Bodyshop in North East - recommendations, advice?

[MarkP80]

Hi all,

We've suffered some damage to my 2011 ML350 Grand Edition, Diamond White metallic. The damage was caused on the motorway by a car coming in the other direction, which mounted the central reservation and threw a barrage of debris into my car.

To cut a long story short, I am making a claim on my insurance, and the police have given me the details of the other car, so my insurance company are going to pursue the other driver's insurance for my excess etc in due course.

In the meantime, I need to get my car fixed. It has suffered paintwork damage along the front offside side of the bonnet and bumper and all down the driver's side, every panel . The windscreen is smashed, with a big crack and large chips in about four different places, one of which is right on the join with the roof, which it has dinted slightly. The stones have also taken a few chunks out of the leading edges of the spokes on the alloys on that side. We're more than a little upset about this, as the car was absolutely immaculate. Individually I suppose each chip could be considered relatively minor, but the whole side of the car is now covered in them, so collectively it's a mess. Cetainly not something that you could touch up.

So, the insurance company are, as expected I suppose, pushing me towards using their recommended repairer. I'm a bit unsure about this, as I have no knowledge of the company the want to use. They are not an independant, but a nationwide group, with this branch in Gateshead. I'm based in South Durham (I bought the car new from MB Newcastle), so could use anywhere on Tyneside/Teesside/South Durham. I'm also a bit concerned about getting a good match on the paint, which is a sort of pearl finish.

So, any recommendations of where I should take it to be repaired, or whether I should use their repairer? Or any experiences of good/bad places in this area, or who would be MB approved? Or indeed, any other advice?

Also thinking about it, would any aspect of my MB warranty be invalidated if MB didn't do the repairs (corrosion?)? Should I just contact MB at Newcastle and ask them to sort it out for me (I think they may offer this service, but I'm wary of these claims handler companies)?

I can see this is going to cause me a world of pain, with arguments over what damage has been done, what was already there, what to do with the wheels (which were also immaculate prior to this) etc etc.

Many thanks for any advice,
MarkP

 

[haggis2768]

MB Newcastle should be able to put you in touch with the shop they use( can't remember the company name, but they did a good job on mine.albeit about 7 years ago) fro memory I think the body shop is close ish to the BMW dealership

 

[portal_96]

The official bodyshop for Sytner Mercedes Sunderland, Newcastle and Teesside is based on Riverside Park in Middlesbrough. The phone number is 01642241212. It is an approved mercedes garage so all repairs will be inkeeping with MB finance, warranty etc.

A cheaper alternative is Preston Farm Body & Paint (Brian) he uses all manufacturers paints and follows their processes etc. A lot of the main dealers on Teesside take vehicles there for work when they can't do the work themselves. It may be that he isn't 'approved' for the purposes of warrant etc though, you should check.

 

[Harrythedog]

MB Newcastle should be able to put you in touch with the shop they use( can't remember the company name, but they did a good job on mine.albeit about 7 years ago) fro memory I think the body shop is close ish to the BMW dealership

The one they once used was next to their old showroom on Grandstand Rd, Carrs or Carr & another name I can't remember. Arnold Clark have an excellent body shop on Scotswood Rd and are an approved ins repairer

 

[MarkP80]

Thanks for all the replies guys.

I contacted MB and the Sytner North East group (Newcastle, Sunderland, Teesside) do indeed have their own MB bodyshop in Middlesbrough, as mentioned by portal_96. Since my original post, I have been in contact with them and last weekend they made a full assessment of the damage, which was extensive.

Anyway, the bodyshop and my insurer are now talking to each other, so hopefully it'll all be sorted soon.

Thanks again for the feedback,
MarkP

 

[MarkP80]

Just a quick update.

My insurer received the report from the MB bodyshop and approved the repairs to go ahead. Since then, the 3rd party has accepted liability, so no excess to pay which is good news. The car is due in on Monday and they expect to have it for two weeks. I'll let you know the outcome of the finished job, but they certainly gave the impression they knew what they were talking about (as you would expect).

Thanks for the help,
MarkP