First car accident- need some advice

Well the other drive reached out to me saying he thinks he may have been the one at fault and turned from a non-turn lane. I was on the feeder road in the inside left lane, going straight and not turning left in the intersection. He was in the middle lane and turned left in front of me. I originally thought I must have been in a turn only lane, but after going back today (and getting video/photos of the intersection) I was in the right. Still really sucks about my truck, but I do appreciate the kids honesty.

Still waiting on the adjuster to contact me. Luckily I'm not able to call on many customers so we have my company vehicle to get around in, but I need to sort out a rental for the wife.

 

Maybe I am a little late chiming in but doesn’t TX have a repair facility law that allows you to pick any location? Also, if you have navy federal, they will fully take care of you. I had a cross trek and everything was repaired with OEM parts. Best of luck!!

 

I had an accident in my Mazda when I had it. Took it to the dealer body shop, not the insurance recommended shop. Picked it up at night. Looked ok but once daytime hit I wasn't happy. Bumper never fit right because the adjuster wrote for a used bumper cover and the bumper tabs wouldn't hold it in place. Door gap was off. Tried to get it fixed. Kept getting a run around. Adjuster said "well this is what happens when you don't pick a preferred shop" like dude you're the one that wrote for a used cover which is the issue. They also wrote for used ps pump which started leaking shortly after. Thankfully mazda dealer did a good will fix on it, insurance told me to get bent.

So you definitely CAN take it where you want. But from my experience if there are problems afterwards you might get pushback for not using their shop.

Scrutinize every detail before you leave the shop. Pick it up in the daytime so you can see. Analyze gaps, bumper fitment. Everything. Make notes of everything you see that looks off and bring it up with them.

 

Yes, I can take it anywhere I choose. I'm going to make sure it goes to a Toyota dealership or a repair facility one of the dealerships recommends. Thanks.

 

Thanks for the advice, that sounds like a nightmare.

 

Hopefully your experience goes a lot smoother than mine. And it probably will. But yeah, lesson learned not to pick it up at night. Or at least ask for it to be taken to a well lit area like a work bay or something so you can see. I had my accident around this same time of year and it's hard with how short the days are getting.

 

Google "Toyota Collision Center" and see what is located near you. I'd pick that over a generic body shop.

A quick search found this one:

https://www.mikecalverttoyota.com/toyota-collision-center-houston-tx/

I will offer this advice though - if you choose a Toyota body shop, ask them if they substitute cheaper (but acceptable) parts in lieu of OEM stuff. Most do. I'm not sure how much stroke the consumer will have when it comes to this but ask them up front.

 

I’ve been hit twice and while my truck was parked. And it sucks man. I went to the same dealership (They have a collision center) I got the truck from and had a good experience. I ended up getting my rear bumper replaced with an off road bumper for a few hundred dollars on top of my deductible so that was cool! It’ll suck driving a rental not gonna lie but shit happens man don’t beat yourself up man. You’ll be good and your taco will be looking sexy again.

 

Right now I'm looking at taking the truck to Mac Haik Toyota in League City, it's 20 min from me, and the gentleman who came out to asses the damage from my truck also recommended them, saying that's where he would take it if it were him.

Currently waiting on the other insurance companies adjuster and person to assess the damage, but I'm about done waiting. Probably just going to go through my insurance and let them go after collecting payment.

 

If you were closer to Austin I'd recommend Jeff's Auto Body Repair on Burnet. I've only used them while paying out of pocket but others that I've known were happy with how they went to bat with the insurance company for them. They want to do the job right and will push for new OEM parts. They are however not fast nor particularly inexpensive.

 

Ive had a good experience with the service department at Mac haik but I don’t know anything about their collision center. That being said based on how their service department is I wouldn’t mind dropping my Tacoma off there if I were you. That being said I would still recommend doing so digging and figuring out what kind of parts they use. What their track record is like. As well as finding some customer reviews if you can.

 

I met with the guy who will be handling my truck at Mac Haik today, he said they will use my Vin # to order all parts from Toyota so I was good with that. Felt good about the visit and he answered all my questions so I left the truck with him. They seem to have a goo reputation.

 

Talk about a shit month for me. I got rear ended in my company car 2 days ago while sitting in traffic. F150 plowed into me while all lanes were basically stopped. Not sure what he was doing, but I stepped out thinking my company subaru outback was going to be trashed by the force of the impact. Messed up back bumper and a little dent on the hatch was it for me, but the Ford didn't fair as well. Freaking love this ugly beige outback as far as company vehicles go!

On a good note, I'll be picking the truck up today or tomorrow. I'm going to make sure my wife drives it home as I'm not getting back behind the wheel of a moving vehicle until November lol.

 

WOW! Glad you're okay, again!

 

Got the truck back, super happy with Mac Haik in League City. Couple quick pics

 

Just an FYI from someone who is in the insurance/body shop repair game. Every legit repair shop wants to use new OEM parts. It makes life easier for them. However, they are going to purchase the parts that they are paid for. If the insurance company added an aftermarket or recycled part on an estimate you have a very good chance that those parts are going on your car. The margin made at the end of a typical repair is around 15-25%. Shops can't afford to get paid for a part and then spend more than that to buy the new OEM part or make no margin on those parts. One thing that most people do not know is that most manufactures will price match most aftermarket parts and even some recycled parts. The best question to ask is does the body shop ask their new parts vendors to price match the non OEM parts on your estimate. Also, most professional repair shops will want to make sure you are happy and will do the best repair that they can. Sometimes that means that they will have order the non OEM parts listed on your estimate and will proceed with the repair. If the part doesn't fit right or is damaged they will send it back to get another or call your insurance company and get the OK to order a new OEM part. Just like most everything you buy, aftermarket parts have different grades or quality. The cheapest AM part is crap. The most expensive AM parts are usually pretty good. A good reputable shop will not use the cheapest part they can find. They don't want to do things twice so they are going to use the best they get paid for or can find.
In my experience (take this with a grain of salt) any shop that will cover your deductible is not a shop you want to work with. That money has to come from somewhere and most of the time that is in part and paint/materials quality.