My partner was at fault for damaging the the right side bumper of a parked car while turning right into a narrow street. My partners vehicle suffered some minor scrapes and dents to the left bumper side and passenger door. On the other hand the parked vehicle had the left side of the bumper peeled back. Prior to this the cars been in really good condition; has never been keyed, dented or scratched, and neither me nor my partner has been involved in a previous accident or insurance claim process.
We lodged our claim online with NRMA (we have comprehensive car insurance with them) and my partner took it to the NRMA approved smash repairer to get a quote a couple of days ago.
The repairer inspected the damage to our car and he claimed that the dent on our passenger side door was old/previous damage and not from the recent accident. He claimed it was consistent with someone having kicked the door instead. He said that we'd have to take out another claim for it separately otherwise they would not go ahead with our current claim. Odd thing is that repairer has booked us in again at the same smash repairer to have someone higher up check out the vehicle again to get a second opinion.
I'm not sure how to go about defending my position if this second opinion really is just reinforce their advise that we have to apply for a second claim and pay more excess. Is this just the smash repairer trying to pull a dodgy on us? Am I able to nominate my own repairer for an assessment? Is there any other way I can dispute their opinion?
this post is already a train wreck