How a total loss payout works — in 4 lines
- Your car is a write-off when repairs approach its value. You're owed its actual cash value — what it would have sold for the moment before the crash.
- Not what you paid. Not your loan balance. (Only a replacement-cost endorsement like OPCF 43 changes that.)
- The offer comes from a valuation report built on comparable listings — and you're entitled to see the whole report.
- Offers backed by evidence get adjusted. Complaints without evidence don't. That's what the three steps above build.
Ask your adjuster for exactly three things:
- The full valuation report, including every comparable vehicle used.
- The options list the value was based on — check it line by line against your car.
- Confirmation that HST is included in the settlement.
What moves the number up
- Better comparables — same trim, similar km, your region. A base-model comp against your loaded trim is the most common lowball.
- Maintenance records — new tires, brakes, recent timing belt: documented recent spend is real value.
- Options the report missed — winter tire packages, tow packages, upgraded audio. Check the report's option list line by line.
- Mileage math — if their comps have 40,000 more km than your car, every one of them should have been adjusted upward. Verify they were.
- HST — in Ontario the settlement should account for the tax you'll pay replacing the vehicle. Confirm it's in the offer.
Deadlines exist: don't cash a settlement cheque or sign a release while you're still disputing, and keep the loan company in the loop if the vehicle is financed — the payout goes to the lienholder first.