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The term “Auto Diminished Value” means that cars which were damaged and subsequently repaired lose market value as a result of having a repair history, sometimes known as a “Bad CARFAX.” In most states, this lost amount is recoverable from insurance companies of at-fault parties. The amount of diminished value is determined by the damages that were repaired and the vehicle itself.
Precedents established in the State of New York regarding automobile diminished value cases are relied upon by magistrates to render their decisions. Cases such as Johnson v. Scholz affirm that case law has consistently held that “the measure of damages for injury to property resulting from negligence is the difference in the market value immediately before and immediately after the accident, or the reasonable cost of repairs necessary to restore it to its former condition, whichever is less.” This means a plaintiff can be made whole under one standard or the other and not both as sought by a claimant. Yet, even though it would seem that defendants had no obligation to compensate claimants for third-party inherent diminished value claims, insurance companies throughout The State of New York make settlements for these claims every day.