Insurance write offs, total loss or category loss vehicles are vehicles that have recorded accident damage to them and are categorised by an insurance assessor in five varying levels of damage. When any vehicle has been involved in an accident or has been severely damaged, the accident report and overall look of the car will determine what category it’s placed in.
The categories are based on the damage and the financial outlay that would be required to repair the car. In other words, if the car, motorcycle or van is so damaged that the repairs would be more than the total cost of the car, then it would be declared a total insurance loss.
Category A
A category A insurance write off is a vehicle which is completely ruined, such as being burnt out, and all of its parts and shell should be crushed. These vehicles should not and cannot be used again on the roads again and are classed as a total insurance loss. Unfortunately, many category A vehicles have their identities stolen, such as log books, VIN numbers etc, and are used on stolen cars only to be identified when the stolen car is sold and the new owner tries to insure it.
Category B
A vehicle that has been assessed and branded as a category B write off should be crushed and never be allowed to return to the roads. However, if there are any ‘good’ spare parts on a category B car, they can be salvaged. Many of these vehicles are bought from the insurance company by salvage yards that will dismantle the usable parts from the cars and resell them as used parts.
Category C
Any vehicle written off as a category C vehicle would has been structurally damaged and uneconomically viable to repair by an insurance company. However, they can still be repaired and returned to the road by a company or individual, after being thoroughly checked and tested by an SVA test and an MOT.
Category D
A category D vehicle has had less damage than a category C but the cost of the repair is too high for the insurance company. The vehicle could be repaired and returned to the road, but in this category it does not make financial sense for the insurer to be the one to foot the bill. Many vehicles fall into this category and are sold back to the owner to repair themselves, as damage is often minor.
Category F
A category F insurance write off is a fire-damaged vehicle that an insurer refuses to repair. However, vehicles branded a category F could be returned to the road after being extensively repaired and tested. Vehicles that have been stolen are also category F vehicles and as the insurer has made a total loss payment to the owner, even if the vehicle is identified again, the insurer is allowed to repossess the car from the new owner.
Buying Advice
As with any vehicle purchase, checking the car’s history is vital to understand and know that you’re not buying an insurance write off. By purchasing a Vehicle Identity Check (VIC), you can bring up the past data for the car’s identity and have peace of mind.
