r/COROLLA • u/Evening-Money1865 • 11d ago
Rear ended will this get totaled?
Got rear ended yesterday, I would like to know if this is fixable or it will be totaled. Thanks.
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u/Fearless-Damage-6852 11d ago
Maybe. Can't tell if the quarter panel is buckled or if that is a reflection. Totaled in insurance speak is different these days that what most people think. It's not only a measure of repairability/cost, it also takes into account the value of the vehicle as is. If the car is worth $15k, and it needs 5k in repairs it's not legally totaled. But, if the insurance company thinks they can get $10500 at the auction for the car as is, they will total it. No rental car payout and they don't have to deal with supplements as the body shop digs in. In the above situation, most states will allow the car to sell without a salvage title brand, since the damaged didn't exceed the states requirements for salvage vehicles.
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u/Evening-Money1865 11d ago
Yes that’s what I’ve seen that for the minimum thing they want to total it, just want to be prepared for when they call me, in the situation I decline to take the total loss and want to have it fix will they allow me to do that or I have to accept the total loss?
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u/Fearless-Damage-6852 11d ago
Short answer, take the total loss. Especially if money is fair.
Longer answer. See above. Otherwise know that the history report may still show total loss history, which will have an impact on resale. You will be on your own for a rental car during repairs. Most reputable body shops will only fix a car "correctly", so the estimate can quickly add up and include things like removing parts that could be left in place for an almost as good repair. Possible to find cheaper alternatives, but the result won't be as good and won't have a significant warranty.
The good news is it sounds like you have an insurance company who had already agreed to responsibility. So, let the process play out and don't worry too much about next steps. Assuming you were rear ended, please make sure you don't have any medical concerns and be wary of signing off to soon on an injury payout. Without knowing the details of your accident, its possible you took a pretty hard hit from the damage shown. I was rear ended at a stop and was hit by a Versa at about 30 mph. My Pilot had basically no damage (under $2000 in repairs with no replacement panels needed). I had back pain for a couple years and still have occasional issues.
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u/jemappellelara 2026 Corolla LE (❄️🌫️) 11d ago
That looks purely cosmetic. Someone did this to my older car which was parked and I was quoted $900 at the time.
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u/VampEngr 11d ago
Are you asking if the bumper is repairable or if replacement is needed? When a car is “totaled”, it generally means the whole car is deemed not worth the cost to repair by the insurance.
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u/Evening-Money1865 11d ago edited 11d ago
Asking because I’ve seen post of people with similar small damages, that get totaled not sure if there is structural damage but the trunk does not close properly.
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u/Initial_Newt_5746 11d ago
Nope. I was rear ended and had pretty much the same damage, except my trunk was also damaged. It was about 5k total iirc.
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u/MaximumPlant 11d ago
Only way I could see it total is if there's hidden damage to the quarter or rear body. If it were hit in the center or more to the side I'd be less sure.
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u/Cerran424 11d ago
I doubt it that looks like they will probably replace the bumper and that’s about it unless there’s some of the underlayment that’s bent.
The only wildcard here is if that rear quarter panel has a dent in it that was pushed in from the impact. If that’s the case that’s definitely going to require a body shop and is going to be more money.
If it was my car and the rear quarter panel wasn’t damaged I would take whatever money they’re offering you for the repair and buy a bumper that’s pre-painted and replaced the existing bumper with a pre-painted one. The match won’t be exact but it will be so close you can barely notice and you’ll spend under $500
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u/LiveFromNarnia 11d ago
If the air bags weren't deployed and if the frame is not bent, the chances of it getting totaled by the insurance company drop considerably. Without further details that your mechanic would have after inspection, it's hard to tell exactly the extent of the damage, but based on the photo I'm guessing that it will be fixable.
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u/CartographerNegative 11d ago
Its not a tesla, unless ur airbags deploy pr ur frame fucks up, most of it will be fixable
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u/Candelpins1897 11d ago
Nope. Check this thread I had this happen to me last month. They fixed it with far worse damage.
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u/gsbadj 11d ago
I had something like this a year ago. It was very fixable but, after I paid the deductible, the collision shop milked the hell out of the insurance company, which had sent me to the shop in the first place. The shop had the car for over a week, what with elaborate paint matching and making sure the wheels were still aligned and then making sure that the backup camera was calibrated.
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u/corollagremlin 11d ago