In short
- You enter the numbers printed on your report. Automatic report reading is switched off for now.
- Every check and every dollar figure is computed by ordinary, tested code from the numbers you confirmed. No AI decides an amount.
- Each finding shows the lines from your report that triggered it, and a low and a high estimate.
- A check only questions something whose correction could raise your payment. Errors in your favor are left alone.
- State rules come from a dataset we compiled from statutes, regulations and Department of Insurance publications, with sources cited.
1. Reading your report
Automatic report reading is switched off for now, so today you type the numbers in yourself and the next two paragraphs do not apply. When it is on, it works like this.
When you upload a valuation report as a PDF or photos, it is sent to our server and to the Google Gemini API, which reads it into structured fields: the vehicle, each comparable car, each adjustment, the condition ratings and the settlement lines. The instructions tell the model to copy only what is printed, never to estimate or compute a value, and to note anything blurry or cut off. Those notes are shown to you. We do not store the file; see our privacy policy.
Our code then cleans the result. It turns text like "$1,234.00" or "($412)" into numbers, treats a negotiation line printed as a positive number as a deduction, and sorts adjustment lines into categories from their labels when the category is missing. Listing dates are read in the common printed forms, such as 2026-09-01, 09/01/2026, 09/01/26 and Sep 1, 2026.
Next you see every number in an editor. You can correct, add or remove anything before a single rule runs. You can also skip the upload and type the numbers in yourself. If you enter a VIN, we can look up the vehicle in the free public database run by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
2. The value we start from
We use the adjusted vehicle value from the settlement section of your report. If it is not printed, we use the base value plus the vehicle-level adjustments. If neither is available, we use the average of the comparables. A comparable's value is its printed adjusted price, or else its list price plus every adjustment line printed for it.
Some reports list extra vehicles "for information only". We leave those out of every average and every comparable check, except the one that asks why a higher one was excluded.
The current offer is the net amount offered. If it is not printed, it is the adjusted value less the deductible.
3. The total-loss checks
Each check below is a fixed rule, 44 in all. A finding appears only when its condition is met. Each finding is labelled high, medium or low, based on the type of issue, its size and, for some checks, your state's rules, and the list is sorted that way. Where a check names a state rule, the letter quotes it only for a claim in that state.
Deductions and prices on the comparables
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Projected sold or negotiation deduction | Flagged when: A comparable the report used carries a negative projected sold or "typical negotiation" amount, or a negotiation-style line is taken from your car’s value. | Dollar range: Your base value is an average of the comparables, so the deductions lower it by their sum divided by the number of comparables used, plus any negotiation line on your car. Range: 60% to 100% of that total. |
| Comparables priced below their sticker price | Flagged when: A comparable is valued from a dealer "take price" below its list price, and the take price plus the comparable’s printed adjustments equals its printed adjusted value (within $2), so the math started from the take price. | Dollar range: The list-to-take gaps added up and divided by the number of comparables used. Range: 50% to 100%. |
| Condition deductions on the comparables | Flagged when: At least two comparables were cut for condition before averaging, and either every cut is the same amount (within $1) or the cuts average 4% or more of the comparables’ prices. | Dollar range: The cuts added up and divided by the number of comparables used, which is what removing them adds to the average. Range: 40% to 100%. |
| A comparable’s adjusted value does not add up | Flagged when: For a comparable whose adjustment lines were read, the starting price (take price, or else list price) plus those lines is more than $2 above the adjusted value printed. | Dollar range: The differences added up and divided by the number of comparables used. Low and high are the same. |
Mileage
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Mileage adjustment in the wrong direction | Flagged when: A comparable from the same model year has at least 1,000 more miles than your car, yet its mileage adjustment is $50 or more downward. (The reverse error, which favors you, is not flagged.) | Dollar range: For each one, the wrong adjustment plus the credit it should have had at the median per-mile rate of the other same-year comparables (or the wrong amount again when there is no such rate), divided by the number of comparables used. Range: 50% to 100%. |
| Mileage adjustments use inconsistent rates | Flagged when: At least two same-year comparables, each 1,000 or more miles from yours, are adjusted at per-mile rates where the highest is more than three times the lowest, and applying the median rate to each would raise the average. | Dollar range: That rise in the average. Range: 50% to 100%. |
| Lower mileage not credited | Flagged when: Your car had more than 5,000 fewer miles than the average of at least two comparables, and the report shows no mileage adjustment anywhere: not on your car, not on the comparables, and no odometer allowance. | Dollar range: $0.03 to $0.06 per mile of difference, the range seen in public sample reports. An estimate. |
| Odometer reading on the report is too high | Flagged when: The report’s odometer reading is more than 500 miles above the reading you enter. | Dollar range: The difference times the report’s own median per-mile rate (low and high the same), or $0.03 to $0.06 per mile when the report has no consistent rate. |
| Mileage figure contradicts the report’s own note | Flagged when: The report says your car has fewer miles than average, yet a mileage line on your car is negative, or its odometer allowance is negative. | Dollar range: For a mileage line: the deduction (low) to twice the deduction (high), which also counts a credit of the same size. For the odometer allowance alone: no dollar figure, because the report prints it for illustration and does not subtract it. |
How the base value was built
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Base value below the comparables average | Flagged when: The printed base value is more than $2 below the average adjusted value of the comparables used (at least two). It does not run on reports that average in a guidebook value. | Dollar range: The difference. The low end is the full difference when the report says it used a straight average, and half of it otherwise (for example, an undisclosed weighting). |
| A higher comparable was left out | Flagged when: The report lists a comparable "for information only" whose adjusted value is above both your base value and the average of the comparables used. | Dollar range: How far those comparables sit above that figure, divided by the number of comparables used plus the ones added. Range: 50% to 100%. |
| Too few comparables | Flagged when: The value rests on one or two comparables. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. We flag it so you can ask for more. |
Comparables that are a poor match
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Comparables from far away | Flagged when: A comparable is more than 100 miles away (more than 150 in Washington). | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| Comparables with a different trim | Flagged when: A comparable’s trim differs from yours. We compare the first meaningful word of the trim and ignore drivetrain and body words, so "EX AWD" and "LX AWD" differ but "EX AWD" and "EX" do not. | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| Comparables from an older model year | Flagged when: A comparable is an older model year than your car. A newer one is not questioned. | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| Comparables with a different drivetrain, engine or body style | Flagged when: A comparable is two-wheel drive when yours is all-wheel drive, has a smaller engine, or has a different body style (for example a coupe against a sedan, or a crew cab against an extended cab). | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| Comparables with far more miles | Flagged when: A comparable has more than 4,000 miles or 10% more than your car, whichever is greater. | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| Private-party or auction comparables | Flagged when: A comparable was listed by a private seller, or its source or seller name says private, auction, wholesale or DMV. | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| Old listings used as comparables | Flagged when: A comparable’s listing date is more than 90 days before or after your date of loss (the report date if no loss date is printed). California counts from the settlement offer, for which we use the report date. Georgia (30 days) and Florida (90 days) count back from the loss only. | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
| An unusually cheap comparable | Flagged when: With at least three comparables priced, one is priced under 80% of their median price. | Dollar range: Comparable lift (see below). |
Comparable lift. These eight checks only question a comparable whose adjusted value is below the average of the other comparables, so leaving it out cannot lower your value. For each check, we average the comparables that pass it and subtract the average of all comparables used. At least two comparables must remain; otherwise the dollar figure is zero. The range is 50% to 100% of that lift.
Comparable details you cannot check
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Comparable dates missing or after the report | Flagged when: A comparable has no listing date printed, or a date after the report date. A date printed in a form we cannot read is not flagged. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks for the dates. |
| Comparables you cannot verify | Flagged when: A comparable has no VIN or stock number, or no seller phone number or street address. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks for the details. |
| Distances measured from the wrong place | Flagged when: The report measures distances from a place whose ZIP code (or, without a ZIP code, city) differs from where your car is garaged. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks for the search to be rerun from your garaging address. |
Your car’s condition and description
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Condition deduction | Flagged when: The report deducts money from your car’s value for condition. | Dollar range: Up to 100% of the deduction. The low end is 50% if you rate the car good or better before the loss, otherwise 25%. |
| Damage from this accident counted as condition | Flagged when: A condition rating is below typical or carries a deduction, and its inspection note says the damage is from this claim, loss or accident. A note that negates it, such as "not related to this loss", does not count. | Dollar range: The rating’s printed deduction. Low and high are the same. |
| Condition rating contradicts the inspection notes | Flagged when: A rating is below typical, yet its note reads as normal ("clean", "no damage", "normal wear", "like new", and not negated), or, for tires, the average tread is at least 41% of 11/32 new tread, the 2021 CCC guideline band. | Dollar range: The rating’s printed deduction. Range: 50% to 100%. |
| Prior damage deduction | Flagged when: The report deducts for damage it says existed before this loss. | Dollar range: 40% to 100% of the deduction. |
| Other deductions to question | Flagged when: The report deducts for refurbishment, aftermarket parts or another line it does not explain, on your car or as an "other" line on a comparable. | Dollar range: Your car’s lines plus the comparable lines divided by the number of comparables used. Range: 25% to 100%. The low end is the full amount for a get-ready or dealer-preparation charge in Illinois, or one over $100 in New York. |
| Condition may be counted twice | Flagged when: A report that averages in a guidebook value (a Mitchell "dual source" report) also deducts for condition or prior damage. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks whether condition was counted twice. |
| Equipment missing from the valuation | Flagged when: You list options or packages that do not closely match anything in the report’s equipment list. | Dollar range: $50 to $700 per option. An estimate. |
| Your car is described as a different version | Flagged when: You say your car has all-wheel drive and the report shows two-wheel drive, or you give a larger engine than the report shows. A different trim is not used, because we cannot tell which trim is worth more. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks for a new valuation. |
| Recent improvements not credited | Flagged when: You list recent work with a receipt of $300 or more (or with no amount), and the report gives no refurbishment credit. | Dollar range: 20% to 60% of the amounts you enter. |
The two rating checks are parts of the condition deduction on your car. In the total gap, the condition group counts the larger of the deduction and those parts, never both.
Market evidence you add
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Comparable cars are listed for more near you | Flagged when: Listings you add (asking over $1,000) count if they match your car’s year, make, model and trim, are within 20% of its mileage and 100 miles, and are not private sales. With three or more, the check runs when their median asking price is more than 5% above the adjusted value. With one or two, it runs when the median is above the adjusted value. | Dollar range: Three or more listings: 40% to 100% of the median less the adjusted value. One or two: no dollar figure, and the finding asks for more listings. |
| Offer is below published guidebook retail | Flagged when: A guidebook retail value you enter is more than 5% above the adjusted value. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. It is supporting evidence, rated high in Connecticut, where the statute refers to the NADA retail value. |
Tax, fees, deductible and settlement math
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Sales tax not included | Flagged when: We read an adjusted value or a net offer, the settlement shows no sales tax, and your state’s rule for your type of claim is that tax is required, required once you buy a replacement, or unclear. Claims against the other driver’s insurer use a rule only where our data says it reaches those claims (see section 8). | Dollar range: The adjusted value times the tax rate printed on your report. With no printed rate, we use your state’s base vehicle sales-tax rate from our dataset, and the high end adds 1.5 percentage points for local tax. With no known rate: $0 to 7% of the value. The low end is $0 where the rule is unclear, and where tax is owed only on proof of purchase unless you told us you plan to buy a replacement. |
| Sales tax at the wrong rate or on the wrong amount | Flagged when: Sales tax is included but looks short: the combined rate you enter for your address is more than 0.25 points above the report’s rate; or, without a rate from you, the report’s rate is more than 0.25 points below the state rate; or the tax is less than the report’s own rate times the adjusted value (for example, computed after the deductible). | Dollar range: The largest of those shortfalls. Low and high are the same. |
| Title and registration fees not included | Flagged when: We read an adjusted value or a net offer, the settlement shows no title, registration or other fee lines, and our state data says the settlement must include those fees. That is the case in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont and Washington; in Hawaii and Illinois they are reimbursed once you buy a replacement. On a claim against the other driver’s insurer, the check runs only in Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Maryland, Oregon, Utah and Vermont. | Dollar range: A flat estimate of $50 to $400. The low end is $0 in Hawaii and Illinois unless you told us you plan to buy a replacement. |
| Deductible on a claim against the other driver | Flagged when: You told us the claim is against the at-fault driver’s insurer, and a deductible was subtracted. | Dollar range: The full deductible. |
| Deductible higher than your policy | Flagged when: The deductible subtracted is higher than the one you entered from your declarations page. | Dollar range: The difference. |
| Salvage value deducted | Flagged when: The settlement subtracts a salvage value. | Dollar range: If you are not keeping the car: the full amount. If you are keeping it: no dollar figure, and the letter asks who will pay that amount for it. If you did not say: $0 to the full amount. |
| Settlement math does not add up | Flagged when: The base value plus the printed adjustments is more than $2 above the adjusted vehicle value, or the adjusted value plus tax and fees, less the deductible and salvage, is more than $2 above the amount offered. | Dollar range: The full difference. |
Your rights and the paperwork
| Check | Flagged when | How the dollar range is estimated |
|---|---|---|
| Your right to have the claim reopened | Flagged when: Your claim is in California, New York or Washington (35 days) or New Jersey or Illinois (30 days). These states let you ask the insurer to reopen the claim if you cannot buy a comparable car for the amount paid. With a payment date, we show the deadline, and the finding drops once it has passed. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. |
| Full valuation report not provided | Flagged when: No comparables were read, the page numbering shows pages missing, or you said you have only part of the report. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks for the complete report. |
| A manual change was made to the valuation | Flagged when: The valuation notes record a change request, an override or a manual adjustment. | Dollar range: No dollar figure. The letter asks what changed and why. |
4. Adding up the gap
The headline range adds the findings in groups, using each finding's low and high estimate, so the same dollars are not counted twice:
- The comparables. Some findings correct a comparable that stays in the average (negotiation deductions, take prices, condition cuts on comparables, mileage direction and rates, comparable math). The poor-match checks drop a comparable instead. A comparable is dropped or corrected, never both. We work out the lift for keeping every comparable and correcting each one, for dropping the comparables flagged by each poor-match check, and for dropping every flagged comparable at once, each time re-running the corrections on the comparables that remain. The largest of these counts. Its low end counts half of any removal lift plus the low end of each correction. We then add the base-value gap, an excluded higher comparable and uncredited lower mileage.
- Your listings. If you added three or more matching listings, their gap to the adjusted value counts instead of the comparables group when it is larger. That gap also contains the deductions taken from your car's value (condition, prior damage, other deductions, a mileage line) and any shortfall in the value line of the settlement, which are counted in their own groups. So only the part of the listings gap above them counts here.
- Your car's condition. The condition deduction or its component findings, whichever is larger.
- Other items on your car. Prior damage, other deductions, missing options, recent improvements, the odometer reading and a mileage line, added together.
- Tax on the extra value. If your settlement already includes sales tax at a known rate, we add tax on the extra value at that rate, or at the corrected rate when the tax line itself is short, plus that shortfall. If sales tax is missing, we add that finding, plus tax on the extra value where a rate is known. The low end adds tax on the extra value only when the missing-tax finding's own low end is above $0.
- Fixed items. Missing fees (a $50 to $400 estimate), deductible errors, salvage and settlement-math gaps.
Findings marked "no dollar figure" above add nothing to the gap. The high end is capped at 60% of the adjusted vehicle value. A larger figure usually means a number was entered wrong, so we show a warning and ask you to check. The low end never exceeds the high end. Amounts are rounded to the dollar.
5. The target settlement
The rebuttal letter asks for a revised settlement of at least the current offer plus the midpoint of the gap range. For example, an offer of $20,000 with a gap of $1,000 to $3,000 gives a target of $22,000.
The letter includes each finding that has a dollar estimate or is rated medium or high.
6. The live listing search (paid total-loss kit)
The live search is switched off for now, together with automatic report reading. Until it is back, the kit page links to listing sites so you can search yourself.
On the kit page you can run a live search. The vehicle description and your ZIP code are sent to the Google Gemini API with Google Search grounding, which is asked for current listings with a visible asking price for the same model year and model near your ZIP. We show up to ten results as returned, with links and Google's search suggestions, as Google requires. We do not filter, rank, average or save them, and they do not go into a letter or the gap.
Open each listing and check that it matches your car. The ones you have checked can be added as your own listings, and they then go through the "listed for more near you" check above. Asking prices are not sale prices, and they change daily.
7. Diminished value
The calculator shows two figures side by side: the number an insurer is likely to start from, and our market estimate. The market estimate is raised to at least the insurer's likely number, unless the cap described below is lower.
The insurer's likely number: the 17c formula
The 17c formula comes out of Georgia litigation against State Farm. After the Supreme Court of Georgia's 2001 decision in State Farm v. Mabry, the trial court approved it in a 2002 settlement order for State Farm's Georgia first-party claims. The sources we found do not explain the name. It starts from 10% of the pre-accident value, which is also the most it can produce, then multiplies by a damage factor and a mileage factor. Independent appraisers criticize it because the factors are not based on market data. We show it so you know the number an adjuster may start from.
We pick the damage factor from the damage band our model sets (below):
| Damage | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Severe damage to the structure of the vehicle | 1.00 |
| Major damage to structure and panels | 0.75 |
| Moderate damage to structure and panels | 0.50 |
| Minor damage to structure and panels | 0.25 |
| No structural damage and replaced panels | 0.00 |
We compute the mileage factor two ways and show both. State Farm's documented method is linear: (100,000 minus the miles) divided by 100,000, never below zero, which we round to the nearest 1%. For some vehicles State Farm uses 150,000 miles instead; it does not disclose which, so we do not apply it. Published worksheets use 20,000-mile bands:
| Mileage | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| 0 to 19,999 | 1.00 |
| 20,000 to 39,999 | 0.80 |
| 40,000 to 59,999 | 0.60 |
| 60,000 to 79,999 | 0.40 |
| 80,000 to 99,999 | 0.20 |
| 100,000 or more | 0.00 |
Example: a $30,000 car with moderate damage to structure and panels and 45,000 miles. 10% of the value is $3,000; times 0.5 for damage gives $1,500. The linear mileage factor of 0.55 gives $825, and the worksheet factor of 0.6 gives $900. Under this formula, a car at 100,000 miles or more, or with damage in our lowest (cosmetic) band, comes out at $0.
Our market estimate
Model confidence: low
1. The damage band. The facts of the repair set the band, checked from the most severe band down; the first match counts. The repair cost is compared with the pre-accident value. Your own description of the damage is used only when you enter no repair cost and it is more severe than what the yes-or-no facts alone show.
| Band | Set when | Low | Mid | High |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Severe | Structural repair together with airbag deployment or a repair cost of 45% or more of the value, or any repair cost of 60% or more. | 15% | 20% | 27% |
| Major | Structural repair, or airbag deployment, or a repair cost from 40% to under 60% of the value. | 10% | 14% | 19% |
| Moderate | Bolt-on structural parts only (such as a core support or bumper reinforcement, with no frame pull), or a repair cost from 25% to under 40%. | 6% | 9% | 13% |
| Minor | No structural repair and no airbags, with a repair cost from 8% to under 25%. | 3% | 5% | 8% |
| Cosmetic | A repair cost under 8% of the value, with none of the facts above. | 1% | 2% | 4% |
Structural repair or airbag deployment that did not set the band raises a band below major to major. Airbags that deploy when the band is already major or severe apply the airbag adjuster below instead.
2. The adjusters. Each adjuster that applies is multiplied together, and the result is kept between ×0.50 and ×1.50. Without a model year there is no age or mileage adjuster.
| Adjuster | Applies when | Factor |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle age | Less than 1 model year old at the date of loss. | ×1.20 |
| Vehicle age | 1 to under 3 model years old. | ×1.10 |
| Vehicle age | 3 to under 6 model years old. | ×1.00 |
| Vehicle age | 6 to under 10 model years old. | ×0.85 |
| Vehicle age | 10 or more model years old. | ×0.70 |
| Miles per year | Under half of 12,000 miles a year. | ×1.05 |
| Miles per year | From half to under 1.5 times 12,000 miles a year. | ×1.00 |
| Miles per year | 1.5 times 12,000 miles a year or more. | ×0.90 |
| Vehicle type | Luxury or premium vehicle. | ×1.15 |
| Vehicle type | Exotic, collector or limited-production vehicle (we also suggest an appraiser). | ×1.25 |
| Airbags deployed | Airbags deployed but did not already set the band (below major, the band is raised to major instead). | ×1.10 |
| History report | The history report shows structural damage or airbag deployment. | ×1.10 |
| History report | You checked the history report and the accident is not listed. | ×0.85 |
| Prior accident | A prior accident is already on the vehicle history. | ×0.60 |
| Non-original parts | Aftermarket or used structural parts or sheet metal (an assumption, not verified). | ×1.05 |
3. The range. Low, mid and high are the pre-accident value times the band's low, mid and high percentage times the combined adjusters. If the low end is below the insurer's likely 17c figure (the higher of the linear and worksheet results), all three are raised to at least that figure. Then the range is capped so that the repair cost plus diminished value does not exceed the pre-accident value. Figures are rounded to the dollar.
4. The demand. The demand letter asks for the midpoint. If a post-repair inspection documented defects, their cost to correct is added as a separate line, within the same cap. On a claim against the other driver's insurer, the demand is reduced by your share of fault if you enter one. In Michigan, a third-party demand is limited to the $3,000 mini-tort cap.
5. Warnings. We suggest an independent appraisal for a claim against the other driver's insurer in a state that allows diminished value, when the midpoint is $1,500 or more, or the car was worth $25,000 or more and had structural or airbag damage. We warn that a claim is likely not worth pursuing when the midpoint is under $500, or the car is 10 or more model years old with cosmetic or minor damage. That warning does not change the state-rule rating below. Exotic, collector and limited-production cars get a note that an appraiser is the better guide. When repair cost plus the midpoint comes within 10 percentage points of the percentage total-loss threshold in our state data, or reaches 90% of the value where the state has no such percentage, we suggest asking why the car was repaired rather than totaled.
Whether your state's rules support a claim
This rates the state rule for your type of claim, not the size or result of your claim.
| Your situation | Rating |
|---|---|
| Claim against the at-fault driver's insurer, state allows diminished value | Supported by state rules |
| The same, in Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, New York, Tennessee and West Virginia, which limit these claims (with a warning) | Uncertain |
| Claim against the at-fault driver's insurer, state limits it or the rule is unclear | Uncertain |
| Claim against the at-fault driver's insurer, state generally does not allow it | Not supported |
| Claim on your own policy, where the state recognizes first-party claims under some policies, or in Georgia, Oregon, Vermont and Washington unless our data says generally not | Uncertain |
| Claim on your own policy, any other state | Not supported |
We also show your state's filing deadline for property damage, where we have it.
Sources for the diminished value figures
The 17c tables and their history:
- State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Mabry, 274 Ga. 498, 556 S.E.2d 114 (Ga. 2001)
- Baker v. State Farm, No. 4:19-cv-14 (CDL) (M.D. Ga. Sept. 2, 2021), order denying class certification
- Baker v. State Farm, No. 21-14197 (11th Cir. Aug. 18, 2022) (unpublished)
- Tiller v. State Farm, No. 1:12-cv-3432-TWT (N.D. Ga. Feb. 5, 2013), order granting motion to dismiss
- State Farm 17c assessment letter (Oct. 22, 2020) quoting Section 10 of the Mar. 6, 2002 Muscogee County order (hosted by an appraiser)
- Claims Journal, 'Georgia: No Single Formula for Insurers Handling Diminished Value Claims' (Dec. 9, 2008)
- Matthiesen, Wickert & Lehrer, 'Diminution in Value Cases in All 50 States' (updated 3/16/22)
- Experian, 'What Is a Diminished Value Claim?'
- A. Rached (Diminished Value of Georgia), 'The Case against the 17c formula' (appraiser article)
The market model's bands, adjusters and caps also draw on:
- Baker v. State Farm, plaintiffs' motion for reconsideration (Sept. 14, 2021) (advocacy filing)
- Diminished Value of Georgia, '17C Formula, Unfair for Diminished Value Calculations' (appraiser page)
- US 2020/0143433 A1, 'Method of diminished value calculation in repaired vehicles' (patent application, abandoned)
- Wikipedia (de), 'Merkantiler Minderwert' (Ruhkopf/Sahm method)
- MarketCheck, 'Diminished Value Worksheet' documentation (vendor default)
- Lacetera, Pope & Sydnor, 'Heuristic Thinking and Limited Attention in the Car Market', AER 102(5) (2012)
- Triple-I, 'What is diminished value?'
- Kentucky 806 KAR 12:095 Section 7(2)
- La. R.S. 9:2800.17
8. Where state rules come from
We compiled a dataset from statutes, regulations and Department of Insurance publications. It currently covers all 50 states and the District of Columbia. For each state it covers the total-loss threshold, sales tax and fees, valuation rules, claim-handling deadlines, diminished value, the filing deadline for property damage and how to reach the Department of Insurance. Each point carries its citation and, where available, a link to the source. The dataset was last updated November 4, 2026. It has not yet had an independent legal review. If your state is not in the dataset yet, the checks that depend on state rules, such as sales tax and fees, do not run.
The sales-tax check uses each state's first-party rule. On a claim against the other driver's insurer, it runs only where the state summary says the rule reaches those claims: Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Maryland, Oregon, Utah and Vermont, and, worded as a question to the insurer, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, New York, Tennessee and Wyoming, where that rests on a report we could not confirm. The fee check runs only where the state summary says fees are owed, as listed in the table above.
Each state also has a confidence level. It is our own rating of how clearly the sources we found support each point, not a second, independent check:
| Confidence | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| High | The cited sources state the points we rely on directly. |
| Medium | Some points could not be fully confirmed. The state page says so and suggests checking with the Department of Insurance. |
| Low | As for medium, and the total-loss check also shows a warning to confirm the rules with the Department of Insurance. |
The total-loss rebuttal letter cites up to three state rules: valuation, sales tax and fees, and claim-handling deadlines. Where our research found the state silent on a point, the letter does not cite it. See the rules for your state on our state pages.
9. Limits
- Not an appraisal. We are not licensed appraisers. Our ranges are estimates built from your report's own numbers and the facts you enter. They are not a prediction of what your insurer will pay.
- Listings change. Live search results are a snapshot of asking prices on the day you run it. Save the listings you rely on.
- Garbage in, garbage out. If a number is misread or entered wrong, the results will be wrong. That is why you confirm every number first.
- Some checks need details the report may not print, such as listing dates, seller type or distance. When a detail is missing, that check does not run.
- Rules change. Confirm anything important with your state Department of Insurance. This is not legal advice.
Found an error? Tell us. If you can, include the source.