My husband was in a fender bender a few months ago. He was hit by an uninsured motorist. We made the claim, they came and did an appraisal and wrote up the estimate for the body shop. They also have already deposited the funds directly into my account for payment for damages. So, the truck still drives just fine and we haven't had time to get the repairs done yet. And now were thinking that maybe all of the repairs don't need to be done. Can we get in trouble for not getting the truck fixed after they've already paid out the money to us? I certainly don't want to commit insurance fraud. I've just never gone through this before. And now our A/C is broken and the repair man says it will cost $8000 to replace it?! That insurance money could be better used toward that!
Thanks, everyone. Now I won't feel guilty about keeping the money. And we'll certainly get a second opinion on the A/C unit!
The only way it becomes insurance fraud is if you try to get the damages paid again. You are not required to fix the car.
If you have a loan on the car you must repair the car. I can't remember how they go about smiting you but they will smite you.
Once an insurance check is written, it's yours to do with what you will.
Just don't complain if your car weirds out later because you didnt use the money the way it was intended.
It's not insurance fraud unless you make a false claim.
My husband is an insurance damage appraiser. If you own the car outright, you are free to do with it as you wish. Repair, don't repair, partial repair, etc. If there is a loan on the car, the check would have been made out to you and the lien holder jointly so you wouldn't have been able to deposit that money, so i would assume that you don't have a loan. If you do have a loan, you do need to have the repair done because it affects the value of the car, which is the collateral on the loan.
If you don't get the repair done, when you go to sell the car, it will be worth less due to the damage. If you got into another accident and the car was a total loss, your insurance company would deduct the value of what they paid out already from the total loss payout. If you get into another accident that's repairable, only the loss from that accident would be a covered repair and the shop wouldn't be able to fix the prior damage without charging you.
In accidents, we've both repaired and not repaired depending on the damage, the condition of the car, whether or not we expected to sell it or drive it into the ground, etc. There is nothing fraudulent about not getting the repair done.
No, you don't have to get the repairs done, but you can't claim that area as damaged again if you have another accident. In another accident, they will deduct that area as "pre-existing damage." If you have a lien on your car, you are supposed to get the repairs done in accordance with your loan agreement. The value of your car has been reduced by the amount of the damage if you don't fix it, so you have to be ok with the idea that you'll get less money from any reselling of the car.
I hope the a/c is $800, not $8,000.
no you do not have to get it repaired. Money is yours to do with as you like, fix it or don't.
not fraud. the insurance company has an obligation to indemnify you - put you back the way you were before the accident. once they write the check, they have fulfilled thier obligation. You have no obligation to fix it.
However......you wont have comp or collission coverage on the things you didnt fix. For instance - big hail storm. They write you a check for 2 grand and you deposit it. Next year, another big hail storm comes through - you would not be able to claim hail damage again.
The purpose of giving you the money is to make you whole. Let's say you were to sell the car without getting it repaired. You wouldn't be able to get as much because someone else damaged your car, hence, the money the insurance company gave you. What you do with the money is your business, at least that's the way it is in NJ. But if your car has a lien on it then you have to fix it because it's not yours outright.
Insurance fraud is when you purposely damage your property for monetary gain. Like, burning down your house, having your car stolen, taking a baseball bat to your own vehicle, then claim some else did it...that sort of thing.
If you don't owe on the truck I don't think you have to. If there is a lean on it yes you do. At least that's how it works here. My husband got his by a hit and run and we filed a claim a month later he got hit and the car was totaled. Even though the ins company knew we were not getting the part fixed from the hit and run and still sent us the check.
I believe here, if you owe money on the car you have to use the money the claim was for.
No. It is NOT insurance fraud if you CHOOSE not to have the damages repaired.
It IS fraud IF you try to make a second claim on the same damages should you change your mind in the future and decide to have the repairs done.
And yes - replacing the AC unit can run into the thousands...that's why their life expectancy is 10 to 15 years if not longer.
Both times my car was hit, insurance paid me the estimated amount. Neither time did I use the money to fix the dents.
I don't believe its fraud unless you are lying about how the damages occurred.
No, you can use the money on anything you want.
Nope.... it is always your option to have the car repaired or not...... they are paying you as much for the loss of value to the car, as to the cost of the repairs.
Unless it is major, we rarely get the car fixed.... we drive old cars, and don't mind if there are a few dings.
$8000 for repairing the AC? That's crazy!
You've gotten great advice already. I just want to say that surely you added an extra zero to the cost of an air conditioner. If not, you need another estimate!!
Smiles!
Dawn
Yes--that's clearly insurance fraud. :(
I've done it before, if the damage was cosmetic.
Keep in mind, though, that since the other motorist was uninsured, and your insurance company covered it, and they have no recourse, that your rates will most likely go up, even if the accident wasn't your fault.
Personally, I try to avoid filing claims for minor/unnecessary things. Even a glass claim can drive up your premiums. I don't think a lot of people know this. I found this out while shopping auto insurance and a minor claim was preventing me from getting a good rate.
Hello:
Good luck.
D.
Absolutely not, you are totally fine. They damaged your property and you were compensated. What you do with the compensation, fix your truck or go on vacation, is completely up to you.
