[Accident Claim] Dent Repair or Replacement (No Fault collision)

Let me see if I can spare you all the details, and still provide enough info for responses.

Collision: Minor fender-bender, no fault. Police report was made. Traffic ticket issued to liable person. Liable person has insurance through Farmers (Mid Century).

My insurance company's (USAA) Claim adjustment: Estimate is for repair of dent (requiring Bondo, etc) and full replacement of bumper cover. The line-item for liftgate repair portion of estimate is 4.5 hrs (painting and bumper replacement hrs are separate line items).

Car: 2014 Subura Outback 29k miles. Very good condition. Only highway miles to/fro Colorado to Houston. No prior collisions or damage.

Question: If it was your care, would you want liftgate in picture spoilered below to be repaired or replaced. What are advantages/disadvantages to repair vs replacement?

Note: that mark in the middle of the dent is a sharp protrusion pointing out. I think the liftgate panel hit something inside.

spoilered for size

Spoiler

<img src="https://scontent.fsnc1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/t31.0-8/13391508_10208424798311077_3723018542323501556_o.jpg"

tia

 

Detailed insurance questions for codell.

This is my first ever claim, so I'm a newbie to this process.

Through miscommunication with my USAA claims rep, she said she'd send out a claims adjuster in person. They would call me and then meet me. Then I can take that claim to any body shop. She did that because I couldn't find a USAA-affiliated Body Shop who can do USAA claims estimates. But I was in the Mechanics shop search area of their website and she helped me find the Body Shop search database. But by the time I set up an estimate appt with one of their affiliated shops, this company called SnapSheet had already asked me for photos of the car. From mere photos, they did essentially a web-based estimate. I was confused what I was doing/authorizing.

USAA now uses a claims adjuster service called "SnapSheet." (Apparently, they seduced some high up in USAA with a fancy Mobile App method of doing claims adjustment via claimant providing photos so no human interaction is necessary...ugh, I hate the internet sometimes.) So, they did the estimate via photos that I took and sent.

The Body Shop in USAA's network (let's call GB) now says they can't do an estimate for me -- "USAA will get mad." They can only take the job and do supplement claims that USAA accepts. Sounds like I cannot get further estimates, unless I call Farmers (the liable insurance.) Further GB said, "When a repair is possible, we have to do those vs Replacements. Or USAA will get mad. It helps keep insurance premiums down for all." (As an aside, I flat out asked him whether he'd want a repair or replacement if this was his car and money was no object...and he said "Repair." hmmm.)

So, GB did not do an official inspection, but with a quick seasoned-eye ball test noted that the 4.5hrs is probably low, and should be 6 (at least), and the hourly rate used is laughable in Boulder and all of Colorado. It was $48/hr versus ~$80/hr in the area. SnapSheet appears to have used a nationwide ave or something. I sure wish my Premiums were based on a nationalwide average vs Colorade rates, too.

I find this ShapSheet estimate to be an obstacle to getting correct estimates.

Questions:

1. Can USAA really prevent further estimates from their network Body Shops after ShapSheet does theirs
2. Is it worth it to try to get the Official Estimate removed, since it appears to be preventing others of USAA Body Shops
3. Is it worth it to get another USAA Body Shop in the area to estimate a Replacement job vs Repair. Apparently I'll have to lie to them and say this is not part of any insurance claim, since SnapSheets has already done it.
4. Is it worth it to go after Farmers instead? And how would I do that?
5. USAA already deposited a payment against my express instructions to NOT do anything until we talked again. Does this interfere with my ability to go through Farmers?
6. Is it worth it to complain/elevate and ask for the equivalent of Retention Dept of USAA, to get a Replacement v Repair: based on SnapSheet not even getting Boulder hourly rates close to correct and USAA depositing payment before I agreed.

thanks again. First time claim. Process seems poorly executed to me. So, could use some advice.

 

Whoa. Even though USAA will recoup money from Farmer's, my premium will increase with a no fault claim through USAA? I'm such a newb to this.

 

My claim is "No Fault," meaning someone else is at fault/liable. That's how USAA and the Body Shops are addressing it. Sorry for confusion.

Ticket was "Failure to avoid vehicle ahead." I was stopped and waiting to turn left into my parking lot. She said she was looking for a street parking spot and hit me. 18yrs old. Likely texting someone that she was looking for a spot and almost there. grrrr

 

As my agent, USAA is obviously getting them involved, so USAA doesn't have to pay.

The question isn't about who is paying, the question is in the Thread Title.

I'm hoping for a full replacement of the liftgate plate vs a bondo repair job. As standard process, USAA is blocking me from getting further estimates from their network of body shops, since SnapSheet already entered their official, ****ty estimate. Further increases in payout are only achieved by the "in-network" Body Shop requesting them once they start the work. That means I have to pick someone now, without getting any estimates. I believe getting estimates is part of shopping around, and am somewhat miffed to find that only the first estimate is allowed and then I have to pick someone without getting to feel them out by talking to them during the estimate phase.

Today, I'm scheduling estimates from further USAA shops but lying to the body shops saying I don't know if I'm going to use insurance or not, in attempts to get an objective estimate.

My only reason for bringing up Farmers was for opinions on whether side-stepping USAA altogether can aid in my final goal -- a replacement v repair.

thanks for the feedback