Bad News, Mother Nature Is Still Considered Essential
As the world continues to battle the Coronavirus, Mother Nature is working overtime. Massive hail storms, earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes are still on the COVID “essential list” and don’t seem to be slowing down. So what happens if your car gets damaged in a hail storm one of the other multiple repair issues comes up?
Can You Get Your Vehicle Repaired During Pandemic?
Good News. Paintless Dent Repair Shops, Body Shops, and Auto Repair Shops has been deemed an essential service by the government.
Many auto repair locations are operating with reduced staff and repairs may take longer than usual. It is always best to call ahead if you have concerns about repair times. Most auto body shops and repair facilities are offering minimal contact, on-location inspections and estimates. Wearing a face mask is recommended.
The Hail Shop USA is operating with a full staff and normal repair times. We do suggest you call if you have any specific questions about insurance, inspections, and expedited repair times. The average shop time for an auto hail repair is 2-5 days but most hail damage vehicles are in the shops for 2-3 days.
What Could Slow Down Repair Times During Pandemic?
The biggest change vehicle owners will find is how the insurance companies and insurance adjusters have changed their claims procedure to better protect their agents and customers. Adjusters are inspecting vehicles remotely and relying heavily on your photography and video skills to document hail damage.
- Asking customers to take photos of all panels.
- Requesting a video walk around of the entire vehicle
- Uploading images and videos to their website
Sounds super easy, right? Well, kind of. With every solution, there will be challenges.
Many customers are struggling to capture images that accurately show the severity of the damage causing estimates (and payouts) to run short.
What we are seeing and hearing from our customers in San Antonio is a lot of over complication and excessive frustration. For example, we had a customer that had scheduled a repair with check / estimate in hand from the insurance company but didn’t have the funds to repair all of the hail damage. We re-inspected the vehicle and documented ALL of the dent damage and initiated the supplementation process to recover the funds needed for a full repair. Unfortunately 5 extra days were expended to complete the filing and repair process.
- Technical Issues. Another hurdle for car owners to overcome is more on the technical side. Issues such as photo and video uploading issues of too large a file or timing-out issues from the insurance companies website.
- Faulty Photos. When a customer finally gets the media uploaded, they photos and videos don’t accurately show all of the damage. When a customer sends in images that fail to show certain parts of the damage, the repair facility then must take and submit a second round of photos to the adjuster. These photos then must await a second review before approval is given to begin the repairs.
The Hail Shop USA Is Here To Help You
Let one of our experienced paintless dent repair technicians guide you through the entire hail claims process or better yet, we can take care of the entire process while you carry on with your regularly scheduled life.
From inspecting and estimating your hail damage for free and at YOUR location to submitting all pertinent media, estimates, and supplements to your insurance adjuster, The Hail Shop is here to work for you and make the process as stress free as possible.
If you need auto hail repairs, claims assistance, or just assurance that you are “doing it right”, we are here and with enhanced safety measures. Call us today at 866-943-2141 or schedule your inspection or repair using our online form.