Today we are talking about what to watch out for when going to get your motorcycle collision repairs done in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  This isn’t a problem specific to motorcycles necessarily but it relates to all vehicle collision repairs throughout the United States.  

It’s not news that people will try to take advantage of you.  This fact has remained since the dawn of time, but the way you can avoid being scammed is to be educated.  Here at American Auto Body and Collision we want to see you succeed and get the most out of your bad situation.  That’s why we are writing this article.  

There are people who want to scam you and we want to help you avoid them!  So without further ado let’s get into our blog post for today and talk about what some auto body and collision repair shops will try to do. 

American Auto Body and Collision is here to help

We here at American Auto Body and Collision aren’t here to scam you or pull one over on you.  We work with you and your insurance company to help you get the most out of your insurance claim.  Your vehicle (car, truck or motorcycle) is valuable to you – we get it.  That’s why we work hard to help you get the most out of your money so you can get back on the road where you belong. 

When you call us today, we will schedule an appointment to inspect your vehicle and take a look at all the damages.  We perform motorcycle inspections also and can provide you with motorcycle collision repairs whenever you may need them.  Call us today at 918-323-4909 or email us at info@americanabac.com. 

What are some common scams?

These are just a few of the many scams that people will try to pull when it comes to vehicle collision repairs.  People take advantage of lack of knowledge and since the car insurance process can be sometimes confusing, we will wrap this post up by talking about the major things YOU need to know before getting your car repaired.

Bandit Tow Trucks

Yes, you heard us right, “bandit tow trucks”.  These are tow trucks that just seem to show up without being called. Remember that phrase, “If it’s too good to be true then it probably is”? Well we are going to be coming back to that quite frequently because when it comes to scams it always starts out feeling too good to be true (then you find out…it is.)

These tow trucks show up on the site of a car crash offering to help you tow your vehicles to a “great shop they know just down the street.”  Before you know it, you’ve spent exorbitant amounts in fees and have arrived at an auto body and collision repair shop that holds you hostage. That doesn’t sound like anyone’s idea of a good time.

Burying the Deductible

What does it mean to “bury” the deductible?  That’s a great question.  When you bury the deductible you basically hide the deductible costs into the estimate for repairs.  So the insurance company ends up paying more money for the repairs and in essence paying for the deductible. Not exactly an honest way to make a living. 

The shops can do this because they either inflate the report of the damages or they don’t replace the parts with original quality.  Instead they get knock off parts and aftermarket stuff to save a little bit of money and make a better profit. 

Chop Shops

Next on the list is the infamous “chop shop”.  These shops need no introduction as Hollywood has taken these types of establishments and portrayed them many times.  A chop shop is a shop that sells parts of your vehicle to others or tears apart stolen cars to sell the parts.

Airbag Fraud

Some shops will cut some extremely dangerous corners by replacing your deployed airbag with another previously deployed airbag.  This practice leaves you open to later problems should the “refurbished” airbag not deploy when you need it to.

Glass Fraud

If you ever have anyone randomly show up to discuss the cracks in your windshield and how they can be “fixed easily if you just ______”, RUN. These “technicians” will try to trick you with scammy promises and no real results.

Damage Inflation

The final type of scam to watch out for is the damage inflation.  These scammy collision repair shops will diagnose the damages as being greater than they really are to get more money from your insurance company.  They will either request money for parts they never have any intention of replacing or they will purchase aftermarket (cheap) parts to replace your original parts.

Before getting your car repaired…

Ok so before you take your car to an auto body and collision repair shop like American Auto Body and Collision, you need to make sure that you have a little bit of information.  When you get in a car accident, you’ll need to gather information directly after the accident.  

• License Plate / Vehicle Information
• Driver(s) Names, Addresses, Phone Numbers, Other Contact Info, Drivers License Number, etc.
• Photos of the collision
• Photos of the surrounding area

There’s a lot of information that you need to collect.  That’s why we wrote this whole article all about it. 

Motorcycle Collision Repairs | Information to Collect

After you gather all the information you need to collect at the scene, it’s time to call a tow truck (remember our previous conversation about fraud…watch out).  After calling the tow truck, it’d be a great idea to call us here at American Auto Body and Collision.  We’ll have you drop your bike or car off where we can inspect it and take you through the process of reviewing your damages. 

If at that point you need assistance filing your insurance claim, we are here for you with insurance claim assistance.  We’ll help you go through the process of filling out the claim information on your insurance company’s website or mobile application. 

Call us for your Motorcycle Collision Repairs

If you have a bike that has been damaged because of a motorcycle collision, call us today at 918-323-4909.  We are ready to help you get from a bad collision to a good condition fast. The best way to do that is to start with a detailed collision inspection.