by Mike of the Ozarks » Thu Mar 27, 2008 04:17 pm
Has any vehicle owner reading this forum ever been aided by a guaranty from the insurer on your collision claim? Did you find that a company that had agents were able to be of more help in resolving your repair issues? Did you find that you recieved more attention to your issues from a company that only sold their insurance online or from one that sold from local agents?
What were you instructed to do when you complained about your repair to the insurance company?
Did they offer to let you take the problem to a different shop or did they just simply tell you that you must take it to the original shop that made the original poor repair?
Did you feel like you had no choice and the insurer insisted that you must use their preferred shop?
Do you regret letting your insurance company select your repair shop or regret that you did not assert your preferred selection of a shop?
What did the insurer or person on the 800 claim reporting number tell you when you said you already had a shop? When you informed the insurer that you already have a shop to do your repairs or that you had made a choice, were you talked out of it or told that they:
1. Could not work with that shop
2. That shop was not on their preferred list
3. If you choose that shop, we may not be able to get an adjuster out for a week or longer
4. We have had problems with that shop
5. We can not guaranty that shops work
6. If they charge more than we estimate, we MAY not pay more and you MAY be responsible for additional expenses
7. That shop takes to long on repairs
8. Your shop will have to pay for rental expenses if the repair takes to long.
9. We have had complaints on that shop.
10. That shop will not work from our estimates.
11. We can't trust that shop's quality
12. That shop has no Icar qualified technician with certificates
13. That shop does not have some equipment that we require.
14. Our guaranty only applies if you select one of our shops.
15. Anything not mentioned above
If you answered yes to any of these statements, you have been a victim of steering. Insurers use this technique to get you to use a shop of their preference. Some insurers will say, we simply trust these shops. Many of these shops offer discounts on parts and labor back to the insurer; why would the insurer receive a discount on your repair? Many of these shops are required to use a certain percentage of used and cheaper imitation parts to remain on the insurer preferred list.
Have you had problem that continued with the vehicle and taken it back to the insurer's preferred shop and have been told, we are finished with the work, the problem is in the loose nut behind the wheel?
When you went back to the insurer did they help with their guaranty or did they simply tell you that you chose that shop from their list, they are not responsible?
Did anyone have to go to an attorney or different shop to find the problem before the insurer would admit it should have been repaired? This one is a stretch but did anyone have any success filing a complaint to your department of insurance to force the insurer to allow you make the insurer pay for repairs at another shop to correct a deficient repair at the insurer preferred shop?
What were you instructed to do when you complained about your repair to the insurance company?
Did they offer to let you take the problem to a different shop or did they just simply tell you that you must take it to the original shop that made the original poor repair?
Did you feel like you had no choice and the insurer insisted that you must use their preferred shop?
Do you regret letting your insurance company select your repair shop or regret that you did not assert your preferred selection of a shop?
What did the insurer or person on the 800 claim reporting number tell you when you said you already had a shop? When you informed the insurer that you already have a shop to do your repairs or that you had made a choice, were you talked out of it or told that they:
1. Could not work with that shop
2. That shop was not on their preferred list
3. If you choose that shop, we may not be able to get an adjuster out for a week or longer
4. We have had problems with that shop
5. We can not guaranty that shops work
6. If they charge more than we estimate, we MAY not pay more and you MAY be responsible for additional expenses
7. That shop takes to long on repairs
8. Your shop will have to pay for rental expenses if the repair takes to long.
9. We have had complaints on that shop.
10. That shop will not work from our estimates.
11. We can't trust that shop's quality
12. That shop has no Icar qualified technician with certificates
13. That shop does not have some equipment that we require.
14. Our guaranty only applies if you select one of our shops.
15. Anything not mentioned above
If you answered yes to any of these statements, you have been a victim of steering. Insurers use this technique to get you to use a shop of their preference. Some insurers will say, we simply trust these shops. Many of these shops offer discounts on parts and labor back to the insurer; why would the insurer receive a discount on your repair? Many of these shops are required to use a certain percentage of used and cheaper imitation parts to remain on the insurer preferred list.
Have you had problem that continued with the vehicle and taken it back to the insurer's preferred shop and have been told, we are finished with the work, the problem is in the loose nut behind the wheel?
When you went back to the insurer did they help with their guaranty or did they simply tell you that you chose that shop from their list, they are not responsible?
Did anyone have to go to an attorney or different shop to find the problem before the insurer would admit it should have been repaired? This one is a stretch but did anyone have any success filing a complaint to your department of insurance to force the insurer to allow you make the insurer pay for repairs at another shop to correct a deficient repair at the insurer preferred shop?
Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2008 10:32 pm Post Subject:
Mike do you REALLY want to hear an answer to some of these questions or just want to make statements?
I personally haven't had to 'collect' on a warranty, but I have paid (as an adjuster on them...and here is how)...
What were you instructed to do when you complained about your repair to the insurance company?
THe owner is put into contact with the drp rep that handled the repair to begin with if they didn't call them directly (yes, every vehicle that I write an estimate on that is in one of the DRP shops has my cell number)..Then I talk with them about their complaint...ask if they can meet me at the shop (that did the repair) so we can work this problem out...'if' they are so angry at the shop that they refuse to go back to that shop and want instead to go to a different shop, then that is where we go (and have about oh, ten times in eight years)...once at the 'new' shop we look into the trouble...some problems are minor in nature, dirt in the paint, a run, door wind leak...some though are bad...let's assume it's a minor one...run in the clear, dirt in the paint and the wind leak...I go over the vehicle with both the owner and the new shop manager, we agree, blah blah amount of labor to 'fix' this poor repair, I then write a new estimate with that amount, and pay the 'new' shop....I generally set it up so that I and the owner can be at the new shop when the rework is done, the owner and i go over the work...if they are happy they take their car and go...behind the scene while the vehicle is in the new shop i contact the DRP shop and tell them of the problem and that the owner refuses to come to their shop again....I ask the shop (drp) if he wants to go look at the car, (i always tell the owner this is going to happen as well, they need to see the problem)...some times the owners go, some times, they take my word for it, and know I wouldn't say it was sub-par if it wasn't...then the drp shop reimburses the company for the amount I paid to the new shop to 'fix' their screw up...many times the new shop will offer to the drp shop to do it even cheaper than scale because next time the shoe might be on the other foot, no matter how good you are there are occasions when we all make mistakes...that is how it happens with my company...5. We can not guaranty that shops work
This is the only one on your list that the company I work for would mention if asked, the 800 # people freely tell the party on the other end that their adjuster will explain it in more detail...they know (the 800 folks) that they are not adjusters...Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2008 11:32 pm Post Subject:
Posted: Fri Mar 28, 2008 07:57 am Post Subject: questions..
Mike do you REALLY want to hear an answer to some of these questions or just want to make statements?
I believe these questions are aimed at helping people identify the various problems which have to be taken into account while choosing the right carrier!
Apart from that, I also have this feeling...probably Mike has some a very important message to convey in this regard...which would be following soon...am I right Mike!
Thanks, Plasticmind
Posted: Fri Mar 28, 2008 11:22 am Post Subject:
It's also important to empart that there are companies and adjusters that do exactly what they say they are going to do...in this particular thread re:ins company warranty on drp repairs.!
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