If your vehicle is damaged after an accident, follow these tips to get it fixed and back on the road as soon as possible.
Getting a Damage Estimate
Usually, you don’t have to get any estimates yourself. Normally, the insurance company that is paying to repair your car damage will have an on-the-road estimator go to your car and estimate the cost of repairing the car. Alternatively, if your car can be driven lawfully, some companies may ask you to drive your car to their closest estimating facility.
Choosing the Repair Shop
You can probably choose where you want to have repairs done. However, some insurance companies are writing their policies to give them the right to select the repair shop. This is something to check out when you renew your insurance policy or get a new policy — do you have the right to select the shop that will repair your vehicle?
Obviously, if they have the right, insurance companies will send you to go to a repair shop that gives them favorable rates, in order to save the insurance company money. These deals between insurance companies and repair shops are known as DRP (Direct Referral Program) Contracts.
Under these contracts, the insurance company refers a great deal of business to the repair facility and, in return, the repair facility gives the insurance company price breaks. This is okay if the repair facility retains control over how the vehicle will be repaired, but in some instances, those decisions are given to the insurance company. Do you want some insurance type with a calculator deciding whether to replace a car part that could affect your family’s safety?
Your best protection is this: before your accident, purchase insurance that gives you the right to select the repair shop. Then, after your accident, select a repair shop that has a strong reputation for ethics and customer service.
Why Choose Elite Car Care Auto Repair Shop in Palmdale
Elite Car Care is one of the oldest auto shops in Palmdale, and we take pride in providing top quality auto repair services. Established in 1986, Elite Car Care has been family owned and operated for 30 years. Many members of Elite Car Care’s staff have been working at the shop for many years and are known and loved by those who have become loyal Elite Car Care’s customers over the years.
Full Service Auto Repair and Maintenance
We are a full service auto repair shop and can handle your auto repair, auto maintenance, smog inspections, tires and body work needs. We have invested heavily in the training, equipment and resources that allow our ASE Certified Technicians do the job right the first time. Some companies cut so many corners in these ways that they resort to guessing on which part will fix the problem. It may be cheaper for those shops in the short run, but in the long run it costs everyone more money. We love seeing our customers come in, but for the right reasons – not because of poor quality standards.
We believe in saving you money
Although our Auto Mechanic Technicians are more than capable of handling the most difficult auto repairs & auto service, we hope to save you and your loved ones money through regular maintenance. We make this a priority in order to prevent costly repairs for our customers in the future. We want to see you coming in for maintenance services and not being pulled in by a tow truck. A tow truck means only bad things for you: a lot of inconvenience, a lot more expense, and maybe less safety when you’re stranded on the side of the road.
