Beware! Auto Body Shop Scams and Inflated Prices

All motorists today are required to have their vehicles insured so that appropriate compensation in the form of coverage for vehicle repairs can be obtained. Sadly, there are unscrupulous auto body repair shops that take full advantage of the knowledge that the car insurance company is going to cover all the expenses incurred to have the vehicle running and in pristine condition again. This is why car owners have to be more vigilant against scams and inflated prices by going to legit auto body repair shops.

The stunning revelation was discovered when insurers in Canada were bothered by the ever-increasing cost of auto insurance premiums despite low vehicle collision rates. As every motorist worth his penny knows, the cost of the insurance premium is directly proportional to the risk of meeting or getting involved in a vehicular accident. The higher the likelihood that you’ll be in an accident, the higher is the cost of auto insurance premium that needs to be paid.

One of the things that the insurance company also noted was the unusually high cost of repairs for vehicles involved in a traffic collision. Even if there are fewer accidents if the cost of doing auto body repairs is high, then this can also drive auto insurance premiums to go up. Not only are motorists being penalized by imposing more expensive insurance premiums, the insurance company is also at a disadvantage since the cost of the body repair has been found to be inflated by as much as 57%.

Insurance Companies Catching Onto Body Shop Scams

The insurance company decided to conduct a thorough investigation of its own to dig deeper into the matter and to provide more solid evidence to what they assume to be the work of unscrupulous auto body repair shops.

Hiring forensic engineers and independent vehicle accident appraisers, the company staged a minor vehicular accident. The vehicles were pushed towards each other to create dents that would mimic that of a minor fender bender. Experts were then called in to make a professional evaluation of the damage including what kind of work needs to be done and what components or parts need to be repair or replaced. The vehicles were then brought to a street and stage a vehicle accident.

A tow truck was called and the vehicles were towed to respective auto body repair shops. What the shops didn’t know was that there are hidden cameras in the vehicle to record everything.

When the repairs were done and the bill was finalized, the insurance company-turned-investigators made a shocking discovery. The bill showed that the insurance company was being charged for auto body repairs that were not done as well as auto parts that were not replaced. The company also found that auto parts were invoiced as replaced, but were only repaired. Video surveillance also showed the auto body shop deliberately damaging certain parts of the car in an effort to charge more for auto body repairs.

The fraud is estimated to cost up to $2 billion every year.

The implications for every motorist are huge. While your

insurance company is covering the repairs for your damaged vehicle, this will also increase your insurance premium the next time you apply for coverage. As such, vehicle owners who have to take their cars to auto body repair shops should only bring theirs to trustworthy shops like Superior Auto Body in Fresno. It may also be wise to have an independent appraiser take a look at your car first before even taking it to the shop. Documenting the damage on your vehicle so you can compare it after the repair can also help.

There are plenty of unscrupulous auto body repair shops out there. So, beware. Be a smart vehicle owner and protect your rights by digging doing your thorough research on a particular shop before bringing your car for repairs.

If you’re in the Fresno area, hit us up for the highest quality auto body work around since the 70’s!