Legal Question in Personal Injury in Virginia
Our 2010 Acura TSX ($32,000) was purchased in Jan 2010 and has 4500 miles on it. It was parked on the Norfolk Navy Base over night when my husband had duty. He came out the next night when he got off work to find a window busted and a ton of damage. The police say there was a wind storm over night which caused it and it happened to approx. 10 other vehicles. The insurance estimate was just under $10,000 and the adjuster told me if it wasn't a brand new car that he would have just totaled it. THe body shop has had it for 6 weeks now (it was supposed to take 2.5 weeks) but they can't seem to get it right--they find more things and the paint job was incorrect so now the car is in pieces. All the doors and bumpers are off, the molding's are off inside the vehicle as well. They had to replace the headlights(2), tail lights (2), all moldings around windows and doors, bumper pieces, mirrors, windshield, 3 side windows etc. Essentially the whole outside of the car.
Even though the car was not in an accident and this is a liability claim I was warned that the car info will be on car fax for the $10,000 worht of damage and will be difficult to sell b/c people will think it was in an accident. DO we have a right to claim diminished value? It is titled in Virginia, we live in Virginia Beach and our insurance company is USAA. What can we do if the body shop can not get the outside of the car to look new again?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Claim diminished value under the circumstances described? No, I would think not unless it's provided for in your insurance policy (not too likely---in my opinion).
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