Insurance Claim Repairs in Yonkers, NY

Can an insurance company make you use a certain body shop?

No. In New York an insurance company cannot require you to have your car repaired at a particular shop. You can take it to any shop you choose, and the insurer has to put that right in writing on its estimate.

“PURSUANT TO SECTION 2610 OF THE INSURANCE LAW, AN INSURANCE COMPANY CANNOT REQUIRE THAT REPAIRS BE MADE TO A MOTOR VEHICLE IN A PARTICULAR PLACE OR REPAIR SHOP. YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO HAVE YOUR VEHICLE REPAIRED IN THE SHOP OF YOUR CHOICE”

The insurer can tell you about its own network of shops if you ask, and it can inspect the damage and write its own estimate. In New York, while handling your collision or comprehensive claim, an insurer may not recommend or suggest a repair shop unless you ask it to (claims only for window glass are an exception). If you do ask, it must name a conveniently located shop that will fix the car for the insurer's estimate, with a written guarantee of the work backed by the insurer. (N.Y. Insurance Law § 2610(b); 11 NYCRR 216.7(b) (Regulation 64), as described by NYS DFS)

More detail: your right to choose a body shop.

How an insurance claim works, step by step

1. Report the claim. Call your insurer, or the other driver's if they caused it, or use the insurer's app or website. Write down the claim number.
2. Tell them where the car is. Give the insurer the shop's name and address. If the car is not drivable, have it towed straight to the shop you chose.
3. The estimate. The insurer looks at the damage, in person, at the shop or through photos you send in its app. The shop writes its own estimate after looking at the car, often with the bumper or panels off.
4. Approval and supplements. The insurer approves an amount. Damage found once the car is taken apart goes back to the adjuster as a supplement, and is approved before that work is done.
5. The repair. Parts are ordered and the car is repaired, painted and checked.
6. Payment and pickup. The insurer pays the approved amount, you pay your deductible if the claim is on your own collision coverage, and you pick up the car.

Step-by-step detail: how to file a car insurance claim.

Should you claim on your insurance or the other driver's?

If the other driver caused the accident, you can claim against their liability coverage: no deductible, but you wait for their insurer to accept fault. You can also claim on your own collision coverage, pay your deductible, and let your insurer collect from theirs afterward, which is often faster. New York's no-fault coverage pays for injuries, not for damage to your car; car damage goes through collision coverage or the at-fault driver's liability coverage. In New York, every auto liability policy must include no-fault (personal injury protection) coverage, which pays up to $50,000 per person for necessary medical expenses, lost earnings (up to $2,000 a month for up to three years) and other reasonable expenses (up to $25 a day for up to one year), regardless of who was at fault. (N.Y. Insurance Law §§ 5102(a), 5103(a))

Read your insurance or theirs and, if you weren't at fault, getting your deductible back.

Will insurance pay you directly or pay the body shop?

Either can happen. Insurers may send the money to you, to the shop, or as one check made out to you and the shop together. If you have a car loan, the lender's name can be on the check too. Many customers sign a form that tells the insurer to pay the shop directly for the approved repair; read it before you sign, and see what you sign at the body shop.

If the insurer pays you and you choose not to fix the car, the money is yours, but a car loan or lease may require the repair, and unrepaired damage can affect a future claim on the same part of the car.

Do GEICO, State Farm and the others have “preferred” shops?

Yes. Most large insurers run a network of shops, often called a direct repair program, that agree to the insurer's pricing and procedures in exchange for referrals.

• GEICO: GEICO Auto Repair Xpress® — GEICO says you can choose any repair shop, and that Auto Repair Xpress repairs come with a written lifetime guarantee "good for as long as you own the vehicle." (GEICO)
• Progressive: Network repair shops — Progressive says it guarantees repairs at its network shops "for as long as you own or lease your vehicle," and that you can use any shop you'd like. (Progressive)
• Allstate: Good Hands® Repair Network — Allstate says in-network repairs come with a nationwide workmanship guarantee for as long as you own your vehicle, and that you are always free to choose your own repair shop. (Allstate)
• State Farm: Select Service — State Farm says the choice of repair shop is yours, but its Select Service shops provide a guaranteed completion date and a limited lifetime warranty. (State Farm)
• USAA: STARS® (Streamlined Appraisal Repair Service) — USAA says STARS repairs have a limited lifetime warranty on the quality of workmanship for as long as you own the car, and that you can use a STARS shop or choose your own shop. (USAA)
• NYCM Insurance: Advantage Repair Program — NYCM says it guarantees all Advantage Repair Program repairs "for as long as you own or lease your vehicle" and pays the shop directly, and that you can have repairs done at any NY State Registered Repair Shop. (NYCM Insurance)
• Travelers: MyTravelers® Repair Network — Travelers says it stands behind each network shop's repair guarantee for as long as you own the vehicle; the network is not available in every state, and customers are under no obligation to use it. (Travelers)
• Liberty Mutual: Guaranteed Repair Network — Liberty Mutual says repairs at a Guaranteed Repair Network shop are "guaranteed for as long as you own the vehicle," and that the choice of repair shop is always yours. (Liberty Mutual)
• Nationwide: On Your Side Auto Repair Network — Nationwide says repairs at an On Your Side Auto Repair Network shop come with a written guarantee for as long as you own or lease the car, and that it pays the repair facility directly. (Nationwide)

Each guarantee above is the insurer's own, for repairs at shops in its network. These are the insurers' programs, not ours: Fast Life Collisions is not part of any insurer's network unless our About page says so.

Using a network shop is optional. A shop outside the network can repair your car on the same claim; the insurer still pays what the damage reasonably costs to fix. See preferred shops explained.

Insurer claim phone numbers

To report a claim, use your insurer's own claim line, app or website. These are the numbers each insurer publishes, with a link to where we read them.

Numbers read on each insurer's website on October 7, 2026. Check your insurance card or app if they differ.

What if the insurer says the car is totaled?

An insurer declares a total loss when the repair would cost too much compared with the car's value. The insurer then pays the car's actual cash value, minus your deductible on a first-party claim, and takes the car unless you arrange to keep it. You can question the valuation. In New York, if your car is stolen or damaged beyond repair, the insurer must either pay its actual cash value (retail value plus sales tax, subject to depreciation and applicable deductions) or replace it with a substantially similar car. (11 NYCRR 216.7(c) (Regulation 64)) See total loss: how insurers decide and how to dispute the value and gap insurance.

What does “diminished value” mean?

Diminished value is the drop in what a car is worth because it now has an accident history, even after a good repair. Whether you can claim it, and from whom, depends on the state and on whose insurance you claim against. Read diminished value claims explained.

Dos and don'ts for your claim

More: insurance fraud: what not to do and what your insurance company is required to do.