So, you’ve been in an accident. Or, your exterior has taken a beating from salt, road debris, sap, or sun, or gotten a good door ding. Ouch! Now, you can send us your vehicle info, photos of the damage, and your contact info ahead of time. Simply hit the yellow button that says Customer Intake Form. You can also schedule your in-person cost estimate from our home page with the days and times you prefer.
By booking a cost estimate appointment online and sending your info in advance, our appraisers can research auto parts availability and ballpark the labor time before you even set foot in the door.
Free 30-Minute Cost Estimate
We still need to visually inspect your vehicle and take photos in person – whether it’s towed in or still drivable. It’s just extra convenience and a time-saver. If you’re out of town, just send us photos and your info online – and we can coordinate the rest. We’ve even had customers call us to send a tow truck to their homes and arrange for transportation to and from the shop. That’s especially true for customers who live out of state, are on vacation or business trips, or wrecked their vehicle during a visit but had to get home (while leaving their vehicle here).
Our in-person, free, preliminary cost estimates only take 20-30 minutes. If your car has sustained considerable damage, be aware that this free preliminary estimate might fall short of the actual total. Very often, your car or truck has internal damage not visible to the naked eye. While that damage might not be detectable at first, we will find it during a pre-scan analysis of the computer components and disassembly of your vehicle - once you authorized us to move forward. To do that, you need to set up a separate repair appointment once we’ve emailed your preliminary cost estimate.
The Real, Real Cost Estimate
Disassembly means tearing down your vehicle to unearth invisible damage like bent frames and tire rods, ripped hoses or connectors, crushed microchips or safety sensors. A damaged undercarriage and frame make it difficult to drive the vehicle and can cause it to leak fluids.
We do charge for pre- and post-scan analyses and disassembly as they are more time intensive than our free 20-minute estimate. So, make sure you can really leave your vehicle with us once it’s been disassembled and arrange for another means of transportation!
Once we find this internal bleeding, so to speak, we create a supplement to the preliminary cost estimate. That summarizes the extra damage cost found. We share it with both you and the insurance company for approval. Supplements must be approved before we order extra parts and perform the repairs. It’s important or the insurance company might stick you with that bill if not approved first!
What If My Vehicle Is Undriveable?
If your car is non-operational and you can’t drive it to a body shop, take pictures, especially in all the damaged areas. Just upload them to our online Customer Intake Form on www.aautobody.com with the big yellow button. If you’re going through insurance, most carriers have a mobile insurance app for you to do the same.
The other option is to have your vehicle towed here and give us a call to expect it. Whether you’re in or out of town, fill out our online Customer Intake Form. At that point, we’ll have a better idea if we can repair your vehicle to pre-accident condition, or if it has been totaled (meaning repair costs are higher than the value of your vehicle).
Don’t jump to conclusions though. It might look worse than it is. And even if your insurance company deems your vehicle a total loss, we can often repair it to a very safe, acceptable condition. We will work with you to calculate your extra out-of-pocket expenses and negotiate hard with your insurance company – especially if your vehicle is in above-average condition or upgrades.
With the high price of new and used vehicles these days, many of our customers opt to do that. The more information you provide upfront, the better we can advocate for you with comprehensive information.