re: Baton Rouge collision center to estimate vehicle damage

quote:

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I would get a few estimates, but they all seem to use the same program. Also seems none will really total it out. The insurance adjuster will do that when he takes a look. The repair shop likes to get them in the shop then find "unseen" damage and then total it out. Not sure if they get to charge the insurance company for work done.

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this is all dead on...was rear ended recently and went through the ritual of getting estimates per the insurance company's request. I noticed that each of the three body shops spent almost no time looking at my vehicle and when I tried to show them the extents of the damage that I had seen, they all just basically brushed it off...

finally, one of them saw my frustration and explained to me that the estimate is basically nothing more than a means to get your vehicle in the door...the game is that as they do the repairs, they call the insurance adjuster in at various stages to see the extents of the actual damage and he either allows or denies it....you never really know it, but the cost is constantly floating up and down as the shop and the insurance company see what damage is really there...

my point is, there is no reason to get all hung up on estimates, as they aren't really believed to be true by anyone involved...