# what does Cat D registered cars mean?



## p1tse (Sep 20, 2004)

i have seen this on accident damaged repaired cars, cars stolen and recovered etc. however was does it actually mean?

i know each case is different but what does it start and range to?

also how does one effect the value and residual of a car?


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## Dotti (Mar 9, 2003)

Category A: Total burnout. No value left in the vehicle 
Category B: Break only. Value lies in salvage
Category C: Damage to car is more than total value of car
Category D: Repair would cost almost as much as the vehicle is worth. Better to write off than repair. No comebacks for the insurers

I think the above is correct


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## p1tse (Sep 20, 2004)

Dotti said:


> Category A: Total burnout. No value left in the vehicle
> Category B: Break only. Value lies in salvage
> Category C: Damage to car is more than total value of car
> Category D: Repair would cost almost as much as the vehicle is worth. Better to write off than repair. No comebacks for the insurers
> ...


so what's the point of Cat D if it cost as much as the car?


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## Toshiba (Jul 8, 2004)

the point is, its not worth repairing.


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## Niko (May 10, 2005)

Toshiba said:


> the point is, its not worth repairing.


cos say theres a porsche that been defined as a cat d well maybe a person who owns a garage can get the job done cheaper so might be able to save a few Â£k's

niko


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## Toshiba (Jul 8, 2004)

But the car will be worth nothing once repaired as it will be recorded as a CAT D. Also i think they remove all the tags from the car.

In my view CATD cars should be crushed to prevent other crimes such as cloning/ringing.


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## BorderFox (Jun 21, 2003)

p1tse said:


> Dotti said:
> 
> 
> > Category A: Total burnout. No value left in the vehicle
> ...


A,B & C are just about spot on. Cat D is usually a car which has been lightly damaged but the owner decided not to repair, the car is is still in roadworthy condition and has no structural damage.
If a person was to have a bit of a collision in their own car and decided to repair the car themselves without informing their insurance company, then they too would technically be driving a Cat D car.
Cat D cars are normally worth around 25% less than an undamaged car.
The way I see it, this can be a way to save alot of money if you know what you are doing. Insurance companies always estimate costs using brand new parts and full dealer hourly rates. This makes cost of repair unviable at times, but if you can source second hand parts and get a good panel beater to do the job you will save alot of money. Have a look at the salvage section at the back of the Autotrader or do a quick search on ebay for cat d.


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## p1tse (Sep 20, 2004)

would you buy a cat D, which has been fixed etc. but original damage was body panels and nothing major like mechanical?

also what are the views of Cat D from garage point of view, would they usually do p/x or trade in deals etc.? also is 25% below market value a reasonable estimate?


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## Kell (May 28, 2002)

I remember reading something about this a while back about a guy who ONLY buys catD cars, repairs them and then runs them into the ground.

For him it was a great way of punching above his weight in terms of the type of cars he got to drive.

There was no probs for him though as he didn't have to sell the car on.

Part of the article mentioned that it's very dangerous territory however, and many unscrupulous people operate in this arena because hte buyer thinks he's getting a bargain by buying a repaired car - and is sometimes less aware rather than more so.

IIRC, the article said the safest way to do this was to buy the car while it's still damaged and oversee the work yourself (after getting realistic estimates for the repair work obviously). The danger if you don't is that you've got no way of knowing how well the repairs have been done.

Lots of people do do it - and lots of people are very happy as a result - but you do have to be careful.


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## Toshiba (Jul 8, 2004)

p1tse said:


> would you buy a cat D, which has been fixed etc. but original damage was body panels and nothing major like mechanical?
> 
> also what are the views of Cat D from garage point of view, would they usually do p/x or trade in deals etc.? also is 25% below market value a reasonable estimate?


I'd say it would be higher than that.


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## che6mw (Nov 13, 2003)

p1tse said:


> would you buy a cat D, which has been fixed etc. but original damage was body panels and nothing major like mechanical?
> 
> also what are the views of Cat D from garage point of view, would they usually do p/x or trade in deals etc.? also is 25% below market value a reasonable estimate?


As Kell says - Cat D would be tempting as it could either be a 'bargain' or else a car that you might not otherwise be able to afford if not recorded cat D.

I've read in to it a bit myself as I'm all for saving myself money if the risks are worth the reward (for instance I'd have no problems buying high mileage cars if I knew what I was doing but many people are put off by that idea also) but in this case I think it is a bit too risky.

I'd rather buy an unrepaired Cat D car - at least then you know what you are getting in to. A quick fix of body panels and who knows what lies beneath on cars that have been repaired elsewhere - would you take that risk when driving on motorways with loved ones on board???

Also you don't actually make a saving as come sale time you'll have to sell it at much less than market rate and Cat D cars really struggle to shift. Just from browsing on autotrader and pistonheads I've noticed a couple of cat D cars from different marquees which look fairly priced (i.e. big demium for being cat D) but they've been on for months now - just not shifting at all.


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## CapTT (Mar 2, 2003)

THIS MAY BE USEFUL:

http://www.abi.org.uk/Display/File/Chil ... alvage.pdf

There is a whole world of Cat D motor dealers and traders out there , take care and go save some money !.


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## p1tse (Sep 20, 2004)

thanks, but was asking for a friend and trying to find as much info. 
the bargin (or not) just doesn't weigh up. it wasn't a huge saving, plus the fact that insurance companies value the cars differently etc. and not 100% sure on final repair quality, it's just not the risk - well not for a half decent daily drive.

if it was something to repair yourself and run into the ground and not thinking about resale, reliability, safety then i think it's worth a thought.
many thanks


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