1/3 is way too low. jon should be able to settle this. he's probably sitting around the redneck office drinking tea

 

Haha! You guys are killing me. I have actually been out of the office for 1 & 1/2 day. Tuesday night my back started hurting so bad I almost went to the ER. I got some painkillers from the doc and all is well for now. Hang on....let me put away my violin[sm=violin.gif] so I can answer the question.

OK, here goes:
The definition of a "total loss" can be made in many different ways. Some say a percentage of the car's value. My company generally defines it like this: if the repair cost + salvage value > Actual Cash Value of the car, it is totaled. Withmany cars, it is more like60-70%. But sometimes it can be much lower. We never "total" a car if it can be repaired for less than the Actual Cash Value of the car minus the salvage value(acquired by getting bids from salvage buyers).
If it was not your fault, you really want the other guy's insurance to pay. You did do the right thing by reporting it to your own insurance though. has the other guy's insurance spoken to you?
Even if the accident was not your fault, if your insurance pays, they will still show a claim. Sometimes they will increase your rates without even looking into whether the accident was your fault or not.
If you do let your insurance handle it, you need to go to the shop they "approve." My company NEVER tells people where to have their vehicle repaired, but I know State Farm, Progressive, Geico, etc.. have "approved" shops. Have the repairs done where they tell you to. They will probably warranty the repairs.

Lastly, even if your car was a "total loss" - State Farm will not pay you for a brand new car. They will give you the "Actual Cash Value" - basically the NADA book value. Even if you drove your car off the lot a month ago, they would still not likely buy you a new one.
The only way you would get a new one is if you had an "Agreed Value Policy" which is very expensive and usually only used on antique/fully restored autos that are hard to value.
Or I think Allstate offers some kind of "New Car Replacement Policy" but I am sure it is more expensive than it's worth.

 

Sorry to hear about your back ..... I go to a chiropractor that does all sorts of physical therepy as well. He usually does electro-stim on my back with heat pads on top, then he does ultrasound or lazer therepy then adjusts me. He cost $40 per visit, but it's well worth it ..... I usually go there about once a month.

Also, thanks for helping Smag understand that .... LOL j/k

 

nice. you need to take a ride on a glass bottom boat!

 

I have talked to my insurance agent and he told me to wait until I get my police report so he can call up the old guy's insurance company and find out what to do next. So I'm getting the police report on this friday morning and I'll find out what's going to happen.

 

Here are more pictures that I took off my phone:

 

Looks like it just needs a new front clip, hood, quarter panel, maybe headlight. Once the shop gets it torn down they can see any frame damage since I can't tell from looking at it. I say they can probably repair it for around $4k.

 

I would be [sm=badbadbad.gif] on the outside,
Feeling like [sm=outcold.gif] all over,
Wanting to [sm=smiley19.gif] like a baby,
And probably end up saying [sm=smiley35.gif]