tuan25000

hey, i have a few questions i would like to ask.

Some drunk guy crashed into my car and my parents car like 3 am in the morning last Friday night. The cars were parked behind one another on a street, my car was in the front and my parents car was parked behind it. The drunk guy crashed into my parents car and the impact of it caused it to move up and crash into my car's rear bumper and my parents car ended up getting totaled. And so, my neighbour who was making a coffee heard the crash and came out to see what happened and from what i heard he tried getting away. He called the cops and the cops came and arrested the guy and took him in for testing. Anyways, what i would like to know is what happens next? since my parents car got totaled will his insurance replace it or pay for it? if so, how much are we talking about? the value of the car that was bought for or reduced? and also, my car's rear bumper is damaged and needs to be repainted as well so will they replace it or repair it? and since its clearly his fault, will my insurance premium go up?

thanks alot you guys i appreciate it.

Nova_Dust

If your parents' car's repair cost is higher than its current resale book value, it will deem as "totalled" and a cheque will be given to your parents. As to what amount, no one knows except the insurance company.

It the car can be repaired, it will be.

Your bumper will likely be repaired, whether it is a total replacement or just a new paint job.

All of these should be covered by the driver's insurance company, who was at fault. Neither your parents or your insurance should go up.

What time did this happen?

RajunCajun

tuan25000

thanks for the reply...it happened around 3am in the morning. I just went to the auto repair center and they said that my parents car is totaled and that the insurance will be paying them for it. As for my car, the rear bumper needs to be taken apart because its not just the bumper that is damaged and there are other parts that need to be ordered and replaced. He says it will take 3-4 days so hopefully it doesnt take any longer than that... i dont want to be busing to school :cry:

marker

No, it's covered by your own insurance company, but as long as you aren't deemed at fault, your own insurance will not go up. As long as the cars were not parked illegally "outside" the limits of an urban area, fault almost always goes to the person who hits the parked cars.

What happens with the totalled car depends on its age and whether or not your parents havea waiver of depreciation endorsement on their policy. Cars totalled that are two years or less in age and with that waiver of depreciation endorsement get the purchase price back with no depreciation applied.

Cars totalled that are over two years of age, or without that waiver, get the current wholesale value of the vehicle.

Any damage less than the wholesale value of the car means that the car will likely be fixed. If your car is more than two years old, they will likely be using used parts where possible to make the repairs.

tuan25000

thanks for clarifying things up. Im a bit confused though when you said something about if the car is two or less years old... so is it just if the car totalled is two years or less in age its get the purchase price back? or is it a car with two years or less in age WITH the waiver of depreciation endorsement?

marker

You need to have a car two years or less in age, PLUS you must have purchased the optional depreciation waiver with your car insurance. The cost of the extra coverage is peanuts and most people just get it automatically when they put insurance on a new car.