I was rear ended in my 2008 Toyota Prius. The driver admitted to going 50 mph; I was traveling 10-15 mph. The brunt of the impact was on the right rear area that left a depression on the tailgate. Since I got my car back, I have had to return for more repairs twice. Once three weeks after I first got my car back to replace a fuse block that is located in the right rear area. Eleven months later, I have discovered additional dents in the right side panel that the body shop tried to pass off as “door dings,” said there was no damage to the side of the car, and that they did no work on the side. I showed them a picture of the accident site and the dents were obviously there. Thank goodness I always carry a camera in my car and I haven’t signed any releases! Their insurance adjuster said they would pay to fix the dent at the top of the panel and the ripples in the middle of the panel,but they wouldn’t fix the perfectly aligned “dimples” that have appeared on the panel just over the tire well in the same panel. The adjuster said the dimples were normal and some cars “just do that.” I, of course, don’t believe that for a moment and plan to fight. However, my big concern is that something may be seriously wrong under the panel of the car. The dimples look like rivets that have pulled on the panel from the inside. The invoice from the body shop says they replace the exhaust muffler and replaced the supply assembly brake, along with the bumper, tailgate, and lights. Also included is 2.5 labor units for unibody pull and frame rack set up. I’m afraid this shop looked for only back end damage and may have missed damages in other areas of the car. Should I be concerned? What would be the best strategy for dealing with the insurance adjuster about the “dimple” dents?
Follow The Money, Your Money, To Your Insurance Agent. I Hope You Don’t Have An “E-Gent” , But Rather A Real, Local Human In A Real Brick And Motar Building.
Side damage very well can result from a rear impact, especially with the unibody pull labor allowed. I believe You’re right. Without seeing it, I think it’s possible they blew it and are covering that up. Find out.
Was this shop recommended by insurance or was it a shop of your choosing ?
You shouldn’t have to deal with this. You had insurance and you were minding your own business when you were hit.
This is exactly why it’s important to have a trusted agent and a trusted insurance company. Show your agent your concerns and tell of your dissatifaction. And let him / her take it from there. Let your agent know that you don’t like dealing with that particular adjuster.
My agent is an experienced woman agent who more than once helped me get beyond the aggrevation of dealing with an adjuster. Not all adjusters know what they’re doing, either. Trust me. I have managed a body shop.
Another thing I’d do is to take the car past a couple of other quality body / collision shops and explain exactly what happened (A Toyota dealer run shop would possibly better know what’s going on as they see many crashed Prius vehicles). Most shops that I know of will look the car over and give you their opinion and you could ask them if they’d vouch for you if contacted. Often shops do this to win new future customers.
Oh, and yes, you should be concerned. I’ve seen cases where an insurance company has to have a different shop straighten out situations like this one if it turns out the newly discovered damage relates to the collision.
CSA
“Also included is 2.5 labor units for unibody pull and frame rack set up.”
They are just never the same again…
Caddyman, Not Much Happens For 2.5 Hours Labor.
Often these rear-end collisions involve replacing a tailgate or tail panel. Replacement of these parts isn’t very lucrative for worker or shop. Straightening, bumping, pulling labor is where the money is made. Adjusters often throw in a little of this type labor to make the job worth doing. There’s usually something to pull on or straighten, but 2.5 hours doesn’t buy much.
I still think possibly the 1/4 panel damage was overlooked if it relates to this collision.
CSA