Article
What Your Auto Body Shop Fails to Tell You
A good repair restores your car, but the shop’s choices and paperwork also affect what it is worth: the parts used, the structural work done, and what gets recorded. These are the questions worth asking your body shop before and after repairs.
Published · Updated · Reviewed by Monica Fisher · 2 min read
When you’re in a wreck make sure you go to an Appropriate/ Certified Repair Shop — and don’t go to a Direct Repair Facility for the Insurance Company.
- Direct-repair shops have agreements with insurers. You can usually choose your own shop.
Insurance Companies with Repair Shops negotiate a pre-set rate to repair your vehicle. Ask any shop whether it follows the manufacturer’s repair procedures, and ask for a copy of the final repair invoice. - OEM Parts are best
Original-equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts are designed to fit your car perfectly. Insurance Companies prefer to use generic or salvage replacement parts because they're significantly cheaper. If the accident is your fault, you could be bound by wording in your policy that lets the insurance company use Non- OEM parts. If the accident was someone else's fault, you can ask for OEM parts. Whether the at-fault insurer must pay for them depends on your state's rules, so ask the insurer to explain in writing any parts it will not cover. OEM parts are made to the manufacturer’s specifications. - Cars are rarely done when they say they will be
Always call the Body Shop to make sure the car is actually repaired before you go there. Many times the due date is fictional and only a guide line. We have found that many times clients will show up to pick up their car and the vehicle is still waiting to be painted. - Rental Car Reimbursement
Many times insurance companies will want our clients to put their rental car on their credit card with promises of reimbursing them once the car is repaired. Keep rental receipts. Before you rent, ask the insurer in writing what daily rate and how many days it will cover. Typically, Insurance Companies will have an account with certain rental car companies and they can facilitate the rental car without your out of pocket expense. - The insurer’s warranty
Insurance Companies sometimes dangle an elusive warranty on the parts to entice you to go to their direct repair shops. Many body shops offer their own written warranty on repairs, often for as long as you own the vehicle; ask for it in writing.
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