Body repair - would you be happy?

Hi all,

Just went to pick up or FL from the body shop after an insurance repair job.

As it happened we couldn't get the car as the body shop was closed, despite being told to come get the car!!

Anyway I feel it's a bad job, ok it's no super car but I would expect a good finish regardless of the value. One other thing is that the door was meant to be replaced but they have just repaired it.

What do you all think? I feel a strongly worded conversation on Monday morning!

one dont sign anything to say that you are happy with the job.
do you have it in writing that the door was to be replace? if it was the workshop may be trying to scam the insurance company (or it could be an honest mistake) if you don't have it in Black and white. all is not lost. talk to the insurance company and tell them you are not happy with work and don't have any confidence in the workshop, send them the photos.

I think Myotherworld's suggestion is correct - tell the bodyshop that you refuse to accept the car back but drive it through the insurers if they are paying, I would also suggest you ask that the corrective work is done by another bodyshop as you have no confidence in the first one. You might not get your way here but it's worth a try.

Looking at the photo's a) the panel work is shoddy as there are dimples and the door gap is wrong, b) the paintwork is careless and shoddy and c) the mechanical refit is shoddy as thee lock plate is missing. I would ask who has inspected that car and signed the work off as acceptable?

Remember the bodyshop's job is to repair the car to it's pre-accident condition. They have failed, you should not have to accept anything less. Modern refinishing paints and body fillers are so good you should not have been able to tell.

these body shops do rip insurance company's off . many years ago I was rear ended when I was in my mondeo it was not a real hard bump . they had pushed the bumper in my insurance company took car of it or so they thought , when it came back from being done I give it a good looking over all looked good until I got underneath and noticed there was some washers in between the bumper and the body and they had also snapped a bolt , I phone my insurance and they sent a man he looked at the bumper from out side and said good job, but then I asked him to look underneath he went mad when he saw what they had done ,because they had charged for a new bumper ,so it always pays to look at it carefully .also why do the car repair charge about £500-£1000 for paint very good quality paint is about £30-40 a litre . I would get the insurance company down your bonnet looks as though it has had holes in it , the doors are way off do not accept it by any means once you have taken it away I bet you never get it put right.

Its pretty much standard form for bodyshops to charge the insurers for new panels and then just repair the old ones. A new door from Landrover is probably several hundred pounds, possibly even knocking on for a grand. If they get this money from the insurers and then repair the old one with £20 of filler its a nice extra profit for them.

Speak to your insurer - there is little point in talking to the garage and if at all possible, you must get the car repaired elsewhere - The first garage will want to lash it up as quickly as possible so as to not lose money on the job.


I have been there and got the t-shirt. Twice, sadly.

Thanks for all the support guys, I feel like some times I'm over critical as I'm often told so! However even if it's not a show winning car I would expect that the job would be done to original standards and not have holes in the paint etc! They did put what appears to be a new bumper on which was arguably un needed anyway but the paint is just pants and there was a but of overspray on the door lock pin.

As I have yet to even see inside the car who knows what it's like in there.

Will call the insurance on Monday and see what they say but at this rate I should have saved the claim and kept the dented door which you could hardly see under the normal mud

Its a shame , agree with whats been said , your door is defo out of alignment , those little holes whats that all about , looks like the yts did the filling , hope you get it sorted .

And the worst thing is they painted the whole side of the car! I wish I just got a door the same colour on eBay for £50!

roccotune said:

And the worst thing is they painted the whole side of the car! I wish I just got a door the same colour on eBay for £50!

Click to expand...

you will have to go there on monday and insert a knome in them all

The repairs charged my insurers for labour removing "rusted bolts" to change the front indicator when my front corner was getting sorted a couple of years ago. They then charged them for new bolts to put it back in!

It's just a racket really! I'm mostly annoyed on a principal level, if you know what I mean

As everyone has said you should try to deal with the insurer as your contract is with them, not the body shop. Also, body shops usually charge you the excess as the insurer pays them net of the excess - don't handover a penny until you are happy.

Keep in mind their job is to restore the car to it's pre-accident condition - most insurers have a clause where they can charge you for "betterment" - i.e. if there repaired car is better than it was before. It's very rare these days as not many cars go rusty but turning the tables you should be able to charge them for making a turd of a job of it... wouldn't surprise me if the first time you slam that door the pudding falls out.

jesus I feel sorry for you theres aload of problems there they couldn't evan wetsand and buff n polish your bodywork properly