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Eric talks about changing the vehicle out of OEM spec and using aftermarket systems. Here is the deal, car insurance shops by price alone and buys the cheapest knock off parts available and even will use any shop who delivers the cheapest price.. If you end up with aftermarket body panels, headlights, discount glass, and any other replacement part that is very low quality, does your car still meet the same safety standards as when it was new and not damaged?
Insurance says they will only pay one certain glass company to replace my door glass, it was quoted at 149 bucks installed. This company later quoted me 308 bucks for OEM and the dealer quoted me 600 bucks just for the glass. How can anyone take at least three hours on a service call and under bid any reputable shop that has experience in auto repair? But this is who insurance will pay because of OEE and a shat warranty.
My experience with aftermarket anything is low quality that does not fit the same or last as long as a genuine replacement part certified by the OEM.
*Auto parts is like TOILET PAPER, just because it fits the holder does not mean it is the same quality or functions the same from one brand to the next.
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There are aftermarket body parts out there that are just as good, if not better, than OEM. Especially for older vehicles where OEM parts are no longer available. As for insurance companies, my nephew is a claims handler for a huge well-known national insurer and we have had many discussions over the years about this very topic. His insurance company actually goes first for LKQ (like kind and quality) parts, which is really just a fancy name for used or reconditioned parts, then aftermarket if LKQ is not available, if the vehicle is a certain number of years old. Newer vehicles they prefer to use OEM parts. The adjuster’s report indicates if the repair estimate or settlement offer is based off of OEM or LKQ parts. His insurance company has a contract with a certain national glass supplier, but will issue a claim settlement check for up to $xxx (depends on policy limits) if the customer wants to use a different glass company than theirs. They also have a contracts with body shop companies, but will allow the customer to choose any qualified body shop to make the repairs to the vehicle, on the provision that their own adjuster inspects the vehicle at the shop and looks over the repair estimate to make sure it all looks good. My nephew further explained that while the insurance are certainly wanting to minimize the expenses they have to pay out on claims, they also want to make sure the vehicle is fixed properly and meets OEM spec and all safety requirements, because they don’t want customers taking their cars back to the shops over and over for complaints and shoddy work (which they have to pay for under their warranties), and they are still at risk for future claims on the vehicle. Those seem like fairly reasonable operating practices to me.
Once a vehicle has been accidented and repaired, it’s just not the same vehicle anymore. Doesn’t matter who does the work.
Just something you have to accept and live with.
Sounds like you are with the wrong insurance company, then. I do not dispute that there are shady insurance companies out there who only want to maximize their profit and minimize their exposure. After all, there are hundreds of auto insurance companies out there. My policies are actually with a different insurance company than where my nephew works, but since I have old vehicles and only carry the mandatory PDL, it doesn’t really matter to me what company I am with. My statements above are not in much discordance with what the news report you linked says. I think they are exaggerating a little bit, and again, there are surely pending lawsuits against insurance companies that have cut corners. Of that I have no doubt. However, what they are referring to in the video are the LKQ parts I referred to in my previous reply. The insurance company does not see the financial need to replace a headlight on a 10-year-old or older vehicle with a brand new $300 housing when a $40 junkyard part (that in many cases could still be in better condition than the customer’s part was before the accident) will do the same job.
Please don’t think I am defending insurance companies, because I’m not. I don’t work for one, and have no stock or vested interest in any of them, and already stated that I personally use a cheap company and have a liability-only policy. I am just playing devil’s advocate here, and relating bullet points from conversations with a family member who does actually work for an insurance company. I think media sensationalism is a dangerous thing, full of hype, spin, and over-generalization, and in this case are lumping all insurance companies into the same bucket. Do bad repairs happen? Of course. Is there shoddy work coming out of some shops? Sure. Do some insurance companies save money by putting cheap repairs over customer satisfaction and safety? I’m sure there are. But they don’t all work that way, and if you are currently using an insurance company that does, I suggest changing. If you shopped for the cheapest policy you could find, then don’t expect quality repairs or good customer service when you have to file a claim. You always get what you pay for.
There are body parts you don’t aftermarket.Truck tailgates are one of them,buy them from the dealer.The aftermarket tailgate dents real easy.1988 to 1998 fullsize Chevy and GMC truck doors,the aftermarkets don’t fit worth a crap.The door hinges are welded on from the factory and the adjustable replacement door hinges are a PITA to adjust.Best to find these used in good shape.There are two aftermarket body parts lines,Capa and Non Capa.Lot of times the non capa fit better than the capa parts.
[quote=”wafrederick” post=139253]There are body parts you don’t aftermarket.Truck tailgates are one of them,buy them from the dealer.The aftermarket tailgate dents real easy.1988 to 1998 fullsize Chevy and GMC truck doors,the aftermarkets don’t fit worth a crap.The door hinges are welded on from the factory and the adjustable replacement door hinges are a PITA to adjust.Best to find these used in good shape.There are two aftermarket body parts lines,Capa and Non Capa.Lot of times the non capa fit better than the capa parts.[/quote]This is the point I was making, the QUALITY of aftermarket parts is CRAP in correlation to factory parts. A repainted wheel is different from a factory wheel made in Europe, etc. The clarity of tempered glass is significantly different from a production car to a luxury vehicle… Its like using champion spark plugs in a motorcycle, the performance is different and the insurance don’t care if your property value is reduced as long as the claim is settled at 40% of the actual repair costs.
I stopped doing autobody work in 2002 thanks to smashed bones. I had a special license to do Salvage rebuilds in addition to regular wreck repair, frame off restorations and lots of custom work.
Working with aftermarket body parts was a pain for reasons mentioned above. The patent parts were always just a bit smaller than the originals, so material had to be added to get the look and fit right. The headlights were rarely an issue, but newer models have HID, auto adjust etc that may affect the aftermarket product.
If the car was very new, sometimes there were no aftermarket panels available, so the insurance company had to approve dealer parts which meant a lot longer wait time with no work being done. Some customers would argue at length with their insurance company to get original parts involved, but it took significant effort.
The odd thing here is with aftermarket mechanical parts. Stuff that the manufacture did not make but were farmed out to the lowest bidder, like hoses, brakes, dampeners and such – these are typically lower quality than standard aftermarket parts. Imagine the first time you do brakes or dampeners on something that wasn’t top of the line. As long as you didn’t use Monroe, you could buy average stuff and have an instant upgrade.
Fast forward to my recent life, working for an auto glass company in a call center, where I took initial insurances claims for various insurance companies. I can tell you for certain that aftermarket glass is always a lesser, thinner product.
I understand the poster’s issue thru and thru. Insurance and aftermarket companies come up with colorful anacronyms and aleged industry standard practices that are designed to make us all feel comfortable with a lesser result. More dishonest bs from corporate asshats. Some insurance companies will do the right thing without being pushed into it, but they aren’t cheap. Shop around and ask specific questions to the insurance salesman. Don’t let them shine you on or give you the bums rush.
It’s also very true that no matter how well the body repair was done, it devalues your car instantly. Many people have a wreck and freak out, rates increasing, licence suspended and many other concerns pop up. Then they find an autobody shop that can do discount work off the radar. Then they realize the work was poorly done and sell or trade it off asap. Then it gets sold at auction and towed a hundred miles away and sold as a car with a clean Carfax at a price that is too high. Never trust Carfax. Get it checked at an autobody shop for previous wreck repair. Professionals can spot it easily.
Sorry for the long winded rant, but there is my 18 cents worth.
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