- Joined
- Dec 9, 2024
- Messages
- 6
- Reaction score
- 21
After getting to meet the Socal group of Lucid owners at the event we just hosted, overwhelmingly, the questions that I got asked the most revolved around insurance and the claims process. The most difficult part (for most body shops) is getting the insurance to agree to pay for the required labor operations, parts, and materials, and a fair labor rate to fix your Lucids back to the standard required in the Lucid Service Manual.
Within most policies (check yours to make sure), there is a little known clause called the right to appraisal or RTA as we call it in the industry. RTA is in place when an agreement on the value of the repair cost or the value of the vehicle in a total loss situation cannot be reached between the shop and the insurance company. The vehicle owner, and the insurance company each hire their independent appraiser to mediate the disagreement. If they come to an agreement, the amount awarded for the repairs is what the shop/consumer/insurance agree on to move the job forward. If there is a disagreement, it moves to an umpire to mediate the disagreement between the appraisers and come up with a value for the repairs or value of the vehicle in a total loss situation.
I have used this tool many times, and I would say it has a 90-95% success rate in bypassing many of the problems. There are appraisal fees to consider, which typically are $500-$1000. Many times, the shop may be willing to absorb that to help out the consumer. Many insurance companies have quietly been removing RTA from their policies without notifying their insureds. State Farm and Farmers both have done this in California. Our industry associations have lobbied heavily for these not to be removed, but it is extremely difficult to fight against a multi-billion-dollar insurance company. I have multiple RTA appraisers I work with daily, so if anyone needs a referral, please shoot me an email.
[email protected]
Within most policies (check yours to make sure), there is a little known clause called the right to appraisal or RTA as we call it in the industry. RTA is in place when an agreement on the value of the repair cost or the value of the vehicle in a total loss situation cannot be reached between the shop and the insurance company. The vehicle owner, and the insurance company each hire their independent appraiser to mediate the disagreement. If they come to an agreement, the amount awarded for the repairs is what the shop/consumer/insurance agree on to move the job forward. If there is a disagreement, it moves to an umpire to mediate the disagreement between the appraisers and come up with a value for the repairs or value of the vehicle in a total loss situation.
I have used this tool many times, and I would say it has a 90-95% success rate in bypassing many of the problems. There are appraisal fees to consider, which typically are $500-$1000. Many times, the shop may be willing to absorb that to help out the consumer. Many insurance companies have quietly been removing RTA from their policies without notifying their insureds. State Farm and Farmers both have done this in California. Our industry associations have lobbied heavily for these not to be removed, but it is extremely difficult to fight against a multi-billion-dollar insurance company. I have multiple RTA appraisers I work with daily, so if anyone needs a referral, please shoot me an email.
[email protected]
