WANTED: A fairer deal for third party work

A fairer deal is needed for repairers quoting third party work with many repair shops allocating hours to prepare quotes with no guarantee the car owner wont accept a cash settlement from the insurer.
NSW Central Coast repairer Ben Purdue of MJM Smash Repairs in Tuggerah believes repairers should be paid $60 for their time to prepare a quote for a third party claim, and if they are successful in being given the job, that fee is deducted from the bill.
He said the work is carried out to prepare the quote, source parts and then have to wait. The owner then three weeks later gets a cheque as cash settlement and the repairer gets nothing.
However, Purdue also believes the cash settlements are well under the actual cost to repair the vehicle, claiming the settlement does not include items like GST on consumables, affording insurers a huge saving.
“How many businesses would put two hours in for nothing,” Purdue said.
Apart from the physical time the estimator has to put in to inspecting the damaged vehicle and preparing the quote, Purdue also points to other ongoing business costs like electricity and using the fax machine to source parts. Then the vehicle has to be booked in and in some cases are courtesy car may be provided for the customer while the car is assessed.
“A flat fees which would be invoiced to the insurer and if we get the job it would come off the bill,” Purdue suggested.