Working With Your Insurance Company After a Collision

After a collision, you end up with two jobs. The first is getting your car fixed. The second is managing a claim, which brings its own vocabulary and a few people you've never met. Most of the stress comes from not knowing who does what. Here is how it generally works, so you can stay in charge of the process instead of chasing it.

Start with the claim number

Call your insurance company as soon as everyone is safe, or use their app. They will open a claim and give you a claim number. Everything that follows hangs on that number: the adjuster, the estimate, the payment, the rental if you have one. Write it down in two places. Give it to the shop when you bring the car in.

Ask a few questions on that first call. What does my policy cover for this kind of loss? What is my deductible? Do I have rental coverage, and for how long? Who will be my contact, and how do I reach them? Write the answers down with the date.

What an adjuster does

The adjuster works for the insurance company. Their job is to look at the damage, either in person or through photos, and write an estimate of what they believe it will cost to repair. Sometimes that happens at your house or work, sometimes at the shop. Think of that first estimate as a starting point, because damage under the panels isn't visible until the repair begins.

When a shop takes a bumper cover off and finds a bent support, it tells the adjuster, and the estimate gets adjusted. This back and forth is normal, and it's one reason a repair can take a few days longer than the first number suggested. A shop that talks to the adjuster directly saves you from being the messenger.

Choosing your repair shop

In general, the decision about where your car gets repaired is yours. Your insurance company may offer a list of shops they work with, and that can be convenient, but a suggestion is not a requirement. If you'd rather take the car to a shop you know and trust, you can ask your claim representative to confirm how that works under your policy.

Think about what matters to you. Is the shop close, so you can stop by and see the car? Do they explain things plainly? Do they pick up the phone? Is their work guaranteed? Ron Kirk's Body Shop says all repair work is guaranteed, and that it returns calls and emails the same day. Ask any shop for the specifics before you hand over keys.

What to bring and what to ask

• Your claim number and your adjuster's name and phone number
• Photos you took at the scene and of the damage
• Your insurance card and registration
• A list of your questions, written down before you walk in

Then ask the shop what they'll do next. Will they write their own estimate? Will they contact the adjuster for you? When will you hear from them? What happens if they find more damage? Clear answers early save you from hearing surprising news on the phone later.

What good communication looks like

One customer of Ron Kirk's Body Shop, christina petree, described it this way in a Google review: "I had an unusual situation around my car being damaged. Ron and Teresa both were excellent with their communication with me and the insurance company." She also mentioned their employee Lane for excellent customer service.

That kind of communication is what you want from a shop during a claim. You're not trying to become an expert in claims, you just want to know where things stand. The shop offers free estimates, so you can bring the car in before you've decided anything.

Claims slow down when someone is waiting for a call back, a part, or an approval. If a week goes by with no news, ask. Call the shop, then call your adjuster. Keep a short log of dates and names, because it helps everybody remember what was said. Be polite and persistent. Most delays are simple and fixable once someone notices them.

Before you take the car back

When the shop calls to say the car is ready, give yourself time to look it over. Do it in daylight if you can. Check that the panel gaps are even, the paint color matches from one panel to the next, the glass is clean, and everything that worked before works now: lights, windows, locks, sensors. If something looks off, say so while you're still standing next to the car. A good shop would rather hear it then.

You'll feel better about the whole thing if you keep your paperwork: the claim number, the final estimate, the invoice, and any notes about what was repaired. Ron Kirk's Body Shop is at 501 Vermont Ave in Holton, open Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, and you can reach the shop at (785) 364-2931.