People have car accidents all the time. They vary from horrific to tiny fender benders. It is safe to say that the latter is the most common. And if you have had an accident recently, it probably wasn’t huge. If it was, my condolences. But you will still be keen to know how much your car is worth now that it has been a little bit banged up. Who wouldn’t?
How accidents affect the worth of a vehicle
Until you had this collision or fender bender, your car was the trusty steed that effortlessly transported you to work and back every day. It even took you on a road trip every now and then. After the drama was over you had the vehicle repaired. Well done. But it has never been the same. Something just isn’t right anymore.
Or you didn’t have any repairs done and it is just a banged up and sad looking machine. Whatever your situation is, you will always be wondering how much you would be able to sell it for now that it has been damaged so badly. Read further to find out.
How bad was the accident?
This is probably the most defining factor of what your car can be valued at after a bang-up. It might seem like it is an open and shut question with a simple answer. In the case of a small collision that only broke a headlight. It would be safe to say that once repairs are done the damage to the vehicle’s value will be negligible if anything.
In the case of entire panes being dented beyond recognition, or suspension that has been broken. You can assume that your vehicle will take a serious value hit. Even if the panels have been repaired perfectly and you can’t notice a thing, the vehicle will have dropped in value substantially. It can lose up to thirty percent of its value.
When trying to sell the car is its new state as a repaired accident vehicle, you will find that a lot of people won’t buy it. And don’t think you can just lie about it because the repairs are so amazing. Major repairs leave evidence, and you will be caught.
What if repairs weren’t made?
Sometimes repairs aren’t worth the hassle. In the case of a repair that will cost the same amount as the car was worth when you bought it. You would be right. But sometimes it is worth it to get the vehicle repaired. It depends on where the damage is, what was damaged and what percent of the car was damaged.
If the engine or transmission has been damaged so much that they need replacement, you should just count your losses and sell the car to a salvaging yard. If the damage isn’t one of those things, but has affected over forty percent of the vehicle, the same thing applies. The vehicle drove its last Km. When you sell it you will probably only be able to sell it to a salvage yard and they won’t pay you much. Bad luck. Try contacting cash for scrap car services and you might get the fortune.