Auto Fraud

Getting in a wreck is frustrating enough without having to worry about your repairs being done correctly. Unfortunately, a large number of vehicles are repaired incorrectly following a collision.
In some cases, the bad repairs are a simple mistake. However, in other cases, repairs are either done improperly to save the repair shop money or because the body shop doesn’t even bother to research the proper way to repair your vehicle. In either of these situations, the result is the same: improper repairs that jeopardize the safety of your car.

No matter what type of car you drive, your vehicle’s manufacturer has developed repair specifications for your car. The specifications provide repair shops with the blueprints they need to perform a proper repair.

However, these specifications and repair guidelines are constantly changing as technology changes and techniques improve over time. In addition, specifications vary from one model to the next, and in many cases, there are changes from one model year to the next in many vehicles.

As a result, it is imperative that for any repairs involving anything more than something very minor, the repair shop takes the time to research what the manufacturer says needs to be repaired and how they should do it. But here’s the problem: repair shops don’t get paid to research. So rather than pull up the repair specifications and create a repair plan, most repair shops just start the repair and hope for the best.

For any repair involving moderate or more significant damage, performing bodywork without looking up the manufacturer’s specifications is all but guaranteeing that the shop will not repair your vehicle correctly. Simply put, the specifications are too precise and vary so much from one vehicle to the next that no repair technician could have them memorized. Modern cars are built to precise measurements, and even a variation of a few millimeters could cause a vehicle to not respond in the manner it was intended to in the case of a crash.
The scary part is that very few vehicle owners know when their vehicle has been improperly repaired. Most people just look to see if the paint looks good, and as long as everything is in order, they consider it a good job. Bad repair shops know this and are banking on it.

Another common tactic used by unscrupulous repair shops is to switch out new OEM parts for after-market or recycled parts. In some scenarios, the repair shop will charge a customer for a new part but install a used part or just try to repair the part altogether. Either way, it is a way for the repair shop to profit at your expense.