So I clipped a rock...

bdj238

New member
Well this weekend while heading to a campground near Indian Creek I dipped my back corner and clipped a rock. It truck the foot of one of the jacks pulling it away from the camper.
So.... What do I do? Do I attempt to repair this on my own or attempt to file an insurance claim with USAA and have a shop do it? I spoke with a shop today and their rough estimate, before doing a formal eval would be somewhere between 2-3k.

This does have a second issue. The bottom stabilizing bracket seems to have had wood rot. Upon basic inspection by me the rear bumper may have to come off as well as the trail light and possibly the side storage hatch to pull back the siding enough to get to all of this.

All of this combined, the service guy estimated 12-15 hours labor over likely a week (mechanic had gone home for the day).

I have a 500$ deductible but insurance may not cover where the wood rot was found. I plan to call the insurance tomorrow and get a quote.

Is repairing this kind of thing that hard and involved? Could I do this with basic wood and mechanic knowledge in a weekend? Or should I just give it to the ship and hope for the best?

Lastly I'm currently planning to be in Salt Lake for a couple of months but this is my primary residence sense I'm touring.

dec868ac8b6f6901f8590859c39b8c7e.jpg
b50b5cd93c117e306512b101fbd7f4b2.jpg
75e4a555827274b36412af5476270662.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

TripLeader

Explorer
If you call your insurance company and ask them about it, they will file a claim, even if that is not your intent. Asking about coverage is a claim to them, regardless of whether its covered or not.
-----
Sometimes if you repeatedly tell them you are not filing a claim, then they may listen. Be careful.
 

Bruce

Observer
File a claim, and they'll probably salvage out the camper due to repairs being more than value....if you get it done right. You'll need to remove the siding on the side and rear to see the full extent of the damage....as well as the bumper. This quote nailed it "The wood could be a headache or a nightmare"....MIGHT be an easy fix...but my guess is it the latter. Keep us posted.
 

Bruce

Observer
Also, you could get rid off all your jacks (saves a lot of weight) and patch the holes...Im just afraid that grafting in new wood (enough for solid mounting of jack) could be difficult...very doable but time consuming; it might be best anyway considering you have wood rot, you might be doing yourself a favor in the long run. Pull the siding all the way up to the seam under the window...Id ditch the jacks and store them anyway; I do because of I fear what happened to you.
 

Ovrlnd Rd

Adventurer
As a former claims adjuster just let me say, anyone outside of the actual claims dept doesn't know squat about how to help you with a loss. You need to file an actual claim, have a qualified/trained RV adjuster look at the damages and go from there. The wood rot is going to be considered pre-existing or maintenance related so likely not covered. I have no idea the value of your camper but even if they considered it a total loss you still have the right to retain the salvage and fix it yourself. You also don't have to get the repairs done if there isn't a lien holder on the camper. Take the money, do enough repairs to get you home and decide what else to do there. Good luck!
 

bdj238

New member
Thanks for all the suggestions! I don't want to permanently remove the jacks because I will really like the idea of being able to drop the camper during the week when I'm frequently in the city. That said, it does start on the truck the majority of the time.
Secondly without buying more hardcore items, when I've had a flat before I raise the camper off the truck so that I can use the bottle jack.

I'm headed to a repair place today to get a quote. Then I'll probably call the insurance after that.

Lastly, I ran through NADA and got this for a value. Not sure exactly what number to read into. I paid 7k for it in Alaska 2 years ago (everything holds value up there).

64b5d6a2705ae8027ab3fcf0c873c7c1.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Ovrlnd Rd

Adventurer
If the damage does come out to $3k then they'll likely total it. Again, your best bet would be to take the money, keep the salvage, do enough repairs to get you home, and then sell or repair it once you're home. The only caveat is once they total it they won't insure it for the rest of your trip. I'm guessing you could still sell it for a lot more than they take in salvage value so should come out ahead.
 
Not sure if I would file a claim or not. No need to jack up your rates. It's really not that difficult to pull the siding off and see what you have underneath. If you are handy at woodworking and have the tools and a place to work, it would be a cheap fix, unless you wanted it cosmetically 100%.
 

SGNellett

Adventurer
Not sure if I would file a claim or not. No need to jack up your rates. It's really not that difficult to pull the siding off and see what you have underneath. If you are handy at woodworking and have the tools and a place to work, it would be a cheap fix, unless you wanted it cosmetically 100%.

I think the problem with that plan is he is already on the road, away from home.

BTW, I was on the Saratoga!
 

Ovrlnd Rd

Adventurer
Not sure if I would file a claim or not. No need to jack up your rates. It's really not that difficult to pull the siding off and see what you have underneath. If you are handy at woodworking and have the tools and a place to work, it would be a cheap fix, unless you wanted it cosmetically 100%.

Insurance rates these days are based more on your credit rating than driving history or claims. If you have a $5000 claim there's no way your rates are going up $5000. You buy insurance for these types of things so use it.
 

boxcar1

boxcar1
Use caution. I'd defiantly file a claim , patch it up as tight as possible while you're still on the road ( remove just that jack or all ) Once home have the camper looked at by a competent RV tech . I'd bet that the dry rot problem you have extends to the passenger side rear as well. Stick framed campers tend to do this. While it is a repair job that can and has been done by many non professionals over the years , it does take a certain skill set and a large dry space as well as the tooling to do the job right. It isn't a weekend job. You may just want to use the insurance to help offset the cost of a new unit......
 

bdj238

New member
Just wanted to say thank you to everyone. I went by the shop and the head boss guy used a bit of a scare tactic to hook me in. He started saying they would have to take off all these different things (turns out they didn't take off as much as he implied, and it could be a ton of work.

Well it took them one day, not sure what all got replaced as everyone was walking out the door when I got there to pick it up. I do know that they only replaced what was structural on the bottom corner where there was wood rot.
Total cost was around $1200, insurance paid for just over half after my deductible but implied that it was near the upper limit for the age of the camper.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,529
Messages
2,875,562
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top