Is there any anecdotal evidence of seemingly minor Prius damage being overestimated by a body shop? The left front of my 2010 hit a concrete barrier at less than 15 MPH, driver door and rear bumper also affected. Just got a $12K+ estimate from my insurance company's (USAA) body shop. I have not yet seen the line item on this but this seems a bit high. I fear that they may total this and I am concerned. Any thoughts?
No. It is at the shop. Left quarter, driver door, minor hood and accompanying nose issues. Without having seen the itemized, I can only assume there's frame damage. But impact was low speed (no air bag deployment) and having looked further, I am certain that totaled will e the verdict should this estimate hold.
the insurance company has their own estimators. everything is in the computer, materials and labor. the body shoppe has to show them any hidden damage. there's really no way to inflate it, like the olden days.
Body work is ridiculously expensive these days. You mentioned a lot of damage, all down the left side from front to back. The dollar amount doesn't surprise me. I'm not sure what you are worrying about.
Paul, are these the affected panels/parts? front bumper cover, grill & hood left fender, one door, left quarter panel rear bumper cover That's a lot of damage and 15mph is pretty fast. When I was sideswiped at minimal speed the damage was $2263 for one door skin, and some work on the quarter panel and the other door. Here's a rough breakout: Parts $264 Body Labor $874 Paint Labor $538 Paint Supplies $358 Body Supplies $20 Expect the car to be in the shop for a week. A went to a Toyota dealer's shop and rented a Prius from them for the week. There's a difference between what a shop charges retail and what they'll accept from the insurance company. The estimate I was given was higher but they accepted the amount paid by the insurance company as payment in full. Around here the asking prices for used 2010 II's are $11000-$15000. My advice is to start shopping for a new Prius.
I'd add that nowadays, the smallest parts are so many ways interconnected that damage to one may necessitate replacement of several to restore the car to OEM specs. Otherwise, it looks fine from 20 feet away, but get within 3 and you can see the sloppy fit of the repaired parts. With some cars, you'd just sooner see it totaled than get minor damage that will never quite come out right after it's fixed.
