If you’ve been in a car accident, you know how difficult it can be make sure you take all of the necessary steps to protect yourself financially. This is especially true when you’re in a state of mild shock immediately after the accident. Along with any emergency medical needs, police reports and dealings with insurance companies, an accident affects you in another important way, especially when you want to sell or trade your vehicle in later.

As a result of the accident, the value of your car is now permanently lowered, even if all repairs have been made and there’s no evidence that an accident took place. Your vehicle has suffered what’s called diminished value. This is the difference between the market value of your vehicle before the accident occurred and its value afterwards.

Even if there is no remaining visible signs of damage, any vehicle history report attached to the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) will reveal an insurance claim, evidence that it was involved in an accident. In fact, Arizona law requires both dealers and private sellers to disclose all prior damage to a vehicle when selling it. This also applies when you use your vehicle as a trade-in. As a result, the sale price or trade-in value will be lower.

Insurance Claims for Diminished Value

It is the duty of the insurance provider to restore the vehicle owner back to the position they were in before an accident occurs. That means you can recover diminished value as part of your insurance claim. The most effective way to obtain compensation for Diminished Value is to hire an expert to prepare a Diminished Value Report. This report must include the methodology used to determine Diminished Value and a recognized authority that supports the assessment.

If you’ve been in an accident that was the other driver’s fault, you are entitled to compensation, which may include the diminished value of your vehicle. An experienced lawyer can help you with the procedures required to recover all of your losses, including the diminished value of your vehicle. If you’ve been in an auto accident, give us a call today.