I am not satisfied with how my insurer's body shop repaired my car. What can I do about it?

After a car accident, your insurance company might recommend that you go to one of its preferred auto body shops to have your damage repaired.

Choosing your insurance company's preferred shop may make the repair process a lot faster, but like in any auto body shop, there is a chance that you won't be satisfied with the results. 

Luckily, there is something that you can do about it. Usually, the best and quickest solution is to directly speak to the body shop and tell them your concerns, especially if the work that was done was minor.

Explain exactly what your complaint is about, and tell them the truth. If you're the type of person who doesn't really like to hurt people's feelings when you're unsatisfied with something, now is not the time to do that. 

If the repair shop is uncooperative, that's another problem. Firstly, don't sign anything that will claim that you are satisfied with your car. Next, you should probably begin to involve your insurance company.

If you have a good insurance company, they'll call the repair shop and straighten things out.

Some insurance companies say that they think of customers as friends and that they are willing to help them, like they would help their friends. If this is really the case, test them and find out for yourself.

If you still don't get anywhere, you should contact your state's insurance division and find out what they can do about it.

As a last resort, think about hiring a lawyer if the damage to your vehicle was great and if there was little or no improvement. 

If you don't have major damage to your car, and if you are still unsatisfied with the way your insurance company treats you, this might be a good idea to shop around for a new auto insurance company - if this has happened previously. Just remember that your insurance company should protect you; not give you a headache. If you are not satisfied with the way your company treats you, and if you think that overall you should switch to another company, that's probably a pretty good idea. Try contacting them, negotiating a reasonable way to settle this issue, and finally, resolving the problem.