Panel Beating / Car Repair help

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Handsomedan

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#1345190 16-Jul-2015 09:53

Having just been through this with my wife's car (wing mirror with electrics, camera etc) broken and a couple of minor chips/dents in door panel, excess $300.00 and no claims bonus impact of ($x?)

Total repair cost is $1100.00

Whichever way I look at it, this is why I have insurance.

I simply agreed to pay the $300.00 excess and lose the no claims bonus for my peace of mind and to have a newly pristine car in the driveway once more.

I didn't even consider what the future cost may be as that (to me) makes having full cover insurance completely irrelevant.

Why pay the premiums, if you're never going to claim?

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sep11guy

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#1345213 16-Jul-2015 10:01

Handsomedan: Having just been through this with my wife's car (wing mirror with electrics, camera etc) broken and a couple of minor chips/dents in door panel, excess $300.00 and no claims bonus impact of ($x?)

Total repair cost is $1100.00

Whichever way I look at it, this is why I have insurance.

I simply agreed to pay the $300.00 excess and lose the no claims bonus for my peace of mind and to have a newly pristine car in the driveway once more.

I didn't even consider what the future cost may be as that (to me) makes having full cover insurance completely irrelevant.

Why pay the premiums, if you're never going to claim?

I like the thought process behind that, but to say give a different angle to it , or say being devils advocate :

if your premiums go up by 20%, and your pay back to the cost of repair is 4 years, the consequence of the claim is that you would still continue paying more $$ after payback, just because you had the crash, it wont go down. so assuming you are in the 30's, you will continue to pay high insurance for the next years, you have the car with you.

Am i right with thinking so ?

jonathan18

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#1345221 16-Jul-2015 10:02

Handsomedan: Having just been through this with my wife's car (wing mirror with electrics, camera etc) broken and a couple of minor chips/dents in door panel, excess $300.00 and no claims bonus impact of ($x?)

Total repair cost is $1100.00

Whichever way I look at it, this is why I have insurance.

I simply agreed to pay the $300.00 excess and lose the no claims bonus for my peace of mind and to have a newly pristine car in the driveway once more.

I didn't even consider what the future cost may be as that (to me) makes having full cover insurance completely irrelevant.

Why pay the premiums, if you're never going to claim?

I do think the impact on one's premiums is relevant, as that is the net cost of making the claim. But equally I don't think one should be scared off claiming in situations where doing so will put you in a better (or not so bad!) financial position.

So in your situation I'd totally claim, and I imagine I would do so in the OP's situation as well. My scenario - where I would save $21 by claiming - isn't so clear-cut. As far as I can see it, I'm better off to pay for the repairs and ideally get them done cheaper, given the full cost of repairs falls on me.

Handsomedan

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#1345225 16-Jul-2015 10:04

jonathan18:
Handsomedan: Having just been through this with my wife's car (wing mirror with electrics, camera etc) broken and a couple of minor chips/dents in door panel, excess $300.00 and no claims bonus impact of ($x?)

Total repair cost is $1100.00

Whichever way I look at it, this is why I have insurance.

I simply agreed to pay the $300.00 excess and lose the no claims bonus for my peace of mind and to have a newly pristine car in the driveway once more.

I didn't even consider what the future cost may be as that (to me) makes having full cover insurance completely irrelevant.

Why pay the premiums, if you're never going to claim?

I do think the impact on one's premiums is relevant, as that is the net cost of making the claim. But equally I don't think one should be scared off claiming in situations where doing so will put you in a better (or not so bad!) financial position.

So in your situation I'd totally claim, and I imagine I would do so in the OP's situation as well. My scenario - where I would save $21 by claiming - isn't so clear-cut. As far as I can see it, I'm better off to pay for the repairs and ideally get them done cheaper, given the full cost of repairs falls on me.

I completely agree - if the repair had been within $100 of the excess, i would not have claimed.

Handsome Dan Has Spoken.
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Handsomedan

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#1345226 16-Jul-2015 10:10

sep11guy:
Handsomedan: Having just been through this with my wife's car (wing mirror with electrics, camera etc) broken and a couple of minor chips/dents in door panel, excess $300.00 and no claims bonus impact of ($x?)

Total repair cost is $1100.00

Whichever way I look at it, this is why I have insurance.

I simply agreed to pay the $300.00 excess and lose the no claims bonus for my peace of mind and to have a newly pristine car in the driveway once more.

I didn't even consider what the future cost may be as that (to me) makes having full cover insurance completely irrelevant.

Why pay the premiums, if you're never going to claim?

I like the thought process behind that, but to say give a different angle to it , or say being devils advocate :

if your premiums go up by 20%, and your pay back to the cost of repair is 4 years, the consequence of the claim is that you would still continue paying more $$ after payback, just because you had the crash, it wont go down. so assuming you are in the 30's, you will continue to pay high insurance for the next years, you have the car with you.

Am i right with thinking so ?

It's been a while since anyone assumed I was in my 30's.

Thanks! :)

But on a more serious note: I hadn't even bothered to factor in the impact of a no claims bonus reduction, as I feel this is why I have insurance. As stated previously - if the repair cost had been close to the cost of the excess, I wouldn't have claimed.
As it's 4x the excess, it makes sense to me to pay the excess, make the claim and bank the future value of the additional $800-odd dollars right now.

Handsome Dan Has Spoken.
Handsome Dan needs to stop adding three dots to every sentence...

Handsome Dan does not currently have a side hustle as the mascot for Yale

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bazzer

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#1345254 16-Jul-2015 10:29

jonathan18: I got a call from my insurance company yesterday about my own current claim - they were able to identify the impact on my next year's premium to the cent: an excess of $300 plus impact on premium of $271 so a total cost of $571, versus $592 for repairs.

This certainly makes it not worth claiming, but it also means it may be worth trying to find an alternative cheaper way of making the repairs (or at least make it look ok!).

So, at the risk of hijacking this thread (mods - please let me know if I should start another one), is anyone able to advise what the most most-effective ways would be to repair/improve the aesthetics of this most recent 'mistake'? I'm happy to take it to the panel beaters, but if I'm going to have to pay the full amount I'd like to get it lower than the $592 quoted thus far.

Also, any advice appreciated on this one from a few days' earlier (not too worried about getting the dent taken out here, as I know that will be expensive; at least improving the markings on the car:

(In my defence, both these actually look worse in the photos than in real life!)

Thanks for any advice...

Edit: I have previously purchased one of those small vials of the right paint, so have that available; I've also got a clearcoat pen somewhere too, if either of these things could help improve it without too much skill required.

Don't forget that the impact to premiums may extend beyond one year as well...

sep11guy

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#1345612 16-Jul-2015 17:02

Quick update :

I was kinda sad that this thing happened, and have been upset for the past week. So as a last resort tried Dent Magician .

Went through Peter ( East & Central Akl ) , and i must say, very good results. [ I did try west akl person / franchise , but he didnt want to help me ]

Its not a exceptional fix, but its a fix which does fit the need, and is quite good, so for now, I am happy that I can kind of put this behind my back, and learn a very very good lesson.

I recommend Peter to anyone who is has dents and would like to fix, great chap, and good work.

Thanks a lot for your help and feedback

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