Car Insurance Agents

[elkliver]

Any Insurance Agents on here? I have questions about how to know when it makes sense to write a check to a body shop to fix someone's car as opposed to turning it over to the Insurance. With no history of wrecks or Insurance claims, i am concerned about my rates going up if i file a claim. Is that a question i can ask my Agent?

On one hand, we pay for insurance to cover problems. On the other.... The long term consequence of raised rates could have a financial impact larger than the claim. Feel free to Dm me and/or we can exchange phone numbers if that makes more sense

 

[Aces11]

I am an insurance agent. Definitely a question to ask, one you should be able to call your agent up and they should be able to advise you. No reason you can’t run that question by them. From your post it appears to me you may have hit someone and are deciding to put a claim in for damages to their vehicle or just pay out of pocket. People used to do that, but now a days it’s hard to have any damage under a couple grand and people always put a claim in. I don’t see any harm in asking your agent, but you can message me with details and I can try and help point you in the right direction.

 

[fngTony]

From the repair shop side I wouldn’t deal with that situation. When I have to call and explain the supplement changes, rental car for the person, parts are on back order so now the customer is getting pissed and I’m billing you for more rental car days. Both parties involved get a bad taste and none of us benefit. Let your insurance company be the referee.

 

[elkliver]

I am an insurance agent. Definitely a question to ask, one you should be able to call your agent up and they should be able to advise you. No reason you can’t run that question by them. From your post it appears to me you may have hit someone and are deciding to put a claim in for damages to their vehicle or just pay out of pocket. People used to do that, but now a days it’s hard to have any damage under a couple grand and people always put a claim in. I don’t see any harm in asking your agent, but you can message me with details and I can try and help point you in the right direction.

Thanks, that's exactly where I am at. My sister backed into a parked car... My plan was to see what the estimate came back as and then make a decision. Let me see where this goes and i may be in touch with questions. Between your and Tony's response, i am assuming just filing a claim will be the answer

 

[Hondo]

I would agree with Aces & Tony. Talk to you agent first. I've had that conversation many times with policyholders and in the majority of cases, the consequences of making a claim were not as dire as they were fearing. The only situations where I recommended they handle it themselves is when the damage was minor, the monetary amount was known and agreed upon and (this is key) there was a high likelyhood that they would be non-renewed by the insurer due to claim frequency should they made another claim.

If you decide to handle it outside your insurance company, tread very carefully. As Tony mentioned, there can be many complications as well as the potential for future claims. I've seen people go down the path of handling it themselves only to end up making a claim with their insurer due to complications.

Best wishes.

 

[Steve300xcw]

I have never seen my rates go down...

might as well use what you're paying for

 

[khunter]

I backed in to a tree and had $4k i. damage and a $500 deductable. Did not affect my insurance rates. Def call your agent, and if that is a concern you have THE WRONG AGENT.

 

[HuntHarder]

Yeah... I backed into someone 2 years ago in a parking lot, low speed. Fast forward 5 months ago, im getting sued, guy claiming all kinds of b.s... thankfully I went thru insurance and they provided an attorney. Case settled for an 1/8th of what the scammer wanted.

 

[fngTony]

Another thing to consider is the age and rarity of the car hit. Lots of unavailable parts on cars even as new as 10 years old. Salvage yard options are limited and time consuming to source from. If the vehicle falls into that category along with being a customer pay job they often won’t even take the car in until parts arrive, which further infuriates the car owner. If it’s a non drive (something as simple as a broken taillight, chipped aluminum wheel) then it’s extensive rental fees. One last scenario to be concerned about, prior hidden damage and or its just not worth fixing. You don’t want them in a position of being out of a car they can’t afford to replace

 

[elkliver]

Thanks everyone! That pretty well answers it

 

[Will_m]

Yeah... I backed into someone 2 years ago in a parking lot, low speed. Fast forward 5 months ago, im getting sued, guy claiming all kinds of b.s... thankfully I went thru insurance and they provided an attorney. Case settled for an 1/8th of what the scammer wanted.

This is basically the state of litigation with all the personal injury advertisements now. People think a car accident is a lottery ticket.

I NEVER see a person that contributes to society in any meaningful way file a lawsuit for a car accident unless it’s something serious and then it usually settles pretty quickly.

Not to derail the thread but good god it really is sad.