Should I get my hail damage repaired? Do I have to fix my car? If you own your car outright, the choice to repair the hail-damaged car is yours. Many people keep and spend the insurance company check.
If you do not repair your car and you cash the check, you are in effect settling your claim for the amount of the estimate. The actual amount of repairs are usually substantially higher than the original estimate from your insurance company. Before you settle you should always get a professional estimate from an independent paintless dent repair company to ensure you are getting the full amount of the repairs.
While it is tempting to just cash the check, there are consequences to consider before doing so. One consequence could be that in the event of a future damage claim. The insurance company may reduce the amount paid on that claim by the amount previously paid for hail damage not repaired.
If I do not get the car repaired, can the car insurance company take the money back? Is it fraud to use the money from a hail damage claim for something other than fixing the car?
When the car is paid for with no lien holder if you make a claim against your own auto insurance policy, you can choose to “cash out” and receive money as compensation (minus your deductible amount) instead of having your insurer pay to fix your vehicle.
The insurance company has met its obligation by paying the repair costs for the damages that it found. They shouldn’t take the money back or consider it fraud if you don’t use the money to repair the vehicle. What would be fraud to your insurer is if in the future you filed another claim for the same damage.
