Hi dear community,
I was rear ended and the insurance company of the person that hit me does not want to authorize a bumper part for my 2013 Prius that is manufactured by Toyota, they want to only give me an after market bumper. i have already argued my case to 3 people from the insurance co. telling them i want my car the way it was before the accident since i spent all my savings in this car and i feel i have the right to get it fixed to the way it was before their client hit me. In all honesty i feel like I’m hitting a wall talking to these people, they are not listening to me. Can anyone recommend what i could do?
Why are you talking to the other driver’s insurance company at all? That’s not your place. Your insurance agent should do all the talking/asking/demanding to the other company. You pay your insurance agent not just to handle claims against you but also to act on your behalf on claims you make against others. Let them sort it out.
I can only echo the statements from the others. You pay your insurance to do this for you. Trust me, they will get more out of the other insurance than you will. And, since you are their customer, they will be much more attentive to your wishes.
I am surprised that an after-market bumper is available for your Prius. I have no knowledge of how good an after market replacement bumper might be. I agree with others that you should let your insurance company fight this battle.
Just a side note: right after WW II, steel and chrome were in short supply. Some new cars were shipped with wooden bumpers that the dealer then replaced after the factory chrome on steel bumpers became available. Is the insurance company you are having to deal with next door to a lumber yard?
I agree with the others, you should use your insurance company. They are used to dealing with their own kind. On the other hand, I have used an after-market bumper cover on something, can’t remember, oh I think it was a Lincoln Mark something, and it was fine. Fit fine and just as good as the original so just depends. But I agree with you on a 2013 but its only a plastic cover. You should be as concerned about whether they will be replacing the other parts such as the shock abosorbers. Get your own estimate from a shop and see your agent.
I agree with @db4690. An ins. co tried to pull the aftermarket cover crap on a friend’s Integra when he got rear ended. It didn’t fit right, and it also didn’t have the “Integra” logo in the bumper, so it was obvious it wasn’t real.
Insurance companies should offer you the choice of brand new aftermarket replacement or a used OEM part (for body pieces) unless your car is very new. I generally opt for the used OEM piece. I am less worried about fit and appearance and more concerned with crash safety. The OEM pieces function exactly as designed in a crash. The aftermarket pieces may not. You don’t want to find out how bad your parts are in a crash situation.
I’ll just echo the majority of comments here and say “Let your insurance company handle it.” That’s why you pay them the big bucks year after year after year.
You can also answer the insurance company with a letter, outlining the accident info (date, location, names of everyone, etc.) and a brief history of their BS response to you, tell them their behavior is proof of their “failure to negotiate in good faith”, and note that you are sending a copy to the State Insurance Department office of consumer complaints, and to the same department at the Motor Vehicle Department. Give them a time limit to reply to you like 2 weeks, and then send everything out.
You’ll get a quick reply. Forcing everything into writing gives you proof, and makes them a lot more careful.
I am a insurance adjuster. This a problem we as adjuster have to face all the time. It used to be we had to use OEM parts if the vehicle was no older than 3-5 years old. Now some company’s went to 12-12, 12000 miles or 12 months old. Some are if the new modules are out its aftermarket parts for the vehicle. First aftermarket bumper cover will fit and be as good as the OEM part. Toyota did not make the cover that’s on the car. The aftermarket cover will be a CAPPA part. That means its make to OEM speck’s. The real bumper is under that cover. That will come from Toyota and if does not it will sill be ok as long as its a CAPPA part. Now you need get your insurance to do all the talking for you. Also check with your state laws. Most states say you have the last word in what’s used to repair your car.
I just went thru this on vehicle I wrote. The desk reviewer tried to tell me I had to write it for a cheaper part and I could not replace some parts. When I told him the laws in my state would not let me do that and the other parts had to be replaced so the warranty on the main part could be honored.
If the aftermarket bumper cover meets OEM specs, but looks like crap, with big gaps, the owner is not going to be happy. The best paint in the world isn’t going to make a part fit correctly
By the way, I know the real bumper isn’t visible, and that the visible bumper skin doesn’t absorb the impact
But the customer doesn’t care about that. All he cares about is that the car looks the same after the repair
Years ago, one of my colleagues got into an accident. An aftermarket hood was put on, aligned, prepped and painted. It looked so crappy and out of place, that he told the body shop “You know what, I need an OEM hood. Make it happen.” They put on a used OEM hood, aligned, prepped and painted it. That used hood looked 10 times better than the new aftermarket hood.
And here is a great example and the biggest caveat for all the un-seen reasons X insurance is so much cheaper than Y or Z.
We don’t even know if YOUR insurance can get theirs to pay for o.e. but you really must start with your own insurer.
Curious, who doesn’t have collision on a 2013 model year car??
If you have collision, you don’t even talk to the other person’s insurance except if a deposition is required. Your insurance pays to have the car fixed and goes after the other guy’s insurance to get both your deductible and their loss compensation.
In the end, whether or not they can use aftermarket parts will be spelled out in your contract- better read it carefully…
You are NOT bound by what the other party’s insurance company says. You have every right to sue the other driver in court, after presenting three estimates from shops who use OEM parts. You will very likely win, as clearly the other driver was at fault.
Been there, done that, got the t-shirt (I was in a similar situation with my 1982 Toyota Cressida, which got rear ended soon after I bought it.)
People deal directly with insurance companies as a matter of convenience. There is NOTHING that stops you from filing a small-claim suit. The other party’s insurance company will reimburse him