Please help me & my hurt Truck!

[LBGirl]

Hello- I'm obviously new to this family but I am in need of advice/help. My truck ('99 Toyota Tacoma) was in a small accident and is on the road to a facelift!

My insurance company has been a pain in the booty in giving me the $ we need to fix it and now that it's time to fix I need to decide what REALLY needs to be fixed vs. what doesn't need to be fixed.

So here is where you cool dezert people can come into help me! I only have 2 questions...

Please answer if you know:

1- Do aftermarket headlights and rearlights have a tremendous difference compared to OEM lights???

2- If the AC Condenser broke both brackets (in between the fins) is it save to drive? Or should the brackets be replaced?

That is all! THANK YOU for reading and answering my questions!

Mey (LBGirl- Lil Brown Girl)

PS- If you can help it DON'T get insurance from Progressive- THey suck! (If it's not legal for me to say this- SORRY BUT THEY SUCK! )

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[Tom_Willis]

(1)No one will know the difference if you choose aftermarket lenses.
(2) A used A/C condenser bracket can be obtained from a yard that specialies in used Toyota parts. Check the yellow pages for them.
(3) All insurance companies suck.

[IDRA_CRB]

Typical problem with the "Cost Savings" insurance companies. So what if the guy we hit has trouble with them? But when YOU make a claim you learn how bad they can be.

I pay the extra money to have State Farm. When my 4Runner was stolen in Baja my State Farm home owners policy covered the contents (over $6K)

Snap-On tools
Radios
Gps
+ lots more

They didn't even ask me for receipts. Just cut me a check.


Reese

[johnnyweb]

hey there, i own a auto body shop and we use a/m parts as little as possible. if you have to the light are about the only thing i would advise. the a/c cond is threre for comfort and does nothing for drivability but will affect your defroster. dont worry about it though. yes there is huge differences in ins companys and if your ins is real cheap expect the claims service to be the same. you get what you pay for and yes state farm is the bomb. we are a service first shop for state farm .they are ratted #1 by auto body shops nation wide for service and they use no a/m parts. im ins with them as well as alot of my customers and we have little to no problems dealing with them. ive delt with them all and i have some hore storys. we are a network shop for progressive so i wont comment on them but is the truck at a body shop ar what? they have to pay for the damaged parts if the parts are not up to par complain and ask for oem parts. when the repair are done go with another ins co. in my experiences progressive is not the worst ins co you could have. there are worse ones out there. good luck if you need more help pm me. i know pretty much everything about it.

[BlueCoyote]

You get what you pay for. Most lower cost carriers provide you that lower cost buy reducing or limiting the benefits they will pay after a loss. After all it is a business - (low $ gets you a burger, bigger $ gets you a steak). Be sure to read your policy - boring stuff but it is a legal document - what and how is covered. Some companies will cover all OEM stuff, your personal items, rental, etc, but you are either payimg more or have a near perfect driving record.
In the case of the carrier you mentined, there is probabley a sectoin that allows the use of "competitive parts".
However aftermarket lights being sold today are of pretty good quality. You would be hard pressed to tell the difference.
As for the A/C - ??? Need to see it.
FWIW, when dealing with the office types, keep it proffesional. You can still make your point and often get what you want by being proffesional and diplomatic.

[LBGirl]

WOW! Ok those where all VERY helpfull answers! Unfortunately I learned the hard way about the hidden small writing on policies and that you get what you pay for!

FORTUNATELY the Body Shop I took my Truck to (Deschlers in ORange!) & I have been persistent (yet diplomatic) about what we want to do to my truck. So my ins. company finally gave in- not completely but enough to be able to get OEM parts (including the lights!). My out of pocket costs: nothing!

I am definitely going to look into STate Farm after this incident. I honestly believed Progressive was a good company to deal with. It's not horrible, but it's not GREAT. I have learned I want GREAT.

I am happy though- Today they begin fixing my truck! It's been more than a month of dealing back and forth and I have so missed driving it! Little cars just don't do it for me anymore. I have been spoiled

Thank you SOOOOOOOOOO much for your advice everyone! And you're always welcome to PM me to say hi! I need Dezert people friends!

XoXo
Mey

[orvacian]

I used to have Pregressive, they are great UNTIL you have a claim. Then they are the stingiest bastards you ever will come across. Mercury was even worse.
Now I have State Farm and they have been awesome. The cost is less then Progressive, even though my deductable is lower and coverages higher. I had a claim, they had an adjuster out the next day, I had a check in my hand early the next morning. They will pay for factory replacement parts and they will cover aftermarket add-ons far beyond what the cheap ins. companies will. My agent is Craig Mauk in Montclair on Central. Natalie is the one I usually deal with in the office and she is the BEST! Tell her Aaron told you to call (909)626-7275

This is not a insurance commercial, I just appreciate when I get excellent service, and that is rare these days.

[murphco]

progressive has been nothing but good to me.with three claims they payed me more than i thought they would and covered things that other insurance companies would not,lights rod ends,shocks,fiberglass,etc.

[johnnyweb]

alot of ins claims come down to who you get as an adjuster/estimator. also the additude you have with them. you always want to take the nice guy route first. if that doesnt work then you may have to get more agressive. also if the a/m add ons are on the vehicle when they insure it and they took photos of the items on the vehicle you should get them covered. you should read the policy and ask questions before you sign the policy. because it comes back to you when you have a claim. also some times if you are the claimant you can have the person who hit you's ins pay and you dont have a policy to abide by then.

[91yotaprerunner]

i have some unknown cheap insurance by encompass or something like that. I pay 300 bucks a year as a 17 year old driver. and when it came time for me to make a claim, they worked with me very well and were even understanding of the old people drivers of my town. They gave me no hassles and took care of my claim quickly.