Board logo

how does cat d affect value?
andrew-theasby - 20/8/09 at 11:10 AM

Thinking of going to see a car this weekend, its registered as cat d from the owner before the one whos selling it. It was stolen/recovered with some near side damage. Is it only minor damage to be cat d not c? Is there a way to see if its been cloked other than checking the doccuments, as its quite low mileage. Anything else i should know/look out for. Thanks

r1_pete - 20/8/09 at 11:16 AM

About half IMO, you have to prepare yourself not to be able to sell it on when you've finished with it.

will121 - 20/8/09 at 11:32 AM

the actual 'value' may not be any less if repaired properly, OMHO generally its that the seller has to have lower expectations on the price they can actually sell it for, in that if a CatD and a un-damaged car were advertised side by side for the same price which one would most buy, hence market reduction in selling price, anything between 25 to 50% to get a sale. Also dont expect to make up this saving when you sell it on in the future.
you can still do a detail check eg RAC which should highlight milage issues, might be it sat around a long while awaiting repair? find out what panel damage there was and have a good look around that area under carpets/trim to check damage/repair a paint crazing.

westf27 - 20/8/09 at 12:00 PM

you need to buy cheap because you need to sell cheap.Different of course if you intend to keep it,savings to be had if your carefull.....good luck

Peteff - 20/8/09 at 12:14 PM

My daughter bought a cat D 2001 Corsa for £1350 which was about £1000 off the equivalent forecourt price at the time. Cat D just means it was going to cost more for repair than the value of the car to the insurance company not how serious the damage was.

scootz - 20/8/09 at 12:51 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Peteff
Cat D just means it was going to cost more for repair than the value of the car to the insurance company not how serious the damage was.


Not entirely the full story...

The insurance co has a lot of things to calculate! The main biggies are:
1. Lots of folk have 'new for old' insurance policies taken out against their new purchase. Lots of low level damaged cars get Cat D bands becuase of this.
2. Car storage. Claims take time to process and the cost can be as high as £25 a day to store a damaged car pending an 'outcome'. This soon adds up!
3. Car hire. Most folk have 'hire car' policies, and as it takes time to process the claim - that's a lot of rental money to be forking out... on top of the storage cost!
4. The car will have to be fixed with genuine 'new' components... lots of cars can be fixed using second hand parts that will do the job just as well, but insurance co's can't take this route.

Basically, it's a quick calculation... all the above takes a lot of time and money to sort out. Write the buger off and move on! It's (one of) the reasons our premiums are so damn high!

On the continent, Porsche sell complete front end and rear end chassis, so cars can be repaired without being written off. Porsche GB doesn't offer this! Mercedes-Benz will sell chassis legs / wheelhouse sections, etc. For whatever reason the UK market will not use them... write the car off!

Waste waste waste!

If the repair is done right, then the only thing wrong with the car is the stigma of it having 'Cat D' on the HPI report. This must, of course, have some bearing on the value, but I would disagree with some of the %'s being suggested.

All depends on the car, the damage and the circumstances... basically a case of 'its worth what someone is willing to pay'!

Mark Allanson - 20/8/09 at 01:24 PM

There seems to much confusion over categories

http://locostbuilders.co.uk/viewthread.php?tid=92661

DarrenW - 20/8/09 at 01:30 PM

Wouldnt it also depend on age of car? A 4 year old Cat D may be £4,000 against a non-CatD at roughly £5,500. However when they get loder id expect the differential to get closer. Same cars at 10 years old might be £1000 / £1200. Its also possible that the CatD car might have been better looked after ref service history so i doubt a straight forward % can be applied.

If its a good car, repaired well, looked after well then buy it.

scootz - 20/8/09 at 01:32 PM

In fact, Cat C can be ok sometimes, particularly if you're buying a once very expensive, but not particularly desirable 'classic'.

Say the owner mangled a wing... nothing else... they don't have them on the shelf anymore, so a bespoke piece costing 'X' pounds will have to be made for you. The value of this piece will be several times the value of the car = Cat C!

Buy one and get a half-decent repair done by local craftsman... most folk won't notice / care and you'll have bagged a nice oldie for a few quid!

andrew-theasby - 20/8/09 at 01:34 PM

Thanks for the comments, its up for 6300 which is what he paid 2 months ago (hes now banned for drink driving) similar cars are 7-7500 im working on it for 5700

scootz - 20/8/09 at 01:45 PM

What car, year, miles?

scootz - 20/8/09 at 03:19 PM

PS - You've just tempted me to put my own Cat-D tin-top up for sale! LINKY