I accept it was my fault, bumped the car in front, low speed, minor and I mean real minor damage to rear bumper. Insurance company quote came to $2185, which includes, under "Remove Replace parts as required", $120 for "Jack and spare", I think I'm paying the slags half a days work to take the jack and the spare tyre out of the car and put it back again. Has anyone ever contested these, or know what my rights are! I asked if there will be a few different quotes, and was told "no we can get the best deal anyway".
quickbuck,
Sep 17, 7:33am
What sort of car did you hit! Waht seems to be very minor, can infact do quite a bit of "adjusting" underneath the bumpers. Metalic paint isn't cheap either (if the car was painted in metalic)
bopbargains,
Sep 17, 8:01am
"$120 for "Jack and spare" !
quickbuck,
Sep 17, 8:03am
It could well be that the jack and spare are stuck in the boot after the impact. Just guessing, and not defending the quote, but it could be.
slimdog,
Sep 17, 8:21am
White 2004 Nissan Sunny. Also, 640+GST for paint alone, not the labour. Thats a lot of paint. What a con. I am thinking of refusing to pay outright unless a more realistic figure is put up. I have emailed the insurance company politely expressing my disbelief. There are future credit rating issues as well.
aragorn2003,
Sep 17, 8:24am
It isn't so much the Insurance company as it is the repairer isnt it!
phillip.weston,
Sep 17, 8:24am
maybe the lesson to be learned here is to have at least third party insurance cover, then next time an accident like this happens you're only up for the cost of your excess. I guess be thankful you didn't write off a near new Mercedes!
fordcrzy,
Sep 17, 8:25am
thats a rip off alright.$300 max for painting a bumper. a new bumper is about $350
treachug,
Sep 17, 8:31am
and then most new bumpers need to be painted. They dont come pre-painted.
rob_man,
Sep 17, 8:41am
Jack and square is the panel repair idiom for remedying structural components that are bent or misaligned. In this case it's likely the rear panel which carries the boot lock and gasket has been pushed forward and requires jacking back into the correct postion. If this is the case, the boot floor is possibly deformed and needs repairing as well. The problem with plastic bumpers is that they put up very little resistence to impact and allow the supports and rear panel to take all the energy before bouncing back into shape and disguising the true nature of the damage. I lost count of the number of times a customer was rear ended and after a quick look assumed there was no damage only to find that when they had a proper look later there was quite a lot.
slimdog,
Sep 17, 8:41am
Yeah, then they need to remove the old, fit the new, (or repaired old one), blend the colour out to maybe the bootlid, maybe both rear guards. Clearcoat the whole lot. Unmask and clean. Oh and take the jack and spare out, put it back in again, might have to get the apprentice help the tradesman out with that one, it all adds up.
rob_man,
Sep 17, 8:48am
Another thing, insurance assessors don't just give money away to panelbeaters. Paint prices are set to a formula and in this case it sounds as if the rear panel and channel area are needing paint and possibly either the boot floor or tail lamp panels. Methinks there is more damage than the OP realised.
slimdog,
Sep 17, 8:58am
Yeah, also in "Remove, Replace Parts as Required" these is "Rear Panel $240" and "Boot lid and Frame $200". I hit them at maybe 10k or under. Bumped them, bumper to bumper. I was surprised at the year when I saw it, I thought it was older, it was in pretty poor condition. I know that insurance work is crap, very low paying, I asked for digital photos, or the opportunity to take a look or have someone else take a look. Surprised this hasn't happened to other much before! I had a big one when i was younger, a long time ago, $9k, took me years to pay off. I didnt question that one.
singing1,
Sep 17, 8:59am
Is it possible to ask the 'victim' if they would agree to you getting a private quote.oh and if you have insurance do you actually have to pay out the price quoted! Does your insurance not cover the damage you caused!
slimdog,
Sep 17, 9:00am
Maybe everyone else has 3rd party! And I'm a sucker! Still, I should question it if I think its not right. Right!
morrisman1,
Sep 17, 9:03am
and that wasnt enough to convince you to get insurance!
slimdog,
Sep 17, 9:03am
If I was insured the two insurance companies deal with it I believe. I had a mate who was hit, then the lady took of or gave incorrect details of something, and his insurance would pay because "we cant recover the cost of damage, so we're not paying"! Good idea to go private, but one reason I dont have 3rd party is that I dont have a lot of cash right now.
slimdog,
Sep 17, 9:06am
By god you're right! How could I have been so blind!
mrsdoubtfire,
Sep 17, 9:07am
its amazing how much repairs cost these days, my husband rear ended another vehicle in my car about 3 months ago, to me it didnt look too bad the repair bill came in at just under $4800, I nearly died and I was very thankful for having insurance. That said the job that was done was wonderful, you wouldnt know it had ever been repaired and I'm very fussy when it comes to my car. I guess the damage done can be very decieving, it can look minor but actually be quite alot worse than it looks.
slimdog,
Sep 17, 9:11am
True, I know paint is expensive, and labour, maybe what I've been quoted is not too over the top!
phillip.weston,
Sep 17, 9:11am
And you don't realise that spending money on insurance is going to save you money in the long run! especially if you have a history of accidents!
johnf_456,
Sep 17, 9:18am
Bingo pretty obvious you would of thought.
slimdog,
Sep 17, 9:18am
Thanks but I don't really want to get into all that, yes you and morrisman are correct, in an ideal situation we would all have superannuation, minimum of 3rd party insurance, house and contents, medical, etc etc. But in this case, I wasn't insured. I have accepted responsibility, I am questioning the quote I have been sent.
andrea_w,
Sep 17, 9:29am
Without seeing pics of the damage, there is no way any of us are able to tell. If you're not sure the price is about right, try get a second and third opinion.
saxman99,
Sep 17, 7:04pm
Obviously I can't see the particular damage in this case, but here's a little perspective for you - a couple of weeks ago my wife had a minor prang with a fence after sliding off a corner. The damage was to the rear corner of the car and involved panelbeating and generally realigning the quarter panel, replacing the fuel flap, removing and straightening out the bumper, realigning the boot lid and then a fair bit of paint. All up cost $500. We didn't even bother claim, just paid it ourselves.This was a BMW.
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