“I was so thankful to be alive that at first, I never thought about my car.” Casey was involved in a three-car collision on her way to work. “There was a head-on collision directly in front of me, and I wound up being hit by one of the cars. My car went off the road and rolled twice.”
After being taken to the hospital and having her injuries treated, Casey then had to deal with her car. “My Mom showed me pictures and said she thought the car would be totaled. But I don’t even know what that means. Am I going to wind up losing my car because someone else had an accident?”
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What Does it Mean to Have a Car Totaled?
Totaled means that the car is a total loss – in other words, repairing the damage done will cost more than the car is worth. This determination can be reached several ways. If the damage is extensive, including damage to the frame or unibody, it can result in the insurance adjuster determining it’s not worth fixing. Additionally, if the car was in poor condition or low value to begin with, this can lead to it being totaled when expensive repairs are required.
The determination whether or not a car should be totaled has nothing to do with who was at fault in the accident. A car can be totaled as a result of a collision, a property damage accident, due to fire, flooding, or other natural disaster, and many other reasons.
After an accident, the best car collision repair shops will do an inspection to determine the scope and severity of damage the car has suffered. Experienced collision shops will often be able to determine that there’s a high likelihood that the car will be totaled. This is information you can use to help determine next steps, including any insurance claims you need to file.