Shop Talk

Welcome to the Gold Coast Auto Body “Answer Blog,” where we periodically post news updates, technical articles, and other items of interest to our customers and friends in the luxury car community.

Car Insurance 101

Here at GACB, we always have a lot to say about auto insurance, sometimes good things, sometimes not so good. Suffice to say, it’s a complicated subject.

But you’d never know that from the ads and TV commercials most insurance companies run. The focus is always on the price, never on what you get for it – the quality of service, company reputation, coverage details and so on. All policies are pretty much the same, the thinking goes, so the best one must be the cheapest.

The result, at least from our experience, is that few drivers seem to actually know what’s in their policy. And that can be a huge problem when you have to make a claim.

Consider what Consumer Reports has to say about that in their most recent Car Insurance Buyer’s Guide:

“Claims payment is where the rubber hits the road in car insurance. Your insurer might push you to use shops in a direct-repair program (DRP) or use cheaper replacement parts, rather than the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts. Tests by Consumer Reports and others have found that some non-OEM parts fit poorly, are more prone to rust and corrosion, don’t always meet federal safety standards, and may not provide good protection in a crash.”

Of course, we’ve already had plenty to say about the OEM problem as it relates to the integrity of the work we do. And in the coming weeks and months, we’ll be using this space to explore some of the other issues we think every driver should be aware of regarding their insurance coverage.

But for starters, we strongly advise everybody who owns a car to get educated about their auto insurance. Start by reading the Buyers’ Guide, then read your own policy, talk to your agent, and if you feel like it, come in and talk to us. It may take more than 15 minutes. But it’ll save you a lot more than that 15% on your next premium, too.

Saving Money vs. Saving Lives

The case for OEM parts and procedures in auto body repair just keeps growing and growing. The latest comes from this report on a series of crash tests conducted as a follow-up to last-year’s historic $42 million jury award against a Texas body shop for their liability in a horrific crash involving a 2010 Honda Fit.

GCAB was among the financial supporters of the tests, which compared new, OEM-repaired, aftermarket-repaired and improperly repaired Honda Fits. The results bore-out what we’ve long believed: that inferior quality parts and repairs can be downright dangerous.

“When there is a 400-800 percent difference in the results, it’s staggering. This could be the difference between broken bones, permanent injuries, life or death,” said Jerry McNee, a New Jersey-based shop owner who also helped finance the tests. Of course, most repair professionals already knew that, he said; he just wishes insurance companies would catch on.

“They make comments like, ‘It’s just a fender,’ ‘It’s in their policy’ and ‘LKQ parts are the same,’” he said. “They’re dictating what they’re paying for to unjustly enrich themselves, but numbers and test results don’t lie.”

“The biggest takeaway of this presentation is that we’re beginning to define what ‘like kind and quality’ means,” said Burl Richards, President of the Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT) and another test supporter. “We now have scientific proof that shows vehicles are safer when they’re repaired using OEM parts and OEM procedures.”

Our Customers Weigh In

We take great pride in the work we do here at Gold Coast Auto Body, and we’re not the only ones. Read a few of the recent endorsements we’ve received from thousands of satisfied customers who know first-hand the quality and commitment we bring to every job we do.