BMW Collision Centers

[japmode7]

Hi All

So I just recently moved to St. George, Utah for work and just got rear ended. Welcome committee i guess. I couldnt help but notice that there are no BMW dealerships around here and the closest collision center is in Las Vegas (130 miles south). Does any know if the insurance of the guy who rear ended me has to pay to tow my car down to Vegas to get it repaired? As I'm sure many of you are, Im quite the stickler about my car and my BMW CF rear valence got destroyed. I'd like to make sure that i get another authentic piece back on there so i dont want my car going to just some random shop around here. This town is pretty small so i'm sure i'm already limited as to collision repair locally. Any and all help or opinions are welcome. thanks everyone!

[Mr Rooty Von Tooty]

I don't think you need to go to a BMW collision center. What you need to do is check out the body shops in your area. There will be at least one guy with a great reputation who'll do a fine job.

Don't pay any attention to the size or the fanciness of the shop. I'll give you an example. I have all the body work done on my cars, my inventory often runs to about 20 collectible vehicles, by a guy who uses a dirty old gas station with two bays. His work is so good that the Mercedes dealer send him their work.

However, there are times when you do need a specialist. This happens when you are doing restoration work that requires replacing things like floor pans or straightening things that are bent out of shape.

[Dackelone]

You can take your car to ANY shop you like... and "his" insurance will have to pay. Now they might try and persuader to go to a local Joe Schmo body shop, but you do not have too. Just pay for the town yourself, and the insurance claim will reimburse you. Also... the same goes with using Non OE BMW parts... his insurance company might tell you you need to use cheap made in China(or where) body parts... but you do not! IF the insurance company gives you ANY grief, then inform that that you will write your state's Insurance Commission! That usually puts the fear into any insurance adjuster/claims person.

[japmode7]

thanks for the help guys. it is very helpful!

[tock172]

Here's a quick word of advice from someone who's had more than a few rounds with auto insurance companies before: If the other party's insurance tries to act cheap, denies coverage or gives you any trouble, forget about going through them. Make a claim with your own insurance provider. You do not have to worry about a rate increase if you are not found at fault. Use your provider to get the repairs done at a shop of your choosing with quality parts, and let them subrogate with the other party's insurance. You will probably have to pay your deductible, but within a few weeks, your provider should reach a subrogation agreement and fully reimburse you for everything, including your deductible. Good luck.

[rhodesman]

Also, you're insurance should ALWAYS be on your side and fight for what you want. This happened to me: years ago (other car I long since sold) this body shop did a horrible job and a year later out of frustration for the car not driving right I took the car to another body shop of my choosing. They (the new place) found ALL these corners the first body shop had cut and I ended up re-opening the insurance claim, having the second bodyshop tear-down the car and rebuild it back up from the sub-frame the right way. Cost the insurance company more than double since the work had to be done twice. From what they told me, they were filing legal action against the first body shop but the insurance NEVER once questioned my actions. They 100% stood behind what I wanted, which is why I haven't changed insurance companies in over a decade!

[Klayfish]

I know I'm new to the forum, but hope I can help out here. I work in the auto claims business, and have for nearly 20 years.

First, as others have said, it's your car. Take it where you want. You don't need a "BMW" shop. The 1 series doesn't have an exotic type construction, so there are plenty of good body shops who can fix it to 100%. Ask around, get recommendations. Tour the shop. Ask the insurance company for shops on their recommended list. You're under ZERO obligation to use any of them, but you'll often find that many of them are outstanding. If you don't like them, fine, but it can't hurt to ask. It's not the "racket" that people think it is. It's actually in the best interest of the insurance company for the shop to do quality work. If they're putting the shop on their network, the last thing they want is to deal with complaints about shoddy repairs.

As far as part usage, whether its' your company or the at fault, they will have the right to use alternate parts. In fact, in all likelihood, it's written into the contract with your own insurance company. Having said that, the “alternate” parts used are not cheap Wal-Mart parts. Pretty much every company I know of doesn’t use them. If they are aftermarket, they are certified by an aftermarket organization, and they are of high quality (I’ve seen them over and over and over). Or they could also use parts from a salvage yard off another 1 series. Don’t think of it as “junk” parts, they are only used if they are perfectly clean. Think of it this way…if your mint condition 1 series got rear ended hard enough to total it and someone wanted to use the front end parts from your car, would you say “No, don’t use them, they’re junk”? However, more than likely it’ll be OEM parts anyway, as I don’t think there are a ton of aftermarket or used parts out there for the 1 series.

Hope this helps and let me know if you have any questions.