Extensive hail damage

[pologti18t]

I
With AAMI, to get it done properly it may take some running around but dont let them just take your car and farm it out.

Thats exactly what I did. Got 3 quotes and left it too them. It says in the FAQ you can get a quote from a non-AAMI approved repairer if you want. They will compare it to two from AAMI repairers

[Stealthy]

Hello nicandlance.
As much as it may pain you, could you please post pictures of your damaged car on the forum?
Though I hardly post on here, I too enjoyed reading of your excitement when you got your new Golf. I have been there too, although mine's a 103TDI.
Anyway best of luck with the claim etc.

[nicandlance]

Not sure if I can show pics...

I have tried taking photo's, but the glare from my once lovely paintwork stops the damage from showing up in a pic! Also, it has been raining here on and off, so while the car is wet you don't see the extent of damage - in fact it looks fine till it partially dries!

Thanks for the directions Ozvino.... maybe it won't be such an trek out to Preston after all.

Spook, I was hoping that damage to the roof might write it off, but I have had a number of friends tell me that their Insurance companies are opting to repair rather than write off - despite any damage to the roof of their car. Whether or not the fact that my car is only 4 weeks old makes any difference is yet to be determined. I'm hoping it's more viable for them to sell it at auction, still get a reasonable price for it and replace it for me.

[nicandlance]

Got my assessment on Sunday in Preston..... have you heard anything yet?

[Swallowtail]

Yes mods are in here, and it's all been good healthy fun so far... although that pic Mav posted nearly made me choke on my breakfast...

Good luck Nic, keep us all posted.

[nicandlance]

Here you go.

Are they yours???? OMG!
(And I agree... all good clean fun so far, nothing offensive)
God knows I need a laugh right now.....

By the way, is it true there is no provision for laser welding to be done on cars in Australia? If they tell me they have to replace the roof, perhaps I can use that to sway them from any decision not to write it off? After all, I bought the Golf for its safety (amongst other things), and the frame is a major part of that. If they spot welded a new roof on, it just wouldn't be as was.....

[Lima]

Hmm, sorry to hear of your woes. I'd definitely be seeking some advice from Volkswagen as well. Especially in regard to the laser welding.

On a positive note (of sorts) I hit a kangaroo in my then 3-week old MINI back in 2004. I was insured with AAMI and was able to nominate a preferred repairer to quote on the job. This didn't guarantee they would get the job of course, but I was advised I was perfectly within my rights to nominate one repairer to quote.

It was then explained to me by my AAMI contact that they would choose the "best fit" quote. That is, they would assess both pricing and scope of repair and if one repair was deemed to be better than the other then they would most likely take that option, regardless of price.

The upshot of that was my preferred repairer was chosen, and apart from it taking a total of 7 weeks to repair, everything was pretty much spot on when I got the car back.

AAMI was very easy and professional to deal with. YMMV of course, and their policies may have changed since then as well.

I don't insure with AAMI now, mainly because they don't offer windscreen replacement for ACT residents, and with both the GTI (QBE) and S3 (NRMA) having rain sensing wipers I'd rather have glass coverage for that than not.

[Intensive]

It is unlikely the car will be written off. You need to get a quote from a high end prestige panel shop whose aim is to make it almost impossible to detect the car has been repaired. They do exist- for example my wife's car ( another german marque unrelated to VW)- total repair bill > $30000 after the front end was removed by a turning truck. When traded the receiving dealer did not detect it had been involved in such a collision. Simply ask who BMW and mercedes recommend as repairers; however it extremely unlikely that a budget insurers will award them the job. What you can do however is after your car has been repaired take it to high end repair shop and pay them to inspect the car and indicate what rectification works are required. Unfortunately the panel shop that did the work will then have to fix the job to that standard- they are able to do this but they then lose money. The budget insurers are cheap for a reason- they pay the repairers less and therefore you will get the lowest quality repair possible. They get away with because most customers accept this with its "lifetime guarantee"

[nicandlance]

If I could swear on this forum, I would.......

(Although I have heard someone say that their one year old Mazda was written off after hail damage... wonder what the deciding factor was there?)

[cme2c]

Hi, Nic,

Sorry to hear about you car.

A mate of mine is a good smash repairer, in Blacktown. he fixed my Peugeot after I ran into something soft ( a Hyundai) and it drives perfectly, even years later.

He whinges about the cost of equipment to repair modern cars, and about some of his "competitors" that take short cuts, replacing panels when a side of the car should be replaced, repairing things that manufacturers say should not be repaired (very important with high strength steel.) He keeps up to date with courses in the latest techniques.

After the hailstorm,it took 9 months for the backlog of cars to be fixed.When the hailstorm hit here, there was basically a triage system, get the writeoffs written off, then fix those that are off the road or have major damage(like roofs etc), lastly those that have the odd dimple. He brought in a paintless dent specialist, sort of a "storm chaser" who follows hailstorms around NSW.

I urge you to find out, from VW or an authorised repairer, how the car SHOULD be fixed. It's not just the appearance, but your safety that's at stake. Like Maverick's picture......

John