5 Best Reasons to Get Your Car Appraised
Knowing what your vehicle is really worth can be important for much more than simply selling it. From protecting a collector car to dealing with an insurance claim, a professional auto appraisal provides documented evidence of your vehicle’s value when it matters most.
1. Insuring a Custom or Collector Vehicle
If you own a custom, classic, or collectible vehicle, you’ve likely invested significant time and money into it. Standard valuation guides may not accurately reflect the cost of replacing a rare, restored, modified, or exceptionally well-maintained vehicle.
For Agreed Value or Collector Car Insurance, your insurer may require detailed documentation supporting the vehicle’s condition, specifications, modifications, and value. A professional appraisal can provide the documentation needed to establish an appropriate insured value and help protect your investment.
2. Determining Your Vehicle’s Prior-to-Loss Value
If your vehicle has been declared a total loss after an accident, the insurance company’s settlement offer may not always reflect what it would actually cost to replace it with a comparable vehicle.
A Prior-to-Loss Appraisal can establish what your vehicle was worth immediately before the accident. The appraisal considers factors such as condition, mileage, options, equipment, modifications, and relevant market comparables to provide documented support for its value.
3. Dividing Assets During a Divorce
Divorce often requires valuable assets to be identified and fairly divided—and vehicles can represent a significant portion of those assets.
Whether the vehicle is a daily driver, collector car, classic, exotic, or specialty vehicle, an independent appraisal can provide a documented opinion of value for attorneys, mediators, courts, and the parties involved. This helps ensure the vehicle is properly accounted for during the division of assets.
4. Knowing Your Trade-In Value Before Buying a New Car
Your current vehicle may represent a substantial portion of the money going toward your next car purchase. Before accepting a dealer’s trade-in offer, it helps to know what your vehicle is actually worth in your local market.
An independent appraisal gives you a better understanding of your vehicle’s value before you begin negotiating. That knowledge can help you evaluate a trade-in offer and make a more informed decision when purchasing your next vehicle.
5. Filing a Diminished Value Claim After an Accident
Even when an insurance company pays to repair your vehicle properly, the accident can still affect its resale value.
A prospective buyer or dealer may be willing to pay less for a vehicle with an accident history than for an otherwise comparable vehicle with a clean history. That difference is known as diminished value.
A professional Diminished Value Appraisal can help document the loss in market value resulting from the accident and provide supporting information for a diminished value claim where applicable.
Know What Your Vehicle Is Worth
Whether you’re insuring a collector car, dealing with a total loss, dividing assets, trading in a vehicle, or pursuing a diminished value claim, an independent appraisal provides documented information you can use to make better-informed decisions.
