Why do I pay you the excess and not the Insurance Company?
The excess on your policy is the first amount liable as part of the vehicle repairs. The majority of insurance companies ask us to collect this excess on their behalf and deduct it from our invoice to them. We require this payment before we can arrange re-delivery of your repaired vehicle. Your vehicle repairs are subject to a lifetime guarantee which applies to all the repairs carried out by us.
If I am VAT registered, do I have to pay the VAT on the repairs to my vehicle?
If you have a commercial vehicle policy and have informed your insurer when the policy was taken out that you are VAT registered, you do have to pay the VAT and any applicable excess on the repairs. You can claim the VAT back on your next VAT return.
This also applies to a personal policy where you have informed your insurer that you are VAT registered. We will advise you of the VAT amount and any applicable excess once the repairs have been completed and the invoice finalised.
Payment is required prior to arranging re-delivery of the repaired vehicle.
Why do I have to pay my excess if the accident is not my fault?
If the at fault insurer has agreed liability, then usually you will not have to pay your excess; however if liability is still in dispute you will have to pay your excess. We will provide you with a receipted excess invoice, which you will need to send in to your insurer and this will be refunded to you if liability is decided in your favour.
Can you tell me the total cost of repair?
As an approved repairer we are able to carry out the repairs to your vehicle without delay. The total cost is calculated once the repairs are completed and of course we will advise you of this if requested.
Can you provide me with a quote for additional non-accident related damage to be completed while my car is in for repair?
Yes we are only too happy to provide you with private quotation for any additional damage. Please ask when we book your vehicle in and send us some images of the additional damage.
We will email you a quotation and ask for you to confirm in writing. We do ask that you decide to accept or decline the quote as soon as possible because we do not want to delay your accident repairs.
If new parts are required – will genuine OE parts be used?
If your vehicle is under 3 years old all new parts are genuine OE parts. If your vehicle is older than 3 years old then the parts used are either genuine OE parts or Thatcham approved gold standard parts depending on availability. All our repairs are subject to a lifetime warranty and all parts used are subject to the manufacturers warranty.
How long will you need my vehicle for the repairs to be completed?
To speed up the repair time we will ask you to send us images of the damage. Once we have received the images for the vehicle we can pre-order any required parts and have them ready before your vehicle comes onsite. Even if you are unable to take photo’s we can provide you with an Estimated Completion Date (ECD) and your Customer Liaison Manager will confirm the ECD once your vehicle is onsite.
We aim to repair all vehicles as quickly as possible and currently achieve 70% of all repairs within three days or less.
Why do you repair parts and not replace with new?
We will always select the best method of repair for each individual vehicle. In certain cases repairing is indeed the best solution to maintain the structural integrity of the vehicle . All our panel repairs are carried out to high metal finish standard and with plastic repairs, for example bumpers, we repair both inside and outside so that even if the bumper is removed no repair is visible.
Is it purely cosmetic damage you can repair – what about structural damage?
In our 1Touch centres we carry out all but the very largest structural repairs and can rectify even quite extensive damage provided the structural integrity of your vehicle has not been compromised.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or to discuss your requirements.
Can you carry out MOT?
Unfortunately we do not carry out MOT as our expertise is accident repairs.
What type of car is the courtesy car?
The majority of our courtesy cars are A or B class manual vehicles as required by our insurance partners.
These include Peugoet 208, Ford Fiestas, Nissan Micra, Toyota Yaris in a variety of colours. We do have some Automatic vehicles for customers with an Automatic licence.
All our courtesy vehicles are under 3 years old.
Can I have Diesel courtesy car?
We do have some diesel courtesy cars, although the majority of our vehicles are petrol. If we can organise to meet your requests we will do so, but this is not always possible.
Can I have a like-for-like vehicle?
The majority of our vehicles are A or B class small vehicles, and in most cases that is what you will be entitled to. However there may be some circumstances when the accident was not your fault, where we can arrange with your insurer to obtain a like-for-like vehicle for you. This is largely dependent on your accident circumstances.
