What You Need To Know About The Auto Body Repair Industry

There are a lot of auto collision repair shops out there... many of them that don’t have your best interests in mind. Instead, their first priority is their bottom line and the insurance company’s bottom line. Your insurance company may tell you that these are the preferred shops or the ‘best shops’, but KNOW: these shops aren’t working for you—they are working for the insurance company.

 

Beware Of DRPs (Direct Repair Programs)

DRPs and direct repair shops are auto collision repair shops that have contractual relationships with insurance companies. How it works: the insurance company brings a majority of the shop’s customers to them, meaning those auto body shops can sit in wait for the next wreck to automatically come their way. They don’t have to be vigilant about customer service, do any marketing, or maintain a reputation in the region. 

 

The shop becomes dependent on the insurance company’s referrals, which can be as much as 98% of the shop’s business, so they agree to whatever concessions the insurance company demands.  

 

The insurance company has the upper hand. They demand a high percentage of used and after-market parts and short-cuts on the repair. This could mean that the shop does less than optimal work on some vehicles, and you’re driving around in a rickety frame or underbody. 

 

Traditionally, the body shop industry has been forced by the insurance industry to repair the vehicle back to the minimum that an uninformed customer will accept. Instead, Auto Collision Specialists will educate you as to what should constitute a quality auto body repair, from hood to trunk, side to side. 

 

The result? Whether a customer chooses this shop or another auto body repair facility, they should now know what to look for. That way our industry becomes all the more accountable and provides consistently better service.  

 

Our goal is to make sure that every repaired vehicle is put back on the road correctly restored to keep your family as safe as when the vehicle left the factory floor. We don’t expect that all of our customers will know or recall exactly what to look for in assessing a quality repair—we do them right the first time and every time and we won’t settle for doing anything less.    

 

Our Philosophy—Independent and Unaffiliated

When you bring your vehicle to Auto Collision Specialists you can be sure that we work for no one but you.  

 

At Auto Collision Specialists we’ve been working on behalf of consumers for many years. We maintain an independent relationship to insurance companies so that we never have to compromise our work to satisfy a third party. It’s the customer that loses when insurance companies push business to specific auto body shops! We are here for you—our customer. 

 

Has something like this happened to you? Have you been told that you have to bring your car to a specific shop? Were you happy with the repair? If not, tell us so we can help you! Report your inferior or dubious auto body repair to us—we're here to help. 

 

Beyond The Bare Minimum

An insurance company or a DRP shop might tell you that they got your car back to a ‘good enough’ condition and sign off on it. “There’s nothing more we can do,” they may say. Or they might offer you a small cash reimbursement for work that they didn’t want to do. This kind of thing never happens at Auto Collision Specialists. We don’t quit until your vehicle is 100% back to its pre-accident condition.