question for those in the collision repair industry

[GeorgeG.]

I'm dealing with a claim on my truck where another driver side swiped my passenger side. Her insurance, State Farm, has already accepted liability so I dropped it off at a repair shop.

The damage is the right front fender, bumper, bumper cover, both door moldings and a little part of the rear cab. On the rear door, you can see where the other car applied enough pressure to crease the panel at the rear edge between the edge of the door and the end of the door molding.

The guy, not state farm, said that State Farm will only pay to repair the immediate area which would cover about a 6x6 sq in area, and paint/blend that into the rest of the door, then clear the entire door. Is this the norm?

Last time I had to deal with an insurance claim, they covered re-spraying the entire panel though I don't recall the details of the repair. Anyhow, I have this sneaky suspicion that the insurance still pays to spray the entire panel and blend it in but the repair center might be trying to take a short cut to pocket more money. Does this seem plausible?

[jammeejamm]

it is called partial refinish, full clear. and it is very much the norm. the whole panel gets clear coat applied. Allstate has told me before that full clear is not their problem, for a warranty is not their responsibility. it is the shops.

State Farm will tell the shop they have to cut the paint time back because base is not going on the whole panel. a truck for sure because they will argue base is not going above the belt. if the shop does not do this. they will be hit with a overwrite it worse, work billed/not performed. I say this because it sounds like your truck is at a select service shop for sf.

the shop is telling you the truth.

[GeorgeG.]

It's one of their preferred facilities which happens to be onsite to the GMC dealer, which is why I went there.

So if I went to a non participating shop, could they not be willing to do a partial refinish and would State Farm have to honor the shops method of repair?

And thanks for the feedback. I'd prefer to get the full door repainted.

[jammeejamm]

no. every insurance company is doing the partial refinish thing and shops have to deal with it.

why is it an issue to base the entire panel? the entire panel will be clear coated. if the painter is any good you will not see the blend.

[GeorgeG.]

I see. It's cool then. Not really an issue, I was hoping to freshen up the door in the process to correct some other dings. I mentioned to the guy to go ahead and get me a quote to complete the door while it's in there. I'm hoping it's reasonable since the truck is already in the repair stages and paint is already being mixed and sprayed.

[sosoe]

If we are doing a repair on a door and we see a few dings that are prior damage, we will automatically repair them and not charge the customer. As long it's not far from the damage we repaired from the accident. Just a little something to give back.

We just did a Lexus rx350 left rear quarter repair, seen some prior damage on the middle of the quarter and gas cap, which clearly was prior, we just fixed it for the customer for free. Keep them happy and coming back.

But as stated above, that's the norm process for insurance. Go to a non DRP shop next time

[GeorgeG.]

Well, looks like I'm looking for a non DRP shop. The last shop didn't work out and after thinking about it, it's probably best to take it to a shop that is not partnered with the insurance company. Does anyone have any recommendations in the North Dallas area? Anywhere from Dallas straight up hwy 75?

Sosoe, where is your shop located?

[sosoe]

Well, looks like I'm looking for a non DRP shop. The last shop didn't work out and after thinking about it, it's probably best to take it to a shop that is not partnered with the insurance company. Does anyone have any recommendations in the North Dallas area? Anywhere from Dallas straight up hwy 75?

Sosoe, where is your shop located?

N. Fort Worth, south of Cabelas.

[BLAKE]

If we are doing a repair on a door and we see a few dings that are prior damage, we will automatically repair them and not charge the customer. As long it's not far from the damage we repaired from the accident. Just a little something to give back.

We just did a Lexus rx350 left rear quarter repair, seen some prior damage on the middle of the quarter and gas cap, which clearly was prior, we just fixed it for the customer for free. Keep them happy and coming back.

But as stated above, that's the norm process for insurance. Go to a non DRP shop next time

Damn, I'm coming to you when I need paint.

[sosoe]

Heck yeah!

We try to help as much as we can, we will tell you what we can and cant do.