‘Over-repair’ inflating insurance premiums
Mark Llewellyn, managing director of smart repair network Revive!, believes insurers are paying too much for vehicles to be over-repaired by bodyshops.
The statement comes in light of car insurance premiums hitting a four year high, according to the AA’s British Insurance Premium Index, and a claim by David Brown, insurance partner at KPMG UK that ‘the rising cost of accidental damage is becoming a much bigger threat to motor policy price inflation than whiplash’.
Mark Llewellyn said, ‘I am amazed that people are still claiming on their insurance policies and taking their cars to bodyshops for minor scuffs and scrapes to vehicle paintwork and alloy wheels. It’s like taking a sledge-hammer to crack a nut. There’s no need to replace a whole panel just to fix a small scratch.
‘Quite apart from driving up insurance premiums for us all, insurers are paying too much for vehicles to be over-repaired by bodyshops when the work can be done far more quickly and cost effectively by accredited smart repairers.’
Mark continued, ‘We are seeing enlightened insurers beginning to use approved smart repairers for minor bodywork and alloy wheel damage and I anticipate that within a few years smart repair techniques will become a mainstream solution within the vehicle repair and insurance industries.’
