The damage to the panels on your car can vary from small dents and scratches to much more serious damage as the result of an accident. Having panels repaired is often a more viable option than having them replaced, but keep in mind that costs and time will vary depending on the location and extent of the damage. It takes some knowledge of the panel repair process to understand why these repairs can take longer and cost more than you might have expected.
What is panel repair?
Panel repair is the process of fixing the damage to the panels of your vehicle so that they don’t need to be replaced. Repairs often need to be done for panel damage caused by wear and tear, environmental fallout, and accidents. One thing to keep in mind is that regardless of whether the damage is major or minor, not all the damage may be visible from the outside. A panel beater will need to assess the level of damage to provide you with a pricing estimate.
Why do panel repairs take so long?
There are several stages involved in repairing the panels of a vehicle. Times can vary depending on many factors like the length of time the insurer takes to get back to us if there is an insurance claim, and the amount of time it takes for our suppliers to deliver the parts we’ve ordered from them.
Pricing estimate
The first stage of panel repairs is the pricing estimate. Whether you’ve brought your car in for a private repair or it’s going through your insurance provider, it usually takes around 3-5 days to determine an estimate of the cost.
You might think this seems like a long time to begin with, but there’s a lot of work involved in the process. We assess the vehicle to determine the extent of the damage and then obtain pricing information for new parts and components. If you’re going through your insurer, the next step is that we need to get authority from them. This can sometimes extend the timeframe even more if the insurer takes longer to get back to us. In these instances, our team will follow up with them to try and move the process along.
Ordering the parts
Once we’ve received authority, our team starts ordering the parts required to repair your vehicle. Sometimes parts are delivered right away, but sometimes there are longer lead times depending on the type of part and where it’s coming from.
Production sequence
After we’ve received the necessary parts, the car then enters the production sequence. There are many steps involved in the panel repairs process and it’s labour heavy. We may need to remove several parts of the vehicle depending on where the damage is.
At TAMMS Repair Centres, we will always carry out repairs that meet manufacturer specifications. This means that rather than rushing to get your vehicle back to you more quickly, we take the time to get your repairs right. We also follow quality assurance guidelines throughout the repair process.
Why do panel repairs cost so much?
Panel repairs can work out to be costly because of the cost of parts and labour.
One of the most common issues we deal with is rear and front damage. Although there might only appear to be minimal damage on the surface, there might also be a deeper issue causing more significant structural damage. For this reason, we always need to assess the vehicle prior to providing a pricing estimate.
If you’re looking for a team of professionals to take care of your panel repairs and return your car to manufacturer specifications, make sure you contact us at TAMMS Repair Centres.
