If you’ve just been in a car accident or you’re looking for a place to get your car repaired, you probably have tons of questions about the repair process.
“How much will the repair cost?”
“Is my car totaled?”
“How long is the repair going to take?”
No matter what your question might be, you’d expect that a body shop would give you the best repair for your car. It seems like more body shop would be performing higher quality repairs, especially with the advancements of car safety technologies (such as ADAS), right?
Unfortunately, lousy collision repair happens more often than you’d expect. It’s typically not until you’ve left the shop where you notice that your car isn’t the same. And it may not be something you can see, but rather an internal problem that came as a result of this poor service.
Even if you have not had your car fixed yet, this will help educate you on what you need to keep your eye out for in your repair.
Although most states do not require technicians to be licensed to operate on a car (Pennsylvania is one of them), it is the shop’s responsibility to pay for the technician’s training in collision repair. Reassuring answers mean nothing if you pick up your car and notice it’s not the same. A good repair will have your car looking, feeling, and driving as if it was brand new.
What Are The Signs?
The following are what you need to check once you pick up your vehicle:
Test to make sure:
- The steering feels normal (not “gravelly” or “choppy” when you turn the wheel).
- The car drives straight even when you take your hands off the wheel momentarily
- The brakes work properly and stop in a straight line (no pulling to one side or another).
- There’s no delay in the handling through turns, and it’s responding normally
- Electronic accessories work
Listen for:
- Unusual noises such as whistling or roaring from the wind, whining, or grating
Look:
- The paint looks different than other parts on the car and in different lighting settings
- Water leaks (which can lead to corrosion to the body structure and interior damage)
- Gaps between body panels
- Bumper is misaligned
- The doors, hood, and lift gate open and close smoothly
- No warning lights illuminated on the dashboard
- Headlights, brake lights, and blinkers work properly
- Uneven gaps between body panels
- Distance between tire and fender is the same on both sides of the car
On top of all that, you need to make sure you get your car back cleaned. Cars are bound to get dirty once they are in the service bay. A quality body shop will not only repair your vehicle properly but will also return it to you looking brand new.
What to do if you suspect that you have received improper collision repair?
You can request what is called a post-repair inspection (PRI). This may be an out of pocket expense at first (typically just a couple hundred dollars), but if the repairs are improperly done and you can prove it with documentation from a qualified auto body shop or appraiser, you may be able to get your insurance company involved. If that happens, then the shop that did the repairs may be forced to buy the cat back from you.
This is actually becoming a trend in collision repair and more and more qualified body shops are offering this as a service. Please be warned, however, this may take some time to get you to a resolution. But your safety and your investment in your vehicle are at stake with a bad collision repair.
Where In Pennsylvania Can I Get Proper Car Repair?
Most people typically notice they are a victim of negligent collision repair after they’ve left the repair shop. Sometimes, the problem may not appear until months later. Luckily, not all body shops are created equally, and we at Rocco’s Collision Center are here to help. We get customers all the time who have been victims of lousy collision repair. They know we are a repair shop they can trust.
We have been serving the Pennsylvania and New Jersey area since 1957 with six different locations. We know this can be an incredibly stressful time for you, which is why we’re here to help. Our team of technicians have received extensive training from I-CAR and only provide the highest quality of collision repairs.
We know you may be a bit hesitant to trust another body shop, especially if you’ve had poor collision repair. However, we feel quite confident we will exceed your expectations.
For a list of numbers and addresses to any of our locations, click here. Or, feel free to give us a call at (888)-9-ROCCOS.
We look forward to hearing from you and showing you the Rocco’s difference!
