What is a damaged car and what precautions to take

You should know the importance of being careful when buying a car directly from the owner, as it can be damaged. In this article, we will talk more about this subject, explaining what a damaged car is and what precautions to take.

Buying used cars is becoming an increasingly common habit across the country.

To give you an idea, according to a report on market data promoted by Fenabrave, in September 2019 alone, 809,936 used passenger vehicles were sold.

This shows growth compared to the same period last year of 7.59%.

When this number is added to the other categories of used vehicles sold in the same period, it gives a total of 1,243,254 vehicles sold throughout the national territory in September 2019 alone.

This shows that buying pre-owned and used vehicles is really a good deal, however, it is essential to be aware of important details about the vehicle before closing a deal.

There are some risks when buying a used car and one of them is that the car is damaged.

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What is a damaged car?

Before explaining what precautions to take to avoid buying a damaged car, it is worth explaining what it is.

To do this, we need to talk about what a claim is first.

Claim is the name given to an accident in insurance language.

Therefore, a damaged car is nothing more than a vehicle that has suffered some type of accident or damage and the insurance has been called to repair it.

What are the types of claims in auto insurance?

There are two types of claims in auto insurance: partial and full.

They are characterized according to the degree of damage caused to the vehicle.

Therefore, when an accident/loss occurs and the insurance company is contacted, the insured may be compensated partially or fully.

Partial loss – an accident is considered a partial loss when the damage requires repairs whose value does not exceed 75% of the purchase price of the car according to the FIPE table.

In this case, for the insurer to cover the cost of repairing the vehicle, the insured will need to pay the deductible.

Once this is done, he will just have to wait for the vehicle to be repaired and returned to him.

Comprehensive claim – a full loss is characterized when, in an accident, the vehicle suffers damage whose repair value is equal to or greater than 75% of the purchase value of the car, or in cases of theft or robbery in which the vehicle is not recovered within a period of 30 days.

In this case, the insured does not need to pay the deductible and the insurer must pay cash compensation in accordance with the market value of the vehicle according to the FIPE table.

How do I know if a vehicle has been damaged?

To find out whether a vehicle has been damaged or not, simply check the vehicle's documentation.

In general, it remains the same, with the only difference being that, in the case of damaged vehicles, this information must appear at the bottom of the vehicle document, as “Accident/Recovery”.

In some regions of the country it is also possible to find out whether a vehicle has been damaged or not via the internet.

The Detran website for Paraná and the Federal District already offers this service.

You just need to have the car's license plate and chassis number to make a query.

It is important for you to know that there is no way to remove a claim from the vehicle's documents.

DETRAN requires that this information be included in all vehicles circulating in the country.

In addition to this obligation, there is also a requirement that the damaged car must undergo inspection at an INMETRO station.

Is it allowed to sell a damaged car?

Although many people think it is illegal to sell a damaged car, this is not true.

It is not permitted to omit this information.

Some dealers often commit scams and resell cars as if they were not damaged, so it is essential to always keep an eye on this detail.

After all, a damaged vehicle can present a series of problems, especially when the accident caused some damage or compromise to the engine or the mechanical part of the vehicle in general.

Another important detail to be mentioned is that the market value of a damaged vehicle is usually at least 30% or 40% lower than the common market value easily found through the FIPE table.

This percentage of depreciation will depend directly on the degree of damage the vehicle has suffered.

This can be of small, medium or large amount.

In other words, they can be easy, medium or difficult to repair respectively.

Is it risky to buy a damaged car? What precautions should I take?

The advantage of buying a damaged car is that its market price can be considerably lower.

However, it is important for the buyer to know that this will be a vehicle more prone to mechanical problems.

The big problem is when taking out insurance.

The value will be much higher and it will be very difficult to find an insurance company that will accept a contract.

In the end, cheap can be expensive.

Think carefully about the pros and cons when buying a damaged car.

Remember to check the documents when purchasing a used car and don't forget to take out insurance after purchase.

Take advantage and get a no-obligation quote.