You will be relieved to know that your vehicle's actual cash value (ACV) is determined based on the condition of your vehicle BEFORE the accident occurred.

If your car was totaled out the value of the vehicle after the accident is normally referred to as salvage value. For instance if you wanted to keep your vehicle after it was totaled out in many states you could but the salvage value would be deducted from the actual cash value you were to receive as a settlement on your car, also the title would stamped as salvage.

When a car is declared a total loss the means the insurance company should offer you a cash settlement based on the actual cost to purchase a comparable automobile, i.e. one made by the same manufacturer, in the same model year, of a similar body type and with similar options and mileage. So the condition, options, mileage of the car before it was in the accident is taken into account to determine the ACV.

Insurance companies calculate actual cash value in varying ways so you should speak to the insurance adjuster working on your claim to find out more about how your ACV is being determined.