Should I Let my Insurance Company Do Damage Estimate or Only Have Shop Do It?

r00tb33r

New Member
1
Hey all,

A tree fell on my truck and crushed the roof and two doors and caused other miscellaneous damage.

My insurance repairs up to 75% of vehicle's value before totaling it, so I suspect they may actually try to fix my truck. My deductible is low, just $100.

Question: the truck drives, should I have my shop of choice do the estimate, or should I let an insurance agent (an estimations contractor to be exact) do the estimate first? Or are they the enemy? Would the insurance company dictate the maximum allowed amount for the repairs if they did their estimate?

Basically, should I let them come look at the truck first, or take it straight to the shop and never let the insurance company near it?

Insight is appreciated. Thanks!
 
A majority of the time an adjuster HAS to look at the vehicle to give their own estimate. This is mainly to make sure that 1) An accident did actually happen 2) They aren't paying for any preexisting damage that occured at a different time than the claim itself and 3) The body shop's estimate is in line with the industry standards.

There should be no problems provided that you have a good insurance carrier and you are using a reputable body shop. The two estimates are 99% of the time within a few dollars of each at least with my carriers and local body shops.
 
A majority of the time an adjuster HAS to look at the vehicle to give their own estimate. This is mainly to make sure that 1) An accident did actually happen 2) They aren't paying for any preexisting damage that occured at a different time than the claim itself and 3) The body shop's estimate is in line with the industry standards.

There should be no problems provided that you have a good insurance carrier and you are using a reputable body shop. The two estimates are 99% of the time within a few dollars of each at least with my carriers and local body shops.

This is 100% correct.

If the insurance company is writing their own estimate, that is the starting point for the repairs. If they forgot anything, or if additional damage is found later, the shop will go back to the insurance company for the additional costs. Standard operating procedure.
 
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