News Published on : 10-Jan-2022 15:55:09

Around 700 000 vehicles are known to be written off by insurance companies each year and the true figure could be even higher. However according to leading price comparison site Quotezone.co.uk many drivers are unaware that some cars are written off not because they aren t roadworthy but because the cost of repairing them might be more than the vehicle is worth. In fact a car that is classed as a Category N write-off may have only sustained minor cosmetic damage such as scratched paintwork while a Category S write-off might have sustained some structural damage that could be easily repaired such as a dent in the car door panel. Greg Wilson of Quotezone explains: It comes as a surprise to many drivers to be told their car is a write-off as far from being a tangled wreck the damage may sometimes be very superficial. While each insurer has different guidelines they will generally class the vehicle as a write-off if the cost of repairing the damage is more than the car is worth. So even if the damage is purely cosmetic - for example if the bodywork is dented or the paintwork is scratched - if it is costly to put right the vehicle may be written off. If your car has a low value even very minor repairs like this may not be considered worthwhile. Provided you have fully-comprehensive insurance you should be covered up to the current market value of the vehicle but if it s written off you might not be able to find a comparable car for the same price so could lose out financially or end up with an inferior vehicle - particularly if you have customised it to suit your needs or it is an older model that you love and that would be hard to replace.