Another tactic you can take is suing him...It gets the insurance companies real upset because then he can sue them for failure to operate in good faith. Can cost them 3 x the cost to settle correctly.
Speaking from experience, make sure you photograph everything you can find that is accident related, and document it with the adjuster. Don't be afraid to ask questions and get copies of everything.
Took it to the insurance company's general body shop today and the guy came out looked at the car for about 5 mins took a few notes and pictures and said he would let the insurance company know because he can't write the estiminate because it's so old and has a short vin number..
You have the right under law..............which says you can take it to any body shop you wish........................my advise would be to take it to 2 or three body shops on your own, call the body shops first and describe what you have and what you are looking for......................it sounds like this body shop is in bed with your insurance company and will look at trying to total it because.............."It is so old"......................................IMHO
Took it to the mustang shop today the owner of the place came out and wrote the estimate he didn't seem like he wanted to do it since all he did was write me a $1800 piece of paper for straightening the quarter instead of replacing it however just about all his guys stopped what they where doing and came to look at the Mav when I pulled in
Maybe, as suggested in another post here, that tugging the frame will also pull the quarter back into shape too. Perhaps that is the right prescription for this car, and a less-invasive way to fix it. Ask opinions what they feel would be the best way to fix it, and if there might be more than one path, while getting estimates. .... or being a Mustang shop, the guy may thinking "it's just a Maverick ..." like some Mustang freaks seem to buy into ... (don't want to slam the guy unnecessarily here ... just sayin') A true body guy can give you a better idea here as far as what they are capable of ... more of an art than a science in my book.
Personally, any self respecting "body shop" would want to put in on a body rack to make sure everything is still straight after the accident.....it looks like you have found a body shop who really doesn't want to do the work.
One of the biggest problems you will find, is most body shops don't do old cars anymore. They make their money solely on insurance collision work, and are tied pretty tightly to insurance companies, and if they don't do that, they don't get the work. Looking at the pictures, I don't think you can expect any shop to replace the quarter panel. But it should be put on a frame machine, and once you get into that, you'll quickly run up a bill that may exceed the value of what your car is insured for.
