2008 Chevrolet Silverado

The following pictures are the result of a long painful exercise. This client contacted us after his 2008 Chevrolet Silverado with 4000 miles, was wrecked and repaired by a new car dealer. That dealer is also an insurance direct repair shop for a large insurance company. Meaning the insurance company regularly refers claimants to this dealer shop for collision repairs.

After his accident, where another driver was 100% at fault, the other drivers insurance company contacted him and told him they needed to look at the truck. The truck at that point in time was at a tow yard where it was taken after the accident. The client had an initial feeling that the damage to the truck was severe enough that it might be totaled but he was not an expert. The insurance company asked him where he bought the truck and it happened to be a dealer the insurance company had a relationship with. They asked him to let them tow the vehicle to the dealer so they could inspect the truck and determine if the damage was severe enough to consider the truck totaled.

Once the truck was towed to the shop. A representative of the insurance company and the shop decided between them the truck could be repaired. A preliminary estimate of $13855.00 was written. The estimate included replacing the trucks structural frame. Against the owners gut feelings, and for lack of knowing his rights or having an advocate, repairs were commenced.

Further inspections uncovered additional damage that eventually brought the total repair cost to within dollars of $20,000. Damage found included a transfer case, steering gear and damage to the front axle assembly.

Upon delivery of the truck the first time the owner noticed problems with the repair. He noticed some parts that should have been replaced, were not. He brought his concerns to the shop manager and after insisting the items he paid for should have been replaced, they eventually complied.

Once he drove the truck the owner immediately noticed handling and ride issues. He noticed wind and air leaks from around the doors and water leaking inside the truck after rain or washing the truck.

The truck in the months following the repair returned to the dealer at least 11 times for follow up repair. The vehicle was plagued with drivability issues, it pulled, shook, vibrations, air and water leaks. The truck had squeaks and crunching noises that the owner stated it never had before.

One day in September 2008 the client called us and told us what had taken place. We told him to bring the truck by so we could see it and offered to give him our opinion so that he could go back and review the repair with the other shop. He continued to try and work out the issues until he finally lost it in early March. He told us he felt he had taken enough and really tried to work it out but was now done. He would not go back.

On March 17, 2009 some 8 months after the accident he delivered the truck to us. He asked us to inspect the truck and form an opinion on the repairs and offer a solution to this nightmare. To put this in perspective the customer/client was also dealing with serious health issues through this time period and his truck was really not his biggest concern.

Once we inspected the truck it became evident very quickly that the quality of the repairs was well below that of an undamaged example. The repairs showed evidence of paint flaws, overspray, loose and missing hardware, broken and missing parts and parts and procedures the customer paid for that were not completed. The fit and overall panel alignment left the vehicles appearance obvious it had been in a serious wreck. The value of the truck was seriously diminished. Selling or trading the truck was not an option as the owner felt he would be selling someone a problem. Trading the truck was a problem as a CAR FAX report clearly stated the accident dates and pay out. No one wanted the truck.

We then prepared an estimate of the initial re-repair costs and sent a notice to the insurance company on behalf of the owner to arrange to have someone reinspect the vehicle. On or about March 19,2009 a representative from the insurance company and the body shop manager for the dealer came to our shop to inspect the car. They each reviewed the condition of the vehicle, its repair and extent of the needed re-repair. We had the opportunity to ask some questions of the manager as to why certain repairs were made and how they were accomplished. Much of the information that formed our conclusions came from admissions that repairs were attempts to correct problems with the initial repair.

By the time our meeting ended it was agreed the insurance company would consider options and get back to us. On March 20, 2009 we received a call that the truck was going to be considered a total loss. That meant the owner would receive the full value of the truck on the date of the loss, July 12, 2008. The insurance company made arrangements to pay us in full and retrieve the truck in order to take it to a salvage auction. We advised the owner to obtain his payment before releasing the truck but he alone decided it was ok to let the truck go that they would send him a check. He was confident this was over.

On March 27, 2009 the truck was retrieved. We considered the case closed. On or about March 31, 2009 the owner called and stated to us that the insurance company had reneged on the deal. Apparently there was only $50,000 in coverage in the policy and by paying off the truck plus the repair cost, rental and investigation they were over the policy limit of the at fault driver.

Obviously the owner was upset and realized he had made a huge mistake AGAIN trusting the insurance company to do the right thing. After a few intense days the owner demanded the insurance company bring his truck back to our shop. He also had to chase down his title he sent off to the insurance company. On or about April 3, 2009 the truck returned. The insurance company had decided that re-repairing the truck was the best course to take. Our estimate to START the re-repair was $16000.00. We expected that the costs would rise after the truck was disassembled as we suspected we would find more problems and damage left unaddressed. We met with the insurance claims director for the area and he confirmed that the insurance company intended to re-repair the vehicle. They rented a truck for the owner to use and asked us to proceed with the re-repair. As we disassembled the truck we found problem after problem. We found loose bolts, and more damage that was not addressed. We found broken parts and exposed damage that was adding to the cost of re-repair rapidly. In the afternoon of April 4, 2009 two appraisers for the insurance company came in and looked at the truck. They immediately came to the conclusion the truck should be totaled asking us to stop work. We confirmed the request to stop with the owner and stopped work again! A few calls later it was determined the truck would be totaled and the owner paid off. We were then asked to re-assemble the truck so it could be sent to the salvage auction. We reassembled the truck and on April 9, 2009 the insurance company again picked up the truck. This time the owner had his money before the truck was turned over.

The owner has endured a similar experience that we've seen before. When the accident happened the owner did know his rights, he did not know his options, and he did not have anyone to advocate for him. He did not have a plan. The best plan is to have one. Know how you will react if a crash happens and how to avoid being caught up in the system of big business called insurance.

Our website tells stories and the pages have information that prepares you for situations and how to avoid them. The "AFTER AN ACCIDENT " button and "ACTION PLAN" are basic ways to avoid being the subject of a story like this. The vehicle owner approved use of this story in the hopes someone else would be saved the hassle. panels.