Insurance company not replacing seats after a crash

[RJB78]

A friend of mine said that after her van was totaled, the insurance company will not replace the seats because the seats were not occupied at the time. Correct me if I'm wrong, but seats don't have to be occupied to be replaced, right? How can she get the insurance to replace her seats? Does the car seat manufacturer have to send the insurance company something saying they have to be replaced?

[chickabiddy]

If the van was totalled, the seats probably needed to be replaced regardless of occupancy.

Whether the insurance company is obligated to do so depends on what kind of coverage she had and whether they consider carseats to be personal property or part of the vehicle.

[ctbcleveland]

Linking to a helpful thread by Jeanum on the topic.

Basically every seat would have to be replaced. Britax will let you keep them after a minor crash - but I think being totalled is beyond "minor"

http://www.car-seat.org/showthread.php?t=9575

[RJB78]

Thanks for the info and the link! Yeah, I found that thread after I posted mine. I sent her the information. :)