Rear ended - what to expect?

[STex]

If you give up your location, ie major town close to, maybe some here can give you a shop recommendation.

Also on diminished value, it is usually a separate claim action against the insurance of the one that caused the damage.

OEM? Some dealer parts houses will price match what the ins. pays for an after market part. Ask the shop about this. they may work this route.

I try to do OEM as fit is better. Sometimes on key parts like headlights, if no price match by OEM parts house, I will pay the shop the difference to use the OEM.

I have life long friends that run a small shop here. You would not believe the number of rear end collisions repairs that they do now. Some drivers never hit the brake. Most are day time collisions. Has to be distracted driving. No two to three second rule etc...

that color will be difficult to match. You do not notice it but with just a few years age, the paint fades or changes color so you color code may not be a good match. Hope all works out well.

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[Brazos609]

My non-professional opinion of that damage is that it's at least $4-7k. Obviously, I can't see underneath, but they'll probably have to do some pulling of the frame to get things back into alignment, the exhaust has to be repaired/replaced, might be damage to the suspension, and they'll certainly need to replace the trunk floor, trunk lid and tail light panel, both tail lights, left rear quarterpanel, bumper cover, bumper support, etc.

I doubt it'll be totaled, but that's a good amount of damage. I had less than that on my 2006 GT a couple years ago, and it ended up being damn near $4k.

JR

Better stick a 1 in front of your estimate.

 

[STex]

Avoid the shops that pay their guys by volume....the more cars they roll in and out, the more money in their pockets. I went with a very small, 2 person operation based on what I heard about their work. I knew it would take longer, but it was fall and the car would be going to storage anyway. They would have me come by periodically to look at the progress and were simply great guys who love cars. I'm not sure I would have had the same experience with a larger, insurance company-approved body shop.

that my friend is a blessing. There is the same kind of shop here in central Texas. People in the know, will wait till the shop can get to it, if at all possible.

 

[NHEcoboost]

Better stick a 1 in front of your estimate.

This.

I had one muffler bent slightly. Since OEM is one piece, they quoted $1K for new exhaust.

The finishing panel, which was only scarped a bit....almost another $1K!

The adjusters quote full MSRP on all parts. This is how the body shop makes their money since the insurance company only gives roughly $40/hour labor....that would be sufficient if it were the '90's...

 

[ctandc72]

Listen to the adjuster. Seriously. An estimate is JUST that - an estimate. They never know what they are going to find until they start stripping off damaged parts, get it on the frame machine etc. I've seen 'fender benders' where cars were totaled (rightfully so) from underlying damage.

As for finding a shop....it all depends on the shop itself.

Just because a shop does high volume does not make them a bad shop. Small shops do not automatically mean a good shop either. And if you want your car back in a quick time frame - the last thing you want is it languishing in paint and body purgatory in a small shop that has limited manpower and 2 weeks turns into 2 months etc.

Read reviews. I personally know of a high volume shop that does GREAT work, and quick, but they recently lost their main two guys who paint / blending. Their reviews have suffered because of this.

Thing to remember, the underlying repair and prep work is the key. Base coat / clear coat isn't rocket science. Blending can be an issue - but paint matching systems are pretty good now - they even take into account aging of paint etc and can actually match the color of the car exactly as it sits....

OEM vs aftermarket parts.....

Depends on the part and the aftermarket parts. Some aftermarket parts are certified to fit and have finish directly equivalent with an OEM replacement. Sometimes the price difference is big - sometimes not.

Good luck.

 

[Cardude99]

This.

I had one muffler bent slightly. Since OEM is one piece, they quoted $1K for new exhaust.

The finishing panel, which was only scarped a bit....almost another $1K!

The adjusters quote full MSRP on all parts. This is how the body shop makes their money since the insurance company only gives roughly $40/hour labor....that would be sufficient if it were the '90's...

Labor rates are bases on county and city. Phx is about $52 and San Fran is close to $100 so it varies

 

[RIBS]

Everyone on here I am betting just has one bad experience and all the sudden they are experts. I am an adjuster and deal with this every day. You don't have to trust me, but I'm just giving you my expert opinion. I don't know you and have no incentive to lie.

No estimate is perfect period. I don't care who writes it, everyone will be different that's why it is called an estimate.

Hidden damage is always covered by the insurance company as long as it is caused by the accident and 99% of the time it is. Only exception is a prior bad repair in the spot that was hit.

Use the insurance companies shop, if you don't like the first one ask for another. They may not all be winners but most do great work. They are held to very high standards. They get paid to do good work, if they do bad work they piss off customers, when that happens management gets pissed and over reacts.

Contrary to poplar opinion. Contracted Shops want to do quality work and not have the customer come back. Upset customer then shop gets in trouble. Double work shop doesn't get paid for the extra work. Mess up enough and get kicked off the program. So in turn they are incentivsed to do a good job with quality work the first time.

The guarentees from the insurance carrier do matter. They protect you if a part fails or the paint goes bad down the road etc... If you use a shop of your choice you better hope that they stand by their work. I have seen so many horror stories where they don't and the customer eats the cost of getting it fixed correctly. Insurance shops do not cut corners, shops out of network might and you will have no help.

Regarding diminished value. Once repaired ask for it. If the offer is not fair or they deny it. Hire an independent appraiser to give you a diminished value report, show to your adjuster and give them one more chance to pay the div. Keep in mind the appraiser will charge between $300 and $400 and you will not be reimbursed. If the carrier still is not fair your last option is a small claims lawsuit. Trust me the litigation department doesn't want to deal with small fish claims they will make a fair offer to get rid of you.

Finally oem and aftermarket doesn't matter you will never know the difference. It will look and act identical. The insurance Co will not put on something that will look, act, perform, or be less safe than the oem part. Only different is one says Ford and the other says some other name.

I hope this helps. Idk if you will want my advice but I hope this sheds some light on insurance companies and the repair process. I am not saying they are perfect and I agree they have many flaws. Many adjusters will do what they can to help you just be kind and you will get an advocate. Be a dick and see how little they will care. Let me know if you have any questions.

I used a "insurance approved shop" once and they did a crappy job. I called the adjuster out to the shop before I drove it away and he stopped 10 feet from the car and said "OMG". He apologized, gave me a free rental, trucked my car to another shop, inspected the finished job before calling me and charged back to the original shop all the costs associated with stripping my car down and completely redoing the repair.

You will be on your own if you go outside the approved list. So yeah, approved shops want to do right or they will lose the insurance company business and be on the hook for a triple the cost repair bill like mine.

 

[Leadphalanx]

I appreciate all the responses. I'll be usimg USAA's recommended shop for now. Should be getting an estimate today hopefully.

 

[goldengooner]

Avoid the shops that pay their guys by volume....the more cars they roll in and out, the more money in their pockets. I went with a very small, 2 person operation based on what I heard about their work. I knew it would take longer, but it was fall and the car would be going to storage anyway. They would have me come by periodically to look at the progress and were simply great guys who love cars. I'm not sure I would have had the same experience with a larger, insurance company-approved body shop.

If this is who i think it is, all i shall say is Brett and Scott do Amazing Work,
A friend of mine used them, told his insurance where he was going and their work and reputation speak for itself. The car was was in a bad way, but as the chassis was not bent, it was not written off.
But the insurance just gave him a lump sum and it was in his bank 3 days after the smack, so he could use that money to change bits, upgrade parts, do what he liked. Great Insurance

 

[Leadphalanx]

Initial estimate before getting into anything was around 8k. Not sure if it has changed but last I heard they were replacing the rear quarter panel and most of the parts arrived. ETA on repair is just under a month currently.

 

[obgod3]

I appreciate all the responses. I'll be usimg USAA's recommended shop for now. Should be getting an estimate today hopefully.

You cant go wrong with a usaa shop, if they screw it up or it isnt perfect usaa will square you away.

 

[Bob99b5]

I have to say I disagree with folks saying not to use a insurance company' shop, you'll know if they are good or not just by talking to them and most recommended shops are going to want to do an excellent job to keep the business rolling in.

You are correct. Most body shops that AREN'T on insurance company list aren't there because they don't do good work. My brother's shop is on several insurance company lists and I can tell you honestly and with certainty that when I return cars to their drive in claims centers the adjusters there inspect EVERYTHING including the type and quality of parts used, fasteners and decals (making sure the shop replaced them with proper parts), panel alignment, color match, opening/closing of doors/hood/trunk, etc., etc., etc. If anything isn't right, it comes straight back for repair before it's released to the customer.

The most important advice is get a recommendation from a friend or car club and visit the shop personally. Look at the equipment and facility yourself. Is the shop clean and orderly, is the work in progress organized, do the completed jobs look good? This is my brother's shop www.autopaintri.com. He is on several insurance lists and does excellent work. I wouldn't hesitate to send anyone there.

 

[Loki-GT]

I used a "insurance approved shop" once and they did a crappy job. I called the adjuster out to the shop before I drove it away and he stopped 10 feet from the car and said "OMG". He apologized, gave me a free rental, trucked my car to another shop, inspected the finished job before calling me and charged back to the original shop all the costs associated with stripping my car down and completely redoing the repair.

You will be on your own if you go outside the approved list. So yeah, approved shops want to do right or they will lose the insurance company business and be on the hook for a triple the cost repair bill like mine.

Same here, I had an RV repaired through a State Farm recommended shop and when the body shop completed their work it was astonishingly bad so a State Farm inspector showed up and took one look at it and said we'll send it to another shop we know can do it right. It was in the shop another month to get the fix, fixed. :headbonk:

 

[UAmach1]

You are correct. Most body shops that AREN'T on insurance company list aren't there because they don't do good work.

This is 100% bullshit.

I know many shops near me on insurance lists that do shit work, and ones that are NOT on lists that do great work. I'm more inclined to believe they get on lists just because they cut discounts to ins. companies that send them work.

Now that I think more on it, MOST the shops I know that are shit were recommended by insurance companies.

 

[STex]

^ +1

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