The theft of our Camper ( The Movie )

[Bookumdanno]

Originally Posted by DougW

Usually not. The amount of your award would be based on those items being part of the unit that is totaled. I know with cars they even write down the ID numbers from the tires to be sure no one swaps them out for junk tires.

I kind of knew that but I thought I'd ask anyway.

[OldSoldier]

Originally Posted by Reverse_snowbird

Three cheers for your wife. That's one smart and determined lady.

It's a good thing they made the check out so that you'd have to endorse it. Someone obviously wasn't doing their job to give you that estimate.

Looking forward to a future post where you get your new rig.

Cherish her. She's a KEEPER!!!!!!

[Bookumdanno]

Originally Posted by Oaklevel

Normally you can only remove your personal possessions but nothing that is considered part of the trailer or attached unless you buy it back from the insurance company.

We removed all our personal stuff while it was at the recovery company storage lot.

[Bookumdanno]

Originally Posted by OldSoldier

Cherish her. She's a KEEPER!!!!!!

I know and I will. Also know not to get in her way when she's on a warpath.

[Bookumdanno]

Originally Posted by Chris Pastuzyn

Thanks for the update, Great job by DW ,Like already said ,Now just waiting to here about the new one.

We're waiting on the insurance company now. Only been 24 hours. Don't know when we'll have a new one, they don't seem to be staying around the lot very long now a days.

[shadows4]

Ours was just totaled. The tow guy that came and picked it up, asked me if I wanted the 30 lb. bottles. He said nobody leaves them. We took everything off we had added. TV's, DVD player etc.

[AdamKam]

Check with your insurer if the awning and slideout toppers are covered' We had $800+ damage due to windstorm and found it was not covered under basic coverage. Was never mentioned when we applied for insurance coverage.

[Bhrava]

When any vehicle is totaled, they go by book values, and book values do not include items not originally installed on the vehicle. If the trailer came with 20 lb tanks, and you installed 30lb tanks, they are yours. If you installed JT Strongarms, they are yours to retrieve. When my 2014 truck was totaled, it had aftermarket brakes and shocks, bedrug, topper, etc. and none of it would be covered by insurance, and since I still and the originals parts, I swapped out the brakes and shocks and reused them on the next truck, sold the bedrug and topper since I went to a new generation body style (yet the brakes and shocks were still the same).

Not 100% sure on this because of so many different brands and manufacturers, but aren't the bottles installed by the dealer?

[PenJoe]

We have had to do some tough dealing. When Hurricane Charlie damaged out in-laws home, they got a check for about $13K. My FIL asked what he should do with it. Send it back was the response. Insurance companies have different way of doing business. One of them is issuing a low ball check. If cashed, it is settlement in full. His company was one of them. Others will pay out as you go. The second adjuster went in for mental treatment. The 3rd adjuster finally came across. Over $60K in repairs plus living expenses. Persistence pays.

We, unfortunately, are dealing with a T-bone accident on 7-3-20. A woman with dementia, drove through a cross street stop sign, never slowed and we were broadsided. After a 180 spin we climbed a curb and side swiped a street sign. The impact was so violent that 3 rims were destroyed, two tires blown, the rear axle broke loose, pushed into the rear bumper, and the transmission oil drained off in the street. No one was seriously injured. The woman had no idea where she was, where she was going, or anything about the accident.

Her insurance is claiming responsibility. The claims agent contacted us and asked what body shop we would prefer. The response was, to the salvage area of your preference and it will require a flatbed to get it there. Our Silverado was in mint condition with very low miles with a lot of accessories. We will not accept repairs. On a trade or sale, it would have less value.

So far, they have agreed to a total loss. I have assembled a full list of accessories with receipts for the claim. I have also assembled comps. We are only looking for a fair settlement. We were very pleased with the truck before the accident with no plans to trade or sell. We will have to put out several thousand for a new replacement and the accessories we had. We don't want somebody else's problems on a used like vehicle.

It is difficult to imagine the mind set and determination of the thieves-add stupidity to that. So, kudos to your wife for taking a stand. You went out of the norm to protect it from theft. Make sure you get the full value. Don't settle for less.

[DrLewie]

A friend learned a lesson from a homeowner's claim for a flooded kitchen which I think may apply here. She was advised to hire her own independent adjuster. The independent settlement was thousands more than the one from the insurer and the fee was miniscule compared to the settlement.

[bucky53]

I dealt with body shops for years. The profit is in the supplement.
A supplement is what they find as they start work. Adjusters are told not to write anything they can't see. An example would be a truck bumper pushed halfway to the w/shield but don't write the AC condenser water pump or radiator.
Good luck with it all.

[Bookumdanno]

Originally Posted by DrLewie

A friend learned a lesson from a homeowner's claim for a flooded kitchen which I think may apply here. She was advised to hire her own independent adjuster. The independent settlement was thousands more than the one from the insurer and the fee was miniscule compared to the settlement.

Right now I don't think we need to do this, my wife is handling it rather well. They will learn hehehe

[Bhrava]

I don't know which is worse, dealing with insurance, or banks. Have had two total loss crashes, neither were my at fault, one was a whiteout with a white car stopped in the middle of the road with no lights. The other was a driver lost control on ice and slid across my lane for a full head on broadside. Both were totals, and had to deal with the insurance. Wasn't bad.

Banks OTOH! Been dealing with an Escrow company on the sale of my last trailer, they sent the check to my bank on June 29. It got there July 11th. All the time in between I was asking, where is the check? It doesn't take this long to go from SF CA to Omaha NE. I could drive there and back twice by now. When it finally got delivered it wasn't to the address specified on the lien holder sheet. SO now I am uh, wait, what? after the same response each time I email their support and not getting an answer I was satisfied with, I finally called. The bank did get the check, it was USPS that took forever. I go to call the bank, which takes at least 5 minutes before you can get to the speak to an agent menu, and it was a 45 minute hold time! UGH, banks, insurance companies, I don't know which is worse.

I have had issues with the insurance when hitting a deer. They had no adjusters in the area where I work, so had to take time off to have it looked at, then the guy never shows up. I finally got through to them and arranged for a rental and dropped it off at the body shop for repairs. Took 2 days for the adjuster to show up even though they were aware the truck would be at the shop on that specific date.

So yeah, It isn't any fun dealing with them.

[RSBivings]

Before you sign a contract with an independent adjuster like someone suggested i would suggest you see what is the final offer of the insurance company. When you sign a contract you get what ever the final offer is with the insurance company and then you have to pay the adjuster you hired those fees can vary and your insurance does not pay that, you do and it comes out of the insurance settlement so may not be a good deal. But you make the call appears your wife has a good handle maybe just get her a very nice present for all of her troubles that would be a win win

[patsylou2]

Always stay on them and ask for a second adjuster. We did and got what we wanted on our damage. Good luck!

[kittlecat]

Hi, I was able to remove any items (not personal) that I had added to my TT but it could lower the final payout from the insurance company when the TT was totaled. I am someone who keeps receipts (still) and provided those to my insurance company for any improvements I had made to the camper for a year prior to the date of loss. This included new tires that I had had put on the TT and had less than 500 miles on them. That increased my payout. Of course, I was allowed to take all my personal items out of my TT.

My reality was that my insurance company didn't really care what I took. The towing company that eventually came and took the camper off the RV dealer's lot where it had been did not do an inspection or use a checklist to see what was supposed to be on the TT. We were able to swap the tires out so I got to keep my new tires and we put some junk tires on the TT since it was going to be towed away on a flatbed. I suppose it will depend on how much of a stickler your insurance company is.

The other thing that really helped me with a final payout from my insurance company was my RV dealer wrote out an itemized appraisal of my TT to give the insurance company a more accurate (higher) value of my TT's value/worth. This included the dealer researching how many of my TT had been manufactured and how many were known to still be on the road (not a lot), which dramatically increased the value of my TT. The insurance company had to keep enlarging the bullseye they worked with when trying to find comparable units to mine, which helped me tremendously.

I'm glad your wife spoke up. I advocated loudly and clearly for myself and ended up being very satisfied with the final payout on my TT after it was deemed a total loss. It was a long, slow process, but it worked out in my favor.

Best to you and I certainly hope you find a new unit that you can create new memories in. I still mourn the loss of my TTs (I've gone through 2 total losses) but am happy with what I have now.

[Iwannacamp]

Some stuff already stated....

My insurance company said must have what it came with and I could take off what I put in it and my stuff.

I took my EMS and a few other things, but some stuff was either not expensive or did not have the original still(I quit pack ratting). Somehow one of the LP tanks got left in storage. I swapped the reefer in the OK for a non working dorm reefer I had. When the salvage dude showed up to get it....he could have cared less.

Sad day for me

[Jfkmk]

Originally Posted by ManlyMan

Typical scam run by the insurance industry.

Scam by the insurance company maybe, but not the entire industry. Not all insurance companies are the same.

[Sunseeker16]

I've had straight line wind damage to a pontoon boat, hail damage to my house and car and damage to another car from a piece of metal that came off a Fed Ex truck. Allstate has been good to me. I really think the agent has a lot to do with the success of the claim and I have a good one.

[Sharon455]

Did they ever test inside the trailer to see if the thieves had a chance to get any drugs inside?