[cmyk]

I wasn't sure which section to post this in, so sorry if this isn't in the right place. Need some thoughts/advice/your experiences, though.

So, as some of you may remember, my car was damaged in a hail storm in June. Yes, June, and it is still in the body shop. I'll try to make this as short as possible while including details, but this may get long (sorry).

The shop wanted my insurance check immediately (before they had the car), which I was a little skeptical of. But this is a high-end shop that has contracts with most of the luxury and exotic car dealerships in the area -- and which came very highly recommended to me -- so I agreed. Originally, they told me that they needed the insurance check so that they could "start ordering parts." I thought, "Great, they'll have all the parts ready when I bring the car in, so the timeline will be faster." Not so much.

In early July, I dropped the car off and they gave me a timeframe of 3-4 weeks. The three-week date came and went without a word from them, then a couple days before the 4-week date, I received a supplement check in the mail from my insurance company for around $4,000. They hadn't informed me of any supplements (although I knew there would be some), so I used the opportunity to bring them the check in person to check out the status of my car. Long story short, the work had not even been started. No reason, just excuses. (Another) long story short, I found out that they had only ordered the parts after I brought the car to them, and were waiting on the supplement check to order the rest. So, the car sat on their lot with no glass and a test-fitted hood and trunk (that I paid for out of pocket and delivered with the car) in the heat of Texas summer.

I was pissed, but I decided to wait it out and give them the benefit of the doubt. After not hearing a word out of them for awhile, I called back last Monday (exactly one week ago) to find that ANOTHER supplement had been filed, and my insurance company had sent the third check directly to them this time. My advisor told me that the car was "almost finished" at this point, and (pretty much) all that was left to do was paint. He told me to expect the car back in "a week to a week and a half."

A week would have been exactly today. My husband happened to be in the area this morning so he stopped by, unannounced. My car was sitting in the parking lot with no glass, had not been prepped for paint, no primer, the hood still test-fit and lopsided, two of the original doors still on the car (supposed to be replaced and not PDR'd) and the front bumper sitting on the ground in front of the car. He learned that the new "best case scenario" estimate is another 2 weeks. I highly doubt this, as everything else they've told me to this point has been a flat lie.

Basically, I am livid. I feel like they're holding my car hostage at this point. Insurance only pays for 30 days of rental car coverage, and my car has been out of commission since June 13 with no end in sight. I really have no idea what to do. I actually thought about calling a tow truck and having the car removed from their property and taken somewhere else to finish the job, but can I even do that? At this point, they have almost $15,000, they have my car, they have the aftermarket hood and trunk that I paid for out of pocket, and they aren't returning my phone calls or doing anything they've told me they would do.

I have considered writing them a nasty letter, yelling at the owner, etc, but I'm not sure about going this route on the chance that it would just cause them to cut corners or do sub-par work out of spite, or just to get me out of their hair.

Does anyone have any advice on what I can do? Should I call my insurance company and tell them that this shop is giving me the run-around? It's not really their problem since I chose to take my car to this shop, but what would you do in a situation like this, if this was your car?

(And, yep, that turned out to be long. Sorry. And this is just the Cliffs Notes version, too. Sigh).

[Johnny D]

Call your insurance company and tell them. It's their money after all...

[Turb0Surge]

Go see them in person and make sure they know you want the car back fixed ASAP! If you keep calling them for updates and not doing anything but accepting their lies, they will keep feeding you lies.

Go there and speak to a manager. Tell them you NEED your car or else you will start billing them for a rental (if their next deadline isn't met).

[Rmk392]

Is this one of your insurance's "preferred" shops? I assume not because they sent the checks to you and not the shop. regardless I would think about calling insurance and see what they can do

[Turb0Surge]

And +1 on calling the insurance company.

[gatoracer]

Sorry about the troubles.

I'd contact the Better Business Bureau for sure. That may not have a quick resolution for you, but it will definitely help going forward. But as others have posted, keep calling them every day. Leave plenty of voice mails. Write a certified complaint to them. It will add to your written evidence should you decide to pursue legal action against them.

[Epic404]

That's terrible. I agree with calling the insurance company. I'd also get a deadline in writing. I usually go with body shops that offer a free rental car. Some do if the job is over a certain amount, as low as $1,000 some places. What is the name of the shop?

[ttribe]

Originally Posted by Johnny D

Call your insurance company and tell them. It's their money after all...

+1 Get the insurance company involved. Things tend to start moving when the people who write the checks start getting antsy.

[techwhiz]

Rule #1 when dealing with any type of contractor, and I view a body shop as a contractor.
NEVER, EVER LET THE MONEY GET AHEAD OF THE WORK!!!!!

If they say they need money to start, walk away. They have a cash flow problem. I have never had a bbody shop ask me for money before they start work. They have the car, and you can't pick it up unless they release it. In Ca. they can file a lein and take the car if you don't want to pay after the work is done.

They are shady. Get your money back and find a new shop.

[BOBKUR]

I would be calling a lawyer. This place sounds shady.

[Doctor///M]

start getting a demand letter together to the repair ship and threaten legal action. Otherwise start pressuring your insurance company to get things done since your time is also expensive.

That's pretty insane that your car has been o-o-o for so long. Also I thought that supplemental checks are only sent when repairs are already underway? That's a serious lapse on your insurance company's part imo.

Now I know why my Progressive snapshot discount got wiped by rate hikes!!

***EDIT***

Originally Posted by techwhiz

Rule #1 when dealing with any type of contractor, and I view a body shop as a contractor. NEVER, EVER LET THE MONEY GET AHEAD OF THE WORK!!!!!

+1

[JimVR4]

Originally Posted by techwhiz

Rule #1 when dealing with any type of contractor, and I view a body shop as a contractor.
NEVER, EVER LET THE MONEY GET AHEAD OF THE WORK!!!!!

If they say they need money to start, walk away. They have a cash flow problem. I have never had a bbody shop ask me for money before they start work. They have the car, and you can't pick it up unless they release it. In Ca. they can file a lein and take the car if you don't want to pay after the work is done.

They are shady. Get your money back and find a new shop.

Your insurance check should be paid directly to YOU and the shop should not get a dime of your money until the work is completed to your satisfaction. If they can't support the cash flow then you shouldn't do business.

And please - interview the body shop GM / owner. For best results find a small shop run by a "car guy." The kind of guy that treats you car like it was his own. The kind of guy that wants to make the car right again because he loves cars.

[BOBKUR]

Who is your insurance company.

[cmyk]

Thanks for the advice so far everyone. Yes, I realize in hindsight that them needing the check before work started should have been a bigger red flag than it was. However I based my decision on the input of several people whom I trust, who recommended the shop to me. I did call and talk to the owner of the shop before I took the car in. We had a long discussion and he seemed like an upfront guy who knew how to take care of his clients. As soon as they had my money and my keys, the story changed.

They have excuses for everything, and honestly I'm a pretty reasonable person (or try to be) since I'm a business owner myself and I realize sometimes shit happens, but so far I am just not confident that they have ever told me the truth about anything. I've personally seen the quality of work they do and it is top-notch. However, I would expect nothing less when they are keeping cars for 2-3 months for hail repair.

I will give Allstate a call tonight and let them know what's going on. Maybe they'll be able to help.

Edit:
I want to avoid naming the shop in this post, in case Allstate or I need to involve legal counsel. If you are local to Dallas you likely know who it is, or you can PM me if you want details.

[BOBKUR]

Your in Good Hands.

[cmyk]

Originally Posted by Rmk392

Is this one of your insurance's "preferred" shops? I assume not because they sent the checks to you and not the shop. regardless I would think about calling insurance and see what they can do

No, it is not (that I know of). Allstate didn't give me a list of "preferred" shops when I filed my claim. They just told me to take it to a shop of my choice. I suppose if I'd asked they would have given me a list of preferred shops, but I didn't. The shop I chose was in their "System" though, whatever that means. I didn't have to provide any details about the shop as I would have if I'd picked a random shop that they'd never heard of.

[cmyk]

Originally Posted by JimVR4

Your insurance check should be paid directly to YOU and the shop should not get a dime of your money until the work is completed to your satisfaction. If they can't support the cash flow then you shouldn't do business.

And please - interview the body shop GM / owner. For best results find a small shop run by a "car guy." The kind of guy that treats you car like it was his own. The kind of guy that wants to make the car right again because he loves cars.

The checks weren't paid directly to me because there is still a lien on the car. (In Texas at least) your only options for comprehensive claims are to have the check made out to You + The Lienholder, or You + The Shop. I had to endorse the checks before handing them over, though. I came to my senses after the first supplement check, and was planning on holding on to any additional supplements that I received, however unfortunately they just went ahead and sent the last one straight to the shop and bypassed me entirely.

[cmyk]

So, the plot thickens.

I just downloaded all of the itemized estimates and supplements from the Allstate claim center website. It looks like they are requesting and invoicing for parts that are not even for my car.

For example, I saw an item called "Nameplate, Fender", priced at $47.45. I looked up the part number on RealOEM and this is an XDrive badge. My car is a 335i, not a 335xi.

They've also added labor to "install" this badge. This was on the supplement claim, so they asked for this part specifically.

There are a couple of other parts that are on the list that shouldn't be, too, totaling around $300 or so in misc small items. Is this not insurance fraud?

[ttribe]

Originally Posted by cmyk

So, the plot thickens.

I just downloaded all of the itemized estimates and supplements from the Allstate claim center website. It looks like they are requesting and invoicing for parts that are not even for my car.

For example, I saw an item called "Nameplate, Fender", priced at $47.45. I looked up the part number on RealOEM and this is an XDrive badge. My car is a 335i, not a 335xi.

They've also added labor to "install" this badge. This was on the supplement claim, so they asked for this part specifically.

There are a couple of other parts that are on the list that shouldn't be, too, totaling around $300 or so in misc small items. Is this not insurance fraud?

Yep.

[mike-y]

it most definitely is fraud. it looks like they are trying to pay to fix other cars (or do some work for themselves) with your insurance claim money. This is exactly why our insurance rates are so high.

Please call All-State and report this.

[Doctor///M]

Yup, unless you called for a $300 4x4 badge upgrade (which I'd highly doubt)

Subscribed.

Time is money... and clearly, they're robbing you of both.

[manutdas11]

Originally Posted by ttribe

Yep.

+1! Dude! Call your insurance provider and tell them all that's been going on! and maybe look into a lawyer also and contact the Better Business Bureau also! Get your car back and all your money ASAP. That is unacceptable and unfortunate for you.