Should You Use the Insurance Company's Preferred Body Shops?

By Ben Glass, Esquire

Benjamin W. Glass and Associates

. https://www.benglasslaw.com/

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Should You Use the Insurance Company's Preferred Body Shops?

You've been in an accident, be it your fault or not, the accident is serious enough that you are going through insurance to get the damages to your car fixed. After speaking with the adjuster who is handling your claim, they offer you a few recommended places to get your car fixed.

The adjuster tells you that the insurance company works with these preferred shops and then launches into a brief spiel about why you should choose from these recommended shops.

After quickly mentioning that you are free to select a body shop of your choice, the adjuster suggests you go to XYZ Auto Body at 4 30 p.m. The body shop is near your house and the time window fits neatly into your schedule, it's also one of the insurance company's preferred shops. Should you go there?

As you might imagine, with every answer, there are caveats, and this is no exception.

Here's one caveat If you're a passionate car person, heed your own advice. The reality is not everyone shares the same level of interest in their cars and those of you who are meticulous about who touches your “baby” and what is done to it should always do what you prefer.

So what's the point of these preferred body shops that insurance companies work with anyway? The main purpose of these body shops is to become a “one stop” solution to handling a claim. These locations typically have an insurance adjuster who works for the insurance company working full time out of that shop. This means you can swing by, get an estimate, pick up the rental, and get the repairs done all in the same spot.

It also means that, for better or worse, the car insurance adjuster can monitor the speed, quality, and cost effectiveness of the body shop.

If you work with a body shop that isn't one of the ones the car insurer prefers, there may be a back and forth with the body shop handling your repairs, there may be a debate about how long the repairs are taking and, consequently how long you are allowed a rental, and about the cost of the repairs being done.

Another caveat If you have “a guy” that does the best work, go there. Remember, you're still going to be required to get an estimate from the car insurance company which the body shop you choose will be working off.

If you feel confidence and security knowing your guy is the one repairing your car, go there. If the adjuster pushes hard on going to one of their preferred shops, feel free to ignore him because while the insurance company provides the estimate, you still get to choose the shop that handles the repairs, cosmetic or otherwise.

The verdict Should you use one of the preferred shops that a car insurer suggests? Yes, probably. Unless you have a particular connection with an existing body shop or you're highly exacting on what is done to your car, the convenience of working with the preferred body shop will provide at least a satisfactory outcome. The key is to listen to what you're being told by the insurance company.

If you have questions, ask them. If you don't understand what you're being told, ask them to repeat themselves or to explain it another way.