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Further in the original language
Drivers whose car was damaged in an accident often wonder - and how the fact of the accident may affect the cost of the car in the future. And is it possible to recover the difference in the loss of commodity value from the culprit? Insurers and lawyers have different opinions on this matter. Autonews.ua talked to experts and found out how drivers should act in similar situations, and whether it is worth worrying at all.
Ukrainian insurers believe that the fact that a car becomes cheaper after an accident is a myth.
According to them, in only 5-10% of road accident cases, serious damage to the body occurs, the car's operational characteristics deteriorate, and the owner then has to reduce the price when selling. All other consequences can be eliminated so qualitatively that it will not affect the price at resale in the future.
«First of all, today, after an accident, we often have a large-scale replacement of parts, not repairs. The second point is related to how the body work is going today. It used to be beaten with a hammer in the garage, but today the main part of cars is repaired at normal stations with equipment no worse than the factory one. So that if the technology is followed, the car components that have been repaired do not differ from those that came off the assembly line. Without special equipment, you won't be able to determine whether there was a repair effect.'', — says the general director of the "Insurance Business" Association; Vyacheslav Chernyakhovsky.
Also, pricing on the used car market indicates that an accident that once happened to a vehicle no longer has a decisive influence on the price.
«If you open any online platform for the sale of cars, you will see identical cars with the same mileage, in which the price difference reaches 20%. Someone needs money faster, someone has this car not in Kyiv, but in the Dnipro, and they need to go to get it. That is, today the price of a car is formed not only by whether the car was in an accident or not.
In addition, about 130,000 road accidents per hour occur in Ukraine. Therefore, there are practically no cars in the cities that did not have wings or something else. This affects the price very little. According to the methodology, we can consider that my car, which was parked in the garage and did not get into an accident, is worth $20,000, and on the market they will give me a maximum of $16,000. So today's price — it's not a matter of mathematical calculation, but of agreement,», — they say in the "Insurance Business" Association.
Exceptions may be made only in cases when the road accident affected the operational characteristics of the car. For example, when tires began to wear out faster due to a skewed body and worsening camber. Or when it was necessary to cut off half of the hull, digest it, and after 5 years rust appeared at the place of the quarrel. But in this case, damage can be considered if it is confirmed. That is, if a person proves that he sold the car cheaper precisely because of this reason.
An important point that many people don't know about — loss of commodity value occurs only at the time of sale.
«If a person does not sell a car, but repairs it and continues to drive it, he does not have a commodity value, because in this case his car is not a commodity, but a means of transportation. The economic category is possible only in commodity-monetary relations. And if there is no purchase-sale operation of this car, then it is impossible to fix that the price has fallen», — Vyacheslav Chernyakhovsky draws attention.
Therefore, it will not be possible to obtain compensation for the loss of the car in the current value, assuming that sometime in the future you will put it up for sale.
If the road accident just falls into the "complex" 10%, then insurers recommend repairing the car in the best possible place. Because either the culprit or his insurance company will pay for the repair.
«If the car is not so expensive, then it is better to part with a potentially unsafe or short-lived car. Today, a lot of companies buy cars for disassembly, for spare parts, so selling a car for parts is sometimes quite profitable. After that, you can buy a similar car, but whole. This is especially true for those who have a CASCO policy. A person can receive a payment plus or minus the amount the car was worth before it was damaged. So here is another recommendation — have a CASCO or mini-CASCO policy, which costs about $150-200 per hour (300 UAH per month), and will save drivers from unnecessary worries, advises Autonews.ua Vyacheslav Chernyakhovsky.
But the general director of the expert company "DEKRA Expert" Oleg Golubenko definitely believes — loss of merchandise value is the same part of the loss in a road accident, therefore, it should also be compensated.
Due to the fact that the existing insurances in Ukraine (neither CASCO nor OSAGO) do not compensate for the loss of market value, the owner of the car must require money from the owner of the car.
«First, it is done in the order of claims. First, you need to make an assessment of the loss of commodity value to know what amount is involved. With this report, you can meet with the culprit or call him on the phone and ask if he will compensate the loss. If the issue could not be resolved peacefully, the report must be submitted to the court (at the place of residence of the defendant or at the place of the injury). The requirements for drawing up a statement of claim are set out in the Civil Code of Ukraine. One of the points there is what the claims are based on — this is exactly what will be the assessment of the loss from the experts, — Oleg Golubenko tells Autonews.ua.
There is no unequivocal figure for damage that determines whether a lawsuit should be initiated or not. For example, Oleg Golubenko says that he was recently consulted by the owner of a Mercedes, whose car depreciated by UAH 68,000 after an accident. When he learned how much it would cost to go to court, the client refused the idea, although the court would most likely side with him. For other people, even a smaller amount will make sense.
«If we are talking about the average Ukrainian, then it is possible to go to court with damages of UAH 30,000 or more. Judging for less, when you calculate all the expenses and how long it will last, it will hardly make sense», — Oleg Golubenko summed up.
It is also necessary to consider whether the defendant will be able to compensate the damage. After all, it can easily turn out that this is a mother with many children or a person with minimal income. And then the payments will have to wait very long.
Source: Autonews.ua
Author: Andriy Dovgan
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