Hail Damage Quotes

by Judy
(Austin, TX)

I am insured with Geico and have an appointment to get an estimate for hail damage.

I went to two different body shops that refused to do a quote until I get an estimate from my insurance company. Can you explain why this practice is done? It seems a rather unfair position towards the consumer because a "quote" should be a "quote".

I am in Austin, Tx.

Answer:

This is rather odd. This is not "normal" practice. There is nothing illegal about it, the shops can decline to give you a quote for any reason.

My assessment is this. Hail damage is very tricky. One shop might say they do it for 2k, another for 5k. Some believe that the entire car has to be painted to "match", some believe that only some parts need to be re painted.

In addition, the damage could add fast, so there might be a total loss situation (depending on how old is your car, your mileage, etc).

The shops might simply want to see what the insurance company wants to pay for this, and then give the quote. they do not want to spend all the time doing a quote that will not be honored.

Good Luck,
http://www.auto-insurance-claim-advice.com