by Guest » Thu Apr 15, 2010 03:11 pm
I have a brand new car (2000 miles on it) and got into an accident where I rear ended someone.
There was about 10K worth of damage and the body shop was given 14 days to repair by GEICO.
The shop (not a GEICO shop) took 34 days to repair the vehicle. (My rental reimbursement only covers 30 days). They claim a part was on national back order for two weeks and that caused the delay.
I picked up the car and as soon as I got in it I noticed an interior panel that was badly scratched and should have been replaced. Then I start driving the car and are getting all sorts of warning lights. I bring it back to the shop and he says he will order the bezel and to drive the car a bit and see if the lights go away, maybe the computer needs to be reset again.
So I drive the car home (40 minutes travel) and its just getting worse with the engine constantly misfiring. I call the dealer describing the problem and they say the car is not safe to drive as the engine misfires can damage the catalytic converter. The dealer is only 10 minutes away so they tell me to bring it in and they will check it out. (A 10 minute drive is safer then a 40 minute drive)
The dealer finds a lot of wiring damage from the accident (four major connectors shattered) that was not caught. (Did the shop not test drive the car!?) The dealer also states it is impossible for them to have not seen this damage, because to replace the parts they replaced the plugs needed to be disconnected.
Geico seems happy to repair the car but with ordering new parts and testing I could be without a vehicle for another 7-10 days.
Do I have any recourse? Why should I be without a vehicle (rental) or have to pay for it out of pocket when it is taking forever to fix and is not my fault. If the shop noticed the broken connectors the could have easily fixed it in the time they were waiting for the part that was out of stock.
Geico claims I hit my $900 policy limit and there is nothing they can do.
There was about 10K worth of damage and the body shop was given 14 days to repair by GEICO.
The shop (not a GEICO shop) took 34 days to repair the vehicle. (My rental reimbursement only covers 30 days). They claim a part was on national back order for two weeks and that caused the delay.
I picked up the car and as soon as I got in it I noticed an interior panel that was badly scratched and should have been replaced. Then I start driving the car and are getting all sorts of warning lights. I bring it back to the shop and he says he will order the bezel and to drive the car a bit and see if the lights go away, maybe the computer needs to be reset again.
So I drive the car home (40 minutes travel) and its just getting worse with the engine constantly misfiring. I call the dealer describing the problem and they say the car is not safe to drive as the engine misfires can damage the catalytic converter. The dealer is only 10 minutes away so they tell me to bring it in and they will check it out. (A 10 minute drive is safer then a 40 minute drive)
The dealer finds a lot of wiring damage from the accident (four major connectors shattered) that was not caught. (Did the shop not test drive the car!?) The dealer also states it is impossible for them to have not seen this damage, because to replace the parts they replaced the plugs needed to be disconnected.
Geico seems happy to repair the car but with ordering new parts and testing I could be without a vehicle for another 7-10 days.
Do I have any recourse? Why should I be without a vehicle (rental) or have to pay for it out of pocket when it is taking forever to fix and is not my fault. If the shop noticed the broken connectors the could have easily fixed it in the time they were waiting for the part that was out of stock.
Geico claims I hit my $900 policy limit and there is nothing they can do.
Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2010 06:57 pm Post Subject:
Do I have any recourse? Why should I be without a vehicle (rental) or have to pay for it out of pocket when it is taking forever to fix and is not my fault.
I agree. Who caused this delay? Perhaps the shop caused some delay but certainly not all. Sounds like 2 weeks were added on as parts were not available. You can blame the manufacture of that part all you want but they certainly don't have any obligation to you. This happens with newer vehicles... most of the parts go into new vehicles and sometimes it takes awhile to get replacement parts.Here is the thing... you are looking someone to blame... who caused the situation to start with?
I'd certainly recommend that you speak to the owner of the original shop about your situation. I've seen shops do crappy work and take longer then normal to do it. See if you can reach some type of agreement on payment for the extra rental expense.
Posted: Fri Apr 16, 2010 04:02 am Post Subject:
Excellent advice from tcope. Can't add anything to it.
Posted: Sat Apr 17, 2010 11:53 am Post Subject:
I would only add that since you have taken it back to the shop more than once, even if they fixed the problems, it may be in yoour best interest to get a post repair inspection. In other words, have someone else look at it and see if infact the shop performed everything they charged you for. Shops make mistakes, and it may just have been a fluke that a technician was careless.
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