Home Accident Repairs
Managed car accident repairsManaged Car Accident Repairs
A car accident repair involves more than booking a workshop. Sterling coordinates the repair journey through a suitable network repairer, including inspection, estimating, authorisation, repair progress, quality checks and handover.
One team coordinating the accident repair process
After an accident, a repair rarely stalls because nobody is willing to do the work. It stalls because an assessment is waiting on photographs, an authorisation is waiting on an engineer, or a part is waiting on a decision that nobody has been asked to make.
Our job is to remove those gaps. We take the details once, brief the repairer accurately, keep the authorisation moving and tell you where things stand. Where a third party or insurer has to approve something, we chase that approval rather than leaving it with you.
Repair coordination is subject to claim eligibility, liability and applicable terms. Decisions that rest with an insurer, engineer or third party remain theirs.
At a glance
- You deal with
- One point of contact at Sterling Accident.
- We deal with
- The repairer, the engineer, the paperwork and the third parties.
- Where repairs happen
- Through a suitable independent network repairer across the UK.
- What you get
- Progress updates and a documented quality check before handover.
What happens between the accident and the handover
Timings vary with the extent of the damage, parts availability and how quickly third parties respond. The sequence, though, is consistent.
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1
Report and initial review
You send the accident details and photographs. We review what happened, identify the vehicles and work out what the claim needs first.
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2
Recovery and storage, where required
If the vehicle is not safe or legal to drive, we look at arranging recovery to a suitable location and secure storage while the assessment is arranged.
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3
Vehicle inspection and estimate
The repairer inspects the vehicle and produces an estimate. For more detail on this stage, see our vehicle damage assessment after an accident guidance. Where the claim requires it, an independent engineer reviews the damage, method and cost.
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4
Authorisation
We put the assessment to whoever needs to authorise it and answer the questions that come back. If the vehicle turns out to be uneconomical to repair, we explain what that means and what your options are.
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5
Parts and scheduling
The repairer orders parts and books the vehicle in. Where a part is on back order, we tell you rather than leaving you to wonder why nothing is moving.
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6
The repair itself
Structural work, panel repair or replacement, refinishing and reassembly are carried out to the method agreed at authorisation. Additional damage found during strip-down is raised as a variation, not silently absorbed or ignored.
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7
Calibration and system checks
Where a repair affects cameras, radar, sensors or geometry, the repairer carries out the checks and calibrations the vehicle requires before it is signed off.
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8
Quality inspection
The completed repair is inspected against the authorised work: panel alignment, paint finish and match, fastenings, road test where appropriate, and a check that nothing has been left outstanding.
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9
Return Ready preparation and handover
Qualifying repairs receive the Return Ready package before your vehicle is handed back, along with a record of the work carried out.
Who does what
The repair runs more smoothly when both sides know what is expected. Here is the split.
What we coordinate
- Reviewing your report and identifying what the claim needs first
- Recovery and storage arrangements where the claim qualifies
- Allocating the repair to a suitable network repairer
- Estimate review, engineer liaison and authorisation
- Variations where extra damage is found during strip-down
- Correspondence with insurers and third parties about the repair
- Replacement-vehicle assistance where you are eligible
- Progress updates and handover arrangements
What you may need to provide
- Your account of what happened, and the accident location
- Photographs of the vehicles, the damage and the number plates
- Your vehicle registration
- Insurer and policy details, if you have them
- The other driver's details, where you were able to exchange them
- A police reference, if the police attended
- Access to the vehicle for assessment, and keys at handover
Repairs done the way the vehicle requires
The right repair method depends on the vehicle, the material and where the damage sits. A bonded aluminium panel is not repaired the way a steel wing is, and a structural member is not straightened on a hunch.
We expect network repairers to work to the method appropriate for the vehicle, to record what they have done, and to raise anything that changes the plan rather than improvising.
Method agreed before work starts
Repair or replace is decided at assessment, documented in the estimate and authorised before the panel is touched.
Parts specified, not improvised
The estimate states what parts are being used. Where a part type affects the claim, that is raised before it is fitted, not afterwards.
Safety-related systems checked
Where the repair touches driver-assistance sensors, restraints or geometry, the required checks and calibrations are carried out and recorded.
Extra damage raised as a variation
Damage that only becomes visible once panels come off is documented and re-authorised, so nothing is quietly skipped.
Repair methods and part specifications follow the requirements applicable to the vehicle and the terms of the claim. Sterling Accident does not claim manufacturer approval or accreditation for its network on this page; where a specific approval is required for a repair, we will tell you whether it can be met before the work is authorised.
The final inspection
A repair is only finished when someone has checked it properly. The completed work is inspected against what was authorised, not against what would be quickest to sign off.
- Panel alignment and gaps compared with the undamaged side
- Paint colour match, finish and coverage in daylight where possible
- Trim, fastenings and seals refitted correctly
- Warning lights, sensors and calibration results checked
- Road test where the repair makes one appropriate
- Authorised work reconciled against the work actually carried out
If something is not right when you collect your vehicle, tell us. We would rather put it back into the workshop than have you drive away unhappy.
Updates and handover
You should never have to guess what is happening to your vehicle.
Updates at each stage
We contact you when the assessment is done, when the repair is authorised, and when a completion date is confirmed — plus whenever something changes.
One number to call
Quote your registration number and our team can see where the claim and the repair stand, without transferring you around.
A handover, not a hand-back
At collection you get a record of the work carried out and the chance to inspect the vehicle before you take it away.
The Return Ready package
Repairs completed through our network include a practical care package before your vehicle is returned: an oil and filter change, screenwash topped up, tyre pressures checked, an interior vacuum, an exterior wash and a 12-month vehicle health check.
Applies to qualifying repairs completed through the Sterling repair network. Oil service suitability, oil specification and filter availability follow the vehicle manufacturer's requirements, and inclusions are subject to Sterling Accident's published terms.
Questions about accident repairs
It depends on the extent of the damage, how quickly the assessment is authorised and whether the parts are available. We do not quote a standard turnaround because it would be misleading. What we will do is give you the repairer's expected completion date once the vehicle is booked in, and tell you if it changes.
Tell us who you would like to use and we will look at whether the repair can be coordinated there. If a repairer cannot meet the requirements for the work — for example the equipment needed for a particular structural or calibration job — we will explain why and suggest an alternative from our network.
That is common, and it is handled as a variation. The repairer documents the additional damage, we put it forward for authorisation, and the repair continues once that is agreed. It can add time, so we will tell you when it happens rather than letting the completion date slip quietly.
If the assessment concludes that repair is not viable, the claim takes a different route — typically a valuation and settlement discussion rather than a repair. We will explain the position, what the category means for the vehicle, and what happens to it next. Any settlement figure is a matter for the insurer or third party, not for us.
Matching is done from the vehicle's paint code and then adjusted against the actual panels, because paint ages differently in different conditions. Colour match and finish are part of the final inspection. If you are not satisfied with the match when you collect the vehicle, raise it with us straight away.
Possibly. It depends on claim eligibility, liability, availability and the applicable terms — it is not automatic. We will tell you honestly whether it is likely in your case before anything is arranged. Replacement-vehicle information explains how it works.
Where the repair decision actually gets made
Each stage below is a separate decision point in a managed repair. Open the one that matches where your vehicle is now.
Vehicle damage assessment
A proper vehicle assessment before the repair decision
Repair authorisation
Keeping the repair authorisation moving
Insurance claim repairs
Insurance-claim repairs without the customer chasing every stage
Non-fault repairs
Non-fault repairs managed from assessment to handover
Is my car repairable?
Assessing whether accident damage can be repaired
Report the accident and we will start the assessment
Send us the details and photographs and we will review what the repair needs, whether free accident recovery is available on the qualifying claim, and whether replacement mobility should form part of it.