Tiered Repair Standards

At Express Autobody we’d love to adopt a blanket repair standard that will guarantee the finest repair possible on every vehicle we fix.  The problem is the old adage of “We’re gonna fix your car right, regardless of what it costs your insurance company,” is no longer viable in today’s economy.  Most insurance companies are willing to pay a fair price for a repair that doesn’t significantly diminish the value of a vehicle, that will restore all of the structural integrity of the vehicle to it’s pre-accident values, along with the complete restoration of all of the safety features that vehicle had prior to its collision. 

            While the structural integrity and the safety features of a vehicle are issues that cannot be compromised, there can be contention and disagreement on what constitutes not significantly diminishing the value of a vehicle.  The truth is anytime a vehicle is wrecked the value of that vehicle is less than it would be if it hadn’t ever been wrecked.  At Express Autobody we have processes and procedures that will mitigate or diminish this loss.  Unfortunately sometimes these processes can be expensive. 

At Express Autobody we believe that the desires of the customer and the value of that vehicle are what should determine what procedures are used, and what items are skipped over, not some arbitrary set of standards set to cover all contingencies at all times.  To help clarify this issue Express Autobody has established four tiers of repair standards with suggestions as to how these standards should be applied.  These standards are not cast in stone, and can be mixed, matched, or interchanged to meet the needs of our customers.

If you have a specific tier that you want to have your vehicle repaired in, please make sure to communicate that with your estimator during your Comprehensive Damage Report. If this is not a priority, the repairs of your vehicle will be done with consideration of the damage, age, and value of your vehicle.

You can click on the photograph or text to get specific information of what each tier provides

Tier 1

            This is our highest standard of vehicle repair, and also the most expensive.  Most insurance companies will not pay for all of these procedures unless you have a new vehicle, or if you have an expensive high-end vehicle.  Sometimes companies like Progressive Insurance will not pay for all of these procedures regardless of how new or how expensive your car is. Customers wishing to have their vehicles repaired to this standard should be prepared to pay out of pocket for some of these procedures or processes. Generally this tier is recommended for vehicles less than 1 year old, or for vehicles worth over $35,000.  All of our guarantees apply to these repairs.

 

 

Tier 2

            This is the most common standard of repair that we use at Express Autobody. Typically insurance companies will be willing to pay for all of these procedures.  These are the standards adhered to by most quality production repair facilities.  This tier is recommended for vehicles that are 1 to 6 years old or that have a value of $7,500 to $35,000. All of our guarantees apply to these repairs.

 

 

Tier 3

            This is intended for customers who are wanting a safe repair with good appearance values, but are trying to save some money because of high deductibles, young drivers, or to keep older vehicles from totaling. This is how most of the discount collision repair facilities repair vehicles.  This is also the repair tier many of the discount insurance companies are willing to pay.  This tier is generally recommended for vehicles over 6 years old and/ or vehicles worth less than $7,500.  Our nationwide refinish guarantee is not given for these repairs.

 

 

Tier 4

            This tier is for people who have young drivers or have vehicles that are just not worth performing expensive repairs on.  There may be variances in color, fit and finish may not be up to our usual standard, and our guarantee of satisfaction as well as our nationwide refinish warranty do not apply. This tier is generally recommended for vehicles over 6 years old and/ or vehicles worth less than $10,000.

 

Tier 5

      This is our least expensive standard for vehicle repair.  Here we jut repair the vehicle enough to make it safe and road worthy.  Appearance is not a consideration on these repairs.  We will not compromise safety or drivability to reduce cost.