We all know the feeling: a small car accident causes some damage to our vehicle but we don’t want to take it into the auto body repair shop. Some smaller forms of damage to vehicles can be easily repaired on your own. But what if you lack the knowledge and expertise? Well, just anything else, it can be learned. Here are some car maintenance and repair tips to follow if you are looking to take care of your own car after a fender bender.
Seek Legal Recourse for Damages
Before you dive too deep into the world of car maintenance and repair tips, it is a good idea to look at some of the legal aspects of the accident that caused the damage in the first place. If you were part of an accident that was caused by another driver, then they may be held liable to pay for damages to your vehicle, your personal property, and more. Of course, after any accident, you should call for medical help if anyone involved in the accident was hurt or injured. After this, it is always a good idea to gather the contact information of anyone else who was part of the accident. This information can serve to help you in going after any form of compensation that you may be entitled to. Finally, you should contact car accident attorneys to learn more about your legal and financial options after an accident.
There are a great number of local law firms that will be willing to offer you a free consultation to learn more about your situation. Often times these consultations can help you to avoid needing to learn the kinds of car maintenance and repair tips that may be needed to restore your vehicle to its best condition. However, with legal help on your side, you may be able to recover compensation to cover the costs of any repairs that you need to have done to your vehicle after an accident.
When another driver is involved in an accident, even if it was their fault, it’s important to remember just how tricky it can be to deal with a car insurance company. Car insurance companies have lots of experience in dealing with car accident claims. As such, they may make use of some confusing techniques to try to reject your claim for coverage. When you have a lawyer working on your side, they will communicate with car insurance companies and other drivers in order to pursue the right amount of funds to cover the costs of any repairs you may need after an accident, even if it was just a fender bender.
Ask if Insurance Will Cover Any Costs
Of course, it also never hurts to see if your car insurance company will cover some of the costs of your repairs after an accident. As we mentioned, even if another driver was to blame for the accident, it is never certain that their automobile insurance policy will cover all of the costs of your damages and repairs. In many cases, a policy that doesn’t cover damages may leave you looking for all the greatest car maintenance and repair tips so you can take care of things on your own. In any case, it never hurts to ask the right questions and get some clarity on the kinds of damages that your car insurance policy will or will not pay for in the event of an accident out on the roads.
Get a Rental Car in the Meantime
If you were part of a crash that left your vehicle with major damage, then it’s a good idea to seek out a car for rent. As mentioned above, your car insurance company may even cover the costs of a rental car if you are in need of one after an accident. Many rental car companies are willing to work with you to find a vehicle that is similar to those you are used to driving in the past. If you are looking for something that’s quite different, on the other hand, then most companies will also be willing to offer you some different options.
Renting a car after an accident is often a great option to get you through until you get your regular vehicle back in your hands. Learning all the best car maintenance and repair tips can take quite some time, so a rental car can give you the space you need to get around in your day to day commutes. Once again, you may only end up needing a rental vehicle for a few days or a few weeks. But even these rates can pile up. So it’s always worth your time to ask questions and see if your insurance company, or the insurance company of another driver involved in the accident that caused damages, will be willing to cover the costs of a rental car.
Tow Your Vehicle to a Safe Location
If you were in a wreck, then your brain may instantly jump to trying to learn the best car maintenance and repair tips. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, there are some more practical steps that you need to take first. Before you delve into car maintenance and repair tips and taking action on getting things fixed, you will need to relocate your car to a safe place where you can get work done on it. This is where a towing service enters the picture.
Accidents that take place during the middle of the day may make it easy to get in touch with a professional towing service right away. However, accidents that happen at other hours of the day, such as late at night, or in the wee hours of the morning, may require you to get in touch with a 24 hour towing service. The nature of the towing service will often depend upon the severity of the accident that took place. If the damage to your vehicle or to other vehicles is quite serious in nature, then it may be impossible to get your vehicle towed away in one single piece. In these cases, your car may be deemed “totaled” which is a term that just means it is damaged beyond repair. In cases such as these, where a vehicle has been totaled, no amount of car maintenance and repair tips will be able to restore it, as the initial value of the vehicle has already been lost. In either scenario, contacting the right towing service after a wreck will ensure that you are getting your vehicle moved away from the scene of the accident so that you can get started on restoring it to normal once again.
Ask for a Professional Opinion on Whether Repairs Are Worth it
Perhaps one of the most important car maintenance and repair tips is to first consult with other professionals in the field. People who work on cars day in and day out likely have knowledge that you lack. By first asking the opinion of a professional mechanic, you can get some greater insights on the repairs that may be needed. A mechanic will be able to assess important aspects of vehicle damage after an accident. In doing so they can tell you if it is worth your time to apply some car maintenance and repair tips and get to work, or if it’s simply better to get a new car altogether. A professional opinion can prove to be quite valuable in this regard.
In the event that you do need to replace your car altogether, a car loan can make the process more doable. Without the right car loan, it may be possible to end up getting yourself into a tough financial predicament where you can’t cover the costs of the vehicle in full. A car loan will give you a bit more time so you can get your finances in order while also still being able to get to where you need to go.
Shop for Car Parts
When starting the process of learning car maintenance and repair tips for yourself, you will often come across terms and definitions that you are unable to define. Many of them will likely be related to car parts. By first learning about what parts you may need to perform repairs, you will give yourself a more informed context for the repairs process. You can always visit a shop that specializes in car parts for sale, or you can visit a mechanic to ask about any parts you’re unsure about. In either case, you will be giving yourself a greater education as to what parts fit with your vehicle, and which ones you can go without.
Specific vehicles may require specific parts. Foreign vehicles, for example, are quite notorious for requiring parts that are more difficult to come by than vehicles that are produced in the same country. Parts such as automotive bulkhead connectors for foreign cars may end up costing you quite a bit more just because of their rarity. When you can learn a bit about parts before diving into buying them, you will be in a better position to make a choice that is kind not only to your vehicle, but also to your wallet. Learning the best car maintenance and repair tips is a long process in most cases, but starting out by learning about car parts is always a great way to begin.
Invest in Good Detailing Work
Auto detailing is a complex and specialized process. It is something that technicians train for years in order to master. Even then, some technicians may be unfamiliar with certain parts of the process. Similar to looking for the right parts, if you happen to have a rare or foreign vehicle, then the detailing process may be that much more challenging. However, doing your research to find a shop that specializes in detailing will often produce the kinds of results that you are looking for.
Did you know that the Center for Automotive Research’s report estimates that the U.S. auto industry supports an estimated 8 million jobs in the United States? Many of these jobs are in the repairs and detailing sector.
Detailing work is one of those things that it pays to invest good time and money into. With other parts of the repair and maintenance process, you may be able to cut some corners and save yourself a few bucks. But detailing is such a delicate process. With poor detailing work, your car will instantly stand out, and not in a good way. Once again, doing the proper research to find a shop that can achieve the best results will make all the difference in the outcomes of your detailing work after an accident.
To find a detailing shop that you know you can trust, try asking around for recommendations from people who are familiar with your vehicle type, or similar vehicle types. Price is certainly important when choosing a shop, but you should never overlook other aspects such as the way a shop treats its customers. It’s important to establish a strong, positive relationship with any auto shop that you visit. When it comes to detailing work, being able to communicate your ideas is vital to seeing the end results that you want.
Change Out Old Locks and Parts
Old locks and parts can really weigh down a vehicle. That’s why the last entry on our list of car maintenance and repair tips covers this subject. Sure, you can always go ahead and make use of a local car locksmith if you are dealing with some troubling locks. But wouldn’t you rather do the work on your own? It may take some more time, but when you take control of your vehicle’s locks you will not only learn a lot, but you will also have greater control over how you get in and out of your vehicle.
While dealing with car repairs and maintenance on your own is certain to present some difficulties and challenges along the way, when you follow these types of car maintenance and repair tips you will put yourself in the position to succeed. We wish you the best of luck and stay safe out there!
Related: a to z body and fender, abrn auto body repair news, autobody repair news, bumper to bumper accident, car accident but no damage, car accident no damage but injury, collision repair magazine, going through insurance for accident, how much do you get for a fender bender, i was in a fender bender now what, minor accident insurance, report an accident usaa, what to do if you get in a fender bender, what to do in a fender bender with no damage, when to use car insurance, auto body industry, auto body industry news, auto repair industry news, auto service and repair magazine, body shop business magazine, body shop business news.
