User 4221

We were cutting you some slack since you were just rear-ended........ Don't let it happen again

cordsig79

Good luck, again they fought and denied my claim for reduced value.............so I would go ahead and call in legal on this if you feel its a big issue. I think they countered the reduced value by offering you that injury pay, this way they can keep from setting a precedent of reduced value being an issue and costly one at that for insurance companies. Please keep us up to date........I might go back and seek my restituition since my car was only 2 years old when it was whacked.

f4 plt

It has been one month since our GTS was mated with a Suburban whose driver was more interested in his cell phone than avoiding the rear of our Cayenne. Repairs are done except for the paint stripe on the rear deck. Parts replaced were the rear hatch, all parts of the rear bumper and bumper cover as well as the trailer hitch assembly. They also had to re-align the suspension as it had been "adjusted" by the force of the hit. NO FRAME DAMAGE at all, thank goodness. Car looks great thanks to Laredo Body shop and the Porsche Center of San Antonio. The paint work is outstanding. I should get the car back next week. I am still "negotiating" over diminished value as the other drivers insurance is delaying... not to worry it will work out. I can't say enough for the build quality of the Cayenne and the value of a good towing assembly to take the brunt of the impact. I had made a bet with some friends that I our inbound 2010 Cayman would get here before the Cayenne was repaired, well we will get them both next week. Bottom line forget the gas mileage get a Cayenne they are solid vehicles and will protect you, besides they are quick and fun to drive.

medtech

As someone who has fought and won a Diminished Value claim I will throw in my 2 cents.

You are dealing with the other guys insurance, which seems like a good idea at first, but usually is not the best way to go IMO. Keep in mind that they have no legal or contractual obligations to you at all. Their only concern is to satisfy the bare minimums required by contract with their client. The good news is that you have no contract with them, so in some ways you have more rights under the law, but you may have to sue to exercise those rights.

Once they have satisfied those minimums, they can/will basically tell you to go F yourself. Of course they will do it in a sneaky double talk way that is meant to frustrate and confuse you. (In my case they told me they don't pay DV, then they told me I would have to sell the car first) Why would they do this? Because they spend millions on research every year, and their research says that even if you have them on a DV claim, that there is a 95% chance you will give up before you ever get to court. Even when you do get to court they still have a good chance at paying out less than you are asking. Even if they save $100, they consider it a win.

1. Get a DV report from a good company. I highly recommend JD Howard. His report was amazing, and he will even write the necessary letters for you to file a suit. www.ican2000.com
2. Don't delay. There's a certain amount of back and forth that has to happen to show that you tried to negotiate in good faith prior to going to court.
3. Don't feel bad. You will have to sue the person, not his insurance company. Then, when he loses, he can sue his insurance company for the money.

On the day of court:
Compile all your documents, make copies for the judge. I would organize them in a binder. Number the pictures. Make it clear and concise so that a child could understand.

He will likely show with someone from his insurance company. This person is not a lawyer, so don't be intimidated. They are just a claims person. Probably not even a paralegal. They are there to cover their asses and cut you a check when they lose.

Here in Cali the courts always give you time to go out into the hall and play deal or no deal. Use your negotiating skills, but keep in mind that even if they offer 1/2 of what ur asking, it might be a good deal. (In my case I went before the judge...everything was going great...he seemed 100% in my favor...then at the very last second he turned my $6k claim into $1500...WTF? The girl from Farmers happily wrote that check, and chalked it up as a huge win).

Good luck!

f4 plt

I appreciate the comments. Texas has laws concerning recovery of Diminished value which makes it a little easier. I have a signed appraisal from the Sales manager (who does the appraisals) of the local Porsche dealer as to the vehicles trade in value prior to the incident and after the repairs. He even highlighted the reduced value specifically, as a result of the incident. Additionally I have statements from some other dealers that state if I was to trade the Cayenne with them the value they would offer would be whatever the Porsche dealer establishes. The other parties insurance company has had an independent "Diminished value" company look at the car so now I am waiting and hopefully they will do the right thing. So far the other parties insurance representitives have been polite and professional and I will assume that will continue. I have done several things to show that I'm not trying to make any money just not lose value on an accident that their client was clearly responsible for due to his inattention. We shall see. I have been without the Cayenne for a month and counting.

f4 plt

Well another week and we hope to get the Cayenne back in the next several days. One accent stripe that still has to be re-painted. Everything else checks out and the repairs still look great. The issue of diminished value continues but hopefully common sense on his insurance company's behalf will prevail and that too will be closed out in the next several days. It has been an interesting month plus to say the least.

Gaspasser19

Really?

f4 plt

Happy days, we got the Cayenne back yesterday and my wife and I are both glad that is over. I was almost rear ended on the way home at the same intersection by a young lady.... and guess what she was doing. This time no cross traffic so I let the GTS go. The repairs were completed better than I expected. The car looks great and what made the day even better is the call from the other party's insurance and they agreed to the diminished value claim and a check is on the way. Glad these five weeks are behind. My one recommendation to all is watch your rear view mirror, If you don't see the other driver's eyes, they don't see you and you need an escape plan, this is not a great way to meet new people.

cordsig79

Congratulations........sounds a bit better than my experience. I am going to go to the sales manager at BW and see about DV on my previous claim.

cordsig79

Well, I was struck again on the ice here a few weeks back at a stop sign but this damage is fairly minor but still a major pain.....here we go again. Back to Stuarts in DFW.........and probably 2-3 weeks of waiting

Cole

.......So.................where are the pics?

f4 plt

This is what a Cayenne GTS looks like when hit by a Suburban going aprox. 25 MPH and our Cayenne was stopped with me pushing on the brake pedal so as not to be pushed into the intersection. The rear hatch still opened, closed and latched electrically ( it was all replaced) note the left exhaust having been pushed in and the factory tow assembly was bent. The frame was not damaged at all.... even the bolts had not shifted. This is a strong vehicle

cordsig79

Ouch.......pretty GTS. I bet his first reaction was mentally just like Oh sh#$!!

I will try to find my pictures, not to sound like a one upper but the right rear side, taillight and bumper of mine were torn off and crushed in and she went down the right side of my P!G too as we spun on the ice........and she did take out 6 cars in front of me........all on an overpass.

wengqi

reading all these stories really reinforces what a good decision it was to buy this vehicle. great to hear you got it back and let's hope she never has to go through that kind of stupidity again.

mpd425

They are really well built This is from our accident last year.