Insurance Company Refusing to Pay to Have Car Looked At

[thatoldsailboat]

A lady backed into my car in a parking lot and has already admitted to her insurance that it was entirely her fault.

Their insurance company has agreed to take 100% liability but they are telling me that I have to pay to have my car looked at as it is “the cost of business”.

I feel that since it is not my fault, why am I being required to pay to have my car looked at? They should be covering the price of the quote as well as the actual costs of the repairs.

Are they allowed to do this? Is there anything left for me to do to try and change this? Do I have any options for disputing this without having to take it to court?

I want to make sure that there is nothing seriously wrong with my car and potentially cash the check if there is nothing more than cosmetic damages, but I don’t want to be screwed down the line if there is something worse.

 

[davelew86]

@thatoldsailboat Same answers as the last thread. They are allowed to do this. You cannot change it. You do not have options that involve cashing out AND getting them to pay for the inspection. If you want to cash out, this is the risk you run.

 

[thatoldsailboat]

@davelew86 Again, they’re going to make me pay even if I am going to get it fixed. They said “well we have body shops that don’t charge” but if I were to take it to get looked at for anything more than a cosmetic damage, they are going to charge me and hold the car until payment is received.

The thing is they won’t give me a rental until they have the quote and they won’t pay for the quote EVEN IF I were 100% sure I was going to get it fixed at the shop.

I understand what you’re trying to say but I feel I have the right to an informed decision and I shouldn’t have to take money out of my pocket to make sure nothing is wrong w my car due to someone else’s fault REGARDLESS of if I get it fixed or not

 

[sandhillsanglican]

@thatoldsailboat They are estimating for the damage they can see, not damage that may or may not be there if they tear down the car. Your other option is to sue the driver and hope the judge sides with your valuation.

 

[resjudicata]

@thatoldsailboat I live in Canada and our insurance is different here, but my thoughts on this are:

• does your insurance cover claims like this?
  -yes they should be covering ALL of it if she is at fault
• threaten that you are speaking with a lawyer about this (you can do free consultations with insurance lawyers) and tell them this was not your fault and will not be paying out of pocket for any expenses considering she is at fault and your vehicle is damaged because of her - not on your own accord.
• speak to the place that does the inspection and have them directly bill insurance (make sure it’s an approved body shop by your insurance tho)
• if your insurance has a rental policy - you should already have a rental if your car is undrivable.
• this you need to confirm with your policy

 

[mjb048]

@resjudicata Your second bullet point is vastly different in the US

if you threaten legal action/representation, they’re gonna call you on your bluff and refuse to communicate with you further until they hear from an attorney representing you

 

[resjudicata]

@mjb048 Well like I said - I live in Canada and our laws are different as is our insurance.

 

[thatoldsailboat]

@resjudicata Since it was their fault I have not got my insurance involved (don’t want my rates to go up) but it seems to me that basically if I want to just cash out I will have to live with the fact that they aren’t going to go into detail checking my car. If I want them to fix it they will check in more detail after the initial quote.

Sucks because if it truly is just cosmetic I would rather just take the check but I don’t want to have to risk there being more wrong w it later because they did not do a full inspection

 

[ihaveahope]

@thatoldsailboat That’s typically how it works, you’d take their check to your body shop of choice, they’ll tear down and write their own estimate (blueprint) if there’s a need for a supplement they’ll file that with the insurance company for you. The insurance company hopes you don’t get the repairs made and cash t their check, they write low intentionally.

Edit to add they cannot force you to go to a drp (direct repair partner) facility. If they try that’s steering and they’re acting in bad faith. You can go to wherever you choose and that shop will work with the insurance company to get any money above and beyond that initial estimate.

 

[thatoldsailboat]

@ihaveahope I guess the only difference is they won’t give me an estimate they are telling me I have to take it somewhere to get an estimate before they will cut me a check.

Luckily it seems like the body shops near me will not charge for the initial estimate at least