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Insurance is a sick and twisted game, and the results are directly proportional to how much determination you have. They get to make the first move by sending you to an adjuster or shop for an initial lowball estimat or scrap offer.
You can pre-empt this by going to your shop, and leavin it there. the shop will charge you a daily storage fee, and set you up with a rental car. What this does(aside from getting you wheels) is cost insurance $60-90 a day, so they have a reason to deal with you soon.
I find the first estimate from and insurance recommended body shop, esp. their insurance, is a low dollar figure to inadequately repair the most obvious damage. they like to get their work done by the cheapest bidder.
Case in point:
I am presently working on a 96 Ranger 4X4 head on'd while stopped beside a country road in a rainstorm. The Honda was going fast enough to break the top off his head on her steering crosshaft! Pretty much dove under the truck, pushing it back in the dirt turnout. No lenses broke, but teh front of her fram was moved about 1/2" to the right. The Honda driver was drunk, but said he'd take responsibility(yeah right) Anyway, no cops were called, so the next day he said he was not at fault, and her full coverage insurance came into play. They recomended a shop which gave a $1600 estimate for a bumper, grille and hood. NO MENTION OF SUSPENSION WORK(came out around $400+$200frame pull)! Luckily she asked my opinion, and I refered her to my friends shop. She drove it there real slow because of 1" toe in, bent frame, etc. She was not there when we looked the car over, and we didn't have keys. So without opening the hood or driving the truck, we made a list of the problems we could see, and enteredt them into the shop estimating computer program. at $55avg/hr labor, the machine spit out a $4000 estimate
3.5 HRS frame pull
new hood and fiberglass grille surround
remove repair and paint 2 fenders, cowl panel, radiator support
replace some tie rods, a ball joint, steering links, alignment
new bumper & grill
We got the hood open and found a few more things, then got the adjuster there.
He wrote a $4200 check after subtracting her $500 deductible from the new total.
Since she is my friend, I am doing the suspension work for less than the shop it would have been subbed out to, and not marking up my parts cost. We will repair the hood, and work in a cost effective way. This leaves enough money to cover her deductible and repair a pre-existing ding in the back of the bed, paint the tailgate, one bedside, and the entire front. The truck will look much better than before. We arent cutting any corners with reliability or driveability
Amazing the difference between $1600 and $4700 isn't it!
If at all possible have several knowlegable people and or shop(S) look over both your estimate and your car. Take notes, and keep on the insurance company untill you have great justice. IF you give up, you almost always loose.
Sometimes the haggling goes real smooth, sometimes it take weeks and lawyers and all that. Make it real obvious from the start that you know that you are entitled to a car that is just as good as it was before the accident. You should get additional compensation if it had never been in an accident, as it will affect your resale value no matter how well it is fixed. pay special attention to the door positioning and door pillar.
keep you copy of the police report with you when dealig withe their agent, it gives you a very good position.
As to what this will cost...I would guess estimates from $3-5 thousand depending who does what. If a paint job was in your plans, pay the difference to do the whole car, the shop will likely make it easy on you.
For reference, the P.O. of my wagon got the same ding in the back minus the upper gouge, and the tiniest dent in the front fender flare...blind driver pulling out of their driveway into the side of a passing car... the estimate was $1700, about what he had paid for the car. He took the money and did no repair.
If that happened to my car, I would give serious thought to asking that they total the car. Despite what some people say it realy just means you have to pay for a brake and lamp inspection and your resale value goes down. I would hope that you like to keep your car so it would pass a brake inspection anyway. Anyway, you have dibs on buying back your totaled car. they have a special formula for determining its wrecked value, and it should be between 3 and 5 hundred. The amount they pay to total a car is negotiable, don't take the first offer. Now you would have a $400 car that needs $200 or $300 in parts at Pick n Pull, a day or two of straightening wht you can, and another dayor two of assembly. A body shop will do just the heavy pulling if you want to. I think if it were my car I could have it roadworthy and presentable with a few days work, and still have a few thousand dollars left to play with. Not to say that you shouldn't take it if the insurance gives you a nice offer. What you do should be guided by your current needs, lifestyle and situation, there is no 'right' path here.
I am sorry to hear about your loss, and hope I may have shed some light on the insurance issue.
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