bB2NER

I don't think anyone does door skins on a Scion. It's easier and cheaper to just find a complete door and paint to match.

rvpps2rocks

i had a door skin for my tC door so i assumed they had it for all scions.. you get to keep your vin numbers that way but i ended up taking it of anyways

jeems

I finally got my check in the mail from the people who hit me's insurance. $5100 for the repairs. I'm supposed to take my car into the shop on Jan 8, BUT......
Along with the check they sent the parts list and they aren't using Toyota parts. Does it make THAT much of a difference and what can I do about it at this stage?

draxcaliber

so the other guy is at fault, and his insurance company has to pay to fix your car, and they want to use non-toyota parts?

that is bull$h!t, call them, and tell them you aren't putting some unknown aftermarket crap that will ruin the resale value of your car, and they WILL pay for brand new factory sealed toyota parts for your repairs.

call your insurance provider, have them do an estimate and send the other guys an estimate using geniuine toyota parts. not some cheap crap that saves them money.

jeems

I just feel bad because the people at the body shop have been really really helpful and they've already got the parts ordered and shipped.

bBlover

think of it this way, do you want your car to be a POS after it leaves the body shop or would you rather it take longer and be fixed with quality parts?

dgenem

I am betting that if they do not use an estimate with after market parts, then they calculate it as totalled.

Your body shop and insurance company are in bed with each other to serve their own best interests, not yours. Of course they claim to of ordered the parts, they do that to force you into a corner and take it up the **** because they are betting on you taking the solution that saves them the most money and forces YOU to take the short end of the mess. They all do that unless you force them to do it right.

That is a load of crap to expect you to use mismatched after market parts. I've seen friends in the same situation. They end up with parts that do not match, crooked parts, and a car that looks like a cut and paste special. One friend pays extra for the real parts and does most of his own work for that reason.

I say this everytime, I hate insurance companies and body shops.

bB2NER

Instead of allowing them to use aftermarket crap parts, what is wrong with genuine used /like new Toyota/Scion parts from a recycler? DO NOT ALLOW the use of aftermarket parts! They do not fit right. Maybe if your car was like 10 years old and new suff wasn't availible. The choice is ultimately yours so please do the right thing and insist on TOYOTA parts only.
Better yet, only pay a shop to do the stuff you can't. Buy whatever used parts that you need and install them yourself. Then pay the shop to rework the rear quarter and paint everything to match. You may actually make some profit on the whole deal.

jeems

Went by there today and the body shop ASSURED me that they would only use the right parts. The parts on the list were actually recycled parts and not aftermarket.

bB2NER

Is this the shop you chose to use? That price seems high for such minor damage. How many different estimates did you get?

TerribleTed

$5100 is not such a high price for replacing the entire side of the car, painting the whole side plus blending the hood, possibly the tailgate, and repairing the rear bumper. The cost for a repair like this usually runs in this type of range and often higher.

jeems

This was the quote from the insurance company. The shop won't do an estimate if they know that insurance is involved.

Sciond

First of all I have sold after market auto body parts and most times they are as good or better and they are capa certified and sometimes from what I have seen they can be better..hmmm most of us use after market ....or are you riding on a box modded with TRD parts only?
Ted is 100% correct ..he is in the biz BTW
also once you car is taken apart they can always supplement for more costs.....for things they can't see....as long as they were authorized to move forward

bB2NER

But that doesn't sound like the case. They just sent him a settlement check the way he said it.
If it were me I'd fix it myself and pocket 2 grand plus.

bB2NER

Still waiting on an answer if this is a shop you chose or did the insurance send you there???
Hey Jeems, Are you aware that you get to choose the place that fixes your xB?

Archngl

x2

I Had approx. the same amount of damage, and it cost me the same amount to get it fixed.

jeems

Yeah I got to choose the shop. They didn't even suggest anywhere.

Sciond

not settled until you sign the check

TerribleTed

Manu shops will not do an estimate whent here is an insurance company involved. The reason is that it is a waste of their time to do so in many cases. Most Insurance companies write their own estimates, or have one written on their behalf. The insurance companie is only going to pay more if the shop can show them why their estimate is incomplete. They will only negotiate upward from their estimate, and will generally not rerally consider the shops estimate as a whole. What they want is the shop to itemize what they have missed or part price differences or whatever that are needed beound their estimate, and then they will either accept or deny settlement of these additional charges. It is easier therefore and less time wasted to just get the Insurance companies estimate and write a sheet of supplemental repairs to immediately put thru the proper Insrance company channels. If the shop is lucky and the Insurance company is not too terribly bad they might get paid about 80-90% of what the job should really pay if you include all the operations to do a first rate job. If the Insurance company is second rate (and many big name companies are second rate when it comes to repairs), you repairer might be trying to fully repair your care for 65-80% of what it should really cost (how much incentive is this to cut corners?). If you want to get fully paid for what you do you must cut corners. A really excellent shop sucks it up and does all the needed operations whether they are paid for or not.

It is a shame that Insurance companies have such a strangle hold over the market. Shops that do truely excellent work have a hard time making a decent profit ( all those unpaid hours add up). Many end up closing their doors or compromising their values and ethics to try to make a living. The technicians themselves are mostly paid on a commission basis (flat rate of $X.XX per labor hour on the estimate). A cheap insurance company estimate makes it harder for him to feed his family so he has incentive to cut corners as well. The net margin in the industry is 6% or so. That means that a shop grossing 1,000,000 a year (6-12 people) makes a company profit of only around $60,000 for the owners. Considering the risk involved and the ever changing technology to keep up with this is not alot of money.

jeems

So now I'm being sued.....

That's right, even though I'm not at fault and their insurance has already paid out.
My insurance has my back and I think are providing my lawyer and everything so at least that's good.
This just ____es me off more than anything, so my question is, can I turn this around. Can I file any counter suit or anything like that? I am going to have to take time off work and all that, I've been without my car, I've had to deal with their mickey mouse Direct Insurance company. Dammit, I want some money from this! haha Not really, but I just want to teach them a lesson.
Btw, its not the driver suing me, its the passenger!