Archive for the ‘Getting The Most For Your Money’ Category

7 Ways to Protect Your Car from Hail Damage

Posted on: May 23rd, 2022 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 2 Comments

hail damage on the roof of a car In Colorado, we have the second highest level of hail damage repair claims in the country. While it’s been a dry spring so far with few storms to speak of (let alone hailstorms), there’s still a lot of hail season to go. If you’re worried about keeping your car safe from hail through the end of the season in August or September, here are the things you can do to protect your car.

Clean Out Your Garage

Many people with garages aren’t using them to keep their car safe, which is a shame, because there’s nothing better for protecting your car from hail than keeping it in the garage.

Clean out the storage space in the garage, move your workshop, even get your hubby to move out his neglected hobby car. Just do what you can to fit your car in the garage through the hail season.

Build a Carport

Don’t have a garage, can’t clean it out, or have more cars than you have space in the garage? Try building a carport.

These days, there are many easy-to-build solutions, from prefab car ports to YouTube videos that give you step-by-step instructions. Just make sure that the carport is hail proof and it’s big enough to overhang on all sides. Hail can come at such angles that you might not be able to guarantee your carport will protect the car, but do what you can to protect from angled hail.

Pay for Parking

If you live in an apartment or if you don’t have the resources to build a carport, consider paying for covered parking through hail season. This will not only protect your car from hail, but it might also provide extra security against theft.

You might find you like it so much you decide to pay all year long.

Buy a Car Cover

car cover to protect against hail damage

If your car is going to be outside all summer, you can try to protect it with a car cover. Make sure the cover you get is designed for hail protection. Get in the habit of covering your car most of the time. This not only protects you from surprise hailstorms, but it also helps you get good at covering the car.

Being able to put the car cover on quickly is important because you likely won’t have much warning for an impending hailstorm. If hail is already falling, however, think of your personal safety first, and don’t go out to cover your car if it could put you at risk.

Improvise Cover

If you must, consider improvising cover for your car. One popular improvisation is moving blankets. These are heavy and thickly padded, so if you have them, they’re worth trying. Just make sure to secure them. Though they’re heavy, the kind of wind that accompanies hailstorms can pick up even heavy blankets.

Another good improvised cover is bags of potting soil or mulch. These are easy to spread out on your car, they’re unlikely to blow away, and they provide good protection.

Some people also recommend cardboard sheets to protect your car, but these can be hard to spread out, and they’re likely to blow away. Not to mention that it doesn’t take much rain to turn them to mush. Not only does that reduce their protective value, but it also makes them hard to clean off your car.

Get to Shelter

If the forecast shows imminent hailstorms, especially if you’ve seen them on the radar heading your way, seek shelter for your car. If you’re downtown or in Cherry Creek North, there are plenty of options. Shopping centers, paid garages, even some RTD Park & Rides have covered lots where you can shelter your car.

Pull Over

If you’re driving when the hailstorm hits, don’t try to outrun the storm. Instead, pull over. The speed you’re driving adds to the speed of the falling hail, making impacts worse.

If you see cover, use it, but try to avoid pulling over at underpasses. These can get crowded, and there’s often less shoulder room to pull fully out of the traffic lanes. With poor sight in hailstorms, you’re more likely to get hit, which can cause worse damage to your car than hail. In addition, some underpasses are at risk of flooding during large storms, and that can also cause worse damage to your car.

Why Choose Accurate Auto Body for Hail Repairs in Denver

Despite all these steps, you might find that your car suffered hail damage anyway. If that’s the case, let Accurate Auto Body help. We can repair most hail damage with our paintless dent repair, helping your car look good as new.

At Accurate Auto Body, our exclusive Focus on You Service System™ helps you have the best auto repair experience. We start by listening to your repair goals, so we know what you’re looking for from repairs. We work around your schedule, with guaranteed completion date and a guaranteed quote so there’s no surprise charges. Check on the state of your repairs any time on our website. Plus, we utilize the latest repair technology to ensure your repairs are done right the first time, including your advanced safety systems. We can work with your insurance company to make the repair experience easier, too.

Find out how we can help your hail damaged car. Please call 303-344-2212 or contact us for a free estimate by making an appointment at Accurate Auto Body in the Sunny Vale neighborhood of Aurora.

How Much Does Hail Damage Devalue a Car?

Posted on: April 29th, 2022 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 1 Comment

It’s hail season in Colorado, and since Colorado usually has the second-highest amount of hail damage claims in the US, there are good odds that your car will be damaged by hail this season. This can be a huge blow if you have a valuable car that you were hoping to sell or refinance. The potential loss due to devaluation might hurt a lot.

However, how much hail damage actually devalues your car will vary depending on how you’re thinking of the car’s value. In practical terms, hail damage might not devalue your car much, if you get the hail damage repaired properly by a reputable auto body shop.

Three Types of Car Valuation: Insurance, Appraisal, and Resale

Your car’s value varies depending on who’s doing the evaluation and for what purpose.

How Your Insurance Company Considers Value

hail damage to a vehicle Your insurance company keeps one tally of your car’s value, which is basically how much they’re willing to pay to fix it. This value depends on a formula that insurance companies and regulators agree on. It’s related to things like your car’s make, model, age, and mileage.

As they pay to repair your car, they subtract these payments from the value. To your insurance company, essentially 100% of the cost of hail damage comes out of the value of your car. They’ll declare your car “totaled” when the cost for repairs meets or exceeds their tally of your car’s value. For some types of damage, this means that your car is literally a total loss and can’t be insured without going through some difficult procedures in addition to the costly repairs.

However, with hail damage, having a totaled car doesn’t keep you from driving. It just means the insurance company cuts you a check and washes their hands of responsibility for your car. Your insurance policy will change to reflect the fact that they’re no longer covering damage to your car. Silver lining: this might reduce your premiums. But it comes with a very dark cloud: future repair costs will all come out of your pocket.

The Appraisal Value of Your Car

The appraisal value of your car is an estimate of how much you can sell your car for. A car-value expert (appraiser) considers the car’s make, model, age, mileage, and condition. The appraisal value of the car limits what you can get for trading your car in or whether you can refinance your car.

To an appraiser, hail damage devalues your car by more than 100% of the cost of repairs. Anyone buying your car would have to pay to repair it, but the hail damage also reduces your car’s attractiveness, making it less appealing to buy.

However, to an appraiser, you can gain back much of the lost value by repairing the damage at a reputable auto body shop. Potential owners don’t have to repair the car, and it can look like new despite the former damage. You’ll have to declare hail damage when selling the car, but even if your insurance company has declared the car totaled, the value won’t be dropped fully down to zero.

The Actual Resale Value of Your Car

While an appraisal of your car is an estimate of what your car might sell for, it could be significantly different from the actual resale value of your car, which is whatever you might be able to get for it.

As with appraisal, the resale value of your car increases if you repair hail damage, often by more than the cost of repairs.

However, even if you don’t repair hail damage, there are often buyers who are prepared to look past cosmetic damage to get a car they can afford and that will get them from point A to point B. Cars with a reputation for reliability, such as Hondas and Toyotas, often sell for a good value despite hail damage if you take the trouble to sell it yourself and can wait patiently for the right buyer.

Repairs That Can Restore Car Value in Denver

hail damage to vehicle Don’t despair if your car has hail damage. Even if your insurance company declares your car a total loss, repairing hail damage can restore much of the practical value of your car.

At Accurate Auto Body, we can often use paintless dent repair to remove hail dents and help your car look like new. In other cases, we might need to replace panels or repair them in ways that require repainting. Fortunately, our advanced color matching system helps ensure the painted parts match the rest of the car. It won’t look like it’s a repaired car.

Our Focus on You Service™ system helps us understand your repair goals. We will first talk to you about your repair goals, then recommend repairs that will achieve your goals. We will work around your schedule, making it convenient for you to drop off your car and pick it up. Plus, with our guaranteed completion date, you’ll experience minimum disruption to your schedule. And our guaranteed estimate means you won’t pay more for your repairs than we estimate.

Want to learn how much your hail damage repairs will cost? Please call 303-344-2212 or use our online form to schedule a free estimate at Accurate Auto Body in Aurora.

 

Types of Hail Damage to Cars

Posted on: March 25th, 2022 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 1 Comment

With the return of spring, we’re entering hail season again in Colorado. We know, it seems like you just got finished trying to deal with sliding all over the roads in that last snow and ice storm, but springtime in Colorado moves fast.

Hail damage can strike at pretty much any time from now until the end of the summer. When it does, your car might experience many types of damage. Here are some of the types of hail damage that we see and what it takes to fix them.

Dent

hail damage to a vehicle The most common type of hail damage is a simple dent, dimple, or ding to the car’s panels. Depending on the severity of the storm, there may be dozens, even hundreds of these dents on your car.

The good news is that most dents can be fixed with paintless dent repair. With paintless dent repair, we can pop out the dents on your car’s hood, roof, or door. There’s no need to sand or paint, and the car can look almost like new.

There are some limitations. We can’t pop out dents too close to the edge of the panel, and if your panel has been repaired previously, it might not respond as well to paintless dent repair this time.

Scratch

A scratch is when hail damages the paint on your car. This might happen because the hail is traveling at a faster speed, which leads to paint damage. It isn’t related to the size of the hail, so it’s possible to get paint damage even with relatively small dents.

If your car has paint scratches, we will have to perform a more extensive repair. This involves sanding the car and repainting. It may also involve popping out dents and applying filler. Fortunately, we have an advanced color matching system that lets us ensure your new paint will match the old paint. No one will know your car was repainted.

Broken Glass

Hail is not only capable of denting the metal on your car, it can break your windows as well. Some hail stones are large enough to outright shatter your windows. Other times, hailstones can start a crack that will slowly grow across your window.

The windshield and rear window are most affected by hail damage, but any car window can be broken by hail. We can replace all broken windows.

Water Damage

Water damage usually occurs when hail breaks a window, letting water into the car. The water can damage upholstery as well as any components in the car cabin that aren’t designed to be waterproof. This can include in-car electronics, which might not be designed to withstand the elements.

We can replace components inside the car as necessary using OEM parts. For some upholstery, a thorough cleaning might be sufficient, but in other cases, we might recommend replacement.

Mechanical and Functional

It’s possible for hail to damage your car’s functional components. The most common functional components affected are side view mirrors. These can be chipped, cracked, or broken off. For many cars, side view mirrors incorporate advanced safety equipment that will need to be repaired and recalibrated.

Other safety equipment, like sensors, is also vulnerable to hail damage. Damage around the doors can make it hard to open or close them.

Why Choose Accurate Auto Body

At Accurate Auto Body, we utilize our exclusive Focus On You™ Service System. We start by listening to you to figure out what matters most to you. For example, some people really want to restore their car to factory condition, while others are more concerned with getting insurance to pay for most of the repair cost.

Once we know your goals, we will inspect your car and develop one or several repair plans. You can choose which repair plan works best for you, and we’ll give you a guaranteed quote and a guaranteed repair date. We’ll work around your schedule so you can drop off your car and get it back when it’s convenient for you.

You can trust us to get your repairs right the first time. With mechanics certified by Toyota and Honda, we have achieved the rare I-CAR gold class certification. We can handle the most sophisticated repairs, including to advanced safety equipment.

For a free estimate on your car’s hail damage, please call 303-344-2212 or contact Accurate Auto Body today to schedule an appointment.

5 Ways to Avoid Collision Estimate Scams

Posted on: September 30th, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 1 Comment

With hundreds of thousands of accidents in the US every year, there’s a lot of money in the collision repair business. Unfortunately, not all auto body shops want to make their money honestly. Instead, some of them want to pad their profit margin by participating in scams that charge you or your insurance company excessively.

Even if your insurance company is going to pay for auto body repairs, you want to fight fraud. Fraud can lead to substandard repairs and higher insurance premiums in the future. Here’s how you can avoid expensive collision estimate scams.

Only Let a Tow Driver Hook Up Your Car If You Called Them

tow truck pulling a vehicle after an accident If you get in an accident and end up on the side of the road, it might seem convenient at first to have a tow truck drive up and offer to hook up your car to take to a repair shop.

However, there’s good reason not to take the offer from an opportunistic tow truck. Instead of taking you to the closest or most reputable repair shop, a driver might take you to the shop that gives him a kickback. This can be problematic because the shops that give kickbacks to tow drivers like this are more likely to be fraudsters. Once your car is at their shop, they will hold it hostage.

Instead, wait for the tow truck you called, and tell them where to take your car.

Choose Your Auto Body Shop with Care

When your car needs repairs, you need to find an auto body shop you can trust. Ideally, it’s a good idea to do all your research beforehand and have a shop to take your car to in the event of an accident. You can either get suggestions for an auto shop from friends and family who have gotten good work done, or you can do your own research independently.

You can even call people for recommendations or do research while you wait for a tow truck to arrive.

Make Sure All Items on the Estimate Are Necessary

collision estimate scams One of the most common collision estimate scams is to add items to the repair list that aren’t necessary on your car. These are repairs that the shop doesn’t intend to do and/or parts that they don’t intend to install in the car.

If you’re not sure about any items on the estimate, ask the service person to explain them to you and show you the part on the car. If you’re still unsure about the item, use your phone to do a quick search and see if the explanation you’re getting matches up with the information you find.

Never Sign an Estimate without Numbers Filled In

Another type of collision estimate scam is asking you to sign an estimate that has blank spaces on it. Then the mechanic or manager will fill in the information after you leave with whatever numbers they want.

Once you sign an estimate, ask to get a copy sent to you by email and/or take a picture of the estimate with your camera or phone.

Promise to Inspect Work to Make Sure It’s Right

Once you sign the estimate and document it, promise that you’ll inspect the work when it’s complete. This will head off many types of shenanigans, such as not replacing parts they say they are going to, or the common collision estimate scam of including new factory parts in the estimate but using generic or rebuilt parts.

Then do the inspection, making sure that all the replaced parts have been replaced with the promised type.

Trust Accurate Auto Body for Repairs in Denver and Aurora

At Accurate Auto Body, we have been performing honest, quality repairs since 1991. We have earned an A+ rating with the BBB because of the honesty of our work, and our dedication to quickly resolving any problems to our customers’ satisfaction.

We also offer our exclusive Focus on You Service System™. This means that we will:

  • Give a guaranteed damage report and estimate
  • Give a guaranteed completion date
  • Explain all repairs and repair options to you
  • Complete your repairs as quickly as possible
  • Fix your car right the first time

Want to learn more about what makes Accurate Auto Body a reliable, trustworthy auto body shop? Please call 303-344-2212 or use our online form to request a free estimate today.

Repair Options after Parking Lot Vehicle Damage

Posted on: September 27th, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop No Comments

Tens of thousands of parking lot accidents occur every year, accounting for about one in five accidents. Many of these collisions are minor, but some can be quite severe, and almost all of them result in some damage to one or more vehicles. So what are your options for getting repairs to your car after it’s damaged in a parking lot accident?

Repair Options After a Parking Lot Accident

auto body repair for parking lot vehicle damage Parking lot vehicle damage comes in many forms, so it’s possible you might need different types of dent repair, depending on the type of damage.

Paintless Dent Repair

Paintless dent repair is a way to repair minor damage to your car without having to paint the car. This involves using special techniques and tools to gently pop out dented sections of the car. This can be done quickly because there’s no need to paint the car, and this makes it a very affordable repair option for door dings, dents, and damage to the bodyline of a car.

Paintless dent repair can’t be used if the car’s damage coincides with structural supports for the car. It also doesn’t work when the paint is damaged or if the metal has been stretched.

Traditional Dent Repair

Traditional dent repair can involve many different steps. We might have to remove the entire panel, hammer out dents, add filler, grind the metal, and more. Often, it’s best just to replace the damaged part of the car.

In either case, it’s also necessary to paint the repaired part so that it matches the rest of the car. Color matching is something we at Accurate Auto Body are very good at.

Car Painting

Painting is often a part of traditional dent repair, but sometimes we have to paint parts of the car even if they haven’t been dented. Car doors are surprisingly effective at scraping paint off cars, and if you’re unhappy with an area of scraped paint, we can repaint it. We will make sure the new paint matches your old paint exactly.

Payment Options After a Parking Lot Accident

collision repair after parking lot car accident Necessary car repairs can sometimes get expensive, especially if safety technology or other advanced features of the car were damaged. Usually, people pay for their parking lot vehicle damage repairs in one of three ways.

The Other Driver’s Insurance

If your car was hit by someone in the parking lot and you managed to get their insurance information, their insurance might pay for your repairs. Although this might seem like a complicated arrangement, at Accurate Auto Body, we’re used to handling this situation. We can make it as easy for you as possible by dealing with the other driver’s insurance.

Your Insurance

If you didn’t manage to get insurance information from the other driver, you might have to put repairs for parking lot vehicle damage on your insurance policy.

Typically, these repairs are covered under either collision repair, which covers repair to your car regardless of diver fault, or uninsured driver insurance, an optional insurance that covers your car if the other driver does a hit-and-run on your car. We can help you understand your policy and communicate the necessary information to your insurance.

Out-of-Pocket

On the other hand, you might end up paying for repairs out of pocket. Perhaps your insurance won’t cover this damage for some reason, or perhaps you don’t want to involve your insurance company in a claim that is less than your deductible anyway. At Accurate Auto Body, we are happy to work with you directly as well.

Why Choose Accurate Auto Body for Repairs in Denver

If you’re looking to repair your car from parking lot damage in Denver or Aurora, take your car to Accurate Auto Body. Since 1991, we have been doing high-quality repairs for minor and major damage to all common makes and models of cars.

We are one of the most elite body shops in the area, with extensive training. Our mechanics have been Toyota Factory Trained and have been certified by Honda ProFirst Collision Repair, putting us in an elite category that only 4% of auto body shops can claim. In addition, we have achieved I-CAR Gold Class recognition for the level of training and the quality of repairs we perform.

Finally, we have an A+ rating with the BBB. This is because we satisfy our customers with the quality and speed of our repairs. When problems arise, we resolve them quickly to customers’ satisfaction.

You can also count on our Focus on You Service System™. This includes guaranteed pricing, guaranteed completion dates, and a willingness to work around your schedule to minimize the hassle of getting car repairs.

Please call 303-344-2212 or use our contact form to get a free guaranteed estimate on your repairs. Accurate Auto Body serves customers in Denver, Aurora and the surrounding areas of Colorado.

How Long Does Auto Body Repair Take?

Posted on: August 27th, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 3 Comments

When you get in a car accident, you want to get your car repaired, but at the same time you need your car. You depend on it, and you don’t want to be without it for too long. Even if your insurance covers a rental for the repair period, it’s not the same.

So you want to know how long your repair is going to take before you bring the car in. Sometimes delays are related to insurance claims, but we work with your insurance company to minimize these. Then we try to get your car repair done as fast as possible.

Auto Body Repair Can Be Fast

The good news is that auto body repair can be very fast. Repairs to the car’s body can be accomplished in less than a few days. Paintless body repair can be quite fast. You will drop your car off and it might be done the same day. Even more extensive body work doesn’t take very long, until we start adding painting to the schedule.

Auto Painting Can Take Longer

painting a car during auto body repair Once your car needs to be painted, the length of time increases. This is just a matter of physics. Paint takes time to dry, and we need to add multiple coats. This means hours of work and hours of waiting.

When we add painting to the list of repairs, the time increases. It might still only be a few days, but it might be a few weeks.

Mechanical Repairs Are Longer

Another factor that can make your repair longer is if there are other components damaged in the accident. Mechanical repairs can take significantly longer for two reasons.

First, these repairs can be harder to accomplish. Old parts might have to be removed and new parts fitted in, which is not always as easy as it should be. The new components have to be tested and adjusted.

Second, it might be hard to get the necessary parts. If the car and/or component is unusual, we might have to order it, which can take days, weeks, or, unfortunately, months. Some parts are especially hard to get, thanks to computer chip shortages and international shipping delays.

It’s important to note that with modern advanced safety systems, there are sometimes components that can be damaged even if it seems like only minor body damage.

At Accurate Auto Body, You Can Count on Our Timing

Sometimes it’s just as important to know exactly how long a repair is going to take as it is to get a quick repair. At Accurate Auto Body, our Focus on You Service™ system includes a highly accurate estimate of the time your repair is going to take. We also work around your schedule. If a car is drivable and safe, you can keep it until we get the parts and/or are ready to start working on it. If we know we’re not going to be able to touch your car until next week, for example, we’ll tell you so that you can make the decision about whether to drop it off now or later. That ensures you won’t be without your car for very long, especially if you only need paintless dent repair.

We also provide you with a highly accurate estimate of the cost of repairs. With our I-CAR Gold Class certification and extensive experience in repairs, we know what to expect for many different auto body repairs. We won’t be surprised by what we find, and because we won’t be surprised, you won’t be either. We take time to find ways to make repairs as affordable as possible. We are also happy to explain all the items on your bill, and make sure you understand all the costs.

Want to get fast, accurate, and affordable auto body repairs? Please call 303-344-2212 or use our form today for a free estimate on the cost and time for your auto body repairs.

Best Solutions to Paint Your Car After Hail Damage

Posted on: May 19th, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 3 Comments

car damaged in a hail storm We are in the height of hail season in Colorado. Depending on where you live in the Denver Metro Area, you’ve probably already seen a hailstorm or two, possibly one that’s bad enough to damage your car and its paint.

If that’s the case, you might be looking for advice on how to restore your car’s appearance after hail damage. Here are the best solutions for car painting after hail damage.

Maybe You Don’t Need to Paint

Are you sure you need to paint the car after hail damage? Just because the car is badly dented, it doesn’t mean that you’re necessarily going to need to paint it. Instead, most hail damage can be restored with paintless dent repair (sometimes called PDR). In paintless dent repair, dents are pulled out in a way that doesn’t require painting the car.

The advantage of paintless dent repair is that it leaves your car’s factory paint job alone. Even after damage, your car’s factory installed paint job is probably sturdier than a paint job you’d get at home, possibly even than you’d get at an auto collision shop.

Let a Pro Do It

However, if you’re convinced that your car needs or would benefit from painting, take it to an auto collision shop for repainting. The process of repainting a car after hail damage is difficult (see below), with a lot of room for error. It’s also time-consuming if you don’t have the time, tools, or assistance to get it done quickly. A pro can get your car repainted quickly which means that you won’t be without a vehicle and won’t be driving your car while it’s in various stages of repair.

You’ll also get a better quality job. The results from a professional paint job will last much longer than the paint job you apply yourself.

Do It Yourself

If you’re insistent on repainting your own car after hail damage, here’s the step-by-step guide to getting it done.

Sand

First, you have to sand the damaged area to remove old paint, smooth the area, and prepare for dent repair. Sand the surface of the entire panel, trying to get it as smooth as possible. Start with an 80 grit and keep working finer. Once you’ve smoothed with a 220 grit paper, you’re ready for filling, though you should get to 400, 600, or even 1000 grit before painting.

Fill

Once you’ve roughed off the old paint, hopefully not reaching bare metal in very many places, it’s time to apply the fill. Mix the body filler according to directions, then apply it smoothly and evenly across the surface using a wide applicator knife. Try to avoid creating bubbles and make the surface as smooth as possible.

Repeat

Once you apply the body filler, it’s time to sand again. You’re trying to make the surface smooth enough for painting, but don’t be surprised if you have to go back and add filler again. Sanding will likely reveal air pockets in the filler, and it can be hard to create a smooth transition between fill and metal.

Find the Proper Paint Color

hail damage to the hood of a vehicle As you’re getting close to achieving the smooth surface you can paint, it’s time to figure out the proper color for your car. Most cars these days have a paint code from the factory on them. But where it is depends on the car. It might be in the driver’s side door jamb, on the driver’s sun visor, under the driver’s seat, in the glove compartment, near the radiator or someplace else in the engine compartment, in the well for the spare tire, or other places. If you’re lucky, it’ll also be in the owner’s manual.

Once you find the code, you can order matching paint.

Mix Until It Really Matches

However, it’s unlikely that the paint you ordered will actually match the paint of your car. That’s largely because of variations in paint batches, so you’ll have to mix the paint color until it actually matches the rest of the car.

Be Prepared to Do It Again

As we mentioned above, repainting your car at home is unlikely to give you a quality, durable paint job. So you have to be prepared to repaint the damaged panel in a few years. Keep track of any information and tools you used to do the job the first time.

Why Choose Accurate Auto Body for Your Hail Damage

If your car has hail damage, an auto collision shop will give you much better repairs than you can do at home and might not even require painting the car.

At Accurate Auto Body, our Focus on You™ Service System means that we will give you an accurate estimate of what it will cost to fix your car, both in time and money. We can work around your schedule so you can have a minimum disruption to your life. We work with your insurance company so you don’t have to.

For a free estimate on your car’s hail damage, please contact Accurate Auto Body in Denver.

Is Hail Damage Covered by My Auto Insurance?

Posted on: April 22nd, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 1 Comment

Every year, there are hundreds of hailstorms in Colorado with hail stones an inch or more in diameter. These storms can cause serious damage to your car. Even if you take every precaution, sooner or later one of these storms is going to get your car, leaving you with extensive hail damage.

Now you’re left to wonder: Is hail damage repair covered by my auto insurance? The answer is: it depends.

What Type of Coverage Do You Have?

hail damage to the hood of a vehicle Whether insurance will cover your hail damage depends on the type of coverage you have. Comprehensive coverage for your car will cover most damage, regardless of the cause. This includes hail damage.

However, if you have liability only coverage, damage to your car is not likely covered at all. In this situation, only the damage that your car causes to other vehicles or injuries to others caused by your car will be covered.

What’s Your Deductible?

The next question is figuring out whether your deductible will eliminate the benefit of making a claim for your damage.

The deductible is the amount you have to pay out-of-pocket before your insurance kicks in. In some cases, this can be close to or even more than the cost of fixing the damage. In that case, it might not be worth it to file a claim for the damage.

What’s Your Car Worth?

Specifically, this question relates to what your car is worth to the insurance company. Your insurance company estimates and tracks the value of cars as they age and are damaged. The insurance company might decide that the cost of repairing the damage exceeds the value of the car. Then they will “total” the car, paying you what they think the car is worth, rather than the cost of repairing the hail damage.

If you want, you can still take that insurance company payment and use it to repair your car. However, you will likely have to kick in some additional money to fully pay for repairs.

Affordable Hail Damage Repair

At Accurate Auto Body, we are used to dealing with insurance companies. We can help you understand your coverage and get insurance to pay according to the terms of coverage.

We also offer affordable hail damage repair when insurance isn’t picking up the bill. We offer paintless dent repair for most hail damage. This less expensive option can make your car look beautiful again at a fraction of the cost.

However, we also offer traditional hail damage repair when paintless repair isn’t an option.

Why Choose Accurate Auto Body

At Accurate Auto Body, we know that what really matters in your car repairs is you. Your car is a tool, and in fixing that tool, we are serving you. That’s why we’ve developed our Focus on You Service System™. We prioritize taking care of you by treating you with respect in our warm and welcoming office.

We also provide you with a guaranteed estimate and a guaranteed completion date for your repairs. We work around your schedule so you have your car when you need it, and we turn it around faster than other shops so you spend less time without your car. Our award-winning technicians fix your car right the first time so you don’t have to come back for repeated service or end up stranded.

And we work directly with your insurance company so you don’t have to.

To learn more about what sets us apart, make an appointment to get a free estimate at Accurate Auto Body in Denver.

 

Dent Repair after Hail Damage

Posted on: March 30th, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop 1 Comment

person holding hailstones after a storm Colorado is one of the most hail-prone states in the country. We are second only to Texas in the number of insurance claims for hail damage, and a recent analysis by State Farm showed that it paid more for hail and wind damage claims in Colorado than in any other state.

There are many types of damage you might suffer from hail, but after your house’s roof, car dents are the most common. We offer some tips to avoid hail damage, but you can’t always get around it. Fortunately, it’s often easy to repair dents from hail, and your car can be almost as good as new.

Spring Is Hail Season in Colorado

Officially, forecasts say that the hail season in Colorado runs from mid-April to mid-September. However, the most damaging storms are likely to occur in mid to late spring.

Hail forms when an updraft drives water droplets into the air where the temperature is below freezing. Eventually, hailstones grow too large for the air to hold aloft, and they drop to the ground, speeding through the warm air, which starts to melt them. In the spring, the freezing temperature zones are lower than in the late summer. This means that hailstones don’t have to fall through as much warm air before hitting the ground.

Even if the updrafts aren’t as strong in the spring, this shorter melting period means that we can easily get damaging hail at this time.

How We Repair Hail Damage Dents

hail damage on the hood of a car If your car has been damaged by hail, we will assess the damage and determine what type of repair we can use.

Sometimes, we can use paintless dent repair for hail damage. In this case, we can just pop the dents back out. This means that we can repair hail damage for a fraction of the cost of traditional repairs and do it in a fraction of the time.

However, paintless dent repair doesn’t always work for hail damage. In these cases, we have to use traditional repair techniques.

When we give you your estimate, we will tell you which type of repair is required for your hail damage. Accurate and comprehensive estimates are part of our Focus On You Service System™.

Insurance Claims for Hail Damage

As we noted above, insurance claims for hail damage are very common in Colorado. On the one hand, getting insurance to pay for your hail damage is great. After all, that’s what it’s there for. That being said, working with your insurance company can often be a nuisance. However, it’s usually necessary to ensure all hail damage repairs are performed properly without placing a strain on your budget.

That’s where we come in. We can work with your insurance company, handling most of the paperwork to make sure the repair gets paid for. We try to give you the smoothest experience with the least hassle.

Why Choose Accurate Auto Body for Your Hail Damage Repairs

At Accurate Auto Body, we are dedicated to giving our customers the best auto repair experience possible. That’s why we developed our Focus On You Service System™.

This is our promise to:

  • Explain all your repair options
  • Give you an accurate quote
  • Give you a guaranteed repair date
  • Get repairs right the first time
  • Work around your schedule

In addition, we create a welcoming, friendly atmosphere at our shop. You don’t have to be a car expert, and we’ll never make you feel ashamed of that. Instead, we’ll carefully explain your repair options in terms you can understand so that you can choose the best solution for your schedule and your budget.

Want to learn how our Focus on You Service System™ makes a difference for your hail damage repair? Please call 303-344-2212 now or use our online form to get a free estimate on your repairs.

Important Insurance Coverage for Winter Driving

Posted on: January 27th, 2021 by Accurate Auto Body Shop No Comments

The Denver and Aurora area gets a fair amount of snow most winters. While this may make for fun days building snowmen with the kids, it also creates hazards for drivers. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, each year:

  • 24% of weather-related car accidents occur on snowy, icy or slushy roads
  • 15% of weather-related car accidents take place during a snow or sleet storm
  • Over 2,200 fatalities and 192,000 injuries occur during these winter weather-related car accidents

car accident on a highway during winter driving conditions It’s easy to lose control of your vehicle on an icy road and crash into a guardrail or another vehicle. Snow also makes it harder to stop your vehicle, creating additional risks for accidents. However, your vehicle can also get damaged while you’re not driving. It’s common for tree branches loaded down with snow and ice to break off and damage vehicles beneath them.

In all of these situations, you may be faced with costly vehicle repairs. It’s important to have the proper insurance coverage to minimize your financial burden in the event your car is damaged from winter weather issues.

Covering Repair Costs to Your Vehicle

There are two different types of insurance coverage that will pay for damage to your vehicle:

  • Collision Coverage – This coverage pays for repairs to your vehicle after an accident. It covers damage from collisions with both a vehicle and other objects, such as a guardrail or utility pole.
  • Comprehensive Coverage – This coverage pays for weather-related vehicle damage not caused by an accident. Damage from snowy tree branches and other objects that fall on your vehicle would be covered under comprehensive insurance, as would cracks in your windshield that expand during freezing temperatures. In addition, comprehensive insurance will provide reimbursement after vandalism, floods, theft, fire and collisions with an animal.

Both of these insurance coverages are typically optional, but they are worth having if your vehicle is relatively new and still holds a fair amount of value. In some instances, such as when you owe money on a car loan or you’re leasing the vehicle, the leasing company or lender may require you to purchase these types of insurance coverage.

Covering Property Damage and Injuries You Cause to Others

Even the most experienced winter drivers will sometimes lose control of their vehicle on an icy road, resulting in an accident. If you injure someone or cause damage to another driver’s vehicle during the accident, your liability insurance will pay for all their medical bills and property damage.

Colorado requires the following minimum liability insurance coverages for all drivers:

  • $25,000 per person for bodily injury
  • $50,000 per accident for bodily injury
  • $15,000 per accident for property damage

While this is the minimum amount of coverage you must carry by law, it’s generally a good idea to purchase higher levels of liability coverage. In the event of a serious accident, these minimum coverage levels are unlikely to pay for all repairs and medical bills, and you’ll be responsible to pay for the rest out of pocket.

Covering Injuries to Yourself and Your Passengers

The liability coverage discussed above can also be used to pay for injuries sustained by you and your passengers in an accident you cause. In addition, you have the option to purchase MedPay coverage which can be used to receive compensation for injuries, regardless of who is responsible for the accident. Carrying MedPay coverage can potentially expedite reimbursement after an accident.

Protection Against Uninsured Drivers

woman calls for roadside assitance in a snow-covered car While Colorado state law requires all drivers to carry minimum levels of liability coverage, not all drivers comply with this mandate. In addition, many other drivers will comply, but only purchase minimum levels of coverage. Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage provides an important protection if you’re involved in a car accident caused by a driver with insufficient insurance coverage to pay for your medical bills and property damage.

You’ll be able to receive reimbursement for all repairs and medical expenses up to the limits of the uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage you purchased with your policy. This coverage is important to have, as it can protect you from financial hardship in the event of a serious injury.

Other Important Coverages for Winter Accidents

The following types of insurance coverage can be helpful in winter weather:

  • Roadside Assistance Insurance – Vehicle breakdowns and other issues are common during the winter. If your car gets stuck in the snow, your battery is drained by freezing temperatures or you experience any other issue, roadside assistance coverage will reimburse you for the costs associated with these problems.
  • Rental Reimbursement Insurance – It often takes time to get your vehicle repaired and back on the road. If you need a rental car for several weeks, it can become expensive. Rental reimbursement insurance will cover the costs of your rental car up to the limits of the coverage you purchase. This can save you a lot of money.

Accurate Auto Body Can Help after a Winter Car Accident

Accurate Auto Body provides comprehensive collision repair services to restore your vehicle to its pre-accident condition. Our Focus on You Service System™ has been created with your needs in mind in order to deliver the exceptional experience you deserve. As part of this system, you’ll receive:

  • Unparalleled levels of personalized attention
  • Detailed information educating you on all of your options
  • Guaranteed pricing
  • Guaranteed completion dates
  • Faster turnaround times
  • Quality repairs performed correctly the first time
  • Repair appointments that accommodate your schedule
  • Assistance with auto insurance claims

Schedule an Appointment

Please contact us today to schedule an appointment. Accurate Auto Body serves customers in Aurora and throughout the Denver metro area.