Guides
Car Accident, Insurance & Repair Guides
Plain-English answers about car accidents, insurance claims, your rights, body repairs, rust and paint. Written for car owners in Yonkers, NY and checked against official sources, which are listed at the bottom of every guide.
After an accident
What to do at the scene, what to say and not say, reporting, towing, and whether to file a claim at all.
Your claim and your rights
What insurers must do and cannot do, choosing your own shop, parts, supplements, total loss, disputes and fraud.
Filing a GEICO Claim in Yonkers: What Happens NextHow to report a GEICO claim, how GEICO inspects the damage, what Auto Repair Xpress is, and your New York right to pick any body shop.
Filing an Allstate Claim in Yonkers: What Happens NextHow Allstate claims work: filing in My Account or by phone, photo estimates, the Good Hands Repair Network, payment options, rentals and your NY rights.
Filing a State Farm Claim in Yonkers: What Happens NextStarting a State Farm claim, getting an estimate, what Select Service shops offer, rentals, who State Farm pays, and your New York right to choose a shop.
Filing a Progressive Claim in Yonkers: What Happens NextReporting a Progressive claim, Photo Estimate vs. an estimator, Progressive's network shop guarantee, rentals, payment, and your New York shop rights.
How to File a Car Insurance Claim, Step by StepHow to report a crash to your insurer, what to have ready, what happens after you call, and the dos and don'ts that keep a car insurance claim moving.
Your Insurance or Theirs? First-Party vs. Third-Party ClaimsA first-party claim goes to your own insurer and a third-party claim goes to the at-fault driver's. How each works, who pays the deductible, and how to choose.
You Have the Right to Choose Your Body ShopCan your insurer make you use its shop? Usually not. What the law says about choosing your own body shop, insurer steering, and what the insurer still pays.
Diminished Value Claims ExplainedDiminished value is the resale value a car loses after a crash, even with good repairs. Who can claim it, how to prove it, and how state rules differ.
Total Loss: How Insurers Decide and How to Dispute the ValueWhen repairs cost close to or more than a car is worth, it is a total loss. How the value is set, what must be included, and how to dispute a low offer.
Had an accident? Bring it in.
Call the shop to set up a free estimate, or stop by. We'll look at the car in person, tell you what it needs and help you through the claim.