My 1990 560SEL was recently involved in a fender bender when a young driver ran a stop sign. I saw her at the last second and was able to brake and swerve enough that the damage is literally a fender bender, just the left front fender, corner light and headlight door were damaged. The body shop was able to get an original fender and headlight door from the dealer but the corner light had to be aftermarket.

My question for the forum is regarding diminished value because of the accident. The car came from Texas is rust free, runs perfect, everything works and had never been in an accident. Now I'm arguing with the insurance company over the car's value. I feel it's now worth less since there's an accident on its record. The insurance company says it doesn't matter since the damage was minor (repairs were $1500. With original parts). I've been looking for the right older Mercedes and when I find it I was planning to sell this one in order to fund the new purchase. Now, with the accident I think I'll get less for the 560.

__________________
2000 Mercedes S500
1990 Mercedes 560SEL
1970 Triumph Spitfire