Review Your Repair to Make Sure It’s Right: CARSTAR Offers Tips to Ensure Your Quality Collision Repair

Your vehicle is all repaired and ready to roll, but how do you know if the repair was done correctly? There are simple steps you can take to review what’s been repaired on your car, ensuring everything is operating, as it should be.

Jeff Labanovich, Associate Vice President of Operations for CARSTAR Collision and Glass Service, recommends the following:

1. When picking up your vehicle, allow at least 30 minutes to complete the process
2. You should ask to review the vehicle with an employee
3. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and take time to review the repairs
4. Take a copy of the original estimate with you to compare against the final bill
5. Review the final bill and make sure it’s detailed and explained it to you
6. Make sure you get a warranty for repairs and understand what it covers
7. If it is raining or snowing, ask to inspect the car inside to see all repairs including the paint job
8. Ensure all new parts were installed where possible – confirm that parts were specified as outlined in your insurance agreement
9. Make sure the paint matches in direct sunlight. A high-quality paint will deliver a much better paint match and a seamless repair
10. Inspect the gaps around the doors, trunk lid and hood — gaps should be uniform
11. Open the doors/trunk/hood and inspect for polish/rubbing compound
12. Look for correctly applied seams in the trunk, wheel wells and underbody panels to ensure it has been restored to pre-accident condition
13. Check the mileage, as most vehicles need to be test driven and some miles will likely be added
14. If your vehicle needed an alignment, get a copy of the before and after printout (should be in factory specification tolerances)
15. Confirm that corrosion protection has been applied on any repaired areas to prevent rust
16. If your vehicle had any structural damage, get a copy of the before and after printout (should be in factory specification tolerances)
17. Check to make sure things like the radio and technology in the vehicle work correctly
18. Turn on the heater and A/C blower fan (be careful because debris may come out of vents)
19. Inspect all dash warning lights to make sure none are on
20. Be sure the vehicles external lights turn on and off

“When your car is being repaired, you need to make sure it is repaired correctly before you leave the repair centre,” said Labanovich. “You should double-check all of the repaired areas before you pay the final bill and accept the car. Your best solution is to go to a reliable collision repair facility that has a detailed repair process and provides a warranty for their work.”