Protect Your Car in Parking Lots

If you’ve been in a collision and need your car repaired many insurance companies will attempt to “steer” you toward body shops that use generic or “after-market” auto parts.  These after-market parts are parts that aren’t made by the original manufacturer of your car.  They are generic and the top body shops complain—rightly so— that these parts many times don’t fit correctly and can affect the occupants safety in the event of another collision.

A recent insurance industry report states that the use of aftermarket parts translates to a savings between $18-$24 a year for each policyholder.  This makes sense as many of these after-market parts are made of cheap materials or not constructed correctly.

agent from insurance companies inspecting damaged car with insurance claim form on digital tablet
agent from insurance companies inspecting damaged car with insurance claim form on digital tablet

A major issue regarding this is that these parts aren’t always up to industry standard. This means that the quality and safety of the parts are unknown because they’re not test like factory OEM parts are. This is what insurance companies won’t tell you. 

A major issue regarding this is that these parts aren’t always up to industry standard. This means that the quality and safety of the parts are unknown because they’re not test like factory OEM parts are. This is what insurance companies won’t tell you. 

This makes the case for stating that your safety is worth more than the $24 of savings to the insurance company.  In addition, in many cases, the use of these imitation parts can lead to “repair related diminished value”. This means that because cheaper parts were used instead of OEM parts, your cars value can be diminished when you want to trade it in—costing you much more than the $24 per year savings.  In addition to having a free choice in choosing the body shop you want, it makes good sense to ask them if they use OEM parts.

If you want to make sure that you’re not “dinged” by your car dealer, come to Orlando Auto Body the next time you need auto body repair! We only use Factory OEM parts and you can be assured that you’re getting the highest quality repair.