My wife, daughter and I are a little sore but ok. Got rear ended by a girl and her dog in a ford ranger at about 55mph. She didn't brake at all. Anyway my question is even though the car is insured by a classic car company for an agreed value, my insurance shouldn't have anything to do with the accident since it wasn't my fault; right?

Really wish we were in a regular car as these cars don't grow on trees. Also am wondering if I get the car back if it's totaled as there are a lot of good parts on it.

Check your policy mine has a clause if I want to buy it back, she might try to sue you for being in her way. Glad you and your family are OK.

Glad you are all OK. You should all be checked out by a doctor. You will no doubt be more sore and stiff over the next few days.

Use your insurance company. You have agreed value coverage for a reason. Principle is no reason to insist upon using the other driver's insurance company, especially with this car.

As far as keeping the car, your insurer will deduct the projected value of the salvage from the settlement amount should you decide to keep it. This is another reason to use your own insurance.

Wow, glad you guys are alright. Her insurance is only going to pay for what the adjuster valuates your car. Your insurance is going to make up the rest of the agreed value. Dunno about buybacks.

This is not correct. You don't go through both insurance companies.

What does the "clause" in your policy say? I've never seen a policy that contains language to this effect.

Typically, this is not addressed specifically within a policy. If you own the car outright and want to keep it, you can keep it, and your insurer reduces the settlement amount by the projected salvage value amount. If you do not own the car outright, it is up to the leinholder whether or not you can keep the car, since they are actually the titled owner. They usually don't allow it. Not always, but usually.

glad you weren't seriously hurt. cars can be easily repaired or replaced, all it takes is $$$. people can't be easily repaired or replaced even if you have all the $$$ in the world. i would seek some follow up medical inspections in the near future just to be sure everything is OK.

if you file a claim thru HER insurance policy you will be restricted to the limits of her policy.
if you file a claim thru YOUR insurance policy you will be restricted to the limits of that policy.
i would assume the limits of your policy will be much higher than hers. so being reimbursed for damages will be easier if you file with yours.

if you file with your insurance they will pay out the the limits, if necessary, and no more than the limits in the policy no matter who your attorney is. and then seek reimbursement from her insurance co. you will probably be reimbursed your deductible after your insurance co is reimbursed from her insurance co.
if you file with her insurance co they will pay out to their limits, if necessary and no more than the limits, it won't matter who your attorney is. you won't have to pay any deductibles. your insurance co won't pay anything until you file a claim with them.
a good attorney might be able to find some other applicable insurance policy in to file claims against but all policies are restricted by their limits.

You are correct about the possible issue regarding her coverage limits. However, even if her limits are sufficient to cover the damage, he will have a far easier time using his own insurance here, especially since he has agreed value coverage. Most standard auto carriers don't have too many people that know much about older cars, and the nuances of handling claims involving older cars.

There are no limits on first party property coverage, only third party. The exception to this is if you carry Uninsured Motorist Property Damage coverage. He will get the agreed value amount, but unless he underinsured the car, that's not an issue. Also, many collector car/agreed value policies have $0 deductible. Even if he does have a deductible, it is possible his carrier would waive it in this situation. It happens regularly if liability is clear.

You are correct that his insurance company will pursue her insurance company for reimbursement. If her coverage is not sufficient to reimburse them in full, they will at least consider pursuing her directly for the amount above her coverage limit. If that happens, the process becomes really long and drawn out. If he has a deductible, and his insurer doesn't waive it, he will be reimbursed once his company collects from her company.

with availability of quality sheet metal today and high values of 2nd gen chargers. i can see that car being repaired these days if it has some desirable options.

i have repaired late model $$$ new cars with more damages than that car has.

I have no doubt that there are techs who can repair it (you being one of them), but I would be stunned if either insurance company didn't total it.

My $.02? Go through his own insurance company, take the total loss settlement, let the car go, buy another one, or buy something different, or put it in the bank. Between the reduction in the settlement amount for keeping the car, plus the cost of parts/labor/materials to fix it, I can't see how he would come out ahead. Let someone else buy it at the salvage auction and part it or fix it.

A friend of mine got hit in a similar way(stopped on the highway and hit at 60) in a B body. His car looked about like yours from what I understand it was repaired beautifully. He has had lots of super nice B bodies and I can't remember what car it was, maybe a Road Runner i can't recall.

i didn't say his insurance co will repair it.
i agree it will be easily totaled by the payout insurance co. what i was trying to say is, i wouldn't be surprised to see the person buying this car at a salvage auction repairs it to drive or re-sell. because of this salvage values will be much higher than what people might think they are. buying this can back might get more $$ than some people think it will be, depending on what the payout insurance co policy says and what their claims process rules allow.


i also agree that getting fully reimbursed for the damages will be MUCH easier if he files a claim thru his insurance co. i somewhat said this in my earlier post.

100% agree. Salvage auctions are full of "fix it and flip it" guys, and your comments earlier about sheet metal availability, plus the value of the car itself, will make this a prime candidate for some of those folks. You're also correct about the salvage value...it stands a good chance of being much higher than what many might guess it would be.

Glad you are OK. Dang that's a shame, pretty car. Hope all works out in your favor.

not_a_charger knows his way around these things and I'd go with what he says.

I'm not going to suggest that what follows is ethical or even legal: if it was me, I would have had it towed to my driveway rather than the local tow yard. When the hassle with the insurance company is concluded, they can come collect it. Maybe some merit in the idea in terms of valuable stuff disappearing while in the impound lot but my thought is entirely about some parts disappearing while it's parked outside my garage.

I really doubt they'd notice or care about stuff like rims, trim pieces, small interior bits. They'd probably notice and likely object to it missing bigger key components affecting the salvage value - front clip, motor / trans. Might be an opportunity to negotiate with your insurance company but really no clue if they'd be willing to play along. Reduce the agreed value pay out by the fair market salvage value of anything significant you remove. Could well be a better deal than buying back the wreck.

100% fine to do this.



Assuming the car was originally insured in its current state/with its current modifications, the insurance company is unlikely to agree to this, especially with an agreed value policy. Also, you can't start removing trim pieces, etc. You either take the full payout and give up the car, or you take the payout less salvage value and keep the car. They may be willing to do something regarding wheels/tires, but beyond that, it's very unlikely.

Oh crap. I 'm so sorry to see that. Damn. Glad you all are OK.

I think the car can be saved with reproduction metal, and/or if it is a base model
it may even be less expensive or worthwhile to modify it (back half/big tire) .

Damn, that's hit. Really sorry to see that & hope you're OK.
I'll back not-a-charger here, I had 40 years between collision repair & insurance claims and he's correct.
See a Doc & have your neck & spine checked. Either your, or the OP's, insurance will reimburse.
Use your agreed value, unless the OP's adjuster is both drunk and worships 2nd-Gen Chargers...neither being likely...
Salvage value (aka retention) will be kind of a guesstimate from either insurer, so figure out what the remains are worth to you.

glad you guys are ok !

my charger was hit similar to that when i bought it back in 1970. it got fixed, and i still own it today. i just wished i had the forethought to take pics of it in the as bought condition !
if your car were mine, i would definitely buy it back. whether to fix it or part it out would depend on a bunch of things, but only you can make that determination based on your skills and tool collection.
my one friend in new york state had a new challenger [with only 47 miles on it] broad side him in his 64 polara a few years back, and his policy allowed him to keep his car without a buy back.
i know all companies are different, this was just his experience.
Good Luck to you guys ! keep a close eye on how you feel in a few days, you might want to get checked out further.

My situation was a bit different as my car was totaled in a garage fire. I had my car towed to the tow company's impound lot and the next day retrieved it and brought it to my shop as I didn't want the insurance company to take possession and would not release the title to them. Two inspectors came by and appraised the car and I got what I thought was a fair offer after turning down the first one. I bought my car back for $1000. I can't believe the gas tank didn't rupture and the rear window blown out! Definitely get checked out as you WILL have issues from that bad a hit...