Help with damage!

[NES777]

I recently had a fender bender and had some issues with our insurance covering it. It looks like I'll be responsible for the costs to repair our M3. I sent it to a Tesla certified shop and they came back with an estimate for 14K!

I just want to replace the bumper and side fender. Does anyone know if this is something I can order myself and have installed at a local shop or if there is another way I can go about fixing it? The car drives fine.

Any help would really be appreciated!

 

[Silicon Desert]

Sounds really expensive and perhaps the shop thinks something else was damaged. Ask them for a breakdown of what they plan to do for labor and what parts will be replaced.

 

[SilverArrow_44]

Why would a insurance refuse the claim? If you don't mind me asking

 

[KenC]

I recently had a fender bender and had some issues with our insurance covering it. It looks like I'll be responsible for the costs to repair our M3. I sent it to a Tesla certified shop and they came back with an estimate for 14K!

I just want to replace the bumper and side fender. Does anyone know if this is something I can order myself and have installed at a local shop or if there is another way I can go about fixing it? The car drives fine.

Any help would really be appreciated!

Are you saying your insurance won't pay to have this fixed? Rear quarter panel replacement is very involved and thus expensive.

 

[MP3Mike]

Rear quarter panel replacement is very involved and thus expensive.

Yep, it isn't just a bolt on component. There used to be a time-lapse video of a shop doing one, but it seems that it has been removed from YouTube.

 

[Ciaopec]

I recently had a fender bender and had some issues with our insurance covering it. It looks like I'll be responsible for the costs to repair our M3. I sent it to a Tesla certified shop and they came back with an estimate for 14K!

I just want to replace the bumper and side fender. Does anyone know if this is something I can order myself and have installed at a local shop or if there is another way I can go about fixing it? The car drives fine.

Any help would really be appreciated!

My RR quarter panel suffered damage from a wall I slid into on ice. Ugly but it could have been worse. But, since the quarter panel is part of frame, it required removal and replacement with welds and adhesives. Removal of rear hatch, bumper, RR door, seats, etc. Big process for what would have been fairly simple fix on another car. Cannot find pictures .


I had damage in excess of that to my MS. Had my insurance company get involved with Tesla approved body shop and the figure came down significantly. (Original was $1000 from me and $14000 from insurance. Ultimately, $1000 from me and $7500 from insurance. I was happy.

 

[Diamond Hills]

That isn't outside the realm of possibility. As Ciaopec stated, the process isn't as simple as it may seem. If the shop is repairing it properly, there is a fair amount of other pieces that they would have to remove before they can replace that quarter panel. Something that a lot of people don't take into account is the domino effect of removing pieces, as well. Sometimes it isn't just as simple as taking out the door or just the headliner (and this isn't specific to Tesla). You may need to disconnect safety restraint systems, remove glass, remove additional trim pieces to get to the trim pieces that were what you needed to remove originally.

Since you were hit on the left, the charge port and all associated systems would have to come out, as well. In addition, there is reprogramming that has to be done to the sensors in the rear bumper. We've also seen some wacky instances where after the car is torn down, there is secondary damage that is related to the loss but wasn't evident at first glance. We've had to fix autopilot issues when it didn't seem as though it would have anything to do with that. In hits like this, we've actually even seen suspension damage to the strut believe it or not. I'm not trying to make this a bigger deal than it seems to be. This is strictly based off of the hundreds of Teslas that we've seen roll through our multiple locations. After you properly tear a vehicle down, you would be surprised at the amount of damage that shows up.

Because they're a TAB shop, they're also probably treating it as we would - with extreme caution and care. Tesla audits for their TAB program are getting increasingly strict. The company has been trying to weed out the collision centers that don't perform and are moving towards a better customer experience in the entire repair process chain. Due to that, a lot of TAB's are making sure they get everything they can in the estimate. We don't want to miss anything and have it become a problem later on. Long story short, our estimators took a look at it and agreed that this is in the range of 10-14k just based off of a very rough visual estimate from the two photos you attached. This quote may be slightly high, but it is hard to tell just based off of two photos.

You could probably get it done cheaper at a non-TAB shop and they may do an alright job; however, I wouldn't recommend it. We've had Teslas come in from non-TAB shops that don't have Tesla support/training and they're a wreck. We end up repairing more than we would have had to. There was one instance where they welded panels that were supposed to be bonded/riveted. It wasn't great. We don't have any skin in the game. If you want, you can PM me a copy of the estimate you were given and our estimators can double check it to make sure the shop isn't doing something to fleece you.

 

[ThomasD]

To replace the rear quarter You have to disassemble most of the interior. Remove the rear window and possibly the glass roof. Take the Bumper off take the taillight out. Drill all the spot welds out separate the quarter from the inner structure. Weld new quarter on paint and reassemble the car.

 

[not4antoher]

Model 3 rear structure is somewhat unique.
The steel rear quarter panel is bonded to the aluminum rear structure. Replacing the quarter panel is not simple. It requires special bonding and riveting, and not many collision repair shops are ready for those kinds of repairs.

 

[jjrandorin]

I am still wondering what type of insurance one would have to have where that isnt covered in some form, with a deductible.

Everyone is burying the the actual question here, which should be WTH is "some issues with insurance covering it"? Does OP have a 2.5k deductible and cant afford that? Even if you are at fault, unless you have california minimum insurance you should get some assistance here.

What insurance company is "having trouble covering" obvious damage? There has to be something else going on there that this OP is not saying. Now, OP knows that 14k isnt out of the realm of possibility for a good repair for this. Why would anyone with insurance even consider shelling out more than their deductible on this?

 

[SlimJim]

bumper is $1050 replaced with a new unit.
Therefore $1400 is quite cheap.

 

[MP3Mike]

I am still wondering what type of insurance one would have to have where that isnt covered in some form, with a deductible.

Everyone is burying the the actual question here, which should be WTH is "some issues with insurance covering it"? Does OP have a 2.5k deductible and cant afford that? Even if you are at fault, unless you have california minimum insurance you should get some assistance here.

What insurance company is "having trouble covering" obvious damage? There has to be something else going on there that this OP is not saying. Now, OP knows that 14k isnt out of the realm of possibility for a good repair for this. Why would anyone with insurance even consider shelling out more than their deductible on this?

It is possible that he paid cash for the car and didn't have collision coverage. (Or is collision coverage required in California?)

Or his coverage lapsed... Any number of reasons why insurance wouldn't be helping.

 

[FanBoy0427]

It is possible that he paid cash for the car and didn't have collision coverage. (Or is collision coverage required in California?)

Or his coverage lapsed... Any number of reasons why insurance wouldn't be helping.

Collision pays for these accidents minus deductible. The only reason why OP can't go thru insurance is because he/she doesn't carry collision coverage

 

[acarney]

Collision pays for these accidents minus deductible. The only reason why OP can't go thru insurance is because he/she doesn't carry collision coverage

It could also be that his insurance has warned him the premium will triple or something or that they’ll drop him... but that’s pretty aggressive of them. Normally they just spring it on you at renewal time...

 

[ilyak]

I am still wondering what type of insurance one would have to have where that isnt covered in some form, with a deductible.

Everyone is burying the the actual question here, which should be WTH is "some issues with insurance covering it"? Does OP have a 2.5k deductible and cant afford that? Even if you are at fault, unless you have california minimum insurance you should get some assistance here.

What insurance company is "having trouble covering" obvious damage? There has to be something else going on there that this OP is not saying. Now, OP knows that 14k isnt out of the realm of possibility for a good repair for this. Why would anyone with insurance even consider shelling out more than their deductible on this?

I suspect the issue is not necessarily an outright denial of coverage but rather a labor rate dispute. Prevailing labor rate for Tesla certified body shops in my area is around $125/hour and most cheap insurance companies start pushing back on anything above $60. After my accident, Geico originally estimated based on $40/hour body and $45/hour paint labor, and the disconnect between them and the body shop would have left me with over $7500 in out-of pocket costs. Luckily, my shop had a good relationship with local estimators and they were able to show that the prevailing market rate the mothership cited was not accurate. In the end, Geico paid for the whole thing as a concession line item, retaining their labor rate but adding a balloon item covering the difference to the parts cost. This is where going to a shop that is willing to negotiate with insurance becomes very important.

 

[Ciaopec]

bumper is $1050 replaced with a new unit.
Therefore $1400 is quite cheap.

You are off by a factor of 10. The quote is $14K ($14000) not $1400.

 

[SlimJim]

You are off by a factor of 10. The quote is $14K ($14000) not $1400.

Oops.
Thanks for pointing that out.
That is a very high estimate.

 

[jjrandorin]

It could also be that his insurance has warned him the premium will triple or something or that they’ll drop him... but that’s pretty aggressive of them. Normally they just spring it on you at renewal time...

Even if insurance costs triple (in your example for 3 years and go from 2k a year, to 6k a year (which is highly unlikely), that would be an increase of 4k a year, over 4 years... which would still be cheaper than getting this fixed wthout insurance.

 

[DigglyDog]

I slightly swiped my M3 on an entrance ramp guardrail and did some cosmetic damage all along the left side, from front bumper to LR quarter panel and maybe rear bumper. From 20 feet away it was hard to tell it was damaged, and there was absolutely no functional impact. Half the scuffs and dings surely could have been “buffed right out.”

My TAB determined the LR quarter panel had to be replaced, and the total estimate was $36k. I was dumbfounded. Had car less than 3 months, about 3000 miles. Kemper totaled it. I called them and insisted they had the wrong car, but they and the TAB were in sync, and they did indeed total it. I had full replacement coverage so the loss amount was the full amount I had paid for the vehicle. Kemper paid off the bank and sent me a check to reimburse the little that I had paid on it, minus $250 deductible. I was assured this would not affect my rates (been with them for 28 years with no tickets or accidents, just a couple of windshields).

This happened in March, right before “quarantine,” so I was in no hurry to replace the car since I had nowhere to go. After the $2k price drop and before the July 1 FSD increase, I ordered a duplicate of my original M3, and it will be delivered next week. For less than I paid for the first one.

Still shaking my head.

 

[acarney]

I slightly swiped my M3 on an entrance ramp guardrail and did some cosmetic damage all along the left side, from front bumper to LR quarter panel and maybe rear bumper. From 20 feet away it was hard to tell it was damaged, and there was absolutely no functional impact. Half the scuffs and dings surely could have been “buffed right out.”

My TAB determined the LR quarter panel had to be replaced, and the total estimate was $36k. I was dumbfounded. Had car less than 3 months, about 3000 miles. Kemper totaled it. I called them and insisted they had the wrong car, but they and the TAB were in sync, and they did indeed total it. I had full replacement coverage so the loss amount was the full amount I had paid for the vehicle. Kemper paid off the bank and sent me a check to reimburse the little that I had paid on it, minus $250 deductible. I was assured this would not affect my rates (been with them for 28 years with no tickets or accidents, just a couple of windshields).

This happened in March, right before “quarantine,” so I was in no hurry to replace the car since I had nowhere to go. After the $2k price drop and before the July 1 FSD increase, I ordered a duplicate of my original M3, and it will be delivered next week. For less than I paid for the first one.

Still shaking my head.

How do I get in on this scam?! Lol

(I know it’s not a scam, but boy if you told anyone outside the Tesla geek groups that story they would surely think you pulled a fast one on your insurance!)