Belt Auction

Can I walk away from an auto body shop repair I verbally agreed to?

I was hit in an accident this past week. After going through insurance, I was ready to take my car to get it fixed. I decided to ask the dealership where. They recommended a local shop in town near them -- it happened to be one of the insurance companies' preferred body shops so I figured why not. They are also partnered with Enterprise, so I was able to get a discount on a car rental. I was told that since they didn't have the parts on hand, they would take my estimate to order the parts and I should come back next week. I had not signed any work order papers or anything -- just an "ok, i'll come back later." After going home, I decided to do some research on the body shop. Only a handful of reviews came up (literally about 5), and about 2 of them gave bad reviews. I'm doing more research tomorrow. If I find that they are horrendous, is it too late for me to back out? They have ordered the parts and have my estimate, but thats it. I haven't signed any work orders and my car is w/ me Even though they have the actual copy of the estimate the insurance company gave me, I made a copy of it before taking it to them.

Public Comments

1. I think you'll be okay, just ring 'em up and tell them you've changed your mind. They should be able to return any parts they've ordered and they haven't actually done any work. It may be the case, though, that the only people who feel moved to post a review are usually those who feel aggrieved about something - there may be hundreds of satisfied customers who haven't bothered. Good luck with your research, a good idea.
2. Check with your insurance company. If the shop is on the preferred list ,the body shop usually has to warranty the work as long as you own the car. If you have any problems with the body shop the insurance company that you pay will back you not the shop.
3. Often when returning parts the returner will be charged a 15% restocking fee. Since you had them order the parts, it would probably be the right thing to pay that for them. Best regards, Mike