No wonder our insurance premiums are so high
Turbo Mini Forums

I've just received a quote from a local insurance approved body shop to get a couple of scuffs sorted on the A6. The work entails removing front and rear bumpers, prep for both and a minor scuff at the leading edge of the front wing and painting the 3 panels - cost £810 pls vat!!

now I appreciate that a good job takes time and I want a good job but nearly £1k for some minor damage and no parts is excessive in my eyes or am I out of touch?

I'd expect to pay my body shop guy about £150-200 for that.

to be fair, I was expecting £350-£400 for a proper job. There are guys that will do a cheaper job but I know i'd not be happy with the quality

That seems dear to me too, but it also shows why cars are written off so easily

Audi s4 b5 - 470bhp & 486ft lbs

On 30th Apr, 2012 Brett said:
yeah stick the bit in and give it a wobble

I've just had done, boot lid, bumper, few bits of colour coding i.e. badges etc, respray 4 wheels and it was 450....that was private though.

"Cars are a lifetime of pain"

that was my thought too

I can't comment specifically, but I'd suggest the bulk of it is in preparing and painting the 3 panels. A fair amount of labour (which could be £50 per hour, for example) plus paint materials which are outrageous these days. The water based stuff is crazy money. Also, is it metallic? Some metallics will require a specific primer, then multiple colour coats and clear lacquer. Wouldn't mind betting that would top £200 for materials alone.

Have they broken down the estimate? If not, ask them to do so. Then you can make a better judgement as to where the high priced part is. Or whether they are just plain expensive!!

The main reason insurance premiums are so expensive these days is because of the suing culture. There are more claims for injury as a result of a crash than ever before. And claims against the highways department are on the increase. You know the sort of thing... hadn't gritted and it was icy, etc. It can't possibly be the drivers fault for driving too fast for the conditions

Steve
DSN Classics Ltd
www.dsnclassics.co.uk

I watched that program too about the claims, if there's 4 people in a car and the repair bill for the accident damage is 1k and all 4 claim for various nothing injuries then all of a sudden the insurance is paying out over 10k.

one day boost will be mine!

when i was getting quotes for the mini when it got crashed into they was going to charge £75 an hour labour before any vat or anything else

Done now needs redoing lol

agreed the whip lash claims are a big issue but i've also seen some of the cars written off in recent years with next to no damage on them.

paint is metallic granted - material cost is a very round £300 though and dosen't come across as a calculated figure.

that does sound alot, i have had a rear quarter panel replacement done at toyota in the past, £4500 and the courtesy car was £150 aday and i had it for 10 days, i did not care tbh as it was not my insurance being claimed against but i agree we all pay in the long run... :(

Yes i moved to the darkside

Instagram @jdm_brett

Stratstone land rover.
For a n/s wing + paint. A front bumper. A headlight surround. All for a 110 defender.
£3600
And then the courtesy car came to another few grand for two weeks usage, absolute madness....

That makes me feel happier about the cost of my mini's paint job! The materials to paint it are coming in at about £500 for metalic, and that's inside, outside and underneath from bear metal...

Bear metal? That must be some tough shit!
And a tad furry.

lol!

Much better metal than you southerners get

Tell me about it. If it's not as thin as tin foil, chances are it's chemical metal. :/