We had an parking accident where our car was damaged and no note left. We have a witness who details were passed to the police and insurance company.
Now the car is a lease, so we had it recovered and taken to the leasing company. They have inspected and sent a quote for the repairs. Since then they have contacted us four times in 36 hours asking if they can start with the repairs. Our insurance company inspected the car on Wednesday and we have no follow-up since and their helpline is closed for the weekend. Are we correct in thinking that we need some confirmation from the insurance company before we allow the lease company to start making repairs?
I’ve only used the car insurance once. A little stone cracked the car windshield. Paperwork takes time. I sent a photo to the garage, then waiting for insurance answer. 1 week later I had an appointment for the repair.
I don’t understand the rush to repair the car. Or, is the car parked at their place? Maybe that explains the pressure.
Yes, the car is with them because they told us to get have it sent to them. So I understand maybe that is where the pressure is coming from, (I do wonder if they have it on a lift with panels removed so it is blocking the work shop). But surely they know they must wait for a confirmation from insurance?
We did tell them that we were waiting for a confirmation from the insurers to which they replied “We will deal with the insurers. Can we start?”
It is rather stressful as we do not want to give the go-ahead and then have the insurers come back to something where they have an issue.
If it’s a leasing the insurance is probably bundled in the same contract. So, it would be unusual that the insurance refuses to pay for the repair.
As long as the garage is approved by the leasing company, it should be fine. If still uncertain, ask to the leasing company, they’re basically the same team as insurance.
Unfortunately the car is not safe to drive, the damage is such that it would risk a puncture and there are sharp metal edges that would be an unacceptable risk to an ped/bike that may come into contact with it.
Oh, this is between a rock and a hard place. Not much to do beyond asking the garage for patience and understanding and get the answer from insurance ASAP.
We did tell them that we were waiting for a confirmation from the insurers to which they replied “We will deal with the insurers. Can we start?”
I think you go from here. Fully comprehensive insurance is presumably a condition of the lease. Ask the leasing company to send the bill directly to the insurer. The insurer should settle it and charge you the excess.
If you are in no hurry than they should be in no hurry either. Wait for the conformation. The insurance will and must first send an agent to inspect the damage.
Let’s say you wait and the insurance says they’re not going to pay.
The car will still need to be repaired, especially since it’s a lease as at some point you’d have to return it to the garage. If insurance doesn’t pay (unlikely, but let’s assume worst case for a moment), the lessee would still be liable for the damage, as the garage would expect to receive the car in a reasonable condition.
So what’s the point in waiting? Let them start the repairs, and then they will deal with the insurance regarding parts and labour costs, as all garages do with all insurers.
The insurer will then either pass the cost to your parking damage coverage (if you have it), or your comprehensive coverage (which you definitely have since it’s a lease) and they will apply the respective deductible.
The garage would also want to fix the car ASAP and not let it occupy space that would otherwise be productive, especially if it’s a busy one…
While I appreciate DonMolina’s outlook on the issue, I still agree with others who said wait until the insurance provides feedback. It is important that the insurance adjuster has a chance to review and fill out his reports and recommendations, before repairs are made.
Otherwise, you risk being in a bigger hole and have to deal with all sorts of ‘excuses and finger pointing, not-our-fault, we-did-not-get-to-do-our-part, you-made-decision-so-you-are-responsible’ etc.. Ignore the pressure from the garage and follow the process. The garage clearly knows the process.
Sometimes the adjuster physically shows up at the garage. Other times, at the request of the insurance company, the garage provides the insurance company details of the repairs, related time, labor and costs. It’s pretty easy for the garage to look up which insurance company is covering the car - similar to strassenverhkehrsamt looking up and verifying insurance details.
The garage should have contacted the insurance company and provided details of the the damage and repair costs. If the garage is pushing, then i would say to myself ‘Hmmmm …’.
Insurace will cover any garage storage cost, specially if insurance adjuster is late …
if it is a semi-deccent garage, then busy or not, they will work with you and your insurance schedule. They know the process. They do not generally push clients, specially when there is a ‘trauma / schaden’.
Insurance will pay the garage bill and send you a bill for the deductible, etc.
you need to inform the insurance company what happened and where the vehicle is. Then the process starts and rolls along. Insurance companies in CH are decent in general. They know you have a vehicle because you need it on a regular basis.
Thanks very much for the advice all! The sanity check was very helpful.
We received this morning confirmation from the insurers that they will pay for the repairs minus the deductible, but that we will hopefully get that back as they will be attempting to pursue costs from the driver that hit our (parked) car.
The garage now seem very relaxed about it all and say that repairs will take 2-3 weeks because they need to order parts :D. Fortunately we are not dependent on the car.
