At Wits End in CA.....Help!!

Long story short: Our van was hit over a year ago....took it to the body shop 4 times, they didn't fix it, and in fact screwed it up. The door popped open a few times..and I have kieds. Took it to the dealership at least 4 more times, they can't fix it. The ins. co. seems to be dragging feet-not returning calls to us, etc...We just want it fixed. I don't know what to do next....Is this the right forum for advice? What else can be done other than getting a lawyer?

Since you want to know about options, OTHER THAN GETTING A LAWYER, there are very few available:

1) Call the dealer, the body shop and the insurance company every week. Demand that they do something. Keep notes of all your calls.

2) Write the dealer, the body shop and the insurance company letters once a month. Send it Certified RRR. Include your history and demand that they do something.

3) Contact every regulatory agency, consumer agency, local media, BBB, etc. that you can think of. Keep calling them.

Other than calling them and writing them, little else you can do.

Well, we have been calling the insurance guy all the time...I understood that it was out of the hands of the body shop, since we took it to the dealership...And the dealership will do nothing without the insurance guy okaying it....
I just wanted to be sure we were doing all we could before getting a lawyer, which we are prepared to do. Do you think we have a case? Thanks for your reply.

Dealing with Insurance Company

It seems that you real problem at this point is the insurance company. Send them a letter, by certified mail, indicating the history of the problems and identifying, to the extent possible, the times that you have sought information or help from the insurance company. State that you feel that the insurance company is not handling your claim in good faith (that is the scary phrase to an insurance company). Ask that someone review your file and call you within 3 days so that you can discuss the resolution of your problem. Then see what happens. A letter like that should alert the company that you are seriously unhappy about how the claim is being handled and that you need additional help.