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By Daniel Fernandez
Life is not always great on the road. You start your morning commute in the best of spirits. Then a fellow commuter slams into your rear, causing a mile-long traffic jam on the highway and ruining the rest of your day.
Accidents and mishaps do occur throughout your motoring life, sometimes due to the fault of no particular person but the road surface or plain bad karma. If your car has suffered a dent or worse, your next problem is getting it fixed at the auto body shop. Here’s a primer on what to expect.
Things go missing
After ensuring that you’re unhurt, the first and most important thing to do is to put the camera feature in your expensive cell phone to good use (some people do keep a disposable camere in their car). Take as many pictures of the accident scene as possible to show the damage to the cars involved. Capture the full scene before moving your car if it is obstructing traffic. Get the details of the other driver and take a photo of the other car’s road tax sticker. Take down its details if you don’t have a camera.
Also, photograph your car’s accessories such as stereo, leather seats, alloy rims, spot lamps and body kits, as they may go missing on the way to the auto body shop. This is a very common occurrence and should not be overlooked. High-performance or new tyres can even get replaced in transit! Without visual proof, you have no legal recourse.
Not all workshops have the expertise
Before you know it, a tow truck appears, miraculously weaving its way through traffic to get to you. Makes sure that your car is being towed to a workshop or panel beater authorized by your insurer.
Panel beaters arel like specialist doctors who work on damaged and used cars, carrying out accident repair, spray painting and do on. There are hundreds of these shops in the country. Many of these panel beaters are professionally trained and are able to restore a car to it showroom condition. The best panel beaters are able to bring the lines of the car back to its original form. However, there are many more others who do shoddy work that is more like a facial cover up than real panel beating.
Some panel peaters, established though they may be, will make all kinds of promises like using new parts and providing anti-rust protection before respraying new panels. Manufacturer-backed panel beaters like UMW Toyota, Proton, Perodua, Auto Bavaria
Your new part may not be new
In many workshops these days, panel beating is only done when dents are small or replacement of the part is too expensive or impossible, as in the case of classic cars. Where insurance claims on accident-damaged cars are concerned, the panel beater will surely suggest new panels because it’s a win-win situation – his margins are higher and your car gets new panels.
Watch out, though. For certain car makes, there are slightly inferior original and after-market parts that are made in China and Taiwan
How does this happen? When the insurance adjuster comes over, the panel beater will have the new panel sitting beside your car. The adjuster leaves and the panel beater puts away the new panel and out comes the old panel. It might be rusty in some areas, so he sands it down and applies a base coat. The adjuster comes the next day and sees the “new” panel and signs off on the worksheet. The panel beater puts on the final coat of paint and your car is delivered to your.
To avoid such practices, visit the workshop and ask that they call you before work commences so that you can check on the progress. You, or a friend or relative, can make surprise visits as well.
You may still have to fork out money
Especially with older cars, which have aged paint, the repair to a single panel will result in an uneven paint finish. The repaired or replaced panel will have a shiny new look while the rest of your car will be dowdy. You can ask the panel beater about a full same-colour respray but do not expect the insurance company to cover the cost. You should also note that there is an excess clause in your car insurance policy. Check with your insurer on how much you can claim. Sometimes, if the damage is minor and the repair cost is less than your excess, it is better for you to just fork out the money yourself instead of losing your no-claim bonus (NCB).
If you are claiming from your own insurance, then be prepared to lose your NCB. If you are making the claim against the other party’s insurer, remember that some insurance companies take their sweet time in paying out claims.
Check the car
When picking your car, check that all other parts are working properly. It is common to find certain items missing or changed. Check thoroughly before signing your acceptance of the vehicle. Do not take verbal wararanties to heart, as they mostly public relations talk.
(Source: Personal Money)
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