Automobile collisions happen. They are as much a fact of life as traffic. If after a collision, the damage you have incurred is limited to your car, then you should count yourself lucky. Many are not so fortunate.
But after you are done thanking your stars there still remains the problem of getting your car fixed. If you have valid insurance then footing the bill will not be a problem. That is the easy part. The hard part is finding a skilled and reliable auto shop that will fix your car.
Though auto body shops are aplenty, the ones who will give you honest cost estimates and invest attention to detail in fixing every part of you car are not easily found. When your car has been through a collision it has most likely suffered massive damage – both to its outer body and the inner mechanical functioning.
Bringing you car back to life will requires collision repair by skilled hands who have years of experience in dealing with every problem that a car can throw at them. Only a shop with mechanics like that should be entrusted with fixing up your car.
Here are some steps to find an auto shop like that.
Step 1 – Search online. Many names will pop up of car repair establishments in your locality.
Step 2 – See who they work for. Some shops work as direct repairer for the insurance company but do not work for you. Was this shop recomended to you by an un biased party or did the insurance company who is paying for the repairs recomend them to you?
Step 3 – Go over the customer reviews provided on their websites as well as on Google Reviews and similar sites. (Not all review sites are unbiased. sites like yelp or angies list charge the business for advertizing and will bias their reviews accorningly) Shortlist the ones that have positive reviews. Google plus or Face book are normally the most unbiased review sites.
Step 4 – Visit the shops you have shortlisted and have a look around at the kind of cars they fix and the kind of equipment they use. Most auto shops will be happy to let you look around. The best ones might even offer you a tour of the facilities.
Step 5 -Ask for cost estimates and turn around time on the collision repair. See if they offer a written warranty in writing. or if the just say they do.
Step 6 – Inquire about their policy post repair. Will they fix a problem for free if it was left over from the collision but crops up after some time?
Consider the answers of all candidates. The ones who give answers to your liking and have an established reputation to back their claims – they are the guys you should choose to restore your car to its former glory.