What Is a Direct Repair Program, and Why Aren’t We in One?

If you’ve made a claim, someone may have offered you a shop from a list. That list is the insurer’s direct repair program. Here is what being on it actually involves, and why we’re not.

What the shop agrees to

Programs vary, but a shop joining one has typically agreed to some combination of the following: substantial discounts on labor and materials; keeping repairs within a scope the insurer’s representative defines; using the parts and materials the insurer specifies; meeting repair-time targets, with the shop covering rental costs if it runs over; and supporting the insurer if a dispute develops with the vehicle owner.

In return, the insurer directs work to that shop. For a body shop that is a steady stream of cars without spending anything on marketing.

Why we stayed out

Every one of those commitments moves a decision away from the car and toward the claim. A time target creates pressure to finish rather than to finish properly. A parts specification decides what goes on your vehicle before anyone has looked at it. And the last one, backing the insurer in a dispute, puts the shop on the other side of the table from you.

None of that means direct repair shops do bad work. Plenty are staffed by people who care about the job. But the incentives point somewhere other than your car, and we would rather not spend our time working around them.

What it means for you

We get customers because people recommend us, not because an insurer sent them. That is a slower way to run a business and it keeps us honest. We deal with the insurer on your behalf, we use manufacturer parts, and we guarantee the work.

Delarm’s Auto, 132 E Market St, Hyde Park. Call (845) 229-7353.