When looking for Collision Repair Services in SWFL and the Fort Myers surrounding areas, you need to ask yourself some smart questions. Taking your car to any shop is not a smart move.
I have been in the business as a shop owner since 1980 (33 years of writing this), and my shop was initially up North. Like most of us seeking a warmer climate moved to SWFL, I ran what people would call a state-of-the-art shop. We were known as the Heavy-hit Collision Repair specialists.
We had 6 tow trucks towing for the police at all times and pulled in some pretty mangled-up cars and trucks. Along with two Car-o-liner Uni-body Frame machines with measuring, we also had a drive-on rack for the trucks that came in.
Here is what has happened in the Auto Body Industry.
In the earlier days, the shops had a better handle on the repairs. They worked for the customer providing a service (like it should be) and negotiating with the major insurance companies on how your car repair should be done (Amica, Nationwide, Allstate, Geico, Progressive). That was before you heard of Direct Repair Shops
What happened initially is all the auto body shops that were starving for work signed up as “direct repair “ and thought it was their answer for lousy marketing. They liked the idea of work coming in with little effort. They did not realize they would be making concessions in how your car will be repaired.
The insurance companies wanted to control costs, so they fed the auto body shops their customers. Directly this caused all sorts of problems, and anti-steering laws were created and adjusted because it benefited the insurance company to send the consumer to their “preferred shops” so they can tell the shops how to fix the cars and keep their cost down.
That is not a good idea when you are fixing a car to pre-loss condition. For the simple fact, the insurance company will push used parts and aftermarket (non-OEM) on the shops that they are feeding.
I hope you get the picture. That is not the proper way to fix your vehicle after it’s been in an accident. You deserve new original equipment parts (OEM). Precisely that is how we repair the cars to pre-loss condition at our shop.
We don’t settle for used quarter panels and used parts, and many times it is actually cheaper to do the job correctly the first time. Period end of the discussion and I hope you can see the difference in your Mercedes Benz, BMW, or Ford F150. We fix them all, and it sure makes a difference in the quality of the repair when the shop uses new OEM parts and not used (LKQ) replacement parts.
The other aspect I will touch on is the shop you pick to repair your car should be a careful decision. I recommend using a shop where the owner is on the job, and one person works on your vehicle. This way, the tech is updated with every aspect.
Why? If one person is working on your car taking it apart and writing the estimate and ordering the parts, your best interest (the car will) have all procedures appropriately completed.
No middlemen, no mistakes, just a good quality repair from a trained car certified collision tech. When there are too many hands in the project, mistakes are made, and you do not get the same quality repair.
I hope this helps you with the basics of picking a good repair shop for your auto body needs.
Take a look at the classic cars and the love we have for the Auto Body business on our site map HERE
It is not a job for us. It is our passion.
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