How do I explain insurance?

[Lacessit]

My GF's car, comprehensively insured, has a scratch on the front bumper. Usual parking lot bingle where some Thai with the driving skills of a three-year old has done it, then buggered off.

The insurance policy has a no-claim bonus of 3500 baht. First year of the policy. I explain to her get a quote on the repair, which I estimate is 1000 - 2000 baht.

Instead, she takes car AND insurance policy to a repair shop, and they do all the paperwork. When I ask for a quote, it's 3500 baht. Big surprise there. She says - but I pay nothing.

How do I explain to her it is false economy, because she has lost the no-claim bonus, and the repair shop is ripping off the insurance company?

[CharlieH]

You can explain it for her, but understanding it for her is not so easy.????

 

Seriously though, you havnt shown a pic of the damage, but would be surprised if it actually cost more than 1500 from many body-shop type places based on your description.

[hereforgood]

unless you are a auto Body repair guy how can you say they are ripping her off

 

[DoktorC]

And did you witness the accident?  How do you know it wa a Thai driver?  I assume she's Thai and has those driving skills of a 3-year old that you ascribe to others.  Why does she have a car? Maybe she did it herself. 

 

Sounds like she understands insurance just fine... have insurance, they take care of problem.  She has big hansum really smart man like you to pay insurance bill when due. 

 

 

[Lacessit]

40 minutes ago, DoktorC said:

And did you witness the accident?  How do you know it wa a Thai driver?  I assume she's Thai and has those driving skills of a 3-year old that you ascribe to others.  Why does she have a car? Maybe she did it herself. 

 

Sounds like she understands insurance just fine... have insurance, they take care of problem.  She has big hansum really smart man like you to pay insurance bill when due. 

 

 

I don't know if it was a Thai driver; however, I'd say the probabilities are with me in Chiang Rai in terms of number of Thais vs number of farangs.

I trained her after firing her driving instructor. She is possibly a better driver than 95% of Thais, as I've passed on the defensive driving techniques I learned in Australia.

I'm not going to respond to the rest - malice in posters is a waste of my time.

[Lacessit]

Scratch, undented.

[canthai55]

That would buff out easy

[Lacessit]

26 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

That would buff out easy

Thanks, although with clearcoats it is hard to tell.

I think the point lurking in my subconscious is if this is a scam widespread in Thailand, everybody ends up paying because insurance companies adjust their premiums accordingly.

[DoktorC]

No malice intended buddy... you just don't realize how silly you sound.   You asked for help how to explain insurance. In reality, you couldn't explain the discount.  However, your girlfriend didn't care about the discount, she wanted her car fixed (period). That was her decision. As she said

 

The fact that you are in Chiang Rai means the possibility that it could be a farang, chinese, indian, lao, cambodian, etc are much greater (significantly) than zero. However you just wanted the opportunity to get on TV to rant about some Thai driver with the driving skills of a 3-year old.  It's just an assumption on your part of who the driver was, as are your supposed skills as a skilled defensive driver from Australia.  All of that was irrelevant.  The only relavant fact was your girlfriend's car got dinged in a parking lot.  Happens many times a day all over the world.

 

Regarding the picture of the damage,  it appears to be through the paint into the primer (unless that's paint from the other car).   Hmmm where's the TVF CSI unit when you need them.

 

If it's not paint that's more that a buff job, it's at least some (not much) touch up paint that has to be matched to the car, then blended, and buffed; if you want it to look good 3500B might well be a tad high, but that depends on the quality of the shop.   So somewhere between 1500 to 3500B.  Hardly worth losing sleep or time over.

 

In the end, I don't really care, her car, her insurance, her decision.

 

 

[alacrity]

59 minutes ago, canthai55 said:

That would buff out easy

Outside parameters for that. 

[Lacessit]

18 minutes ago, DoktorC said:

No malice intended buddy... you just don't realize how silly you sound.   You asked for help how to explain insurance. In reality, you couldn't explain the discount.  However, your girlfriend didn't care about the discount, she wanted her car fixed (period). That was her decision. As she said

 

The fact that you are in Chiang Rai means the possibility that it could be a farang, chinese, indian, lao, cambodian, etc are much greater (significantly) than zero. However you just wanted the opportunity to get on TV to rant about some Thai driver with the driving skills of a 3-year old.  It's just an assumption on your part of who the driver was, as are your supposed skills as a skilled defensive driver from Australia.  All of that was irrelevant.  The only relavant fact was your girlfriend's car got dinged in a parking lot.  Happens many times a day all over the world.

 

Regarding the picture of the damage,  it appears to be through the paint into the primer (unless that's paint from the other car).   Hmmm where's the TVF CSI unit when you need them.

 

If it's not paint that's more that a buff job, it's at least some (not much) touch up paint that has to be matched to the car, then blended, and buffed; if you want it to look good 3500B might well be a tad high, but that depends on the quality of the shop.   So somewhere between 1500 to 3500B.  Hardly worth losing sleep or time over.

 

In the end, I don't really care, her car, her insurance, her decision.

 

 

I'm calling BS. You obviously get your jollies out criticizing other people. Pathetic.

[canthai55]

1 hour ago, alacrity said:

Outside parameters for that. 

just did mine yesterday. Looked the same. Looks good as before now.

If you know how, and have the tools.

[JAS21]

Of course, if she had mot made an insurance claim the NCB next year may have been worth 5000 or more.

 

She has now for forfeit that. And of course it’s cumulative.

 

Try explaining that to her....

Edited January 4, 2020 by JAS21

[Lacessit]

17 hours ago, canthai55 said:

just did mine yesterday. Looked the same. Looks good as before now.

If you know how, and have the tools.

From other posts you've made, I assume you have been in the motor trade in some capacity. Your opinion on whether 3500 baht is a scam?

[Just Weird]

22 hours ago, Lacessit said:

I explain to her get a quote on the repair, which I estimate is 1000 - 2000 baht.

Instead, she takes car AND insurance policy to a repair shop, and they do all the paperwork. When I ask for a quote, it's 3500 baht.

There's a difference between what you think a repair may cost and what a professional body shop knows, unless you're a body man, of course.

 

"...and the repair shop is ripping off the insurance company?"

How is the body shop "ripping off" the insurer?

Edited January 4, 2020 by Just Weird

[singasong]

20 hours ago, canthai55 said:

That would buff out easy

Not if it's plastic it wont !

[Just Weird]

17 hours ago, canthai55 said:

19 hours ago, alacrity said:

Outside parameters for that. 

just did mine yesterday. Looked the same. Looks good as before now.

If you know how, and have the tools.

...and if you don't know how, that's what you have to pay a professional the, almost insignificant, B3500 baht for.

Edited January 4, 2020 by Just Weird

[Just Weird]

16 minutes ago, singasong said:

20 hours ago, canthai55 said:

That would buff out easy

Not if it's plastic it wont !

It's the paint that gets the buffing, not the material that the part is made from that is painted!

[Jane Dough]

Send me your wife's contact details and I will send her a detailed explanation of your feelings - in Thai - so that this is all cleared up amicably and with full understanding.

 

Just transfer 1,500 baht for the service. 

 

Rooster

[canthai55]

2 hours ago, Lacessit said:

From other posts you've made, I assume you have been in the motor trade in some capacity. Your opinion on whether 3500 baht is a scam?

Mine stretched from halfway down the front fender to the tail light lens. Moron on a motorbike !

Total time to remove scratch, and buff - including getting tools out, performing the repair, cleaning the pads, and replacing everything - one hour.

So ... does 3500 baht per hour seem fair ?

That scratch on your wifes car was what 15-20 cm ?

[Don Mega]

To me that looks to be more than a buff job to sort and being a silver car that drive up the cost as they are hard to colout match.

[Lacessit]

1 hour ago, canthai55 said:

Mine stretched from halfway down the front fender to the tail light lens. Moron on a motorbike !

Total time to remove scratch, and buff - including getting tools out, performing the repair, cleaning the pads, and replacing everything - one hour.

So ... does 3500 baht per hour seem fair ?

That scratch on your wifes car was what 15-20 cm ?

About 15 cm.

[Lacessit]

3 hours ago, Just Weird said:

There's a difference between what you think a repair may cost and what a professional body shop knows, unless you're a body man, of course.

 

"...and the repair shop is ripping off the insurance company?"

How is the body shop "ripping off" the insurer?

If the work is only 1500 baht's worth, including the repair shop's profit margin, and it is charging the insurer 3500 baht, I would call that a ripoff.

Do you pay the first price quoted on a good or service, or do you get quotes from three or four suppliers?

[Lacessit]

3 hours ago, Just Weird said:

...and if you don't know how, that's what you have to pay a professional the, almost insignificant, B3500 baht for.

While I agree 3500 baht is not much in the scheme of things, it's more about my dislike of people who engage in ripping other people off. We all pay for that one way or another.

[Just Weird]

15 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

If the work is only 1500 baht's worth, including the repair shop's profit margin, and it is charging the insurer 3500 baht, I would call that a ripoff.

Do you pay the first price quoted on a good or service, or do you get quotes from three or four suppliers?

Who said it was worth only B1500?  Sorry, I didn't see that in your OP where you said that you had three or four (or even just one) other quotes also, I thought B1500 was your own guestimate.

 

Edit:  Just read your OP again, B1000/2000 was just your guess after all.  I'm surprised that you didn't get three or four quotes as you were suggesting others should do instead of claiming that the shop was ripping-off the insurer!

 

 

Edited January 4, 2020 by Just Weird

[Just Weird]

12 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

While I agree 3500 baht is not much in the scheme of things, it's more about my dislike of people who engage in ripping other people off. We all pay for that one way or another.

Is it possible that you could clarify where the rip-off is in your case?

[singasong]

On 1/4/2020 at 3:11 PM, Just Weird said:

It's the paint that gets the buffing, not the material that the part is made from that is painted!

You try buffing out a scratch on plastic, let us know how you got on.