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Update on Deer vs Truck... Not good !

Bruce from Can.

Bruce from Can.

Well-known Member
Location
Woodville, Ontario, Canada
Looks like the suicide deer may kill my truck. Air bag sensors are in the bumper, so both bags blew. Just over 2 Grand for replacement air bags. Total parts are $5207.75 plus installation . Truck is a 2002 GMC with 133000 km on it , we have not winter driven this truck, as it is 2 ad. Body shop told me to get ready to find a new pickup, as he tells me insurance probably won"t want to fix it. Seems wrong as the body on this truck is really good, and only has cosmetic damage to the front end. Feel like I am going to take it up the wazoo on this deal!
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Let the insurance pay you for it and keep it if they will let you or buy it back if they will sell it back to you if you want to keep it. Fix it yourself then. Ask the body shop what it would cost you to have them fix it if you keep it. Often if you are paying for the work out of your own pocket the bill is cheaper than what the insurance company bill will be.
 
Bruce, I had a similar experience but with a type of damage to the cab support near the firewall, could never make that like factory, but it was easy enough to repair and you would not really notice. Insurance did total it, but I was able to buy it back and also not have a junk title, or whatever they call it when something is totaled, salvage vehicle, etc. I did repair it and still have it, 70K on it, ran great and no heavy rust or rot on it.

If you could get the claim settled and buy it back.... and I realize there's some parts expense, but you would think its a good one to repair with a clean body and otherwise in decent mechanical condition.

Did you at least skin that deer and check the carcass, I'd have had those back straps and tenderloins at least, if the innards were out and I was able to flush the cavity. At least you get a meal off it LOL !
 
I had to deal with a hit and run with my daughter's car a '97 lumina. Was my MIL's always sat inside until my daughter got it, for free. It took the front bumper, hood and left fender. Body shop estimate was over $3000, I found the same color parts in a salvage yard nearby for $400 and bolted them on myself. You maybe able to do the same. See if you can delete the air bags.
 
The ins comp got you by the gonads Bruce.
I would try settle for a cash amount and fix it myself.
Forget the air bags.
Vehicles are usually written off with a buy back and can't be insured again without a full road worth inspection report(and they are really nasty on an older vehicle)
BT DT.

I only carry liability these days.
My newest vehicle is an 07,..its had plenty scratches and dings when i bought it anyway.
 
Might have been better off to not even have initiated a claim. A few years ago I hit a deer at 60 MPH in a Suzuki Sidekick which had liability insurance (I normally only carry liability on older vehicles for this reason as well as cost, and they will want to total it anyhow). I never even notified the insurance company, and purchased the parts and repaired it myself, then drove it off and on for a couple years, then sold it less than a year ago. Parts to fix was roughly $500 not including paint, and it was not worth the cost of painting.......drove just fine. If it were me, I would cancel the claim, and repair it, and drive without airbags. But that is me.
 
Could be different where he is with DMV, but the one I did it with was a '94 ranger, XLT, no air bags, more of a puncture kind of damage, slid into the tongue of a boat trailer, and it went in above th front bumper, wrinkled the fender and hit the cab firewall at the corner. Body shop wanted to put a new cab on it but for some reason, could not find one etc.

I bought it back, repaired and did not get a salvage title, the time span between the accident and the claim was more than a year, I parked it and got another truck, motballed it long enough that DMV did not have to issue a salvage title. The claim paid it off and the remainder went to me. If there was a salvage title, then it could have been a hassle.

The ironic thing was that Progressive, my insurance provider then, had been raking me over the coals for $550 a month, for 3 vehicles financed, for a few years, one was a mustang cobra convertible I had a clean record though never a dui or anything of the sort, last speeding ticket was years ago, way into the past. Darned agent would not do anything, so I started paying the bill at the last minute every month, just before cancellation. For some reason I can't recall, I could not get out of using Progressive at the time, there was some issue with that. So I figured the right time to nail them with a claim, they had to pay, it was a legitimate claim, and I got every cent back from them, then they tried to nail me for some $100 fee on something, contacted the NYS agency that deals with insurance and issues with providers, that was the end of that. Got the full value of the truck, clean title, fixed it, had the value of that if I was to sell it, $2500 or so given the condition, cancelled Progressive, went to Geico and reduced my bill by $1700 or something to that effect, + I got better coverage ! Never understood why they gouged me like that, I stuck it right back to them, and swore I'd never do business with them again because of it and the agent. Sometimes things happen for a reason, I believe this was one of them.
 
Wow! My F250 looked a whole lot worse than that. I'm thinking that one was around seventeen.
 
Just to add a little; deer damage is covered under comprehensive, and does not count against you rate-wise. And even if you don't have collision on a vehicle, you will be covered for deer damage as long as you have comp.

I think the magic number is 80%...that is, if the amount to repair is more than 80% of the value of the vehicle, they can write it off. You may elect to have used parts put on to get the repair amount down under 80%. At least that was what I did once on an older car with similar damage.
 
I too hit a deer once with my 2wd Ranger with damage just like yours,BUT,my air bags did not go off.About $3000 in repairs as I recall-I thought my truck was totaled,but my insurance paid it.And it has hit more than one!
However,this,once again is why deer should be eliminated,the damage,deaths,and cost they incur are unnecessary.If you have insurance,this costs you:it is factored in your premiums!Where I live,everyone has been involved in deer accidents.Their carcasses lay all along the roadways;you see them every mile.There is no reason for them to roam free.It would be safer and cheaper to fence a few up some where and shoot the ones that escape.
Anyway,good luck with your repairs;I hate to see a nice truck wrecked so senselessly.Mark
 
Hi
In Manitoba you can file a claim and if you don't like the deal you can back out, My dad did this with his van after he had a misjudgment, backing up one day. I wouldn't think there is frame damage from whats seen and said, looks like everything else is good for paint and stuff. If they write that off somebodys going to buy that for maybe 10% of it's value, repair it and be driving or selling a nice truck cheap. Look into it more as others have said. if it would pass safety checks after it was repaired, you can't find nice trucks for the money they will pay, you might fix it for the extra or less you got to put with their money, It's not game over yet from my thinking..
Regards Robert
 
Print out the private sale value and retail value of your truck in fixed up condition (pre-accident condition), and bring those with you when you talk to your insurance company to negotiate a payment.

Also get some estimates of it's salvage value as-is and some estimates of the cost to fix it privately. You may be far ahead to take the insurance payment and just replace the pickup. A 2002 pickup is 13 almost 14 years old. The supply of used parts might be larger than the demand.
 
I'm surprised it set the airbags off. But that said - of course the insurance company is going to total it. They have to repair the airbags (and that's inline with what I know about air bags - about $800-$1000 for each one that goes off). I'd do what they said below and buy it back and make the repairs myself (or have them made at some shade tree place) - looks to be primarily the grill and headlight assembly. Glue the airbag covers back on and drive it like its a 1994 model without airbags.

Airbags "help" in an accident but your seat belts are what will save your life.
 
The deer damage is so bad here in Iowa some ins co are refusing to cover deer damage. I get to deal with ins co daily--You got to ask about it.
 
(quoted from post at 11:31:20 05/14/15) The deer damage is so bad here in Iowa some ins co are refusing to cover deer damage. I get to deal with ins co daily--You got to ask about it.
Click to expand...

I think it is time for the state of Iowa to step up and accept responsibilty for damage done by the deer that BELONG to the state of Iowa. Either that or the state of Iowa can round-up all the deer and keep them in a fenced in enclosure.

Also, if your vehicle is damaged by a deer, make sure to report it as being the fault of the deer, and NOT your fault. No one willingly HITS a deer. The DEER ran into my car.
 
Just to add - I think from what I see that damage (minus airbags of course) can be repaired for less than your deductible unless you have a very low deductible. Either way, if you like the truck, purchase a grill and turn signal assembly off ebay or aftermarket, replace, and drive it. Like others have said, it is not worth messing with the airbags - cut them loose, glue up the split, and forget it. I definitely would not total that pickup. Even if you do wish to get something else, you can do the same and sell to someone who wants a nice pickup, and most aren't going to care about the missing airbags - some would give more for the truck without those :).
 
I agree, Very surprised that the air bags deployed, my wife hit a deer with our 97 sonoma, hit the deer at 60mph, took out the entire grill, lights, hood, fender on one side, airbag never deployed. the insurance rebuilt that truck, almost 200k Miles on it, total damage was close to $5k. I agree with the others, if you can, buy the truck back, eliminate the airbags, replace the few damaged parts, and put the rest of the cash in the bank. That truck looks great, other than the obvious...
 
Be thankful you do not have Nationwide (run and hide) insurance because they are sure NOT by your side. I bought an old '99 Saturn that had less damage than my minivan and found out about car-parts.com, everybodys friend when you're looking for junkyard parts. Plus youtube has many videos about almost every kind of truck repair ( and car) and I researched ebay and amazon and between the 3 places, I did pretty well.
 
Yep, settle with the ins. company then buy back the "Salvage"

Fix it yourself. Forget the airbags. We all survived most of our lives without airbags or sealtbelts.

Gene
 
Air bags deploy based on the rate of deceleration. If you hit a deer while standing on the brakes the air bags are much more likely to deploy than if you hit a deer without braking.
 
What's the problem here? My wife used to drive a lot of miles for her job and our cars would be worth little by the time they were paid for. We got out of a couple of them in pretty good shape when they were totaled.Both times the damage was the other guy's fault.We also had a '97 Lumina that was totaled after hitting a deer and we bought it back for beans and had it fixed and it drove 2 sons to college and back for 5 years and is still being driven with 317,000 miles on it.
 
IF you choose to repair and drive it, be sure to provide WRITTEN evidence of the airbag delete, especially to future buyer. Liability of selling a vehicle with altered airbags is incredibly high.
 
Obviously I am not positive of this, and probably varies by state, but last I knew a vehicle sold by an individual was as is. I know a dealer has to specifically state
if they are selling as is, but not sure that is the case with an individual selling. A few years ago I was approached by an individual to buy a Toyota Tacoma pickup
driven by my wife. The truck had been in two accident with approx. $4,000 in damage each time, and insurance repaired both times (one was a deer hit). Neither instances
deployed the air bags, and was mechanically fine in both instances, and damage was cosmetic. At no time did this individual inquire if the truck had ever been in an
accident, and I really did not care if I sold the truck or not, so I priced it at full book value. He wrote a check and took the truck home. A couple weeks later he
called me stating his insurance company had informed him of the two accident claims, and now asks if the truck had been in those accidents. In fact I would have told him
if he had asked, and he had every opportunity to check it over, and looked it over and drove it, and was satisfied with it until he heard from a 3rd party it had been
repaired. I know I have purchased several vehicles and later found out they had been damaged, and in fact some (such as the one I drive daily) have been some of the
best ones I ever owned. I always figure it is buyer beware, I know it has been for me, and I look them over carefully. And do not rely on Carfax.....I can cite two
vehicles I traded with pretty severe damage previously, and both came up clean on Carfax when I traded them off.
 
WRONG....insurance companies in great state of Michigan have NOW allowed rate increases for deer accidents!! Heard it from the mouths of agents!
 
In WA state of the insurance company totals a vehicle it is possible to buy it back from them. The major down side is it will come back to you with a "salvage" title. Really tough to sell one of those later. Of course with an older vehicle that you plan to keep it may be no big deal. Just know if you do want to sell it it may be worth much less than you think. Ins co wants to sell it back at book value and it's not worth book value when you get it because of the branded title. Maybe other states are different. Had to let a nice low mile ford ranger ( my wife crashed it) go just for that reason.
 
I really like you jailhouse lawyers. Better check on your advice before you give it. Depending on the state, it can be illegal to sell a vehicle with any safety device disabled. And yea there are liability issues involved. So those who may be thinking about this consult the motor vehicle laws in your state and one of the shyster lawyers. Some states knowingly selling a vehicle with the air bags deleted could put you in jeopardy of negligent homicide charges. Just saying.

Rick
 
Where you get that information..ive never heard that.. it actually dont matter if your foot is on the break or not.
 
Tell your state to allow, RIFLES! Too many deer on your side the crick, the pumpkin lobbers you guys use (shotguns) are not keeping up!
 
I have been thinking along those lines for some time now, myself. If I have a cow or horse in a pasture and they escape and are hit by a motorist, I am liable. OK, so since squirrels, rabbits, deer, and other wildlife are "owned" or controlled by the government, (or state), then THEY should be liable if a deer destroys my vehicle! One reason I also mentioned rabbits, is because some years ago, my daughter was driving my 87 Chrysler New Yorker and thought she felt a bump. She was only doing about 35/40 mph. When she got to her destination about a block away, she checked the front of the car and there was a rabbit in the grille.
 
I've seen newer cars with 60 thousand with a reputation for living well into quarter million mile range scrapped for less damage than that. A guy would put a bumper cover or door mirror on them and resell for a decent profit.
 
(quoted from post at 20:17:24 05/14/15) Just to add - I think from what I see that damage (minus airbags of course) can be repaired for less than your deductible unless you have a very low deductible. Either way, if you like the truck, purchase a grill and turn signal assembly off ebay or aftermarket, replace, and drive it. Like others have said, it is not worth messing with the airbags - cut them loose, glue up the split, and forget it. I definitely would not total that pickup. Even if you do wish to get something else, you can do the same and sell to someone who wants a nice pickup, and most aren't going to care about the missing airbags - some would give more for the truck without those :).
Click to expand...

Just be sure if you do sell it that the buyer knows without a doubt that there is no airbag in it. Otherwise a lawyer might be knocking on your door when that buyer hits something and is seriously injured because of the missing bag. I wouldn't let them scrap it either if you can fix it for a reasonable cost. I still carry comp and collision on my old vehicles because the annual cost is pretty cheap compared to what a body shop might want to fix them.
 
Airbags go off primarily due to deceleration - sudden deceleration indicates an impact. They've worked that way since 1999.


http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/05/airbags_deployment.html
 
I had a similiar situation. Daughter wrecks her car. Insurance says total loss because they price new parts. I found a body shop that put daughters car back together with used parts, air bag, hood, fenders and bumper. So a total, may not really be a total loss. Check out wrecking yards for part.

Keep in mind, you will never be able to trade truck in at a dealer, they want nothing to do with wrecked vehicles.
 
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