How We Deal With Supplements
How we at Orange Coast Auto Body" deal with Insurance Supplements is take from the following information found in the:
Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulations"
of the California Department of Insurance website's Section 2695.8 (f) If a partial loss is settled on the basis of a written estimate prepared by or for the insurer, the insurer shall supply the claimant with a copy of the estimate upon which the settlement is based. The estimate prepared by or for the insurer shall be of an amount that will allow for repairs to be made in accordance with accepted trade standards for good and workmanlike automotive repairs by an “auto body repair shop” as defined in section 9889.51 of the Business and Professions Code, and in accordance with the standards of automotive repair required of auto body repair shops as described in the Business and Professions Code and associated regulations, including, but not limited to, Section 3365 of Title 16 of the California Code of Regulations. An insurer shall not prepare an estimate that deviates from the standards, costs, and/or guidelines provided by the third-party automobile collision repair estimating software used by the insurer to prepare the estimate, if such deviation would result in an estimate that would not allow for repairs to be made in accordance with accepted trade standards for good and workmanlike automotive repairs by an auto body repair shop, as described in this subdivision. If the claimant subsequently contends, based upon a written estimate that the claimant obtains, that necessary repairs will exceed the written estimate prepared by or for the insurer, the insurer shall:(2) if requested by the claimant, promptly provide the claimant with the name of at least one repair shop that will make the repairs for the amount of the insurer's written estimate. The insurer shall cause the damaged vehicle to be restored to its condition prior to the loss at no additional cost to the claimant other than as stated in the policy or as otherwise allowed by law. The insurer shall maintain documentation of all such communications; or,
(3) reasonably adjust any written estimates prepared by the repair shop of the claimant's choice (in this case Orange Coast Auto Body) and provide a copy of the adjusted estimate to the claimant and the claimant's repair shop. The adjusted estimate provided to the claimant and repair shop shall be either an edited copy of the claimant's repair shop estimate or a supplemental estimate based on the itemized copy of the claimant's repair shop estimate. The adjusted estimate shall identify the specific adjustment made to each item and the cost associated with each adjustment made to the claimant's shop's estimate.
Here at Orange Coast Auto Body, we are happy to reasonably work with all insurance companies given that they work within the parameters defined by California's Department of Insurance. A side from being State mandated, we hold insurance companies to this as it reduces unnecessary delays in the repair of the vehicle along with no sacrifice to the quality of repairs or processes as required by vehicle manufacturers and the nationally recognized auto body educational institutions they work closely with.
