Finding the Best Panel Beating Shop
Your vehicle is one of your most valuable assets. Therefore, it’s essential to choose wisely when selecting a panel beating shop to look after it. If your car, van, or truck is damaged or involved in a collision. It’s important to promptly get the repair work done to avoid future damage. Hence, regardless of whether you use your vehicle for work or personal use. Chances are you’ll want it safely back on the road as quickly as possible.
To help you make a quick yet informed decision about what panel beating shop to use. We’ve put together this helpful list of the five top questions to ask your panel beater. It’s important to know what to ask, especially if you’ve been involved in an accident. Or if you feel stressed or nervous about what automotive repair work you may need.
1. How do the Panel Beaters decide what needs to be done?
You can ask them what the process is for assessing what damage there is and what type of work your car needs. For instance, find out how they decide whether to repair parts or replace them.
Sometimes they try to offer you a low price by repairing something. Cleverly trying to get you to think they’re the cheapest panel beater available. But if a part is damaged too much, it’s safer to replace it.
Trying to save money by just temporarily repairing something will cost you in the long run when you have to return for a subsequent visit to the panel beater.
2. Do they use genuine parts?
It’s important to know whether your panel beating shop uses genuine parts or non-genuine aftermarket parts. What’s best here will depend on the part needing to be replaced, the age of your car, and whether a non-genuine part will affect the resale value of your vehicle.
It’s definitely worth asking the question, though. Genuine parts often mean a different level of manufacturer warranty.
3. How experienced are the staff?
When it comes to experience as a panel beater. We’re talking about the length of experience and the type of experience. Often, we feel more comfortable about a supplier or tradesperson with several years of experience under their belt. The thinking is that they’ve seen a full range of problems and have had more practice fixing things.
But it’s also important to know if the panel beater you’re considering has the right type of experience. For example, there’s no point using a panel beating shop with 20 years of experience if they specialise in Japanese models and you drive a European car. Similarly, if you need paint work done on your work van or ute, but your panel beater has only ever dealt with cars, you’re taking a bit of a risk.
4. Do they offer a courtesy or a loan vehicle?
Don’t be afraid to ask. If you rely on your vehicle to get around for work or personal use. It can be quite an inconvenience having to leave it at the panel beater for several hours or several days.
If your car has been involved in an accident and has sustained damage that makes it unsafe to have on the road. You’ll need to bring it in or have it towed to the panel beater. In this case, you may not have a lot of choice about whether a courtesy car or a loan car is available but always ask. And if there isn’t one available right away, find out when one is expected back. (By the way, we offer loan cars at Mt Roskill Collision Centre.)
If your car doesn’t need to be taken into the panel beater straight away. Perhaps it needs some touch-up paintwork, or you want to have some scratches polished out. Give the panel beating shop a call and find out when a courtesy car or a loan car is available. When it’s possible, it makes it much easier to schedule your vehicle in for work when it fits into your schedule best.
5. Do they offer any guarantees or warranties?
A good, reputable panel beating shop in Auckland will stand by their work. They might provide a guarantee on their labour. For example, they might offer a money-back guarantee if they promise to do something and then fail to deliver on that promise.
Or they might offer a time guarantee – promising to do something in a set period.
They might offer a warranty on parts. This is usually a warranty from the manufacturer if the panel beater is using genuine parts.
It doesn’t hurt to ask. Just make sure that whatever you are promised, you get in writing.
Have a look at the Mt Roskill Collision Centre lifetime guarantee that we offer on all our collision repair jobs. If there are any flaws, defects or anything at all wrong with our repair, we will happily fix it free of charge.
The Mt Roskill Collision Centre promise
Our goal is to have everyone on New Zealand roads driving safely. We offer a lifetime guarantee on our car repairs from our panel beating and collision repair service centre in Mt Roskill, Auckland. Contact us online or call us on 0800 227 762 for a free quote or to book an appointment.
