Fighting with a dealership

[sfouts]

What is the name of your state? Texas

My college daughter was involved in an accident in Oklahoma City, OK a couple of weeks prior to coming home for the summer to Texas. The accident occurred in a IHop parking lot and the police were not called, she and the other party exchanged insurance information. The other guys insurance company sent a third party adjuster (American Claim Services) to write a claim on my daughters vehicle. A few days later she received the initial paperwork from American Claim Service for the damages. Since she was coming home in a few days I told her to wait until she got home to Texas and I would take her '96 Ford Thunderbird into our local dealership for repairs. When she arrived home I took the vehicle in to the dealership and they took the paperwork from AMerican Claim Services and estimated the damage. I signed the form to have the vehicle fixed. The dealership found more damage than the original claim so they faxed pictures to American Claim Services, who in turn verbally, over the phone approved the additional damages to be repaired. The insurance company (Unitrin) was never contacted by the dealership or myself (I turned the vehicle over to the dealership). In the mean time Unitrin denied the claim when they received the paperwork from the Ford dealership and said that they mailed a notice to my daughters college address (we never received it). The dealership adviced that American Claim Services okayed the repairs, which Unitrin says they cannot do and that the dealership should have acquired permission from them before they did any repairs. American Claim Services denies any liability as they do not give permission to fix vehicles, they are only claims adjusters. Now the dealership wants me to pay $1311.11 for a car that is not worth that amount. I did sign the folder for the dealership to fix the repairs based on the original paperwork from American Claim Services (the original damage. I did not know about the additional damage until the vehicle was fixed). They say it is not their responsibility but I feel like they messed up by never checking with Unitrin before they did any repairs. Do I have to pay this amount? What are my options, is any?
Need help in Texas.

[moburkes]

Originally Posted by sfouts

What is the name of your state? Texas

My college daughter was involved in an accident in Oklahoma City, OK a couple of weeks prior to coming home for the summer to Texas. The accident occurred in a IHop parking lot and the police were not called, she and the other party exchanged insurance information. The other guys insurance company sent a third party adjuster (American Claim Services) to write a claim on my daughters vehicle. A few days later she received the initial paperwork from American Claim Service for the damages. Since she was coming home in a few days I told her to wait until she got home to Texas and I would take her '96 Ford Thunderbird into our local dealership for repairs. When she arrived home I took the vehicle in to the dealership and they took the paperwork from AMerican Claim Services and estimated the damage. I signed the form to have the vehicle fixed. The dealership found more damage than the original claim so they faxed pictures to American Claim Services, who in turn verbally, over the phone approved the additional damages to be repaired. The insurance company (Unitrin) was never contacted by the dealership or myself (I turned the vehicle over to the dealership). In the mean time Unitrin denied the claim when they received the paperwork from the Ford dealership and said that they mailed a notice to my daughters college address (we never received it). The dealership adviced that American Claim Services okayed the repairs, which Unitrin says they cannot do and that the dealership should have acquired permission from them before they did any repairs. American Claim Services denies any liability as they do not give permission to fix vehicles, they are only claims adjusters. Now the dealership wants me to pay $1311.11 for a car that is not worth that amount. I did sign the folder for the dealership to fix the repairs based on the original paperwork from American Claim Services (the original damage. I did not know about the additional damage until the vehicle was fixed). They say it is not their responsibility but I feel like they messed up by never checking with Unitrin before they did any repairs. Do I have to pay this amount? What are my options, is any?
Need help in Texas.

Was Unitrin supposed to have done differently?

[sfouts]

moburke,
I am not sure Unitrin could have done anything differently. I think Unitrin was doing their job as an insurance company. My question concerns the dealership for fixing the vehicle without receiving permission from the insurance company?

Thanks,
sfouts

Originally Posted by sfouts

moburke,
I am not sure Unitrin could have done anything differently. I think Unitrin was doing their job as an insurance company. My question concerns the dealership for fixing the vehicle without receiving permission from the insurance company?

Thanks,
sfouts

The Adjuster approved the repairs and should have sent some type of written authorization to the garage after the initial verbal agreement was made.

Did you sign ANYTHING stating that YOU would be responsible for the cost of the repairs that the insurance did not/would not cover?

I've actually been through this EXACT same situation before. I DID NOT authorize any additional repairs,...the adjuster DID IN FACT verbally authorize the repairs, the garage failed to send the appropriate paperwork (supplement claim) to the adjuster for signature etc.,...the garage came after me for the $$$$,...I told them to "bite rocks",... the garage sued ME in small claims for the additional $$$$


THEY LOST.....I WON!!!!! THE GARAGE ATE THE BILL!!!

This was just my experience and NOT intended to reflect the law.

[sfouts]

I signed the original work folder for the original repairs. I signed nothing more and knew nothing of additional repairs until the work was finished. The dealership sent photos and a supplemental claim form to the adjuster who verbally approved the additional work but according to the dealership they received nothing more, they acted in good faith on what the adjuster told them over the phone. Unitrin says that American Claim Services has no right to approve any work whatsoever. American Claim Services says that they do not approve work and that they would have never given an okay (although the lady the dealership spoke with at ACS has not been able to speak with anyone since then). I am willing to pay the oginal repair charges but not the additional work in which the dealership received no approval for from me or from the insurance company. I feel like the dealership has some responsibility in this for not checking with the insurance company before soing the work.

Any chance you missed the "fine print" on the original contract?

[sfouts]

There was no fine print or contract. The only thing I signed was a manila folder that the dealership body shop used to hold the paperwork from American Claim Services. They kept the car and I never heard anything else until th car was repaired. The only paperwork they had at the time was the original claim form from ACS and now the supplemental form from ACS. It was not until they submitted their paperwork to Unitrin that we knew they had denied the claim.

Originally Posted by sfouts

There was no fine print or contract. The only thing I signed was a manila folder that the dealership body shop used to hold the paperwork from American Claim Services. They kept the car and I never heard anything else until th car was repaired. The only paperwork they had at the time was the original claim form from ACS and now the supplemental form from ACS. It was not until they submitted their paperwork to Unitrin that we knew they had denied the claim.

So...when you told the garage that you were not going to pay, what was their response?

[sfouts]

Originally the service manager said he would split the total costs with me. Then I spoke with the owner who said that I would have to pay it all (he never listened to the story). Then the service manager said he spoke with the dealerships general manager (the owners son-in-law) who said I would have to pay it all. I then asked what happened to his original deal to each pay half in which he shrugged it off. The service manager was very quick to originally offer to pay half, but when I was hesitant he took it to the general manager. I felt like he felt some sense of responsibility in this but since then has not been involved.

Originally Posted by sfouts

There was no fine print or contract. The only thing I signed was a manila folder that the dealership body shop used to hold the paperwork from American Claim Services. They kept the car and I never heard anything else until th car was repaired. The only paperwork they had at the time was the original claim form from ACS and now the supplemental form from ACS. It was not until they submitted their paperwork to Unitrin that we knew they had denied the claim.

Ya know...I was just thinking that MAYBE when you signed that "Manila envelope" containing all of the paperwork...maybe it was inadvertently implied that you agreed to everything that was IN the envelope, which may have included "who's responsible for payment" if insurance denies the claim.

Not sure about that, but my wheels were turning.

Stand by for other opinions.