Total Loss Disputes in Poland: When the Garage and Insurer Disagree

Your garage has looked at the car after the accident and says: "it can be repaired, and the cost is reasonable." Meanwhile the insurer sends over its own costing and declares a total loss (szkoda całkowita), offering a lump-sum payout instead of covering the repair. This is one of the most common disputes we see — garage versus insurer over a total-loss write-off — and you are not obliged to simply accept the insurer's call. This article explains why these disagreements happen, how insurers can understate a car's value while overstating repair costs, and what real tools you have to push back — including when you live in the UK but the car and the accident are in Poland.

This guide is general legal information, not legal advice. How the rules apply depends on your individual circumstances, and the matter should be assessed by a qualified Polish lawyer. Twoja Sprawa helps you organise the documents for that assessment.

What counts as a total loss, and why it's so often disputed

Under the principle of restoring the injured party to their prior position (Article 363 of the Polish Civil Code, Kodeks cywilny), a claimant is entitled to have the damage repaired — in principle either by restoring the vehicle to its pre-accident condition, or by payment of an appropriate sum of money. A total loss is a situation where the cost of repairing the vehicle exceeds its pre-accident value, making the repair economically unjustified **.

The problem is that both sides of this equation — the repair cost and the vehicle's value — are estimates, not hard facts. The garage calculates the repair cost from real prices for parts and the labour it will actually invoice. The insurer calculates the repair cost using its own costing system (e.g. Audatex, Eurotax) and its own database of market values. When these two calculations diverge — which happens often — a dispute arises: the garage says "repairable and cost-effective," the insurer says "total loss."

It's worth understanding that a "total loss" determination is a decision made by the insurer, not a court ruling. You can disagree with it and challenge it using the same tools you would use against any other undervalued payout.

Why insurers have an incentive to call a total loss

It helps to understand the financial mechanics, because they explain why insurers reach for the "total loss" label more readily than you might expect.

With a partial loss (repair), the insurer pays the full cost of the repair — parts, labour, paintwork, and any additional work uncovered during the strip-down.

With a total loss, the insurer pays the difference between the vehicle's pre-accident value and the value of what's left of it (the salvage). This is usually a lower figure than the real cost of physically repairing the car — particularly when:

• the vehicle's market value is estimated conservatively (below its real second-hand market price),
• the salvage value is estimated on the high side,
• the repair cost in the insurer's costing is artificially "nudged" above the value of the vehicle.

In other words: the sooner the repair cost "exceeds" the car's value in the insurer's calculation, the less it may ultimately have to pay out. That doesn't mean every total-loss decision is dishonest — sometimes a repair genuinely isn't worthwhile. It does mean, however, that it's worth checking the figures behind that decision before you accept it.

How repair costs get inflated and vehicle values get understated

In practice, total-loss disputes tend to come down to a handful of recurring patterns in the insurer's costing:

Inflating the repair cost

• Adding unnecessary work — for example, replacing an entire panel instead of a body repair, when the garage considers the repair technically possible and cheaper.
• Overstated labour hours relative to the work actually needed to fix a given piece of damage.
• Original-equipment (OE) parts specified where the garage proposes approved equivalent parts — this artificially inflates the theoretical repair cost in the costing, even though the garage could complete a proper repair for less.
• Including "just in case" damage that hasn't been confirmed by the physical inspection — for instance, components that were never actually checked.

Understating the vehicle's value

• Relying on averaged databases (e.g. Eurotax, Infoekspert) that don't always reflect the real market for that specific car — especially for vehicles with low mileage, a full service history, or extra equipment.
• Ignoring individual features of the vehicle that push its value up (mechanical condition, history, additional equipment).
• Applying a "negotiation discount" on the assumption that some claimants won't challenge the first valuation.

Setting the garage's costing side by side with the insurer's costing — line by line — very often reveals exactly where the gap that produced the "total loss" label came from. For more on repair costing itself and disputes over hourly labour rates, see our article Insurer's costing versus repair at an authorised garage (in Polish).

How to challenge it: independent assessor, appeal, court

If your garage says the car can be repaired for less than the insurer's decision implies, you have several real routes open to you.

Step 1 — get the garage's costing in writing

Ask the garage for a written, itemised repair quote — line by line, with parts, prices, and labour hours listed. A mechanic's verbal comment that "it can be repaired" carries no evidential weight on its own — you need a document you can set against the insurer's costing.

Step 2 — commission an independent, second assessor's opinion

This is the key step in any total-loss dispute. An independent vehicle assessor (rzeczoznawca samochodowy) can:

• assess whether the damage genuinely exceeds the threshold at which repair stops being cost-effective,
• verify the vehicle's pre-accident market value against real market listings, rather than an averaged database alone,
• assess the salvage value independently of the insurer's own valuation,
• produce a report you can attach to your appeal.

A second assessor's opinion is particularly worth commissioning when the gap between the garage's costing and the insurer's costing is significant, and the total-loss decision rests mainly on the insurer's own calculation.

Step 3 — submit a formal appeal (complaint)

An appeal against a total-loss decision should include:

• the garage's costing showing the lower repair cost,
• the independent assessor's report (if one was commissioned),
• specific line items in the insurer's costing that you're disputing (e.g. an unnecessary panel replacement instead of a repair, inflated labour hours, an understated vehicle value),
• a request for the decision to be reviewed and — where justified — for the insurer to approve the repair instead of paying out a lump sum.

We cover the process and a template more fully in Appealing an insurer's decision (in Polish).

Step 4 — the Financial Ombudsman or court

If the insurer maintains its decision despite the evidence you've submitted, the next steps are a free complaint to the Polish Financial Ombudsman (Rzecznik Finansowy), or — as a last resort — a civil claim for the full value of the damage. A court can find that a total-loss decision was unjustified if the evidence (the garage's costing, the assessor's opinion) shows that the repair was in fact economically viable.

Valuing the salvage — another point of dispute

Even where a total loss is ultimately confirmed, the dispute often shifts to the valuation of the salvage (the wreck). Compensation for a total loss is calculated as the difference between the vehicle's pre-accident value and the value of what's left of it. The higher the insurer values the salvage, the lower the final payout — even where the starting valuation of the vehicle is identical.

It's worth checking whether the salvage valuation:

• is based on real purchase offers for salvage (e.g. from auctions or salvage exchanges), rather than a theoretical estimate,
• reflects the actual extent of the damage, rather than a generic "percentage of the vehicle's value."

If you intend to keep the vehicle (for example, to repair it yourself), say so before accepting the payout — once you've accepted it, it becomes much harder to negotiate the terms relating to the salvage. We go into more depth on how total-loss and salvage valuations work in What does "total loss" actually mean? (in Polish).

Handling this remotely from the UK

Many Poles living in the UK still have a car registered and insured in Poland — used by family, rented out, or simply left "in storage." A total-loss dispute can be run remotely, though it takes a bit of organising:

• Garage and assessor in Poland — the costing, as well as the physical inspection of the vehicle, have to take place in Poland; you can authorise a trusted person (via a power of attorney, pełnomocnictwo) to collect documents and attend the inspection on your behalf.
• Correspondence with the insurer — claim notifications, appeals, and documents can be sent by email and post; you don't need to be physically present in Poland.
• Photos and scans — ask the garage for photos of the damage and a scan of its costing straight after the inspection, before the insurer issues its decision.
• A representative — if the matter goes to appeal or to court, it's worth considering instructing a representative (a Polish advocate or legal counsel, adwokat/radca prawny) who can handle the correspondence and, if needed, represent you before the court.

Twoja Sprawa helps you put together the documents (the garage's costing, the insurer's decision, any assessor's report) and refers the matter to a regulated Polish advocate or legal counsel, who will assess the merits of your particular total-loss dispute.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I refuse to accept a total-loss decision? Yes. The insurer's total-loss decision is not final — you can challenge it by presenting the garage's costing and/or an independent assessor's opinion showing that the repair is economically justified.

Can the garage's costing "override" the insurer's decision? The garage's costing is important evidence, but it's ultimately the insurer (or, in a dispute, the court) that decides whether the repair is cost-effective. The more detailed and well-documented the garage's costing, the stronger your case in the appeal.

How much does a second assessor's opinion cost, and is it worth it? The cost depends on the assessor and the scope of the opinion **. Where the gap between the insurer's valuation and the real value of the claim is significant, the cost of the opinion usually pays for itself — particularly where it's later awarded as part of the legal costs if you win.

How much time do I have to challenge a total-loss decision? Claims for damages arising from a tort generally become time-barred after 3 years from the date the injured party learned of the damage and of the person liable for it (Article 442[1] of the Civil Code), or, where the damage arose from a crime, after 20 years from the date of the event. In practice, it's worth acting much faster — the longer you wait to appeal, the harder it becomes to gather fresh evidence (the vehicle's condition, market offers, witness availability at the garage).

Can I keep the car if I don't agree to a total loss? You can indicate that you want to keep the vehicle, but do this before you accept the payout — the insurer may then adjust its calculation to reflect the value of the salvage left in your hands.

Disclaimer

Twoja Sprawa (twojasprawa.com) is a matching platform connecting Polish-speaking individuals with a regulated Polish advocate or legal counsel (adwokat or radca prawny) — it is not a law firm. This article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every case requires an individual review of the documents and circumstances by a qualified lawyer. We do not guarantee any particular outcome or amount of compensation.

Sources

• Polish Civil Code (Kodeks cywilny), Articles 361–363 (making good the damage, restoration of the prior position): https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU19640160093
• Polish Civil Code (Kodeks cywilny), Article 442[1] (limitation of claims arising from a tort): https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU19640160093
• Polish Civil Code (Kodeks cywilny), Article 822 (third-party liability insurance contract): https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU19640160093

Related articles

• What does "total loss" actually mean? (in Polish)
• Insurer's costing versus repair at an authorised garage (in Polish)
• Appealing an insurer's decision (in Polish)

Last reviewed: 5 July 2026.