What a predicament....
I have had a 2008 Freelander 2, from new. Vehicle was twoc/stolen at 11 months old (don't know how, may have been left unlocked(wife!!), don't know if driven or towed away, but it vanished from outside a restaurant in town. Later found abandoned, minor interior fire/smoke/heat damage. No mechanical or electrical damage.
Insurance company assessed as write off, quoting £16,000 to fix, yes £16,000. Was very suprised, but my policy supplied a replacement car if bought from new, so I was expecting a quick turnaround. Not to be!!
Because the vehicle was pre-registered by the dealer "for tax purposes"?, I was classed as the second keeper!!!!!, and this excludes the benefit. The next few months were spent waiting for the insurance company to sort the matter.....In short, they declined to pay out because the car in not stealable without the key. Towing away was dismissed, unless I can prove it. I checked for cctv cameras, etc..but it was now four months down the line. I retained possession of my vehicle and had it repaired. There wasn't much damage, but anything with nylon in it had destorted, so seatcoverings, seatbelts, headlining had to be replaced. Upgraded to full leather via a local auto trimmers, who also relaced the damaged items, one door panel, interior lights/mirror etc..all parts sourced through guy salmon. TOTAL REPAIR COSTS UNDER £3000. It's been fine eversince. Now I need to sell, had agreed a reduced price of £13500...it's only 15800 miles. But HPI check shows Cat c write off, so buyer wants reduction further. Has anybody ever challenged a write off marker, coz this clearly is misleading..  WALLO.....
BE GOOD......IF NOT BE CAREFUL!

A tricky one to be honest, you have made a claim, but they didn't pay out and you repaired it yourself

its strange that they didn't pay out even if it went either by been lifted or driven, I'm guessing you still had both keys to show them. But they do say theat they won't cover theft if the cars are left unlocked.

You did make a theft claim, they ruled as a write off, but didn't pay you anything, but they will have incurred costs which make the claim still be logged. You may have to reemburce the insurance company for assessors, storage, hire car and any other outlay to have the claim removed, then they might be able to remove the history from HPI

What do HPI say them selves? Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Okay, apologies, it's 'reimburse.' Someone would have pointed it out.

There isn't anything you can do about a Category registered vehicle, just grin and bear it. The DVLA, with whom the reponsibility now lies, have heard it all and are totally inflexible. Obviously, genuine or not, there is a lot of money to be gained from having a Cat removal.

I'd also think that raking over the coals with the insurance company would be pointless. I take it the matter was concluded a while ago.

Regarding your asking price, what model of FL2 is it?

Typo and no spell check  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Its been stolen recovered so it is a CAT C - despite the dispute with the insurers the idea of tagging a car like this is to protect anyone buying it. In my opinion even if all the repairs have been done properly for any state cat right off I personally would not touch with a barge pole as you really cannot tell what has been done to the car and will never be like it is from the factory ever again.

Admittedly I am a bit anal where cars are concerned but i'd be a bit miffed if I was sold a cat c without knowing…. Likewise if I thought the car had been in a simple accident and been repaired I would probably still avoid it – but then that’s just me! Noting that you need to declare a cat right off when insuring the vehicle which I have heard some people being refused insurance!

That aside its a bit of a bummer that the insurance did'nt pay out... I wonder why I bother paying my premium as everone one that I know recently who have made a non fault claim ended up paying for repairs themselves and loosing there ncb!!!  Freelander 2 TD4 Auto, SE, Narvik Black, Alpaca full leather, Rear Headrest Entertainment System, 6 CD, 18 HSE Wheels, Privicy tints

And more important - which insurance company hates land rovers Please tell us  G4 Freelander 2005 V6 HSE Stage 1 Thailand/Laos. HQ Support YZT
Grey Freelander 2 2011 SD4 HSE - Works Van - gone to a new home.

Where on earth did the insurance company get £16,000 from. That is simply rediculous! Surely they should have paid you out in some way. I would have been tempted to take the payout then bought the car back. (Past) Freelander 2 HSE 2010 MY In Rimini Red.
(Past) RR Evoque Dynamic Lux Si4 In Firenze Red.
(Past) RR Evouque Pure Tech in Barollo Black with bespoke Firenze Red colour coding.
(Present) Freelander Metropolis 2015 MY In Santorini Black with Ivory Premium Leather.

I've written to the assessors to explain how they got to £16000.......bearing in mind I drove the car away with nothing more than a seat cover on the drivers seat. The insurance company was NIG, and i've learned of other people that have had the same experience from this company.

My car is an FL2 TD4 S with the upgraded alloys(GS), privacy glass, rear parcel cover, multi function wheel, and now has Alpaca leather(real leather not 60% vinyl) interior with headrest entertainment system fitted, looks great against the black so I didn't think £13500 was a bad price, even with a marker, considering she's covered less than 16 000 miles.

I've also instigated a complaint throught he Insurance ombudsmen for what its worth..

Wallo WALLO.....
BE GOOD......IF NOT BE CAREFUL!

WALLO wrote:

..........and now has Alpaca leather(real leather not 60% vinyl)..........Wallo

A bummer of a situation but we see you've not lost your sense of humour

Am I missing the point? If the insurance didn't pay out how can it be an insurance write off???

MY POINT EXACTLY.........

AND I REALY THINK THERE SOMETHING UNDERHAND GOING ON....WHY WOULD THE ASSESSOR/INSURANCE COMPANY BE SO KEEN TO WRITE OFF A CAR WITH COSMETIC DAMAGE SUCH AS MINE......IS THERE SOMEONE IN THE WINGS WAITING TO TAKE THE CARS ON AND MAKE A KILLING? WALLO.....
BE GOOD......IF NOT BE CAREFUL!

Has the ombudsman replied?

NO, I'VE ONLY JUST FOUND OUT THAT MY CARS RECORDED AS A WRITE OFF. WALLO.....
BE GOOD......IF NOT BE CAREFUL!

Perhaps a good story for BBC Watchdog or Trading Standards. So what exactly did the insurance company give you re - compensation/payout other than recording the car as a Cat C? Sounds like a scam to me as if you had accepted their advice & had your car taken away on the assumption that repairs were £16K. I can only assume they were going to fix it on the cheap & sell it  (Past) Freelander 2 HSE 2010 MY In Rimini Red.
(Past) RR Evoque Dynamic Lux Si4 In Firenze Red.
(Past) RR Evouque Pure Tech in Barollo Black with bespoke Firenze Red colour coding.
(Present) Freelander Metropolis 2015 MY In Santorini Black with Ivory Premium Leather.

Junior wrote:

Am I missing the point? If the insurance didn't pay out how can it be an insurance write off???