Hey everyone, I am new here and hoping someone with experience may be able to answer this. I have some side swipe damage to the back rear passenger side. After combing through many forums and YouTube videos, it looks like this is the most expensive part to fix. Based on these pictures I’m trying to predict what my insurance company (progresssive) is likely to do. I live in Florida and believe the total out damage has to exceed 80% of the value. Not sure if it’s a rule or suggestion.
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Body damage
- Thread starter Mjk5020
- Start date
This repair will cost 20k in a major city.
The panel needs to be cut from the car and a new one welded back in it's place. Is the wheel/suspension straight?
The car will not be totaled though, 100%. Most insurance companies will only total vehicles with structural damage. There's a slight chance your car might have structural damage but not enough to total it out.
If you want to keep the car tell the body shop that you don't want it totaled out so they can give an estimate to reflect it. If you want a new car tell them that also.
The panel needs to be cut from the car and a new one welded back in it's place. Is the wheel/suspension straight?
The car will not be totaled though, 100%. Most insurance companies will only total vehicles with structural damage. There's a slight chance your car might have structural damage but not enough to total it out.
If you want to keep the car tell the body shop that you don't want it totaled out so they can give an estimate to reflect it. If you want a new car tell them that also.
Rice&Curry
Member
From the pics , I don't think there is any structural damage. The door and the rear panel over the wheel will have to be replaced. The bigger challenge is getting parts for the repair. Tesla is backed up on spares availability and hence a long wait time for a proper repair.. Hope it all works out for you.
I will say everyone that sees it in person says it worse than In the pictures lol, my kind of luck. Appreciate the response. I just always assume the insurance company will do what’s easiest and cheapest for them in the long run, but not quite sure what that exactly means
The car does seem to drive fine. I’ve continued driving for almost a week now without issue except for embarrassment and a giant blue duct tape patch over the hole. I am trying to understand the inner workings of an insurance company and how they process stuff like this. In your example is it more beneficial to salvage and sell at auction than sink 20k into a lengthy repair? I don’t know. I know they’ll do what’s best for them always
20k plus your rental might add up to a total loss last year. However, in the current climate, considering how much more expensive the car has gotten over time—they likely won’t total it out. The panels alone aren’t really of concern, and a good shop will make it like new, with time. My main concern is wether or not the wheel got pushed in, as that could require mechanical damage.
Your body shop will give a preliminary estimate to your insurance if about 10k, and then a follow up estimate once they tear the car apart, likely another 10k. (Actually a common thing for body shops is to put a lot lower initial estimate, to get insurance to pay out).
Once the company starts tearing off the panels, the likelihood of you keeping the car goes up, as they’ve already paid a portion of the work.
I would personally keep the car, because I would hate to be stuck buying a new one at these inflated prices and wait times. But the choice is up to you. You could get a brand new car with no accident history, and less depreciation. I would check Kbb for your cars value and then check the cost of ordering a new one from Tesla to see if it makes sense.
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