Insurance company "steering" BUSTED!

[Himark]

So for you people that are not in the autobody repair business. The insurance companies are illegally steering repairs to there contract shops. They do this because of contracted labor prices and profile fixing to meet a "cheaper" profile. This is known but NEVER hardly proven. It is very rare that the bodyshop is ever in on the original claim submission call..........Till now.
I have a customer in my office that JUST hit a bridge and drove straight to my shop. Keep in mind she is not related nor does she have any experience in the auto claims business like 99% of other peeps. She is sitting here on the phone (speaker phone) with Unitrin insurance submitting her statement and initiating a claim while I am writing her estimate. Her goal...Get a rental, and get her car repaired here. Converstation goes like this...

(customer)I need to get a rental as quickly as possible.

(unitrin) Yes I see you have coverage for rental and we can make the neccessary arrangements.
(C) I have my car here at Carriage Body and the estimate is almost complete, How soon can they start on it?
(U) I do NOT see them on our "GSR" program so they are not a option.
(C) I dont want it fixed anywhere else, can I have it repaired at Carriage body?
(U) they are not a certified shop and they are NOT an option.

At this point the customer hands me there cell phone and says deal with this....I then talked with the ins. claims handler and informed them of my position and that the converastion is being recorded from this point on. At that point the claim handler started to back pedal and re-assure me the car could be repaired ANY where customer wanted. I asked her why her position had changed so clearly from "not an option" to this and she tried to call the customer a liar and said she had mis-understood her. I informed her she was on speaker phone the entire time and there was NO mis-understanding. I asked her for her auto claims mgr. extension and she refused to give it to me and would only keep repeating her story. She finally caved and gave it to me. I tried her super and only got voicemail. At about 1 hour later the super called me back and had a FULLY versed entirely different story....GAWD I wished I would of qued the record button a little sooner. This story is not over yet! Will post results as it transpires.

BTW, for all you to hear if you get into a wreck.

1. Pick your own shop, regardless of what they say. Its the law.

2. You only need the shop you picked for repairs estimate, if they demand more than one tell them to call there adjuster and have them get out and see it. OR they can call an independant appraiser.
3. DONT BE BULLIED by threats of "its going to cost you personally if you use an outside shop"

 

[Blu Du]

the nieghbor had a claim. they said take it to one particular shop. if you don't want to take it there we will have to send out an adjuster that will take a couple of weeks. they do that **** with health insurance too.

 

[mcgyver]

I am going through a claim right now.....the other guys insurance company didn't try to steer me to a particular shop but,,......... I had already done an estimate for the guy who hit me to see if he wanted to pay out of pocket or turn it into his insurance...

when i get the check from the insurance company, it is for a few hundred dollars less than the estimate so i call my insurance company and they say, do not cash it until you talk to them and the body shop...... i call the body shop and they say they have a discount arrangement with the insurance company in question???? basically she said that the insurance company tells them what they will pay......

Is that normal?

 

[NDflatlander]

I often hear of individuals having trouble dealing with their insurance companies when it comes to repairing vehicles. In the claims that either I or my family has had with both Progressive and Farmers Union Ins. we have not had any problem dealing with going to a shop of our choice or the adjusters. Yes, I have heard the "network" shop line from Progressive, but everything to outside shops has been approved.

 

[Himark]

i call the body shop and they say they have a discount arrangement with the insurance company in question???? basically she said that the insurance company tells them what they will pay......

Is that normal?

Yes but they are tricky bout it...ie,
Insurance says "how much is your markup on used?" we say 33% and they set the rate at that. Then a good customer friend of the family comes in and wants there car fixed say and we only markup the used 10% and give them a 10% discount on THAT ONE job.
Insurance finds out and they call me on the carpet and say "since you are offering discounts we are now demanding all our jobs get 10% used and all new parts discounted 10%.

The above is true, it has not happened to my shop yet but has happened to others. If a customer wants a discount I will step very cautiously before announcing one.

 

[Chubbydog]

Most of the time what happens, is after your in a wreck, the insurance companies have there "prefered auto body shops". If you take it to one of those, there already set up to just e-mail pictures to the insurance companies, and it speeds up the process. They also guarentee to fix it for that amount of money. You don't have to take it there, but the insurance company only has to pay that amount. It the auto body shop you want to take it to, won't fix it for the same price they can get it fixed for, the rest of the $ comes out of the insured's pocket.

Beleive it or not, not all auto body shops are honest when it comes to billing the insurance companies. It helps prevent fraudulent claims. For example, windshield companies bill insurance companies $50 to fix a rock chip, when you can walk into any of them and they'll charge you $10 if it's cash. When it gets into the thousands of dollars, the insurance companies are a whole lot more careful.

 

[skid]

Yes but they are tricky bout it...ie,
Insurance says "how much is your markup on used?" we say 33% and they set the rate at that. Then a good customer friend of the family comes in and wants there car fixed say and we only markup the used 10% and give them a 10% discount on THAT ONE job.
Insurance finds out and they call me on the carpet and say "since you are offering discounts we are now demanding all our jobs get 10% used and all new parts discounted 10%.

The above is true, it has not happened to my shop yet but has happened to others. If a customer wants a discount I will step very cautiously before announcing one.

Sounds like State Farm to me, we are on their program only after catching them steering like you have mentioned. Sure wish someone would enforce these steering laws. SF would make you go back and pay discount on all repairs done prior that where done under their agreement of lowest amount.

 

[woodzy]

phukk insurance companies in the neck. Crooked bull$hit business anyways.

 

[Fosgate]

Beleive it or not, not all auto body shops are honest when it comes to billing the insurance companies. It helps prevent fraudulent claims. For example, windshield companies bill insurance companies $50 to fix a rock chip, when you can walk into any of them and they'll charge you $10 if it's cash. When it gets into the thousands of dollars, the insurance companies are a whole lot more careful.

I second that! I've worked for a couple insurance carriers and you wouldn't believe some of the crooked crap some shops pull. Not just to the companies but the insured as well. When you take into count that, according to an industry watchdog group, 33% of the premium that we all pay is paid out to fradulent claims. Now the insurance carriers are not the march of dimes and are in business to make a profit which is heavily regulated (much more than the banking industry). But whenever you say pour the coals on the insurance companies and make them pay. What your saying is make the rest of us pay. Should frown more against the guy who files a claim and inflates the repair to $1200 in damage and takes the money and goes to a body shop that charges less 6 months later and gets the job done for $400. (and it happens).

 

[carpainter29]

Man those insurance companies drive me to drink. See this kind of thing all the time. Not really sure how any of us in the business can fix it though.....

 

[TheFlyingFynn]

Insurance companys are the closest thing the devil on this earth as they come. The whole premis of insurance is to protect your person and property. So when someone that you have been paying for a service trys to bully you or steer you so it only benefits them and not you, this is bad business unethical and the reason behind alot of our countrys problem. I am the customer and i should be treated with respect and diginity at all times if they dont want to pay up on a claim. Get out of the insurance business. It they same if i paid premiums for a year had no accidents so i phoned up and said i didnt like you service and never used you so i want my money back or demand you discount the past payments and send me a refund. They should be regulated 5 times more then they are and everything should be a felony if they are caught steering or bullying a customer.

I have had dealing with workers comp, allstate, american family and in all three where i was not at fault. I was treated like a criminal and a bum. I lost money on all three and in all three situations where i was run over by another coworker, car was stolen and i was rear ended by drunken teens. Somehow they found away to get out of paying bills and doing whats right.

Then there is aig who cannot even handle all that money sent to them responsibly and now they want my tax dollars too. I been bent over so many times by the carriers dont let them ever wonder off trail with me cause they will get no help at all.

If you work in the industry dont chime in we are all tired of the lies.

Fynn

 

[SAWYER]

We own a glass shop and have to deal with this crap all the time. Insurance companies are a bunch of worthless sob's

 

[BottomFeeder m7.]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ true

 

[stum1967]

Our town has to be one of the most crooked towns around for bodyshop-Insurance companies. One of our competitors is in bed with the snake-farm adjuster and a couple of agents and isn't even on their drp program, but we have had our customers tell us they were told by their agents to take their cars to his shop , not mentioning any other shops in the area that were on their drp list. We confronted the drp manager about it and he just blows it off. Several other shops have confronted him about it and had the same result. If they were fixing the cars cheaper that would be one thing, but we have seen his estimates that customers have shown us and he is screwing the insurance company big time.

 

[Dobber1]

Insurance is to be paid for, not used.

 

[sledneck84]

Man those insurance companies drive me to drink. See this kind of thing all the time. Not really sure how any of us in the business can fix it though.....

It can be fixed if every shop refused to do DRP work. This whole DRP program has been brought on by the BODYSHOPS themselves. If no one agreed to them and stuck to their HONEST estimate it would not be a problem as every shop would write it for almost the same amount. Given they are using the area rates. I don't know the answer to everyone elses issues but for me i found a fix for this. And now have all my estimates accepted, even if their higher. And here is why.

1. I write a very in depth and detailed estimate, If i need to tear it down to write it i do so. I have only had 5-6 supplements in the last 150 jobs. Insurance companies respect that.

2. Every adjuster i have had try to jerk me around only does it once. I fix them right away and they see i am serious about being compensated for my work at fair market price. And they have no choice but to pay me for it.

3. Treat adjusters as you would a customer until they jerk you around, then straighten them out. Then treat them good again as it never happened. They will see you are very easy to deal with and pleasurable as long as they keep it fair and do not try to make repairs for less.

This is my favorite example.

Had an adjuster from progressive write his estimate and it did not include time to R&I both door handles on one side. The car had been hit on the side right below the door handles about an inch. So i argued they needed to be removed to make the neccesarry repairs to the door skins. He did not think this was neccesary and said i am not paying for it. So after some more arguing i gave up and went ahead with repair. Removing the door handles of course, as was neccesary to do the job right. I knew of another car coming in in a few days with the same insurance for repairs. So i figured this will be a good time to let this all come together as i always get the same adjuster. So 2 days later the car comes in and i have the one i'm working on painted and am putting it all back together. In walks the adjuster and says, oh i see your about done with this one. I said what do you mean, i am done with it. He says well how can you be done, the door handles are not on it and the door panels are in the back seat yet. I told him i had repaired the vehicle to his estimate and done everything that i am getting paid for. It's done. He says well someone has to put the handles back on it or your going to loose a customer. i said i am not going to loose a customer, you are. well hows that he says. Because i am going to explain to them that you do not want to pay for the door handles to be installed and i am not salvation army so i will not do it without being compensated for it. I said you can explain it to them when they get here in about 45 minutes, because i already called them and their on their way here right now. So either your going to put them on or i am going to get paid for it. He looked at me in shock and said, I HAVE NEVER WORKED ON A CAR BEFORE AND DON"T KNOW HOW TO DO IT!!!! I said then why the hell can you tell me how to do it. He said i guess i can't and went to his car and wrote the check for the door handles. Never bugged since and is now a pleasure to work with. Always accepts my first estimate. Gotta love it.


Sorry for the long,long post but i thought it was a good story.

Hope you guys have good luck with it.