Since you have gap insurance, I would demand the truck be totaled. I also would tell the guys insurance company & repair shop that you not going to sign a single piece of paperwork and hire a lawyer if that unexceptable repair is done. Also, what does your insurace company have to say about this frame repair?

 

My dad had a 85 F-150 that got rearended by a bobtail tank truck, the 85 was less than a year old. The bumper on the big truck hit above the pickups bumper and knocked the tailgate off and trashed the bed. My dad, mom and little sisters head knocked the back glass out of the truck. The insurance company put a new bed on it and fixed everything else. About 25 thousand miles later the rear end locked up. You never know what kind of damage might be lurking under the surface.

 

Update: Pure hell to follow! Paint doesn't match, tailgate isn't flush, taillight isn't flush(of course its because it is aftermarket!) back window seems to have a bigger gap ontop passenger side then driver side, black rubber strip going from back window to windshield coming off and hood now has a wider gap on passenger side then drivers side. I crawled under the truck to look around: looks as if some screws coming down where two pieces of metal join are bent under the cab, the bolts on the lower control arm have been moved on the passenger side. My check engine light came on on the way to work today, looks like a tube from ontop of the gas tank coming towards the rear has been melted in half by the new exhaust and is melting some wires too! Almost everything is on the passenger side(except for exhaust stuff) and that is what took the most impact! And the insurance company says they dont have to give me a truck as a rental and aren't liable for any work missed because there is no injury claim, but it only took 5-6 days to get me a rental! Phew!! All I am getting is a run around from everyone!! Got another headache, let me know what you think, and yes, I know I am getting *#@%^&!

 

I think you should call your insurance company and have a heated discussion about the inadequate repairs and your options at this point. To me, it sounds like the repairs are not roadworthy and lacking the quality required to be long term or invisable. Who ended up picking the shop where the vehicle was repaired? Did you sign off on the repair to allow the shop to get a check? What kind of warranty is on the repairs? If the vehicle is not repaired correctly, I certainly would not accept the vehicle. There certainly has to be options available to you. I hope the insurance adjuster responds who had posted on this thread earlier.

 

Talked to my insurance co. and they were of no use. Said because they already fixed(ha) the truck pretty much nothing they can do. Yes, signed a paper so the check would go straight to the shop, thought it would make things faster, but now I think they(both insurance and shop) are crooked. Lifetime warrenty on repairs, and it seems with the quality of work so far it will take the full term!

 

If the frame is bent that bad i would of told the INS Company total it !!
the guy was drunk WTF

Remember that next time Hopefuly it wont happen again !!

 

my $.02...the insurance company owes to indemnify you to your pre loss condition relative to SAFETY, FUNCTION, and APPEARANCE...if this has not been done then you still have damages (which means you can sue the other party if it is their insurance that is handling your claim...if you sue, then they have a duty to protect their insured).

It might be time to file a Dept of Insurance complaint...this can usually be done online and it WILL GET YOU AN ANSWER sooner than you think.

-Good Luck

 

Get a lawyer, my friend. Get a lawyer and stop screwing around with the insurance company. Put the case in your lawyer's hands. Again, good luck.

 

Amen to what Texas Pete says. Unless the state dept of ins is willing to step in (not likely), the insurance company and this half-a$$ed repair shop are just going to keep jerking you around. Once you're at this point the only option that will work is to go legal on them and that is going to be tough since the shop has already been paid. Good Luck.

 

I talked with a Ford service writer this morning and he says my warrenty is "gone" with anything to do with the replaced, oops! I mean sectioned frame(insurance terminology). I think therefor they are obligated to buy my truck. I did not ask them to "Section" my frame, they jumped on it as quickly as they could get it started and with no Ford warrenty they can not return it to how it was pre accident!

 

sorry to hear your problems man.

I agree...it's time to Lawyer up against the shop and your insurance company. In the back of your owners manual there is a section detailing accident repairs.

Might want to read that.

 

That is some good to know info, Thanks!

 

I got rear-ended in a 96 LS400. I took it to the best shop in town (when you are not at fault, you get to pick the shop). The other guys insurance decided to do the $8,000 repair, which included frame straightening, instead of totaling the car. I went with it, and did not get any $ for loss of value. The work was done perfectly, and I can honestly say that the car may have been better when it came out of the shop than it was before. Those guys were good. With all that being said, I still wish the car had been totaled, and I just got the money. You can not get away from the Carfax, and no one wants to buy a car/truck that has been repaired.

Your first mistake was allowing them to pick the shop. It's your truck, and you have the right to pick where it is repaired. They are looking to finish the transaction for the lowest amount of $ possible. That is their job, and they did it. I'm not sure what your rights are at this point, but DO NOT give up. If you let this go, you will regret it forever.

 

Joining to hear more.

 

I am calling the insurance puppet tomorrow to see where my legal correspondence needs to be sent. I told him on tuesday he had that day to make me happy, he said he had notified the other puppet for the diminished value claim to call me but he hasn't as of yet. He had the owner of the body shop call me to apologize for the poor work from his shop, doesn't help anything, still don't have my truck. The guy at the body shop tried using the excuse its easy to know where the paint ends by where the key marks end. I said paint the truck so "all" the paint matches as did before the wreck and if you feel obligated to re-key my truck feel free, but don't think by doing part of a job puts it back to the pre-accident value, because its value isn't your responsibility! And now I am on a second bottle of tylenol!! Jerks!!!