hullinger Posted October 12, 2016 Share Posted October 12, 2016 I took the '61 Desoto to its very first car show recently and it got damaged. Nothing catastrophic but still a lousy situation. I filed a claim with Hagerty so I'm curious what I can expect in regards to their follow-through, timeliness, quality of service and so on. Has anyone submitted a claim with Hagerty and if so, what was your opinion? Thanks, Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F&J Posted October 12, 2016 Share Posted October 12, 2016 (edited) If it was mine. I worry about color match. There are a handful of guys out there that could fix it without paint. They even sometimes use dry ice. But, the modern USA way is bash it out, mud it up and repaint for lots more profit EDIT: I believe that is a bump from a human. Perhaps someone lost their balance, and backed into it hard. That happed to a hood on a car of mine that has a low hood. Kids wrestling and fell sideways Edited October 12, 2016 by F&J (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 12, 2016 Author Share Posted October 12, 2016 Ugh! You're giving me a nightmare right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F&J Posted October 12, 2016 Share Posted October 12, 2016 1 minute ago, hullinger said: Ugh! You're giving me a nightmare right now. If the paint is not cracked at that highest point, I'd find the right "paintless dent removal" guy. Some are great, some not. Why rush at seasons end. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted October 12, 2016 Share Posted October 12, 2016 8 minutes ago, F&J said: If the paint is not cracked at that highest point, I'd find the right "paintless dent removal" guy. Some are great, some not. Why rush at seasons end. I agree with this. There are guys who will come to your home and do that fix without further damage and it may just turn out o.k. It looks like the door trim separated, not broken, is that correct? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted October 12, 2016 Share Posted October 12, 2016 I would go the paintless dent repair route first. Even if they can't get it all out they will get it really close and if you ever go the route of a body shop repair it will be a minor repair rather than the major one it looks like now. That panel has alot of contours so I think a good paintless dent guy will have no problem getting it out. A big flat hood that's a different story. It will also be cheaper to have a paintless dent guy fix it than a shop. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F&J Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 1 minute ago, auburnseeker said: It will also be cheaper to have a paintless dent guy fix it than a shop. I'm sure you did not mean to cut corners. Most PDR guys don't get paid enough time to pull the door panel off. They are usually forced by used car dealers, to go by lowest cost, and use existing holes to use their tools, or sometimes drill a hidden hole(s) In this case, we have a car that will be kept for years, so if a body shop matched the color now, it may likely age to a difference in time. So I would definitely try to avoid a repaint unless the paint is cracked. Pay the PDR guy enough to cover the cost of removing the inner door panel, if that makes a difference in results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xander Wildeisen Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 We can all say the same thing about the damage, and getting it fixed. What I can not grasp, is that some one would not say anything after they did that. There is no way a person could say that they did not know that they did that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 5 minutes ago, Xander Wildeisen said: We can all say the same thing about the damage, and getting it fixed. What I can not grasp, is that some one would not say anything after they did that. There is no way a person could say that they did not know that they did that. Unfortunately, there are still people out there who are dishonest and will not own up to something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kfcarguy Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 I got a stone chip on my Kaiser Darrin--basically one big piece of "plastic"--no body panel breaks. It is finished in base/clear. Hagerty did an estimate, picked the body shop and cut them a check for $5K. They spot finished the color(perfect match) and needed to clear coat the complete front end, from door edge to front bumper. That is exactly why one buys great insurance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 Hey, thanks for the comments. It seems like visiting a pointless dent guy might be the first prudent step. I'll need to look them up and see who does this and is close to me. @KFCarGuy: How was your experience with Hagerty? Was it a battle getting them to step up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jimstulga Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 What a shame! I feel for you guy. I'm the one with the '61 Imperial who responded to your other post. Years ago, before the '61, I had a gorgeous '60 Imperial and foolishly stored some things on the garage rafters above my car. One day, I was moving things around and too lazy to move the car out of the way and something fell on the hood car causing a dent. A paintless dent guy did a fantastic job fixing it. I didn't make a claim as it was my fault, but just wanted to say they can work wonders. I remember he did comment how heavy the metal was on these cars compared to modern giving him a lot of extra muscle work to do, but he loved the car and was happy to restore it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 (edited) Jim thanks. I'm gonna check them out first and we what they'll say. Got any pics of the Imp? Edited October 13, 2016 by hullinger (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Dobbin Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Sorry to hear of you damage. I recently put a car on my lift and took her up. Unfortunately the car not forward enough and I lifted it into a truss and dented\ the roof. (No paint damage) Body shop said $2100. Paintless dent repair guy fixed in 2 1/2 hours for $150. Problem solved! No insurance, no hassle, no headliner removal, no bondo no paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kfcarguy Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 19 minutes ago, hullinger said: Hey, thanks for the comments. It seems like visiting a pointless dent guy might be the first prudent step. I'll need to look them up and see who does this and is close to me. @KFCarGuy: How was your experience with Hagerty? Was it a battle getting them to step up? Quite the opposite. They sent an adjuster the next day. After I picked up my car,I questioned their payment thinking that it was excessive. They asked if the shop did a good job--yes. Do I like the results--yes. Asked if it cost me anything--no. So...what's the problem? End of conversation. The whole experience could not have been easier Point Blank Period! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John348 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 8 minutes ago, kfcarguy said: Quite the opposite. They sent an adjuster the next day. After I picked up my car,I questioned their payment thinking that it was excessive. They asked if the shop did a good job--yes. Do I like the results--yes. Asked if it cost me anything--no. So...what's the problem? End of conversation. The whole experience could not have been easier Point Blank Period! I agree, I had the same experience with Hagerty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39BuickEight Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 (edited) I'm an adjuster for a major carrier. There are PDR guys who can get that out. Most can't. They may or may not be in your area. Some will say they can, but when they are done you may not be pleased, and they will still want to be paid. I wouldn't be surprised if Hagerty just went ahead and paid you to have it repaired and painted/blended. That's what my company would estimate. Repair, remove and reinstall the moldings and anything else needed to paint it correctly, and paint/blend basically the whole side of the car. It could be repaired that way and would look perfect for decades if done by a reputable shop. Edited October 13, 2016 by 39BuickEight (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 9 minutes ago, 39BuickEight said: I'm an adjuster for a major carrier. There are PDR guys who can get that out. Most can't. They may or may not be in your area. Some will say they can, but when they are done you may not be pleased, and they will still want to be paid. I wouldn't be surprised if Hagerty just went ahead and paid you to have it repaired and painted/blended. That's what my company would estimate. Repair, remove and reinstall the moldings and anything else needed to paint it correctly, and paint/blend basically the whole side of the car. It could be repaired that way and would look perfect for decades if done by a reputable shop. I really appreciate your prospective on this. Kinda like it's direct from the source! What are your thoughts about Hagerty and their handling of claims? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39BuickEight Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Well, I'm in the business of claims, and I chose Hagerty also. Luckily I have never had to use them. From my research, they handle covered losses better than anyone I've seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 Wow, good to hear. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Chris, I haven't dealt with Hagerty so I can't give any valid input there but, having had about a million dents repaired and cars painted, I'd have to say, on the upside, this looks like a very easily repaired dent. Best part is, it looks like your bright metal work is still OK. Sometimes the cost of finding replacement trim pieces can exceed body repair. Good Luck! Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trulyvintage Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 (edited) First, I assume those are your kids in the video ? Are they card carrying SAG members cause man can they act ! Second, Body metal was different back then - I doubt that can be massaged out without removing the inner door & trying to pop it out from the inside. Depending on the paint - it might crack. Best to go to a good body shop with experience on cars from that era.. I certainly do enjoy your videos Chris ! Jim Edited October 13, 2016 by Trulyvintage (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 31 minutes ago, GregLaR said: Chris, I haven't dealt with Hagerty so I can't give any valid input there but, having had about a million dents repaired and cars painted, I'd have to say, on the upside, this looks like a very easily repaired dent. Best part is, it looks like your bright metal work is still OK. Sometimes the cost of finding replacement trim pieces can exceed body repair. Good Luck! Greg Greg, thanks. I think you're right in that it should be a relatively easy repair. I know it's not catastrophic but man, I just don't want to have to deal with it. I got plenty going on and I feel sometimes that I'm burning the candle at both ends. This is just one more thing that needs to get done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 20 minutes ago, Trulyvintage said: First, I assume those are your kids in the video ? Are they card carrying SAG members cause man can they act ! Second, Body metal was different back then - I doubt that can be massaged out without removing the inner door & trying to pop it ut from the inside. Depending on the paint - it might crack. Best to go to a good body shop with experience on cars from that era.. I certainly do enjoy your videos Chris ! Jim Hey Jim, yea, those guys really know how to turn it on. I've got four and they're masters at this stuff. As for the paint, I too have a feeling the paint might crack if the dent gets pushed out. It's now the one thing that worries me on having a PDR guy do the job. Like another guy said, regardless of the outcome from the PDR, he still wants to get paid. Thanks for the comment about my video's. It's something I enjoy doing and it helps me document some of the cars I've had. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Paintless dent guy looked at the hood on my Cord which has one pretty good dent in the middle and two smaller ones on an edge. He said 180.00 and he would fix it. I told him great but with everything else going on just haven't gotten around to calling him back to do the job. He showed me several step by step photos of cars he had done. Some had dents in doors worse than yours and from what I saw he got them all out. There is a reason the good ones are busy. a couple hours with a paintless dent guy is alot better than a couple weeks at a shop. Many shops don't like to work on old cars period. I have had Hagerty for 20 years. One minor 1000.00 repair a long time ago and a total loss on a Fuel injected 1960 Corvette. The minor repair was estimated by the body shop of my choice. I did the repair myself and they cut a check. The total loss was a bit more involved but it was a pretty valuable car. In the end I was pleased with the outcome. On a minor repair like this I don't think you will have any problem. I still have all my Cars with Hagerty. Please research all repair options before letting someone start grinding and stud pulling your car. No paint damage and I bet the paintless guy , if you find one that likes old cars, will like doing the job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithbrother Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Sorry you have had this happen to you, YOU sound like a guy that can handle it, I doubt any of us can calm you fears. Life deals us some unpleasant issues now ant then, and we just need to deal with such.. I'm sure you will figure it out. You don't seem to be a BASKET CASE, sounds like you enjoyed making the video, hehe. Dale in Indy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5219 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 I had one claim with Hagerty. My 1966 Impala convertible was destroyed in a flood about 10 years ago. The claim was handled quickly and I got full value for the car. Very pleased and still have them as my insurer. I have used a local PDR guy several times on my modern cars. Once I was warned that the metal was slightly stretched and that there would still be a mark. I went ahead. The mark is about 90% invisible. The other times the jobs were perfect. 1961 Chrysler products were enamel paint which is more flexible that lacquer. I would give PDR a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike6024 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Does the gap along the back edge of the door look even, or enlarged like it got pulled forward by the door dent? I would remove the door inner panel to see how easily accessible it is from behind. The bottom and top of the dent would be the most challenging for PDR. Looks like it should come out OK to me. It would be a shame to have to remove the paint on an otherwise all original survivor. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 I doubt you will have any problem with Hagerty. We have done several jobs that they paid for and each time there was no argument. As to paintless dent repair, we recently had a '59 Caddy, AACA Grand National winner. The owner drove it to the super market and a shopping cart rolled across the lot and put 2 small but noticeable dents in the rear quarter. Our painter suggested PDR. I was very skeptical, to the point of betting our painter $20 that the PDR guy could not remove the dents to my satisfaction. We are extremely fussy with our paint work and the Caddy was a car we restored. Surprisingly, I lost the bet. I tried under various lighting conditions to find where the dents were but could not. The PDR guy was a true artist and worked several hours to massage the dents out. Cost us less that $200. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Bear in mind that the adjuster they send to evaluate your car will likely have no experience whatsoever with antique cars. You may have to educate him a bit as to the quality work you expect. Luckily your damage is relatively minor. We repaired a Pierce Arrow that had been hit hard in the rear. The adjuster suggested we just buy a brand new rear bumper rather than straighten and replate the damaged one. Hagerty will send an adjuster based on your geographic location. 99-100% of his experience will be with modern cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
auburnseeker Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 23 minutes ago, Restorer32 said: Bear in mind that the adjuster they send to evaluate your car will likely have no experience whatsoever with antique cars. You may have to educate him a bit as to the quality work you expect. Luckily your damage is relatively minor. We repaired a Pierce Arrow that had been hit hard in the rear. The adjuster suggested we just buy a brand new rear bumper rather than straighten and replate the damaged one. Hagerty will send an adjuster based on your geographic location. 99-100% of his experience will be with modern cars. That was my only problem with my total loss Corvette. The Adjuster they sent wasn't at all familiar with Corvette's much less numbers matching Fuel injected no hit Corvettes. I had to point several things out to him of how the car had to be restored to it's correct condition to be right as he wasn't familiar with parts sourcing or need to keep things date coded correct. You won't have these problems as it's a fairly straight forward repair job and not a huge total loss estimate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R Walling Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 (edited) Do not go to a PDR man. This must be repaired by an autobody shop with conventional methods. There may be a kink in the SS mld that must be repaired by a competent restorer or replaced. The PDR man may be able to make it look real good, but maybe not perfect, and the insurance company may baulk about a second repair. Ps, it's nice that the insurer recommended a repair shop but remember, you may chose your own shop. The pros and cons are, If the insurer chooses the shop, they are responsible for a perfect repair. If you chose a shop, the shop is responsible for the perfect repair. Edited October 13, 2016 by Roger Walling (Choice of words) (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avantey Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Recently I had a great experience with a claim I turned in to Hagerty. I hit a deer with my '31 Hupp while on tour at the end of July. Hagerty immediately opened a claim, within a week sent out their appraiser (from about 70 miles away) to the house. He wrote it up very detailed, they never blinked on the price, sent a check right out and simply said let them know if there was more damage uncovered during the repair. Their estimator said he reps 12 companies and Hagerty is his favorite since they rarely question his appraisals and tell him to make sure the client is completely satisfied with his write up before he sends it in. I wish all companies had this level of concern for customer satisfaction from top to bottom in their organization! I can't say enough good about how they handled my incident! The deer had a much worse outcome from our encounter........ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Dobbin Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 My roof dent was smaller than the palm of my hand. The PDR guy who also owned a body shop did the whole process from the outside. He obviously knew metal and worked out my 81 year old steel like a good metal man. He used a special glue to attach a pull plug at the edge of the dent. Next he used the special puller attached to the plug to pry the plug and the body medal a fraction if an inch. Once the pull was done he used chemicals to freeze the glue and remove the plug. He repeated the process about 25 times around the dent until the entire dent was gone. Then he cleaned, buffed and waxed the area. A good You Tube on the process is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MM5Jmlytjw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
46 woodie Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 First of all your kids are great actors and you might think about being a director in Hollywood. All kidding aside, look at the bright side, it looks like the stainless trim was not damaged, so thats a good thing. Let's hope that it was accidental and that someone really didn't know that they backed into your car. If they knew they caused damage, well thats another story. I know your upset but nobody was hurt and I'm sure Hagerty will make it right. Let us know how you make out, good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 The last job we did for Hagerty turned out to cost nearly 100% more than the original adjuster's estimate because of hidden damage. Hagerty paid it without complaint. Honestly, in 37 years restoring we have done maybe 10 insurance repair jobs. In each case the insurance company treated the customer very fairly. They view antique car damage as an unknown expense and are more interested in getting the job done correctly and quickly and moving on than in saving a few pennies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hullinger Posted October 13, 2016 Author Share Posted October 13, 2016 All very good stories and this helps ease my mind on Hagerty and their follow-through. Thank you all for sharing. I expect to get a repair estimate tomorrow and I'll keep everyone updated as this progresses. Thanks, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amphicar BUYER Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 Somebody shot the $1200 windshield in my '59 Skyliner with a BB gun. Hagerty was the best! They covered it no sweat and then sent my car a get well card! That was hilarious and made me feel like the truly do care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 (edited) I probably would have had the inside door panel off and tried pushing it out by hand by now. The painless dent guys are best with the characteristics of thinner metals from the 1980's and up. If there is a crease in your door they can't massage it out like the newer tin. The dent guy told me that. I look at insurance as a legal requirement I carry for the sake of "the other guy". Unless my car is totaled I'm not picking the phone up to ask for money to fix anything. On the comment on general workmanship today, I rarely go out looking for commercial services. I have officially been in the hobby since October 1959. What I can't fix myself can be done, if needed, by one of my circle of long term friends. A couple weeks ago I was at a friend's garage while he was mixing four colors with a eye dropper to repaint screw holes left from an unwanted visor. "Shops" where one takes insurance claims are kind of outside the scope of my hobby. This hobby was a social network before they thought the term up. I guess there is a kind or rhythm or tune to the hobby and insurance claim sounds discordant to me. Bernie Edited October 13, 2016 by 60FlatTop (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GARY F Posted October 13, 2016 Share Posted October 13, 2016 just my 2 cents but remove the inside door panel and try popping it back out. i had a similar door dent and it popped out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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