Diminished Value Laws in Arizona
- Arizona recognizes three types of diminished value claims.Coche accidentado image by quicolopez from Fotolia.com
Arizona law allows vehicle owners to collect diminished value when their vehicles have been in accidents. Such a claim is more successful when the accident was recent, it was a first-time accident, and the damage was not the owner's fault. Other factors include mileage, the make and value of the vehicle, and its condition prior to the damage. No general estimating guidelines exist; estimates are done on a case-by-case basis. - Immediate diminished value, which is recognized in Arizona, means the cash difference in any resale value as the result of an accident. The value is usually calculated by subtracting the vehicle's resale value as soon as possible after the accident from what may have been realized in a sale before the accident. This method of arriving at diminished value on a damaged vehicle is primarily used in court cases involving reimbursement.
- Inherent diminished value means the loss of any resale value due to accident damage. This method of arriving at diminished value is the most commonly used form of calculating damages. Disclosure laws in Arizona state that the seller must disclose previous vehicle damage to any prospective buyer, and a repaired automobile that had been involved in an accident would bring much less than an undamaged one in a resale. That difference in price is considered inherent diminished value.
- Repair-related diminished value refers to additional depreciation of a vehicle as a result of wrong or incomplete repairs, mishandled or poor repairs or parts of a damaged vehicle that were not repaired. The quality of repairs determines the amount of repair-related diminished value. This is an additional form of diminished value that may be added onto a damaged vehicle's inherent diminished value.
