Is this category C write off all above board?
August 6, 2015 4:45 AM Subscribe
My car was rear ended recently, but as it's too old I get to keep the car... and the money?
My car was rear ended on the way to work the other day. There was some very superficial damage to the rear bumper, but I duly reported it to my insurer. They passed me on to a no fault service, who have assessed it and decided that it is a category C write off. Basically, my car is old enough that it's not worth fixing.
What this apparently boils down to is that I'm going to get money for the value of the car, and then, because my car is still roadworthy, still be able to drive it! I will have to do an identity check of it too apparently.
So... is this a good deal as I think it is? What downsides do I get for driving round in a category C car? Will my insurance go up? I imagine it might be more difficult to resell, but honestly I was never expecting to get much for it in the first place. Should I be worried about any other consequences of this?
Please note that I'm in the UK, and as I understand it insurance markets are quite different between different nations.
My car was rear ended on the way to work the other day. There was some very superficial damage to the rear bumper, but I duly reported it to my insurer. They passed me on to a no fault service, who have assessed it and decided that it is a category C write off. Basically, my car is old enough that it's not worth fixing.
What this apparently boils down to is that I'm going to get money for the value of the car, and then, because my car is still roadworthy, still be able to drive it! I will have to do an identity check of it too apparently.
So... is this a good deal as I think it is? What downsides do I get for driving round in a category C car? Will my insurance go up? I imagine it might be more difficult to resell, but honestly I was never expecting to get much for it in the first place. Should I be worried about any other consequences of this?
Please note that I'm in the UK, and as I understand it insurance markets are quite different between different nations.
This exact thing happened to me a few years ago. I got to keep the cheque - which technically you can use to fix the damage to your car (I didn't - I went on holiday!) - and keep driving the car. My insurance didn't go up and it's still road-worthy now. It's just one of those rare occasions where it's win win - enjoy!
posted by billiebee at 5:02 AM on August 6, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by billiebee at 5:02 AM on August 6, 2015 [1 favorite]
Cat C is when it's not financially viable to perform the repair, so they write the car off instead. This happened to me a few months ago - I got to keep the car, which I intend to keep using, plus some money. If I understand insurance law correctly if you're dealing with an insurance company that isn't yours, you can refuse the write off and make them put it right.
There's no downside apart from resale value goes down and some insurance companies won't insure the car. Mine didn't care, so all's good.
posted by Solomon at 5:19 AM on August 6, 2015
There's no downside apart from resale value goes down and some insurance companies won't insure the car. Mine didn't care, so all's good.
posted by Solomon at 5:19 AM on August 6, 2015
The exact same thing happened to me a few years ago.
One thing to be aware of is that sometimes the insurance company will submit paperwork writing the car off to the DVLA without telling you. We tried to sell our car after repairs (for £100 - it was pretty old), and the new owner later contacted us to tell us that they were unable to register ownership. Fortunately they were very understanding and allowed us to sort things out with the DVLA, and everyone was happy.
So that's worth checking - maybe a quick call to the insurer to clarify things...
posted by pipeski at 6:21 AM on August 6, 2015
One thing to be aware of is that sometimes the insurance company will submit paperwork writing the car off to the DVLA without telling you. We tried to sell our car after repairs (for £100 - it was pretty old), and the new owner later contacted us to tell us that they were unable to register ownership. Fortunately they were very understanding and allowed us to sort things out with the DVLA, and everyone was happy.
So that's worth checking - maybe a quick call to the insurer to clarify things...
posted by pipeski at 6:21 AM on August 6, 2015
In my state, in the US, we get a special salvage title and the car is pretty much unmarketable.
posted by yclipse at 6:54 AM on August 6, 2015
posted by yclipse at 6:54 AM on August 6, 2015
The issue now is that, yes, the US equivalent is the title is marked as a Salvage Title and the car becomes basically unsellable -- in the US, in many states, it *is* legally not sellable. This means that when you don't want it anymore, your only option is going to be to junk it. If the UK does similar, you are now in the same boat. Consult the DVLA about this.
Since the insurance company has written off the car, this almost certainly has implicitly cancelled the collision provisions of your insurance, since there's no car left to insure. The rest of the policy remains in force. You will probably not be able to insure the car against further damage. Basically, if it gets damaged, it's damaged, if it's wrecked, it's gone. You will have to carry your usual liability insurance, but nobody is going to be willing to insure a written off car, at least, not at any reasonable rates. Basically, you have been given all the money an insurance company is willing to give you on that car. You can call them and confirm that, but the point of a write off is that the property in question is considered destroyed.
Understand that if the body of the car was compromised in any way, you have lost some to all of the crash protection that body had. That means that if you get into another collision, energy it might have absorbed crumpling is instead going to make it into the passenger compartment. I can't tell you how much of that may have occurred -- it doesn't sound like much, but *every* bit counts in a big impact. So, there is an increased risk there. But if the damage is small, the risk is small, and on a 20 year car, you don't need much damage to exceed the value of the car, and if the collision damage insurance was limited to the value of the car, you'll hit that limit with remarkably little damage.
posted by eriko at 9:05 AM on August 6, 2015
Since the insurance company has written off the car, this almost certainly has implicitly cancelled the collision provisions of your insurance, since there's no car left to insure. The rest of the policy remains in force. You will probably not be able to insure the car against further damage. Basically, if it gets damaged, it's damaged, if it's wrecked, it's gone. You will have to carry your usual liability insurance, but nobody is going to be willing to insure a written off car, at least, not at any reasonable rates. Basically, you have been given all the money an insurance company is willing to give you on that car. You can call them and confirm that, but the point of a write off is that the property in question is considered destroyed.
Understand that if the body of the car was compromised in any way, you have lost some to all of the crash protection that body had. That means that if you get into another collision, energy it might have absorbed crumpling is instead going to make it into the passenger compartment. I can't tell you how much of that may have occurred -- it doesn't sound like much, but *every* bit counts in a big impact. So, there is an increased risk there. But if the damage is small, the risk is small, and on a 20 year car, you don't need much damage to exceed the value of the car, and if the collision damage insurance was limited to the value of the car, you'll hit that limit with remarkably little damage.
posted by eriko at 9:05 AM on August 6, 2015
Mod note: Friendly reminder before we get too far down the road here, OP is in the UK, so UK-specific answers are going to be more helpful.
posted by LobsterMitten (staff) at 9:42 AM on August 6, 2015
posted by LobsterMitten (staff) at 9:42 AM on August 6, 2015
This happened to me a couple of years ago, I was surprised as generally in my experience insurers scrap the car if they are paying out on the insurance policy.
I worked for DVLA till about 18 months ago, I don't think the following info has changed since I worked there but please do check on www.gov.uk. If you no longer have the log book (V5C) then you will be unable to tax the car when the tax expires as a marker will have been set on the vehicle record to suppress the issue of the V11 tax reminder and the V5C; usually if you don't have the reminder you can use a reference number from the latest V5C but obviously if you haven't got that either...to get a new V5C you will need to take the car for a Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) at a VOSA centre, which costs around £40. they will check the VIN (nothing else I believe) and if it is okay they will issue a certificate which entitles someone to apply for the next V5C free of charge. This could either be you as the registered keeper, or it could be someone you sell it to as the new keeper. This removes the marker that suppresses the reminder/V5C and enables the registered keeper to tax the car.
If you still have the V5C, as long as it still remains valid e.g. correct address etc then you should be able to tax it as you will have access to the reference number. I still have the same V5C from before my car was written off and I have been able to tax it for the last 18 months, including going month to month via direct debit under the recent changes to the car tax system. If at any point you change any of the details on the V5C, then you will have to apply for the VIC before you next tax it.
posted by kumonoi at 10:10 AM on August 6, 2015
I worked for DVLA till about 18 months ago, I don't think the following info has changed since I worked there but please do check on www.gov.uk. If you no longer have the log book (V5C) then you will be unable to tax the car when the tax expires as a marker will have been set on the vehicle record to suppress the issue of the V11 tax reminder and the V5C; usually if you don't have the reminder you can use a reference number from the latest V5C but obviously if you haven't got that either...to get a new V5C you will need to take the car for a Vehicle Identity Check (VIC) at a VOSA centre, which costs around £40. they will check the VIN (nothing else I believe) and if it is okay they will issue a certificate which entitles someone to apply for the next V5C free of charge. This could either be you as the registered keeper, or it could be someone you sell it to as the new keeper. This removes the marker that suppresses the reminder/V5C and enables the registered keeper to tax the car.
If you still have the V5C, as long as it still remains valid e.g. correct address etc then you should be able to tax it as you will have access to the reference number. I still have the same V5C from before my car was written off and I have been able to tax it for the last 18 months, including going month to month via direct debit under the recent changes to the car tax system. If at any point you change any of the details on the V5C, then you will have to apply for the VIC before you next tax it.
posted by kumonoi at 10:10 AM on August 6, 2015
Response by poster: As an update, a call to my insurers tells me that they will keep the insurance on my car, but I have to get a new MOT to demonstrate road worthiness. Seeing as I had one a month ago, all should be well, provided that superficial damage doesn't prove... more ficial.
posted by Cannon Fodder at 2:27 PM on August 6, 2015
posted by Cannon Fodder at 2:27 PM on August 6, 2015
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Assuming US and UK laws are the same, yep! Congratulations! Exactly the same thing happened to me. My little boysenberry Volvo had no damage other than a mark on the bumper about the size of a kumquat, but they totaled it because it was 20 years old. (I'm thinking "category C" is to "totaled" as "biscuit" is to "cookie" and "bonnet" is to "hood.") They sent me a check for $500. It made me nervous, so I called the insurance company and they told me, car's still insured, car's fine to drive, you just get $500. I won the traffic lottery! My next car was of course another old beater Volvo tank. The kids around here text and drive all the time, so I keep my fingers crossed every time I'm first at an intersection.
posted by Don Pepino at 4:58 AM on August 6, 2015 [1 favorite]