How Do You Obtain an Estimate For Your Repair Value of Your Car Following Your Car Accident?

It’s a pretty standard procedure but the first thing is first. You’re going to need to get in contact with the insurance company for the defendant and chances are they’re going to have a list of preferred shops that they would like you to take your car to.

If you do not use their preferred list, then there’s a distinct possibility that they will not cover the actual repairs. So it is to your benefit to take your vehicle to a – someone who’s on their list, someone who’s an accepted shop and someone they’re willing to actually pay the bills for.

I would encourage you just as an aside, to try to make sure that they do not use aftermarket parts on your car. What I mean by aftermarket is that the actual parts that they’re using are being taken off of used cars. You would like them to use new parts when replacing and repairing your vehicle following your car accident.

Once you’ve called the insurance company of the defendant, they’re going to do one of two things. Either they will send an appraiser out to have a look at your vehicle, if it’s not drive-able, to assess what the damage is and to give a general assessment of what they think the costs are going to be as far as getting the vehicle repaired or they will simply direct you to take your car to the repair shop directly as opposed to sending out an appraiser.

Another important fact to consider in a way to protect yourself is that you’re going to need to get more than one estimate to determine what the repairs of your car are in fact going to be.

It’s just like with the doctor or lawyer or anything else. You’re always going to want to get a second opinion. So after you take your car to the initial place that the insurance company suggests, feel free to go to a second or a third shop and get a second and a third estimate because the idea is, is that you want to get a much more comprehensive picture of what the repairs are actually going to cost to get your vehicle fixed.

Again, I would talk to all of the shops that you’re discussing with to make sure that they do not use aftermarket parts when repairing your vehicle.

If you’ve recently been in a car accident, contact The Hartman Law Firm at 843-300-7600 today.