PCTG Consumer Complaint Report Record ID#: 1882799451

My 2007 MINI Cooper is currently sitting at Orsini’s auto body shop in Ardmore, PA. It has been undriveable since June 10, 2016, when I was hit by Liberty Mutual (LM) client. The morning of July 11, I received a call from the LM adjustor I had been working with - Vince Finore - who told me that he and Len (the owner of Orsini’s) had failed to reach an agreement on the price of the repair. Len insists that the quarter panel of the car needs replacing; Vince says it does not. Vince told me that I had three options: 1) pay the difference myself; 2) get my insurance company, Geico, to handle the claim; 3) have my car taken to an auto shop that was on an approved LM list. Vince gave me the names of three potential shops. Being that Geico and LM found LM's client at fault in the accident, I should not have to pay anything for the repair. So #1 is not an option. Neither is #2. A week prior, I called Geico to ask if they could take over the repair since I had been having so much trouble with LM. They said that this was no longer possible since I had already started the claim process with LM. Thus, #3 seemed to be my only viable option. I called MINI after getting off the phone with Vince to get their opinion on the three shops he had suggested. The MINI employee said he had only heard of one of them, but could not recommend it. He said they refer their clients to Orsini’s. I explained that my car was being held up there because Vince was not agreeing to replace the quarter panel that Len had determined needed to be replaced. The MINI employee told me that MINI had been dealing with Orsini’s “since they opened" and that they were considered the foremost experts in MINI repair in the area. He suggested I consult a lawyer, because he suspected that LM was trying to effect a sub-par repair. He advised me to not move the car. By this point I was so frustrated with the time and energy I had spent coordinating the repair, I decided to acquiesce to Vince’s demands and have my car sent elsewhere. I emailed Len and told him that I would unfortunately need to move my car to another shop. He emailed me back telling me that I should make sure the other shop agrees to replace the quarter panel, since the repair would not be complete without this step. He was extremely adamant about this. My foremost concern is to come out of this frustrating experience with a car that has been repaired appropriately and is safe to drive. Considering that MINI had endorsed Orsini’s as the repair experts in the Philadelphia area, I am heeding Len’s advice as the best source of “expert opinion” on this matter. I forwarded the email from Len to Vince and texted him explaining that I would authorize it being sent to Century Auto Body, but I wanted to make sure they would replace the quarter panel, since this was the recommendation from Orsini’s. Vince called me, and stated that he would not authorize this. I fail to understand why I should trust an insurance company adjustor’s opinion over the auto body shop that MINI says is the expert on MINIs in Philadelphia. A few weeks earlier, Gerri Bonnell, another adjustor at LM, had called MINI with me on the line, and was told by a MINI service person that they recommend my car be sent to Orsini’s for repair. On July 11, Gerri left me a voicemail telling me that since my car was now “just sitting at the auto body repair shop” she was going to cancel my rental car. Subsequently, Enterprise called me telling me I would need to return my vehicle the next day. I returned the rental car today, June 12. I am now without a vehicle. It has been extremely frustrating dealing with LM throughout this process, as they have dragged out the time of the repair at every turn. I am looking for LM to agree to pay for the work deemed necessary by Orsini’s. Considering that MINI has highly recommended Orsini’s, I would prefer to have the work done there. This is my right under PA State Law.