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      09-20-2009, 11:59 PM   #1
amybang
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Best Boston area auto body?

I'm so angry I'm shaking right now but posting to try to do somehing constructive.

Idiots parked next to me at show open door so hard into Orca that the whole car shook and there is definitely a small dent in the body ridge of the back side panel. I need to get an estimate on fixing it even though I have no confidence I'll get any $$ from them. Too much to type into phone while shaking this hard.

Anyway, who do I call in the morning?

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      09-21-2009, 06:06 AM   #2
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Okay, now that I've had a tiny amount of sleep...

Last night after midnight, while sitting in the parking lot at Gilette waiting for the cars to start moving so we can leave (after sitting for an hour by then) a passenger in the back seat of the car to the right of me opens the door and bangs it into Orca. So hard that the whole car shakes. I jump out and run around and a bit of paint from that car is on Orca and when I run my finger along the spot, there is a distinct indentation.

So, in a normal situation, it's exchange insurance and deal with it in the morning.

However, the people in the car are from Montreal and it's a rental car from Quebec. And after some rubbing, the paint from their car rubs off Orca but there's still the indentation. And it's around 12:30 and it's dark and hard to see. They're trying to tell me in mostly okay English that it's not that bad, that it just needs to be buffed out and it will be okay. But they're also having wild conversations in French (which I can sort of make out). I counter that it's gonna take a lot more than it looks to make it perfect again. That it's a new car and that something like this is going to hurt the value significantly.

The driver is rational and is trying to do the right thing, offering information - passport info, contact info, we'll take care of this. It should only be a couple hundred $$. The passengers: another woman who I think was the one who did it and seems pretty apologetic and rational as well; a guy who obviously thinks we're making a big deal out of nothing, takes pictures, and keeps stalking around the car, probably trying to look for other small damage that I don't care about; and a completely irrational woman who keeps saying (in French) "it's just a car, it's not a big deal" and keeps getting shut back in the car by the other two women.

I'm fuming and shaking. There's a lot of conversations in French. This goes on for most of an hour and in the end, I get the contact info for the driver and the plate number of the car and a promise to pay for it when I send them an estimate for the damage. I have a bad feeling that once they cross the border, that's the last I'll hear of them. My only consolation is that at no time does any of them say in French anything along the lines of "just give her a fake address and this will go away once we leave". I know enough French to know that the conversations were genuine and not about trying to screw me.

When I got home, under my porch light, I got a better look. It's small but it's not pretty. I would probably have this fixed on my own if it had randomly happened when I wasn't there and no one owned up to it. But I'm not sure that it can be fixed without repainting the panel after filling in the dent.

In the light of day, I realize I don't actually have the rental car company's info. I do have the Quebec plate number. I should maybe have called the police, but it was late and I was tired and not thinking clearly, just very worried that I'm gonna have to fix this and won't ever see any money out of it. I'm not sure whether the police would have laughed at me about this or not.

On the ride home, I remember that people here have mentioned Dick's in Somerville before and I looked at their website in the middle of the night and saw they were endorsed both by my dealer and BMW CCA, so as soon as I shower, I'm heading over to see if they'll give me an estimate.

I'm soooo exhausted and never want to go to Gilette again. I was already annoyed with the place long before they hurt Orca. Time for a shower and to go see this in the sunlight. *sigh*

amy
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      09-21-2009, 07:17 AM   #3
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Could paintless dent removal work as well. Typically it is fairly cheap. I have a small dent in a ridge on the lower door that I have been needing to get fixed (anonomous parking lot bastard). I think one of the PDR places quoted about $200 based on pictures I sent (not seeing it in person).

You could search around for a place like that as long as the paint is still ok.

pictures of my dent are here (so you can get an idea of what they may be able to do). If it is similar, PDR may be a good option.
http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showp...0&postcount=25





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      09-21-2009, 07:38 AM   #4
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Put a claim in through your insurance. You have their name and plate number, what more would you need? Let them collect on it. If you're not at fault, no deductibles should be necessary.
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      09-21-2009, 07:48 AM   #5
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Based on what you describe, definitely have a company like Dent Doctor look at it. As long as they can get to the spot with their tools, they can do ca real good job for a lot less time and money than a body shop. The places I have dealt with in the past will let you know before they get started if they cannot do it or if they run into an issue during the work where they can't finish (like a boxed support that blocks access) there's typically no charge.
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      09-21-2009, 08:36 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BlackjackMulligan View Post
Put a claim in through your insurance. You have their name and plate number, what more would you need? Let them collect on it. If you're not at fault, no deductibles should be necessary.
I had a hit and run dent and I had to pay deductible. I thought it would probably be the same thing here?

I stopped by Dick's this morning and if they have to redo the whole panel, it's what I told them it would be last night $500-$1200. I'm waiting on an official estimate. He did say that he has a really good dent wizard guy that he'll arrange to have a look at it and if they can do it, because he said it looks like the paint might still be intact, then it will be a lot less.

It's really small too, so I feel sort of silly being so upset about it. But damn it big on my psyche.

amy!
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      09-21-2009, 09:09 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by amybang View Post
I had a hit and run dent and I had to pay deductible. I thought it would probably be the same thing here?

I stopped by Dick's this morning and if they have to redo the whole panel, it's what I told them it would be last night $500-$1200. I'm waiting on an official estimate. He did say that he has a really good dent wizard guy that he'll arrange to have a look at it and if they can do it, because he said it looks like the paint might still be intact, then it will be a lot less.

It's really small too, so I feel sort of silly being so upset about it. But damn it big on my psyche.

amy!
Maybe you would but since in this case you have another known party who admitted fault you might not have to pay it. I'd call my agent to inquire anyhow.

Probably because with a hit and run your ins company can't go after anyone else, you have to cover your deductible although it still seems wrong.
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      09-21-2009, 09:41 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BlackjackMulligan View Post
Maybe you would but since in this case you have another known party who admitted fault you might not have to pay it. I'd call my agent to inquire anyhow.

Probably because with a hit and run your ins company can't go after anyone else, you have to cover your deductible although it still seems wrong.
I guess it keeps you from doing something stupid and then claiming a hit-n-run... but agreed it still seems wrong for us honest folk
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      09-21-2009, 04:14 PM   #9
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The sun was highlighting the dent perfectly when I walked up to her in the parking garage after work. So much for the clean line of that ridge. My heart cried a little.
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      09-21-2009, 06:47 PM   #10
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sorry to hear about this Amy. The day I bought my 1, I went to the mall and parked in the middle of no where. I came out to see a car parked next to me. Didnt think much of it. Went home and saw a scuff in my clear. I was so mad I drove back to see the car was still there. I got even.......
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      09-22-2009, 11:13 PM   #11
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That sucks. I don't like parking my car....anywhere. All the toyotas at LL were nerve-wracking enough!

Sublime is where I always go for body work, and whatever else he will happily do for me. He used to actually do all the peabody minis and bmws up until a few years ago when the dealerships went more corporate and went with a lesser quality body shop that would give them kickbacks.
But I'm sure PDR is all it needs, unless it is on a crease. From what I hear, they often charge the same price for 1 dent or 5...so you may want to wait.

I used to live on the same street as Dick's auto body...we thought for a long time they were a mafia chop shop when we kept seeing lambos etc getting towed down the street. But considering they advertise in Boston Bimmer I figure they are legit. I would guess they are more expensive than usual, though.
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      09-23-2009, 05:41 AM   #12
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i would pass on dicks...they swirled gina something awful

the blend on my car is flawless but cant recommend them because of the swirls
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      09-23-2009, 06:00 PM   #13
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So all's well that ends well. Dick's had the Dent Wizard come out and see what he could do. He was dubious because of the location of the dent on the crease of the body, but it turns out the paint was fine underneath and it worked out just fine. If I look really, really closely in the sun, I can still see it a really tiny bit, but I have to look really hard to see it.

Now I get to fuss with the Canadian woman to see if I can get her to pay for it. The total came to $125 which would suck to have to eat, but is better than my deductible if I had to have the whole panel repainted and my insurance couldn't track her down.

Next meet, you can all play "find the dent".

amy!
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      09-23-2009, 06:28 PM   #14
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well amy, i think you made out about as well as you could have hoped to.

and now it's time to play BLAME CANADA
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      09-23-2009, 08:43 PM   #15
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      10-05-2009, 08:49 PM   #16
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I had ice fall on my car and left some severe dents on my roof. Brought it to Allstar and I couldn't even tell anything happened. I would go back to him again.

AllStar Collision Center 171 Boston st. Salem, MA
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      10-12-2009, 09:24 PM   #17
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hands down.... HIGHWAY AUTO BODY, Rockland - Jeff lundren

been using them for years.... they do all the work for BMW gallery.
i had a guy drop a crate on my front fender and crushed it, no real paint damage.... jeff always tries to save as much of the original paint as he can.... he spent an entire weekend banging out the fender... it came out PERFECT... absolutely incredible... he's the best i've ever seen.... it's the only place i'll take my cars.
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