JAGUAR DIMINISHED VALUE CLAIMS

Jaguar Diminished Value

Owning a Jaguar is an excellent experience, because the vehicles are so finally manufactured that they are a pleasure to drive. Jaguars are also an investment, and retain their original value for so long. Unfortunately, other people can endanger your investment through their own negligence. If you own a Jaguar, that was involved in a car accident, you may have a claim for diminished value.

Diminished value claims are relatively straightforward, but the insurance companies will almost always play games with you, and work feverishly to undermine and defeat your claims. Speak to an experienced diminished value attorney today, and call 703-879-5910 for a free consultation. Blaszkow Legal handles diminished value claims throughout Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC.

What is Diminished Value?

Diminished value is a computation of the lost resale value of your vehicle from immediately before a car accident, to after all of the repairs relating to that accident have been completed.

A Jaguar, being an expensive vehicle in its own right, will almost always have a diminished value component after any car accident. As long as the car accident was not your fault, you may be able to pursue compensation for this claim.

Note: If the vehicle was considered a "total loss," then there is
no diminished value claim. A diminished value claim can only
be asserted if the vehicle has been repaired, and retains the
property of the owner.

Hit and Run Car Accidents and Parking Lot Crashes

If you own a Jaguar that was parked in a parking lot, and someone struck it and then left without giving any information, you may still be able to assert a diminished value claim. Just because the crash happened on private property does not diminish your ability to assert this claim.

Parking lot crashes are often a kind of Hit and Run accident, where the at-fault party is not identified, and not identifiable. This is then handled through your own car insurance's uninsured motorist coverage.

Statute of Limitations of Diminished Value Claims

Any diminished value claim must be asserted within the statute of limitations. If you do not file the underlying lawsuit before the statute of limitations runs, then you have waived your right to recovery.

Virginia: Diminished Value claims must be filed within 5 years of the crash

Maryland: Diminished Value claims must be filed within 3 years of the crash

Washington, DC: Diminished Value claims must be filed within 3 years of the crash

The Diminished Value Claim Process

Blaszkow Legal has a system that allows us to handle these cases effectively, and expeditiously for our clients. The process is relatively straightforward, regardless of what games the insurance companies want to play. If you believe you have a diminished value claim, then follow these steps:

1. Call Blaszkow Legal. We will review the matter, and if you do not already have a Diminished Value appraisal done, we will direct you in how to obtain one (one that the insurance companies will have to contend with!).

2. Review the Report. The diminished value appraisal will result in a comprehensive report, and we will determine if the case is something that we would handle. There are diminished value claims that we turn down, not because the claim is not meritorious, but because the client would end up spending more money on an attorney, than the client would recover themselves.

3. Negotiations. We reach out to the insurance company and open a dialogue via a demand letter, which sets forth our position. Either they negotiate in good faith, or we have to reconsider our options, which includes filing a lawsuit.

4. Litigate. If the at-fault insurance company does not wish to negotiate, or does not reach an amount that is acceptable to our client and recommended by us, then we proceed to file a lawsuit.

Frequently Asked Questions/FAQs

What if both drivers are at fault for the accident?

Diminished Value Cases still follow the law, in Virginia as well as Maryland and DC. These jurisdictions are all contributory negligence states, which means that if you are found even 1% to be at fault for the happening of an accident, then you cannot recover. This includes diminished value claims. So you can generally pursue a diminished value claim, as long as you were in no way at fault for the crash.

Is an online diminished value report okay?

Generally, the answer to this is "no." The insurance companies place little to no value in online generated diminished value appraisal reports. Some of the websites that advertise this service generate the reports through AI software, rather than by a certified Insurance appraiser. Additionally, the appraiser is very rarely, if ever local to the person requesting the report. The insurance companies know that it is cost prohibitive to bring a appraiser from Los Angeles all the way to Fairfax County to testify in court. They also know, that if the appraisal is attempted to be brought into court via affidavit, again, they can bring their own appraiser to court and sometimes carry the day.

We recommend that you always have an in-person appraiser, with a local appraiser.

How does the lawyer get paid?

As with a personal injury case, we work on a contingency fee basis, which means that we do not get paid unless you collect money. However, because of the work involved in these cases, which many times have to be litigated, there are some cases that do not justify the involvement of an attorney. You should always call us to discuss the case, but we may not take every case if the diminished value claim is too modest.

However, if you have an underlying injury claim arising out of your accident, then that changes the math entirely. If you have an injury claim, as well as a diminished value claim, then there is no lower limit to the diminished value claim that we will advance.

Get Help from an Experienced Jaguar Diminished Value Attorney Today!

Car accidents are stressful as it is, even if you have not been injured. If you were injured, then the stress only piles on. You should never have to battle against a self-interested car insurance company alone. Always reach out to a car accident attorney who is ready, willing, and able to fight the insurance companies for the compensation you deserve.

Call Blaszkow Legal today for a free consultation anywhere in the DMV: 703-879-5910