Wreaking havoc to the status of the car, a write-off vehicle loses its worth, value, and originality after having severe damage in an accident or natural disaster.

According to the Australian government, a vehicle is written-off if it has undergone potential damage caused by an accident, collision, demolition, or natural calamity to the extent that its repair price outweighs its market value. A write-off is a reduction of the recognized value of something (car).

The legislation can differ slightly from one state to another, but the generally accepted two classifications of a write-off vehicle include:

   i.            Statutory Write-off

  ii.            Repairable Write-off

A Statutory write-off has severe structural or other damage or deterioration that prevents it from being driven safely on a road whereas, a Repairable write-off can be repaired to be deemed road-worthy and bears the repairing cost exceeding the actual value of the vehicle.

Statutory WOVs are used worthy for scrap or parts use whereas, the Repairable WOVs are uneconomical to be repaired. However, if your car is comprehensively insured, you’re eligible to receive compensation for the loss either by total repairing or replacement in the case of Repairable write-off vehicles.

If you want to purchase a used car, then it is beneficial to check an online revs check details of the vehicle, to see whether the car is involved in a major accident or is incorporated with major repairs in the past.

In the aftermath of a devastative car-accident, a qualified assessor will be dispatched by the relevant insurance company to assess the damage of the client’s vehicle. Making an overall assessment, the person-in-charge will provide an impartial estimate of the total cost to repair the vehicle back to its previous condition. He will be required to examine:

·         Severe structural damage of the vehicle to compromise safety concerns even after being repaired

·         Total repairing cost estimation

·         Age of the vehicle

·         Availability of the spare parts to get the vehicle back on the road

·         Listed value and condition before the accident

After the total assessment, the examiner will submit a report based on the fact-findings and policy terms of the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS). If the cumulative cost of repairs and any additional costs are more than it would cost to replace the vehicle, the car is Written-off.

In light of the report, if the car is declared written-off, the insurer will make the necessary obligations of the insurance policy to compensate for his client’s loss.

Your car insurance provider must adhere to the General Insurance Code of practice and respond to your claim within 10 business days of your claim and be required to notify the written-off vehicle register within 7 days of declaring a car a write-off.

Unambiguously the most important document for insurers under consideration while deciding for the write-off status of the damaged vehicle is the terms of the insurance policy agreement. Establishing the final amount of compensation by the insurer, this document will decide the rights of the client and liabilities of the insurer.

If the client’s policy insured the car for its retail value, the insurer will be liable for the cost of a new car of the same model and make whereas, the insurer will make a smaller payout if the vehicle was insured for its replacement value.

Having an emotional attachment with the damaged car, you can request the insurer to keep the repairable write-off. You’ll receive the sum insured less any salvage value which means that the money of salvaging the written-off vehicle will be subtracted from the projected cost of replacing it.

If the insurer has declared your vehicle uneconomical to repair and write-off, you may disagree with the repair cost or your car’s salvage value by disputing their assessment, but you have very little room for doing so since you’ll be required to prove their estimation wrong.