Car repaired by garage under insurance questions

[Hawkeye1250FA]

Afternoon BCF.

So long story short - wife had an arguement with a bollard. Bollard won and car went to get repaired by insurance in Jan. We were told it would be back by the end of that week.

Once there - they stripped it, and THEN checked their stock. Parts not in stock - have to wait.

6 months later they get the parts and it has now been repaired and we got it back today.

And we were forced blackmailed to pay the excess to them in the normal way (Or they wouldnt give us the car) for the pleasure of being sans decent car for 6 months.

Add to that the following:

- undersill protective cover not there so that needs fixing
- large scratch on bonnet that wasnt there previously
- They "forgot" to put everything from in the boot - back in the boot before giving it back to us, so we now have to wait until they are "in the area" to have the dog guard given back to us

So, question is, do I have to just stand here and bend over? or are there routes I can go down to make me feel better?

They are not part of any voluntary regulatory body. Complaint already in with the insurance company that sent us there.


Also: Anyone know the name of the part of the sill that runs the length of the car on the outside - underneath that protects from water and other filth getting into the bolts etc?
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[stephen_o]

You would have to pay the excess - that is in the terms of your policy. Your policy guarantees you a payout for total loss or a repair back to a safe and roadworthy condition as close as possible to specification given age, wear and tear on other parts etc.

Under the contract you are the "client" the contract is between the customer (paying the bill) your insurance company and the garage.

1, Letter before action to garage stating allegations requesting repairs with copy to insurance company.
2, As they are not part of any body then Insurance Ombudsman? If your insurance company does not deal with the matter for you.

Legally - the loss of items and additional damage will form part of your insurance claim and your insurer may have to settle you for them.
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current scoot 2009 Yamaha YBR250 + Current Pootle 2013 Nissan Leaf

[Rogerborg]

[Hawkeye1250FA]

[Hawkeye1250FA]

[Shaft]

First of all, what's the car and what was the part?

Is the repairer attached to a dealer for that make of car, or were they ordering it in from an outside supplier?

I ask this because I have waited months for not very obscure parts from major manufacturers, so it certainly does happen and more often than you might think.

I also find parts departments are notoriously poor at keeping their customers informed - discovering a part has gone back order, some time after I've ordered it, is pretty much a weekly occurrence and usually involves me asking them why it hasn't showed, rather than them telling me it isn't coming.

This then leads to having a car stripped and ready for repair, only to find the parts aren't available - I only get paid once to do a job, so putting it back together and taking it part again when the parts arrive, isn't on my agenda at all.

As for the stuff that wasn't put back, did you not check before you took it away?

And I don't know where you're going to go with your mystery scratch - you're going to say it wasn't there, they will say it was and neither of you can prove either way. You might get lucky and they will offer to repair out of goodwill, but I wouldn't bet on it, preparing and painting a bonnet could wipe out their profit on the job, so be ready for a fight.

To be honest (and I'm not implying you are) I got so fed up with people claiming extraneous damage, for a long time I've been making a point of taking images of any unreported damage at the point of estimate, then doing a walk round with the customer when the car is checked in, if necessary with more images.

If I were a customer, I would insist the repairer did a condition report at check in, can't be any arguments then.
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Things get better with age; I'm close to being magnificent........
20 RE Interceptor, 83 Z1100A3, 83 GS650 Katana
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[Hawkeye1250FA]

[Shaft]

[Hawkeye1250FA]

Yup.
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[stephen_o]

A letter before action can be sent by email but really for maximum effect it needs to be sent 1st class signed for post marked for the attention of the Managing Director or the most senior person at the garage.

14 Days is the normal waiting time on these sort of things.

The car would surely have been inspected at the time of being estimated either by a insurance company approved assessor who should take photos of every aspect of the car or at the very least the repairing garage - given that digital cameras are now in everyone's hand I would be astounded if photos didn't exist somewhere.

You need to formalise the complaint with the insurance company first, If there is a record then they will have access to it.
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current scoot 2009 Yamaha YBR250 + Current Pootle 2013 Nissan Leaf

[Hawkeye1250FA]

[Hawkeye1250FA]

Complaint into insurers including pictures
Pictures sent to garage of shoddy work. They are picking the car up today illedgedly ... Believe it when I see it.

Bet we end up with a 4 seater aygo as a courtesy car again.
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[Hahadumball]

[Hawkeye1250FA]

Yes - they came and collected it and left us.......

Wait for it.....

A 4 seater Toyota Aygo.

FFS. They also said repairs would only take 1 day! I'm not sure how long the protective sill blacking takes to cure. Or how many layers it needs building up..... But I bet I don't get it back tomorrow!
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[Hawkeye1250FA]

Just got it back. All fixed - yay.

Still waiting to hear from insurance on the complaint.
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA

[stephen_o]

That's a partial result then. I hope the rest is resolved for you.
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current scoot 2009 Yamaha YBR250 + Current Pootle 2013 Nissan Leaf

[Hawkeye1250FA]

[stephen_o]

The "threat" of having their lucrative insurance work pulled would of exercised the board room when they saw your complaint.
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current scoot 2009 Yamaha YBR250 + Current Pootle 2013 Nissan Leaf

[Hawkeye1250FA]

[MattEMulsion]

Did they repair the scratch on your bonnet?
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Yamaha YZF-R6

[Hawkeye1250FA]