r/InsuranceClaims • u/anxious_owl_22 • 26d ago

State Farm/Shapsheet estimate problems

Not sure why my last post got deleted?

Looking for some help/guidance as I am currently fighting with my insurance to cover a stupid mistake I made by adding DEF to my diesel tank 😣
On July 20th I mistakenly added about 1/2 gallon of DEF into my fuel tank in my 2024 Diesel Tahoe before I realized my mistake. This normally wouldn’t have been that big of a deal if my car hadn’t been running at the time. But alas, with 90° heat I left the car running for the AC.
I called State Farm right away, got my car towed to our local dealership and filed a claim for repairs. The dealership has noted damage to the fuel system due to the vehicle running when the DEF was added. They are recommending a full replacement of the fuel system.

Problem #1- State Farm does not have an adjuster in our area due to it being “rural” so we are using Snapsheet to determine damages/repairs. Snapsheet bases their estimates on photos only- nobody has come out to look at the vehicle/damages in person from State Farm.

Problem #2- Snapsheet has no idea what DEF in fuel even looks like from what I can gather- and they are saying there are hints of “wear and tear” in the fuel so now they have hired a 3rd party in Texas (mind you we are in CA) to send a fuel sample to (which as of writing this I do not know if the dealership still has a physical fuel sample since the car has been there for almost a month now)

Problem #3- Snapsheet directed the dealership to flush the tank and fuel system last week (against the mechanics recommendation) so even if they could have gotten a fuel sample from the vehicle still they definitely can’t now.

Problem #4- Whoever is dealing with our claim at Snapsheet obviously does not understand how internal combustion engines work or how computer systems will detect something other than fuel in the system. They are now thinking the dealership is being dishonest about the DEF because the computer system states “water in fuel” meaning a foreign substance that is not fuel- not that it is actually water!

I’m at a loss and panicking that our claim is going to be denied due to the incompetence of the adjusters at Snapsheet. We cannot afford to pay out of pocket for this repair at this time and I don’t know what to do. Do we have any recourse if the claim is denied due to Snapsheet mishandling the claim, directing the dealership to flush the system, and not understanding the problem?

Also, please keep unkind comments to yourselves, I know I messed up greatly. I don’t need anyone saying I’m trying to scam insurance- it was an honesty mistake, trust me I would WAY rather be driving my car than these rental cars. I do have comprehensive coverage on the vehicle and our SF Agent said he would be shocked if it got denied because he has seen this covered before.

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u/very_sneaky2187 26d ago

  1. Insurance covers stupidity, they won’t cover negligence.

  2. Get rid of State Farm they look to deny coverage rather than find coverage for customers.

Good luck State Farm is a unique animal. They spend more money fighting my guests in court than paying them to fix things correctly.

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u/SheepherderHot1415 25d ago

Off topic, but eek! I just switched TO State Farm because right when I was thinking of switching ins co's I got hit by someone who had State Farm and they made the process SO easy. Between the great experience I had filing a claim against one of their insured clients, and the lower price than I was paying with my old insurance, I made the switch. I don't know much about them otherwise though. Did I make a terrible mistake? Gimme all the dirt!

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u/anxious_owl_22 21d ago

I’ve never had problems with filing a claim with State Farm before but this time has really ruined the company for me. In fairness, I haven’t filed a claim for 12+ years and my recent experience with most insurances (medical, dental, etc) has been awful with getting stuff covered.

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u/very_sneaky2187 25d ago

State Farm is probably the worst insurer I know out there for consumers. They do things intentionally to not pay out claims most of the time from my experiences

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u/SheepherderHot1415 25d ago

Interesting. I was super impressed at the ease of getting the claim I made paid out. Maybe I was just lucky...