Collision repair shop in Seattle area question

[ShellyK]

I have State Farm Insurance. Was in a collision needing significant repair. Murray's CARSTAR Collision in Des Moines, WA is the only authorized Tesla repair shop on State Farm's preferred provider list.
Anybody have experience with this repair shop? Many in the Seattle area talk about Exotic, Metro, or Pacific.
I do have an estimate from Metro that is similar to what State Farm has estimated for repair ( both estimates based on photos I supplied- and the same photos to each place).
My preference would be to go to a place that is preferred by State Farm in case there are any surprises that come up during the repair and the cost goes up, but first priority would be that the repair shop is good

Thanks

 

[Genie]

IME (Metro) big delays are the concern, there were no surprise charges. Good luck!

 

[Luvtoride]

Shelly, as long as Metro is an authorized Tesla repair center, there should be no issue. Tesla authorized centers generally charge a higher hourly labor cost that insurance companies sometimes balk at. As long as their estimate is close to State Farm's approved repair estimate, you should be ok. Good luck.

 

[axiomatic]

Hi ShellyK,

I’m in a similar situation and looking to find a repair shop in the Seattle Area and wondering which repair shop you ended up picking and how is the process turning out so far? Could you share some details?

Thanks!

 

[ShellyK]

So, I still have not taken my car in because appt for repairs not until the end of June. My accident occurred mid February, just to give you an idea. I called the two Seattle repair shops as well as the two in Bellevue. One of the Bellevue location does not take State Farm. Of the other three, one quoted me $25,000 and the other two quoted me $11,000. So a vast difference. This is all based on photos. I ended up going with CARSTAR in Des Moines, Washington because they are a State Farm Tesla authorized location so all I have to pay is my deductible, and I will not have to worry about repairs costing more than an estimate, etc. However, I cannot comment on the repair service as my appointment to take it in to have them look at it and start repairs is not until the end of June. I was able to upload and send them pictures. I am on a waitlist for an earlier appointment should there be a cancellation, but that has not occurred.
So far, CARSTAR has been approachable, and have answered questions in a timely fashion. But that’s all I can say about them so far.

 

[axiomatic]

Curious what are your plans for commute in this period without your vehicle? How long does StateFarm cover rental?

 

[ShellyK]

I have been using our 3rd car. I have not yet taken a State Farm rental car but they will cover rental for $1000, so you will need to find out how much a daily rental would be. In the past, we used Enterprise when needed to rent a car under state farm, and the daily cost to me was about $10-$12/ day for my cost ( I’m assuming discounted because it was under insurance. if I had just booked a car on my own, it was closer to $20-$30 a day. So $1000 could go quite a ways). And just an FYI, all the Tesla repair shops when I had called them in February, we’re booking out until May/June.

I was unable to find out comments or reviews on Carstet for Tesla, but given the vast range in quotes that I got, I didn’t want to have a hassle with State Farm not covering part of the repair if they disagreed with the estimate ( if I went to a non-authorized repair shop) and pay out of pocket.

 

[ShellyK]

I have been using our 3rd car. I have not yet taken a State Farm rental car but they will cover rental for $1000, so you will need to find out how much a daily rental would be. In the past, we used Enterprise when needed to rent a car under state farm, and the daily cost to me was about $10-$12/ day for my cost ( I’m assuming discounted because it was under insurance. if I had just booked a car on my own, it was closer to $20-$30 a day. So $1000 could go quite a ways). And just an FYI, all the Tesla repair shops when I had called them in February, we’re booking out until May/June.

I was unable to find out comments or reviews on Carstet for Tesla, but given the vast range in quotes that I got, I didn’t want to have a hassle with State Farm not covering part of the repair if they disagreed with the estimate ( if I went to a non-authorized repair shop) and pay out of pocket.

I meant, if I went to place that was not on State Farm’ preferred list

 

[axiomatic]

Thank you for the details!

 

[axiomatic]

I ended up going with Murray's CARSTAR since its in network with Safeco Insurance but the intake date is 1st week of Sep

 

[ShellyK]

I’m glad you went with in-network as I think things will hopefully be less of a hassle. Hope Safeco has good rental coverage as that’s a long ways away! I’ll post an update about my repairs ( if and when it happens. Still another month to go)

 

[Luvtoride]

Wow, those dates for wait times are crazy!! If you did need a rental for that long, would insurance cover for more than 30 days or $1,000? Obviously, these Tesla authorized shops are in high demand and there just aren't enough of them (at least in the Washington state area). Good luck with your repairs!

 

[axiomatic]

They said it’s up to the max rental limit with a cap of $50/day. So if you can find a rental for 10-15 you could technically make it last for at least 2 months.

 

[jay_hawk_85]

Hey there, I realize this is a super old post but we're now in the same situation.

We were rear-ended by someone who has State Farm and are being told that Murray's CARSTAR is the only "in-network" shop that accepts this person's insurance.

For those who ended up going that route, how did the repairs turn out?

 

[kilpatds]

For those who ended up going that route, how did the repairs turn out?

I had the left rear quarter-panel dented while in BC Canada, so had to use comprehensive and have State Farm, so in that boat. Metro-Auto rebuild was historically in network, but was really annoyed at State Farm at the time, so wouldn't take me if I was using them. They estimated ~8k. Tesla estimated 10k. Murray's estimated ~5k. I went with Murray's, it ended up ~10k. The repairs are fine... if I pull out the proverbial protractor, the rear light & charge flap aren't quite as flush as they used to be, but it's quite hard to tell (and "within spec" given the other not-hit side being too far in), and they fixed my stock (and not well attached) spoiler... The issue isn't going to be the repair quality, it's going to be resale value from the accident being on record.

 

[Genie]

I had the left rear quarter-panel dented while in BC Canada, so had to use comprehensive and have State Farm, so in that boat. Metro-Auto rebuild was historically in network, but was really annoyed at State Farm at the time, so wouldn't take me if I was using them. They estimated ~8k. Tesla estimated 10k. Murray's estimated ~5k. I went with Murray's, it ended up ~10k. The repairs are fine... if I pull out the proverbial protractor, the rear light & charge flap aren't quite as flush as they used to be, but it's quite hard to tell (and "within spec" given the other not-hit side being too far in), and they fixed my stock (and not well attached) spoiler... The issue isn't going to be the repair quality, it's going to be resale value from the accident being on record.

How long did it take Murrays for the repair? I didn’t learn my lesson the first time Metro had my MX for over 2 months so when I had really minor left rear QP damage I went back to Metro and it took over one month. They damaged some plastic trim under the front bumper some how. I am interested in any other local shop for the future,

 

[kilpatds]

How long did it take Murrays for the repair?

3 weeks and change? Pre-pandemic and pre-ev, I'd have been surprised at that, but given where I am now, that seemed reasonable to me.

 

[jay_hawk_85]

I had the left rear quarter-panel dented while in BC Canada, so had to use comprehensive and have State Farm, so in that boat. Metro-Auto rebuild was historically in network, but was really annoyed at State Farm at the time, so wouldn't take me if I was using them. They estimated ~8k. Tesla estimated 10k. Murray's estimated ~5k. I went with Murray's, it ended up ~10k. The repairs are fine... if I pull out the proverbial protractor, the rear light & charge flap aren't quite as flush as they used to be, but it's quite hard to tell (and "within spec" given the other not-hit side being too far in), and they fixed my stock (and not well attached) spoiler... The issue isn't going to be the repair quality, it's going to be resale value from the accident being on record.

Thanks for the detailed response. Super helpful.