About Us
Express Autobody is committed to providing each and every one of its customers with repairs that are not only done correctly, restoring their vehicle to pre-accident condition, but also performing those repairs in a timely manner and at a fair price.
We'll be able to keep that commitment because of unique features like our Preferred Vendor Program, writing damage reports instead of estimates, and concise repair scheduling. We’ll keep the promises we make to you and guarantee your satisfaction. That’s not something everybody can do.
In fact, if you visit some of our competitors you’ll find that they have signs prominently displayed in their front offices apologizing for their inability to have their customer's vehicle repaired on schedule and on budget, even before the repair process is started. They claim that they have no way of anticipating delays or additional costs due to parts being unavailable, hidden damage, and various other circumstances that are beyond their control.
At Express Autobody we have ways to manage these circumstances so that a late delivery, or a cost overrun is a rare exception, rather than the common rule. At Express Autobody we know well that our success depends on the satisfaction of our customers.
Unlike many repair shops Express Autobody has multiple levels, or tiers of repair standards. (Refer to “Our repair standards.”) These tiers reflect different repair process and different requisite procedures resulting in different pricing for similar repairs. The reason for these multiple levels is that there are four primary issues each repair needs to satisfy, and the money spent satisfying these issues depends on the value and worth of the vehicle being repaired The primary issues are vehicle safety, vehicle drivability, vehicle appearance, and vehicle depreciation. Express Autobody will not compromise its repair standards with respect to the first two issues at any time. The importance of the second two issues is relative to the vehicles appearance prior to its being damaged, and to the vehicle’s worth. While the CSR has the latitude to recommend a particular tier or level of repair based on a particular vehicle’s age, condition and value, the ultimate decision on how a vehicle should be repaired belongs to the customer.
* *Express Autobody performs its vehicle repairs at what is generally known as “Prevailing Competitive Rates.” While discounts are sometimes offered, and concessions made, they are done only as an immediate inducement to fill a specific production gap. It is not this company’s policy to offer discounts and concessions.
While our competitors and most insurance companies use billable hours as a pricing unit, we prefer not to call our labor units hours. Doing so conveys the message that our billable units have something to do with the time it takes for a technician to perform a specific task. When an average person thinks of an hour they think of a unit that consists of sixty minutes, which in turn are each units that consist of sixty seconds. Different technicians take different amounts of time to perform the same task, so any time a billing unit would be negotiated it would have to be done with a specific set of technicians in mind. Another consideration is the fact the prevailing billable labor unit at the time this document is being written is $44 per hour. The technicians at Express Autobody have had years and years of training and experience, they’re performing these repair tasks in a $1.5 million facility, there’s a considerable investment in materials and repair parts, and there are large administrative costs as well as insurance costs, as well as a heavy tax burden for this technician to support at only $44 per hour. When one considers that a plumber charges up to $135 per hour and they’re working out of a truck, one can easily understand how the prevailing rate of $44 per hour has nothing to do with anything that takes sixty minutes of time. In order to avoid confusion and misunderstandings we at Express Autobody prefer to call our billable units just that, “billable units.”
In most instances Express Autobody uses ADP’s estimating system or CCC’s estimating system to determine the number of billable units to charge for a given repair. These databases recommend a specific number of units for each labor operation, deductions for “overlap” or redundant billing, and specific pricing for replacement parts. In addition, we have a repair matrix for paintless dent repair, as well as a matrix for measuring and correcting frame and unibody repairs. The number of units billed for other repairs are judgment calls and are either based on pervious experience or on a consultation done with a repair technician.
Express Autobody believes that informed consumers will choose our facility over our competitors. With that in mind we are willing to answer any question, confront any fear, and go to any length to make our customers comfortable with our repairs.
Come on by and see what a body shop that really cares can do for you.