by Guest » Wed Feb 18, 2009 11:43 pm
Ok, I'm going to try to keep this as short as possible but it'll be hard. I was in an accident where the driver of the car that hit me had no insurance. So my company has to eat the bill for my car. In my opinion and in the opinion of many other people that saw the damage it should have been totaled. . I was told it was a total loss at first but then they changed their mind. That made me wonder why they were fixing it when they originally said it was a total loss. But because the value of the car was around 30k and the estimate to repair it was around 16k they fixed it. After 2 months I got it back 2 weeks after it was due. It looks horrible! I was promised everything would be 100% to factory spec and as good as new. Well it's not even close. I'm not a body man however I do work on cars for a living so I know what to look for. Most of the problems are cosmetic however the engine sounds like it's messed up and there are a few things that will cause safety issues with the airbags. The shop promises to fix everything 100% to my likings but how can I trust them after all the other promises they didn't keep? This is my family vehicle and I don't feel safe putting my wife and two kids in it even if they do fix it. How do I know if they installed the airbag properlly if they can't even fix simple thing right? So my question is what should I do? I can't trade it in looking as bad as it does nore would I want someone else to buy it. I don't feel the body shop is capable of doing the job right. Now what? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading my short but long problem.
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:44 am Post Subject:
I am not an expert but the first thing I would do is call my insurance company ASAP! If it is not in the original condition and you are not happy with it then they will have to fix it. Give your insurance company a call in the morning and ask politely if they would send someone out to meet you and take a look at your vehicle. This way you can show them first hand what your unhappy with. Chances are they will not total it,especially after putting repair into it already unless there is a saftey issue that can not be fixed. Thats just my guess. You do have rights but you need to speak with the appropriate person..your insurance company.
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 02:28 am Post Subject:
Thank you for responding fireyone. I've already contacted the insurance company and I'm waiting for a call back. The big thing is now I feel like I'm stuck with a car that will never be right. I have not signed anything and did not pay the deductable. Can I keep refusing it if it never meets what I consider 100% right even if that means years? I just don't know what to do. I feel like they're screwing me with a car that should never have been fixed.
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 03:48 am Post Subject:
Your insurance company should back you on this, they should send an adjuster back out to see the repairs, these people are usually experts in repairs, they let you know what the repairs should be at the time of the damage, they should be able to examine them once they are done and back you on it. After all they are now insuring a vehicle that was not fixed to expectation.
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 05:50 am Post Subject:
But because the value of the car was around 30k and the estimate to repair it was around 16k they fixed it.
I don't think a car whose repair cost is 53% could be termed as a 'total loss' everywhere. Please check it out!
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 06:59 am Post Subject:
i hope you have got this repaired through some arbitrary means, who in turn
will be getting paid by your insurer. if your insurer haven't paid them yet
then surely you can contact your insurer and request them to uphold the
payments. if that works out surely the safety issue of your car will
addressed & get rectified by the same person/company who has repaired it.
:idea: :idea:
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 08:44 am Post Subject:
They certainly wouldn't declare the car as totaled since the repair cost hasn't met the totaled threshold, which would be around 70% to 80% of the value of the vehicle.
Can I keep refusing it if it never meets what I consider 100% right even if that means years?
Well, there can be a difference between what you'd considered as satisfactory & what the adjuster would. Therefore, both parties need to reach to an agreement about the repair work done. However, if the repair indeed isn't done satisfactorily and would affect the safety issue of the vehicle, the insurer must address it.
Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 07:38 pm Post Subject:
Even of the appearance is not done right the vehicle owner should have some say in this matter and I believe any good adjuster would stand beside their insured. I have had damages done plenty of times to my vehicles because of the fault of another driver and they came back looking better or just as good as before. If this vehicle is an eyesore the owner has a right to not sign for it. I would hate to put thousands of dollars into a vehicle and have someone else damage it, fix it, and then send it back to me and say "deal with it".
I truly think the adjuster will hwlp out tremendously in this situation. They are on their insured side and should get the situation fixed. Totaling it is more than likely out of the question but fixing it to look as it appeared before the accident should not be a problem, espcially if it comes to safety. The adjuster would know if there was a saftey issue it would only mean another future claim. I do think the call will help.
Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 12:11 am Post Subject:
Your insurer has a contractual duty to you to put you in a position you held prior to the loss known as pre-loss condition. I belong to an association of collision repairers that believe there are seven levels of quality of repair with a level one being the highest.
http://www.wreckcheckboston.com/7levels.html
Pre-loss condition defined
http://www.wreckcheckboston.com/preloss.html
This resolution has been successfully uses by some vehicle owners. You need to locate someone who is willing to complete a post repair inspection to document your new loss ( a poor repair not meeting industry standards) Most policies state language such as industry accepted standards which means little. If the average repair was substandard based on the seven levels of repair or the factory oem standards, and the majority of the industry performed poor repairs then that would be the industry standard. There are no statutory guidelines or ethical standards short of the federal and state consumer protection guidelines to substantiate the fact that you may have been a victim of a consumer fraud or trade relations.
A post repair inspection by a collision trained expert using the manufacturer guidelines can set a base line on the quality of the repairs to measure how they stand againt the pre-loss definition. Since it is your insurer who has the contractual duty and obligation to meet this fudiciary duty, they can be held accountable for failing to fullfil their contractual obligations.
You do not have to take your vehicle back to the original shop that hacked the repairs. You now have new damages. It is possible if documented correctly, the insurer may owe under a comprehensive provision for the new loss and they would be required to collector subrogate the costs or damages from the shop that hacked the repair.
All the insurer can do for you, is to lean heavily on the repair shop that performed the repairs if they have an agreement with them as a preferred shop. I looked at a repair for a vehicle owner performed by a preferred shop of the insurer and found 2500 dollars worth of re-repairs to correct the defects, non repaired, overlooked, and repairs needed but the shop failed to make simply because the insurer refused to pay them under their agreement for certain types of repairs.
You need to find a pro-consumer advocate in your area and possibly contact a news station or newspaper to document your dilemma if your insurer fails to protect you or the shop refuses to pay for the necessary corrections. You can email me and I may be able to help you locate an advocate for in your area. We have many members that belong to an organization known as the Coalition for Collision Repair Excellence that may perform this need for you or locate someone who will.
Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 12:20 am Post Subject:
Thanks everyone for your input. We've been playing phone tag with the guy from the insurance company all day. Still haven't talked to him... After doing some research I now know for sure not to sign a thing till I'm happy with the out come. If my insurance company doesn't fix this I've already lined a few things up that will hopefully help. This being day 3 of having my car back the list of problems is getting larger. Well I guess we'll see what happen when they come to look at it.
Posted: Fri Feb 20, 2009 12:35 am Post Subject:
Mike I think you just gave me some of the best advice anyone could have given me. I'll be emailing you about finding an advocate because I don't even know where to start to find one. Thanks!
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