Auto body repair shops plagued in fraud
It is said that the finest art is created by those who truly love art. The same may be said for talented auto body paint and repair technicians. It’s important to differentiate the average body shop who is content with mediocre work and insurance claims and those who take actual pride in Custom Body and Paint. Whether one is customizing a lowrider or restoring an all original classic, one of the hardest things is finding a body shop willing to give your car the paint job it deserves. A great paint job is one done by professionals who truly understands and enjoy the art of auto paint. These professionals take pride in their art and their excellent reputations speak for themselves.
Fraudulent Body Shops
Many who have experienced the struggle of restoring cars know that the art of custom auto paint and repair is being taken over by shady shops simply in for it for the money. Deceitful body shops may appear sincere in advertisement and appearance but one may find that these places prefer taking on insurance claims and avoid others as if they were a cancer. The first thing one may expect to see posted on many fraudulent Body Shops is “Insurance Claims Welcome”.
No Insurance - No Service Reassurance
The first thing people will be asked before their car is even acknowledged is who their insurance company is. If your car is older than 10 years old chances are you will receive a run-a-round.
Sham body shops find it much easier to milk insurance companies with deep pockets than to rob the average fellow with the classic car. Why should a Body Shop work harder smoothing out a classic ride with dent pullers and Bondo when they can simply replace the damaged parts on a newer car with cheap after market fenders and grilles, not to mention make a killing off your insurance company!
Could one blame many Body Paint and Repair shops for looking out for their best financial interests?
One may answer, ‘Maybe not. That’s life. Deal with it.”
The fact of the matter is people should not be subject to fraud.
"Operation Straight Body"
Insurance fraud is the number one factor of the sharp decline of quality body paint and repair. Police are new seeing a trend of repair shops engaging in this kind of deception and working hard to put these fraudulent shops out of business. The tip of this enormous iceberg was recently revealed on June 2010, following the arrest of auto body repair workers at Huntington Beach Bodyworks in Santa Ana California. Dubbed "Operation Straight Body" , undercover police officers posing as customers brought in a couple of damaged vehicles for repair and discovered the shop was milking their insurance company. Employee's at the shop, including the body shop's owner Richard Todd Evans, were all charged with one felony count of insurance fraud.
Where Profit Outshines Passion
Many of these fraudulent shops such as Huntington Beach Bodyworks tend to advertise themselves as "Custom" body shops. In reality true custom body shops take pride in their craftsmanship and the quality of their work speaks for itself. Custom body and paint is a fine art and fraudulent shops posing as such are killing the trust of consumers who only want the best for their cars. Many "Custom" body shops who's desire for profit surpass their passion of quality are now dropping the term "Custom" in their advertisement campaigns. Fraudulent body shops figure why should they waste time turning down consumers seeking true custom craftsmanship when they can focus on turning insurance claims into quick and easy cash.
Genuine Custom Body Shops
True Custom Body Shops, although rare still do exist so please do not lose hope of receiving a great paint job. Just do your homework and look for actual examples of their work. Word of mouth never lies and attending local car shows is a good start. Spot out a clean classic car with a great paint job and talk to the owner for a referral and go from there.
In Conclusion, true Custom Body Paint and repair has become a rare art and is more difficult to find as auto insurance fraud progresses into the future.
D. Arredondo
www.convictedartist.com
Related Links
Volkswagen History Timeline
CLEAN CUT - Lowriding Tribute to Cutlass Supreme
