should pay out the amount you could get if you sold your car, not the cost to buy another similar car.

Now, there are insurance companies that will sell you "replacement cost" insurance, but this always means they're charging a higher premium than they otherwise would.

And you're absolutely right that insurance companies categorically suck. Auto insurance is actually the friendliest one that regularly has to pay out. Health insurance is even worse.

(Sorry for being so salty.)