Step by step: How to Handle a Diminished Value Claim

Where do I Start for a Diminished Value claim?

Step 1: Hire Gastley Law

Just kidding... but seriously... give us a call. 770-557-2838.

Actual Step 1: Get your vehicle repaired at a trusted auto shop.

So many body shops across Georgia will tank your diminished value claim by not fully repairing your car. They will work off what the insurance company provides them and not do the job you deserve. Your insurance company is not recommending a body shop because they do the best job, they are recommending a body shop that will do the repair as cheaply as possible.

If your car has already been repaired by a body shop, no worries, you still likely have a good claim, it's not the end of the world.

Step 2: Get a copy of the repair estimate.

You are entitled to a final copy of the repair. Call the body shop or your insurance company and ask for it. At this point, feel free to send it over to us for an estimate on what we think your claim could be worth. Our head case manager's email is Nik@GastleyLaw.com

Step 3: Get a diminished value offer from your insurance company.

Throughout the claims process, your case may have been assigned to an individual adjuster (if you are lucky). Many times, it's assigned to a team where, seemingly, no one ever shows up to work, answers the phone, or answers your emails. If you have a responsive adjuster that you can call directly, you are way ahead of the game.

Call your insurance company, suffer through the hold music and endless run arounds, and ask them to evaluate your case and make a diminished value offer. Give them a few days. If you can't get someone on the phone, let us do it for you.

Step 4: Reject the insurance company's initial offer.

Insurance companies never give full value on diminished value claims in their first offer. If they did, we wouldn't be writing this blog post and wouldn't have a job. But they try to underpay at every turn, so here you are reading this post.

They will likely tell you to hire an independent appraiser at this point. If you want to get more than their tiny first offer, you will need an expert opinion report specifically for your car.

Step 5: Find an appraiser to independently value your vehicle.

This is where experience comes in handy. There are hundreds of independent appraisers you can choose from. You can have your uncle write you a report if you want, but the insurance companies will only consider those from trusted sources. Unfortunately, in a sea of appraisers with well made websites and google advertising, it's almost impossible to know which ones are actually good.

Also, not every appraiser is right for each case. Certain insurance companies have flagged certain appraisers and undervalue their reports no matter how well they are written. Only experience can help determine which appraiser would be the best on your case.

Step 6: Pay for an expert report.

These appraisers don't work for free. Some will give you a free valuation number, but you HAVE to have a full report. Most charge anywhere from $200 to $1,500 for their report on your diminished value case. If you hire Gastley Law to represent you, we front this cost, pick an expert, and get the report created and sent over. If your case ends worth nothing (which is rare) we will eat this expense entirely at no cost to you.

The easiest thing to do is give us a call, let us help you, and sit back and relax.

Step 7: Negotiate your claim, invoke the appraisal clause, or file a lawsuit.

Now is the real complicated part that requires individual blog posts of their own. At this step, after you have sent over an expert appraisal to your insurance company, they have likely gone up from their initial value. You probably have no idea what your case is worth, though, because insurance companies rarely pay the entire estimate from your appraiser.

They may have even increased their offer by thousands of dollars, which is great, but may still not be enough for your case. Let us review the offer and tell you if it's worth invoking the appraisal clause or filing a lawsuit.

Depending on the type of claim, whether it's a first party or a third party claim, the next step you take is different. To know the difference in the types of claims, check out our blog post on the topic!

Still confused?

That's perfectly normal. If this were an easy process like following your grandma's old recipe for chocolate chip cookies, we wouldn't be writing this post. Feel free to give us a call directly at 770-557-2838 to discuss your case. We will explain the ins and outs in more detail and let you decide if you'd like to hire us!