Category S and N write offs, would you buy one?

patsat

So I'm in the market for a certain vehicle and it makes sense financially to buy from the UK.

There is a few of these cars available as Category S and N write offs. So for the budget I have I could pick up a good spec car with lower miles than a normal one.

Is it worth the risk or should I stay clear? If I got the car checked by AA etc, would it be enough? Interested in her thoughts on both categories as N seems to be not as severe.

Also if I did go ahead,what implications would it have in Ireland? In terms of insurance and Get value?

bazz26

It needs to be substantially cheaper than a non written off car because when you go to sell it on the resale value will be substantially less. Remember that for the rest of it's life it will always show up as a write off on any history check a potential buyer runs against it. If you plan to drive it into the ground then it becomes less of an issue. I'd certainly want some sort of detailed examination done of the car to make sure it was repaired to a satisfactory standard.

Insurance could be a problem down the road given how fussy they are these days, different companies might have you jumping through hoops to provide proof it was repaired correctly.

Dia1988

In general I wouldn't touch a Cat N car only if I had seen pics of the damage and knew it was professionally repaired ideally by an authorised Main agent and if I were keeping the car until it breaks.

I wouldn't touch a Cat S car.

The thing with damaged repaired cars is that what may seem to be a professionally repaired car and a car that passes an AA inspection there's no telling tracking is out or abnormal wear on joints, suspension or electrical components that resulted from the crash, that might be fine now but miles down the road may become apparent.

Also a lot of these cars are stored outside still crashed for a few months until insurance is settled with possible dampness getting into electrical components by smashed windscreens etc

You'll see a lot of adverts say that the car was previously repaired and it was only a scratch on the bumper or just needed a new bonnet, I really doubt this as an insurance company wouldn't write a newish car off just for a scratched bumper or a bonnet.

Insurance can be and has been an issue in the past too.

The car to get is a Cat N car that was not damaged but was a stolen/recovered car, you'll need t see proof of this of course and be sure it wasnt damaged while it was stolen.

patsat

Thanks for the info, I was already pretty much decided on the Category S being a no go.

For a car to go back on the road in UK does it need to have a report done on it? And if the car had this done would it suffice for the insurance over here?

I might try and narrow down the search for stolen/recovered of possible whilst I assess my options!

I'm not really worried about resale value, plan on keeping it for a fair few years unless it wouldn't t be worth much.

Dravokivich

My suggestion would be to only get into a knowingly repaired vehicle that was written off, by being advised of what happened and what was done. An engineer can overlook an issue examining the car because they aren't checking the quality of the repairs directly.

extra-ordinary_

Cat S cars have been structurally damaged so IMO wouldn't be worth buying unless you buy it damaged and fix it yourself to know it's been done correctly. Cat N cars are written off for non structural damage.
it makes financial sense for insurance companies to write-off cars for a myriad of reasons. Also, the repair estimate they're considering is with brand new OEM parts fitted by a main dealer. Cars can be bought and repaired for far less than what the insurance may have estimated the repairs at using secondhand parts etc.
I don't think I'd buy a Cat S but would definitely buy Cat N.

There is also an amount of (often extensively) damaged cars that are unrecorded and that are repaired and go back on the road. Also, how many cars in Ireland have been in a tip where the insurance company wasn't informed, or else the insurance company was informed and they elected to repair rather than write off? Is this a better prospect than the written-off car?

patsat

So what's the story with insuring one of these cars in Ireland?

I have never been asked if a car was a write off before or would that automatically come up on there system?

darragh o meara

patsat wrote: »

So what's the story with insuring one of these cars in Ireland?

I have never been asked if a car was a write off before or would that automatically come up on there system?

Might not come up straight away for them but come a time and you have to claim, you can be sure they’ll know and use it against you. Insurance companies are in the business of making money and if they can save a few grand on a claim with a history report for a few quid you can be damn sure they will...

patsat

Just to update, decided against it.

The one car that looked to be worth the value turned out to be a scam! Nothing else seems worth the risk!

louth147

Hi there,
With regard a Cat-S write off, if you import from the UK and thus change the registration plate, would the fact that it was a write off show up on a check if the Irish reg is checked.  So, does the Irish reg link back to the UK History, or would the write up only show up if the UK reg was entered?  Thanks

bazz26

Most of the car history check companies will continue to flag it as a write off as the car's registration whether Irish or old UK will still be linked to it's VIN and recorded history. So it won't be hidden as a write off when someone runs a history check on it and rightly so.