Even if the accident is not your fault the other insurance company will fight you every step of the way regarding aftermarket parts on your car.
Case in point: My daughter was involved in a head-on collision last November. Girl crossed the center line and totaled my daughter’s car. She had a 2002 RSX-S with an A-Spec kit on it and because the car originally didn’t come with that A-Spec kit the other girl’s insurance company would not cover the cost of it. We fought with them for almost 3 months and got nowhere. We totally got the shaft on that deal. We had doumentation for everything and still got nothing.
Lets get back to reality though, since none of us are driving $300k cars. The majority of people are driving moderately modded cars that come in well under the standard 100k liability limits. In a case like that, where you’re not at fault, the at fault driver’s insurance company should be restoring your car to pre-accident condition, including aftermarket parts.
Regardless of who is at fault, you had better make sure that your insurance company knows about all the extras you have on your car if you want them to be covered in case of an accident. Will it bump up the cost on your policy, absolutely, but it is well worth it to have everything covered. No insurance company is going to take your word for what your parts are worth unless you previously informed them. Never throw away receipts for anything pertaining to what you have put on your car and update your insurance carrier whenever you make changes to your car.
yeah it can. that LKQ part is in a wrecker’s for a reason. The car it is on was a total loss of some sort, otherwise it would be on the road. Therefore you are taking a used part off a car that was likely already in an accident. Make the insurer document the reason the wrecked car is being used for salvage to gaurantee that the part isnt already fatigued or corroded… being exposed in a wrecking yard for who knows how long.
the insurer should chose path of least resistence and opt for the OEM part. You may also want to document the cost difference. LKQ parts need to be reconditioned before installation. If the cost difference is less than $150 - $200 then new OEM one should be equal.
Progressive may have reverse deals with Keystone for rebates on LKQ parts, that is another reason why they would opt for that route.
Remember, you are not at fault here, Progressive is subrogating with your insurance company (if they are not you should make them by filing a claim with your insurer). The cost of insurance should be irrelevant here since you aren’t filing an at fault claim with your own insurer.
For anyone who cares for an update:
I took the truck to Schmidts auto body on broadway and transit rd. With the initial reply and further info from bad hulk and then the recommendation from several members and friends I talked to all recommended the same place. So after the estimate from his(the guy who hit me) insurance company, I then picked up my truck and took it on over to Schmidts to be covered under and fully paid for by Progressive. They do use new after market parts to repair the vehicle under LKQ. That is their standard way of repairing older vehicles and what you can expect for a repair on any older damaged vehicle. Apparently LKQ (Like Kind Quality) has gone a long way in the last few years with the developments of court cases further and more finely defining LKQ.
