Back to Business

I see that the last time I updated this blog was over two months ago! My nephew's death took a toll on the entire family and I didn't start to come out of the funk it caused until recently. Now I want to get back to talking about auto body and insurance issues.
The local paper, The Marin Independent Journal, had an article this weekend about the medical field (which, because of its strong ties to insurance, is similar to the autobody industry). Patients are getting billed the difference between what their medical provider pays for services and the actual costs from the doctors who provide those services. Doctors are finally doing what dentists have been doing forever. So sorry, your insurance didn't pay the full amount, you need to pay the difference! (http://www.marinij.com//ci_7494816)
Gone are the days where you got three estimates for autobody repair and the insurance paid one of them (usually the lowest). Gone are the days where the adjuster worked with the shops to come up with a mutually beneficial settlement to repair your car properly. Now we have adjusters who inspect the damage and write their own estimates and tell consumers that this is all they'll pay and they'll have to pay the difference if a shop charges more. Autobody business have been cut out of the process.
However, once the car is in the shop, there is a 100% chance of additional costs (called supplements) that the insurance company will pay. In many cases, the original insurance estimate is doubled! DOUBLED!!!!! This means that the adjuster is deliberately 'short paying' the claim. The only way you will be properly reimbursed for the damage is if you repair the car, using a reputable company. Some shops will not 'supplement' the repairs and instead cut corners to make the insurance company happy.
Please don't buy GEICO insurance. They are one of the worst. Don't take my word for it, call the Department of Insurance and see what they think of GEICO. In fact, ask them which insurance companies they don't have trouble with and then buy that insurance. Please don't find out the hard way that you have to pay more than your deductible if you have a claim.

Comments

stacyo said…
My car was just hit while parked in my garage at work on Friday. After calling the insurance company this morning, I was told exactly what you state here. "Our claims person will look at your car and cut you a check for the damage."
That sounds a little sketchy to me. I'm guessing it won't be as much as the repair will cost, and I'm hoping the converstaion to get them to cover the overage isn't a lost cause.
Thankfully I don't have Geico (even tho the gecko is cute), but Allstate.
I'll be at Bertoli this week to schedule the repair. We'll know soon if Allsate is going to play fair...or not.
Thanks for the interesting post. So sorry to read about your nephew.
5:19 PM
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