I never thought it would happen to me, but it has...
03-03-08, 05:59 PM
#16
it dont matter how old the car is always needs to be oem parts 
why should there be cheaper parts on the car when it had expensive parts to start with its like saying ill trade you your good parts for my ****ty parts here you go... hope everything goes well..State Farm can be a pain the in a$$ to work...they might hassle you but dont give in
why should there be cheaper parts on the car when it had expensive parts to start with its like saying ill trade you your good parts for my ****ty parts here you go... hope everything goes well..State Farm can be a pain the in a$$ to work...they might hassle you but dont give in
03-04-08, 07:24 AM
#18
Lexus Fanatic
Today I talked with Sewell Fort Worth and the other guys insurance, State Farm. Sewell told me that they'd have no problem fixing it and could use OEM parts. They told me State Farm tends to allow the use of OEM parts when the car is relatively new, i.e. a year or two old and generally under 12,000 miles so we fall under both limitations. (Our car has 11,900 miles on it right now.)
So now I'm just waiting for their appraiser to come and take a look at it. Should be sometime in the next couple of days...
I'll let you guys know how this repair pans out and appreciate all of your advice! It's nice to be able to get on here and talk this kind of stuff out.
So now I'm just waiting for their appraiser to come and take a look at it. Should be sometime in the next couple of days...
I'll let you guys know how this repair pans out and appreciate all of your advice! It's nice to be able to get on here and talk this kind of stuff out.
03-05-08, 05:39 AM
#19
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Well the appraiser came out yesterday and gave us an estimate of a little over $1200 to get it fixed which includes a new OEM bumper. The appraiser told me that they don't make "replacement" (non-OEM) bumpers for Lexus vehicles. He said the only thing available other than a new one was one which had been remanufactured and he said the price difference is only about $40 so they usually go with the new one to avoid trouble. The estimate shows a new OEM bumper cover for somewhere around $317. Of course that's not painted, but it sure seems cheap for a new Lexus part.
We'll be taking it into Sewell Fort Worth next week. Anybody weary of themand want to warn me ahead of time?
The only other potential problem is the exhaust. I had the non-Lexus HKS exhaust on there and the tips aren't bent but may have been pushed outward cause it's now touching the bumper, but that's hard to tell since the bumper isn't aligned correctly. We'll find out next week when they fit the new one on...
We'll be taking it into Sewell Fort Worth next week. Anybody weary of themand want to warn me ahead of time?
The only other potential problem is the exhaust. I had the non-Lexus HKS exhaust on there and the tips aren't bent but may have been pushed outward cause it's now touching the bumper, but that's hard to tell since the bumper isn't aligned correctly. We'll find out next week when they fit the new one on...
03-05-08, 08:01 AM
#20
haha sewell of ft.worth... dude read on here about them. Nobody, that I know has had good experience with them. Nobody! They are the worst dealer of any lexus dealer I have read about. What's so crazy is that sewell of dallas has probably the best reputation of any lexus dealer. Don't know why it's so night and day between the two. I'd drive the extra 30min an deal with sewell of dallas before even thinking about going to sewell of ft.worth
You need to find out who sewell of ft.worth uses for their body shop.
Again, you won't find better painters for the price then clark bro's in arlington off pioneer. They do high end cars.
You need to find out who sewell of ft.worth uses for their body shop.
Again, you won't find better painters for the price then clark bro's in arlington off pioneer. They do high end cars.
04-03-08, 08:05 PM
#22
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
haha sewell of ft.worth... dude read on here about them. Nobody, that I know has had good experience with them. Nobody! They are the worst dealer of any lexus dealer I have read about. What's so crazy is that sewell of dallas has probably the best reputation of any lexus dealer. Don't know why it's so night and day between the two. I'd drive the extra 30min an deal with sewell of dallas before even thinking about going to sewell of ft.worth
You need to find out who sewell of ft.worth uses for their body shop.
You need to find out who sewell of ft.worth uses for their body shop.
Our Accident happened on March 1st and we got our car back April 1st. Turns out that the rear body panel needed to be replaced so our car was transferred and repaired at the Sewell facility in Dallas. They did a tremendous job fixing our IS and I would recommend them without hesitation to anyone who needs their car fixed whether it's an IS or not.
As I may have mentioned before it's my wife's car and she was really heartbroken about the accident, but Sewell did such a good job that neither of us feel let down by the way it looks today.
Thanks again guys (and gals) for being there for me with your advice and recommendations. This forum is a lot of things, but for us it was an outlet for venting and source for advice that I wouldn't have anywhere else.
04-03-08, 08:27 PM
#23
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You did the right thing by taking it to a dealership. That ways if a problem arose (sp?) from poor workmanship/repair, they won't be able to blame the body shop for it and have you do the running around thying to figure out who is to pay for your non-warranty repair. It helps elliminate the hassle.
Since it has taken a month and I'm assuming you have had to make a payment w/o your car you maybe able to convince the insurance company about the re-embursement. This is especially important if your car is a lease since you are paying for usage. Best of luck in this department.
Make sure you retain your body shop service records in case your vehicle is traded in or sold. That will help prevent your vehicle loosing its value if it was handled by the proper service facility.
Most importantly, I'm glad you guys weren't hurt. Material things come and go.
And I do understand these cars cost a very pretty penny. Mine is fairly well equipped and so was its MSRP. In the end you got it fixed correctly. I've had a few close calls with people on behind me as I drive on hwy360 with stop and go traffic everyday an hour each way so I know how you feel. They just under estimate the stopping ability of these cars.
Since it has taken a month and I'm assuming you have had to make a payment w/o your car you maybe able to convince the insurance company about the re-embursement. This is especially important if your car is a lease since you are paying for usage. Best of luck in this department.
Make sure you retain your body shop service records in case your vehicle is traded in or sold. That will help prevent your vehicle loosing its value if it was handled by the proper service facility.
Most importantly, I'm glad you guys weren't hurt. Material things come and go.
And I do understand these cars cost a very pretty penny. Mine is fairly well equipped and so was its MSRP. In the end you got it fixed correctly. I've had a few close calls with people on behind me as I drive on hwy360 with stop and go traffic everyday an hour each way so I know how you feel. They just under estimate the stopping ability of these cars.
04-03-08, 11:39 PM
#24
Lexus Test Driver
let me just clear up a couple things here, you know it always amazes me here on these boards how many insurance experts we have, however none of which have any idea what they are talking about.
first of all there is no LAW that says the insurance company HAS to replace with OEM parts just because you whine and complain. if they choose to do so it's at their descretion.
the fact is that because you have a new car or for thoes of you who claim that you were able to strong arm them into using OEM parts it is entirely possible that aftermarket parts are not yet available for newer cars. as a matter of fact they would more likely just use the aftermarket part and not tell you they did so knowing the part will be just as good as OEM and you would never know the difference anyway.
why do they do this?
for example if your car had a dented fender and the car is "used" what is wrong with getting an identical part from a junk yard used to replace your fender with? if you ask me i would personally prefer this option because there may be a good chance the paint is a perfect match and it is an OEM part and doing so afterall does make you WHOLE again because its an equivelent part.
aftermarket parts are really no different if no used parts are available they have the right to use aftermarket parts as long as they meet or exceed the quality of the OEM part.
in the case of new cars they dont have many choices and usually end up using OEM parts by default because there are no other parts available.
now lets discuss the auto insurance policy...
this doccument is in fact a >>>CONTRACT<<<< this contract states that they are responcible for repairing or replacing damaged parts to bring the vehicle back to pre collision condition. how they do that is entirely up to them NOT YOU!!
Definition here explains > What are OEM and CAPA Certified replacement parts?
Replacement parts are sheet metal and plastic components such as hoods, bumpers, fenders, and doors, which account for the majority of damage in auto accidents.
Either an independent manufacturer or the original manufacturer (OEM) may make these parts.
Parts made by an independent manufacturer must meet the safety standards of CAPA (Certified Automotive Parts Association).
we use only CAPA-certified parts that have undergone extensive quality testing if made by an independent manufacturer.
SO, unless you chose to pay extra to assure that OEM parts are used. usually most companies have an endorsement you can add to the policy for a small fee that not only states they must use OEM parts but in the case of the policies i write also states and i quote>
If damage to your new car exceeds 20% of the original purchase price within the first twelve months you own it and before the odometer reaches 15,000 miles, we will pay the original purchase price or the cost to replace it with an untitled vehicle of the same year, model and equipment!
also with this endorsement we will not deduct the difference between the value of the new parts, paint, tires, batteries, etc. used to repair your auto and the depreciated value of the old parts or paint, as is normally done in loss settlement.
so in other words, if your tire is dammaged and its 50% tread used up normally the insurance company can deduct 50% of the replacement cost of the tire because you can't buy a used tire to put back on. so your only getting its actual value and you will have to pay the difference in addition to the deductible.
so the bottom line is that the insurance company must follow the terms of the contract thats why its a contract, it-s non negotiable every insurance companies contracts read almost to the letter the same because the division of insurance in your state regulates insurance companies so that they all operate under the same rules and guidelines. in fact if they were to make an exception for you and the way they handelled your claim there is a better chance of them getting HEAVILY FINED by the division of insurance for unfair business practices if they treated you any differently than any other policy holder.
more often than not insurance companies can make justifications for what may appear to the consumer to be unfair but in fact still falls under the guidelines. every accident is different to each is evaluated differently as to what responcibility falls on the insurance company to pay for any given situation because insurance contracts can only be general to some degree to allow for flexibility under the contract. in many cases the insurance company has to make decisions as to fault, and if they are obligated to pay under the terms of the contract.
do they bend the rules? sure, usually your talking about insignificant amounts of money like using aftermarket parts to cut costs.
in summary i will mention one final item.. yes you can select your own body shop to do the repairs even if they say no, you can still choose this option. however if you do this against their better judgement dont expect your insurance company to back you up if the repairs aren't satisfactory!
if you let them do their job and use their approved body shop then they have no room to complain if your repair is not satisfactory. thats why they used approved body shops because thoes shops have been chosen due to the quality of the work and minimum cost to the insurance company. it keeps body shops honest because if they want to stay in business they have to do good work for a competitive price if they expect to get repeat business from that insurance company.
as a matter of fact if you pick a more expensive body shop you may get a worse repair since if they would usually charge more for the same repair they still have to do the work for the smaller amount of money the insurance company quoted for the estimate. they arent going to just pay more because you wanted the best and most expensive body shop in town. fact is the people at that shop knowing they arent going to get paid as much to fix your car as they normally would may not put their best work into the car and are more likely to cut corners with your repair.
first of all there is no LAW that says the insurance company HAS to replace with OEM parts just because you whine and complain. if they choose to do so it's at their descretion.
the fact is that because you have a new car or for thoes of you who claim that you were able to strong arm them into using OEM parts it is entirely possible that aftermarket parts are not yet available for newer cars. as a matter of fact they would more likely just use the aftermarket part and not tell you they did so knowing the part will be just as good as OEM and you would never know the difference anyway.
why do they do this?
for example if your car had a dented fender and the car is "used" what is wrong with getting an identical part from a junk yard used to replace your fender with? if you ask me i would personally prefer this option because there may be a good chance the paint is a perfect match and it is an OEM part and doing so afterall does make you WHOLE again because its an equivelent part.
aftermarket parts are really no different if no used parts are available they have the right to use aftermarket parts as long as they meet or exceed the quality of the OEM part.
in the case of new cars they dont have many choices and usually end up using OEM parts by default because there are no other parts available.
now lets discuss the auto insurance policy...
this doccument is in fact a >>>CONTRACT<<<< this contract states that they are responcible for repairing or replacing damaged parts to bring the vehicle back to pre collision condition. how they do that is entirely up to them NOT YOU!!
Definition here explains > What are OEM and CAPA Certified replacement parts?
Replacement parts are sheet metal and plastic components such as hoods, bumpers, fenders, and doors, which account for the majority of damage in auto accidents.
Either an independent manufacturer or the original manufacturer (OEM) may make these parts.
Parts made by an independent manufacturer must meet the safety standards of CAPA (Certified Automotive Parts Association).
we use only CAPA-certified parts that have undergone extensive quality testing if made by an independent manufacturer.
SO, unless you chose to pay extra to assure that OEM parts are used. usually most companies have an endorsement you can add to the policy for a small fee that not only states they must use OEM parts but in the case of the policies i write also states and i quote>
If damage to your new car exceeds 20% of the original purchase price within the first twelve months you own it and before the odometer reaches 15,000 miles, we will pay the original purchase price or the cost to replace it with an untitled vehicle of the same year, model and equipment!
also with this endorsement we will not deduct the difference between the value of the new parts, paint, tires, batteries, etc. used to repair your auto and the depreciated value of the old parts or paint, as is normally done in loss settlement.
so in other words, if your tire is dammaged and its 50% tread used up normally the insurance company can deduct 50% of the replacement cost of the tire because you can't buy a used tire to put back on. so your only getting its actual value and you will have to pay the difference in addition to the deductible.
so the bottom line is that the insurance company must follow the terms of the contract thats why its a contract, it-s non negotiable every insurance companies contracts read almost to the letter the same because the division of insurance in your state regulates insurance companies so that they all operate under the same rules and guidelines. in fact if they were to make an exception for you and the way they handelled your claim there is a better chance of them getting HEAVILY FINED by the division of insurance for unfair business practices if they treated you any differently than any other policy holder.
more often than not insurance companies can make justifications for what may appear to the consumer to be unfair but in fact still falls under the guidelines. every accident is different to each is evaluated differently as to what responcibility falls on the insurance company to pay for any given situation because insurance contracts can only be general to some degree to allow for flexibility under the contract. in many cases the insurance company has to make decisions as to fault, and if they are obligated to pay under the terms of the contract.
do they bend the rules? sure, usually your talking about insignificant amounts of money like using aftermarket parts to cut costs.
in summary i will mention one final item.. yes you can select your own body shop to do the repairs even if they say no, you can still choose this option. however if you do this against their better judgement dont expect your insurance company to back you up if the repairs aren't satisfactory!
if you let them do their job and use their approved body shop then they have no room to complain if your repair is not satisfactory. thats why they used approved body shops because thoes shops have been chosen due to the quality of the work and minimum cost to the insurance company. it keeps body shops honest because if they want to stay in business they have to do good work for a competitive price if they expect to get repeat business from that insurance company.
as a matter of fact if you pick a more expensive body shop you may get a worse repair since if they would usually charge more for the same repair they still have to do the work for the smaller amount of money the insurance company quoted for the estimate. they arent going to just pay more because you wanted the best and most expensive body shop in town. fact is the people at that shop knowing they arent going to get paid as much to fix your car as they normally would may not put their best work into the car and are more likely to cut corners with your repair.
04-03-08, 11:56 PM
#25
Lexus Test Driver
State Farm's appraiser is going to quote you on a bumper repair and you must tell them you want a new OEM bumper and that is that. They will honor this if you demand it. Why should you have bondo on your new car because another driver can't control his vehicle. They are obligated to provide the new bumper, especially if it is cracked. This happened to me with State Farm in Nov 2007 when a lady backed up into me (while in a turning lane) and cracked my front bumper skin. The adjuster quoted on basically bondo and I said "F" that. Then he quoted on a new bumper skin ($300 differance). I said bondo your own Taurus, not my ride which I take care and pride in owning.
i do not like to use names but the name of the company you mention here is known in the industry for bending the rules especially when it comes to fixing OTHER PEOPLE'S CARS!
i agree that bondo is not the solution, but to be honest i seriously doubt they would have repaired it that way because as soon as it got to the body shop the mechanics would have said that repair would not likely last and if they are going to have to paint it anyway they would be better off using a new bumper cover anyway. i guarentee you that the estimate would have changed anyway because fixing a bumper by thoes means would not comply with the standards a body shop would have to follow. however it does not suprise me an adjuster from that company made a suggestion to cut corners.
your fortunate they even offered to pay in this case because in my experience their first corse of action is to deny any wrong doing on the part of their insured in hopes your insurance company will just go ahead and pay the claim. the reason is because of the 2 insurance companies don't agree they have to go to arbitration which costs a good deal more money than the cost of the repair and if they loose they will end up in subrogation and be forced to pay the claim.
if i were to guess why they paid the claim either the evidence was overwhelming that the other driver was at fault for example (you were parked) or my second guess was that you had the same insurance company and they would have to pay either way reguardless.
04-04-08, 08:40 AM
#26
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I was asked up front, "Is there a shop you prefer?"...if you say no, they will refer you....again, ITS UP TO YOU...at least in California, its the LAW. They CANT tell you where to take it to, or FORCE you to take rebuilt or refurbished parts. The adjuster is there to get the shop to reduce its labor rate and get the job done for as LITTLE as possible...but THEY CANT legally tell you to use cheaper parts or where to go. All they can do is "suggest" it...its just the suggestion sounds like a mob suggestion...lol...You want your car fixed, so you wanna get it done as fast as possible. They know this...so they tell you it may push things back.."suggest" a shop that they work with all the time that may speed things up, say that if they dont agree with the estimate from YOUR shop, they will have to research it...according to their book, it should only take x hours and cost x amount for the parts so they wanna take a few days to get better parts pricing, etc...then you say...ok...take it to your shop if they do a good job....
Happened to two friends of mine....
04-04-08, 05:35 PM
#27
Lexus Test Driver
if anyone is interested, do some research online. choose your search engine of choice and type in "state farm insurance compalints"
i think you would be horrified to see the shear amount of complaints from this company with reguards to claims.
ive read several and i can't for the life of me understand how they stay in business other than to say they are the largest insurance company in the US. they have the numbers on their side and i guess when your that big you can afford to **** a few people off and get away with it.
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