I have been in this industry for over 25 years in the same area, I have worked in high quality auto body shops large and small, and have owned my own collision and custom shop in Portland Oregon for the last 8 years. In my area there are hundreds of auto body repair shops in a very small area, yet I only know a few I would trust with my vehicles. So for the most part you have to be as informed as you can, and ask alot of questions.

I am going to give you some information about the industry that will hopefully help to make that informed decision a little easier. First, do not let your insurance company tell you where to have your vehicle repaired, in most cases they have contracts with the shop to save them money in exchange for sending them your vehicle. in this case the insurance company saves money, the shop gets the work but has to cut corners to keep the cost down for the insurance company. And you, the one that pays the insurance company all those inflated premiums, and pays the body shop your deductible gets a substandard repair. The insurance company may say “if you don’t take the job to our repair shop we can’t guaranty the work”, the fact is any and all good auto body shops guaranty their work for as long as you own your car, if they don’t, go somewhere else.

Next thing to do is be sure to question the person who is estimating your damage, smaller shop owners will usually take care of you personally, and in most cases, actually be involved in the repair process. In most of the larger or chain shops the person writing the estimate on how to fix your vehicle is a salesperson, usually having absolutely no experience repairing cars, not to say that the techs working at that shop wont fix your car correctly, but they may just not feel like rewriting the estimate the way it should of been written to begin with. Just be aware and ask the questions. Also small shops may not have all the fancy lasers and computer operated equipment of a large shop, Then again lasers and computers don’t fix cars in most cases they are sales tools and rarely used. Even a frame rack although necessary is nothing more then a few well placed trees, they don’t fix cars, the tech is the most important part of the repair.

Ask if the body shop is on any insurance programs or DRP,(direct repair programs) if they are ask why? the only reason I know why a auto body shop would agree to be on a DRP would be to get work that they couldn’t get on their own. Again this does not mean just because they have a DRP they are not a great shop, but if they have 20 DRP’s then I would be a little concerned? Ask them to explain.

And by far the best resource for finding a good body shop is word of mouth, a friend that’s had work done and is happy to let you know about the auto body shop he had good luck with is a good sign they were treated well. If you have no friends or coworkers that have had resent repairs, you can try the local automotive paint supply stores in the area, they visit shops large and small every day and may be able to help you out.

I hope this gives you a starting point, there is so much more to information on this subject and I will try to keep writing more articles in the near future.

You have to be absolutely sure that their work is going to be professional otherwise; you’re going to be paying a lot of money for something that just isn’t going to look good. Most likely, your insurance company is going to want an estimate of at least one but some ask for two or three. At least this way you get a chance to take a look around and do a little better comparison amongst the shops. There are many things that are going to be required during your repair as there will be welding and perhaps electrical installations and most importantly body repairs, painting and finishing. Have a good look around the auto body shop when you are there to make sure that it’s clean and organized and determine how many people seem to be working there.

As we mentioned there are several different fields when it comes to auto body repair and if you’re only seeing one or two workers that there may be some concerns that these individuals are multi-tasking and perhaps maybe aren’t as experienced as one would like. See if there are any extra services being supplied such as car rentals for example. Find out how long they’ve been in business and see if there’s anybody that can speak highly of them or if they have some happy customers testimonials for example. If you have been in an accident and your car has received substantial damage more than likely it will need towing. You may want to assess the tow driver if he could recommend a Company that’s doing auto body repairs. Be careful in this situation though because they may be getting a kick back from some of the local auto, body repair shops and that doesn’t mean that their work is all that great.

Increase the Value of Your Car

At some point in the future, you will most likely sell or trade in your car. Its resale value will be based on how old it is, the condition of the engine and interior, and yes, what the exterior looks like. If you have paint chips, tar from road construction, or other unsightly damage to the plastic molding of your vehicle, you could lose out on thousands of dollars you could have made on the sale with just a little effort and cash on your part.

With a small investment (and yes, it is smaller than you think), you can get your bumper repaired or other plastic parts refinished and painted to make your car look as good as new.

Save Money

It’s surprising that people think plastic bumper repair costs more than it does. In fact, getting a plastic door handle repaired can cost less than $100, and plastic bumper repair can cost between $199 and $399, depending on your type of vehicle. Car bumper repair shops tend to provide quality repair services at a fraction of what a traditional auto body shop would charge.

Many plastic bumper facilities will come to your home and repair your car. This also saves you money because you don’t have to take off of work or waste gas driving across town to a repair shop. Of course, this means you also don’t have to sit around in the shop for hours, leaving the inconvenience to you as small as possible.

Service You Can Rely On

A reliable plastic bumper service will be able to exactly match the color of your car. Repairing your plastic car parts will provide outstanding results and restore your car to the way it looked the day you bought it.

Most repair shops offer guarantees on plastic bumper repair services, so you know that you can take your car back should anything go wrong, but a professional repair shop will do such a good job you won’t need to worry.