I'm going to break this down into blocks. Makes it simple for me and easy for anyone reading to digest.
Accident:
A couple of months ago I was hit on the passenger side whilst driving in the Colonial Zone.
I stopped and the other driver fled the scene, not uncommon here as plenty of people drive without being insured or drunk when driving.
Police Report:
I needed a police report for my insurance company, so the next morning I went off to the Palacio here in Santo Domingo, expecting a few hours of pain and running around. My only hope was it was a Saturday, so maybe it wouldn't be that busy.
To my surprise, it was so slow, I had to wake up the female Sergent who was in charge of accident reports. She informed that the system was down and couldn't help me. Then it dawned on me, I don't need to be here, my insurance company is affiliated with CMA (La Casa Del Conductor) on Av. Bolivar. This is a nice modern facility that allows you to deal with accident reports, insurance companies, legal issues etc. I believe it also has the only jail in the DR without bars.
When I arrive I'm greeted by the receptionist who takes my details and offers me a coffee.
After some small talk, she points me in the direction of the police officer that will write up the police report for me. 10 mins later I was on my way.
An overall very professional experience, in nice comfortable surroundings.
Anyone that takes insurance out here, should make sure their company or their policy covers CMA. It will save you a lot of hassles if you or ever unfortunate to have an accident in Santo Domingo.
Insurance Company:
I use Franco & Acra as my broker, they are located on Winston Churchill (details at the end).
My insurance company is ProSeguros which is owned and managed by Banco Progreso.
Police report in hand, I call my broker. I'm passed through to the guy that handles my account. Emilio Chea, nice guy with perfect English, which is handy as sometimes I can get a little tongue twisted trying to explain car/tech details in Spanish.
He tells me he will fax the forms I need to fill out to make a claim. Plus a list of recommended repair shops my insurance company deals with. As soon as he receives back all the forms from me, he will send out an accessors to take a look at the jeep.
The next day Emilio calls me back to arrange a time for the accessor to look at the jeep.
The accessor turns up smack on time, has a good look, takes a million photos and leaves.
Finding a Repair Shop:
I made a post on the message board asking if anyone had any good experiences with local panel shops.
http://www.dr1.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41217
Only one name came up, Altima Auto. I had them on my list of approved repair shops, so I stated to do a little investigating. I called a few local BMW, Porsche and Merc dealers.
The same name came up twice, a pretty good sign.
I gave Altima Auto a call and arranged to take the jeep for a quote.
They offered to pick the jeep up, but it was still drivable, so not necessary.
By the way, the insurance company only required 1 quote, in the past in other countries it's always been at least 3, strange?
The shop manager (Manuel Pujols) at Altima takes a good look at the jeep and also shows me around the facilities. The place is pretty well organized, with a modern computer controlled spray booth, aligning jig etc, but more importantly lots of high end Jeeps, Mercs etc. That's a good sign, at least that must have an idea of what they are doing.
2 days later Manuel (Altima) faxes me back a quote for my insurance company.
RD$104,000, I'm glad I have full insurance!
Couple of days later the insurance company gives me a call and informs me
everything is approved.
The Repair Job:
Altima had a few problems getting the right door from Santo Domingo Motors (Nissan Dealer) but eventually after 4 weeks it was all sorted out and they had all the parts.
Altima came and picked up the Jeep and told me they would need it for 7-10 days. No problem, fortunately I had access to another car.
I asked them to call me as the Jeep progressed so I could take photos for an
article that I would eventually write up on the complete experience.
4-5 days later they called me to say the Jeep was stripped down and getting ready to be sprayed. Altima is only 10 mins away from the office, so I drove over and took a few photos.
I'm no car expert, but I have been in enough shops to know if they are organised and have a clue. The prep work looked good and obviously the Puerto Rican chop guys they had working with them knew their stuff
3-4 days later Altima called me and said the Jeep was ready.
I drove over and had a good look at the Jeep. They had done an excellent job, one of th best spray jobs I have ever seen. The color match was perfect and no signs of over spray or that the Jeep had been in an accident.
Manuel gave me the keys and told me if I ever have a problem, bring it back and they will take care of it. I signed off on the the Jeep, I was very happy
When I was driving away I noticed a small nick in the arm rest on the passenger side. It must have happened when they was re-assembling the door. Emmmm Time for a u-turn and get them to replace or fix it.
No problem, bring the car back tomorrow and we will take care of it.
I took the car back the next day and they took care of it.
Overall Experience?
Excellent, took longer than I expected, but from the police report to picking
up the Jeep after it was repaired was hassle free.
I hear lots of horror stories here of insurance companies, bad repair jobs etc.
I guess it comes down to due diligence and sometimes paying to be fully covered with a reputable company.
I would without hesitation recommend Franco & Acro as a broker and Altima Auto if you need your car repaired.
Their details below:
Franco & Acra Tecniseguros S.A.
Av. Winston Churchill #32
Santo Domingo
Tel: (809) 535 8388
Contact: Emilio Chea
Altima Auto, S.A.
Calle Yaguajal esq. Resp. Yaguajal No. 1
Los Rios, Santo Domingo
Tel: (809) 238-0999
Contact: Manuel Pujols
Accident:
A couple of months ago I was hit on the passenger side whilst driving in the Colonial Zone.
I stopped and the other driver fled the scene, not uncommon here as plenty of people drive without being insured or drunk when driving.
Police Report:
I needed a police report for my insurance company, so the next morning I went off to the Palacio here in Santo Domingo, expecting a few hours of pain and running around. My only hope was it was a Saturday, so maybe it wouldn't be that busy.
To my surprise, it was so slow, I had to wake up the female Sergent who was in charge of accident reports. She informed that the system was down and couldn't help me. Then it dawned on me, I don't need to be here, my insurance company is affiliated with CMA (La Casa Del Conductor) on Av. Bolivar. This is a nice modern facility that allows you to deal with accident reports, insurance companies, legal issues etc. I believe it also has the only jail in the DR without bars.
When I arrive I'm greeted by the receptionist who takes my details and offers me a coffee.
After some small talk, she points me in the direction of the police officer that will write up the police report for me. 10 mins later I was on my way.
An overall very professional experience, in nice comfortable surroundings.
Anyone that takes insurance out here, should make sure their company or their policy covers CMA. It will save you a lot of hassles if you or ever unfortunate to have an accident in Santo Domingo.
Insurance Company:
I use Franco & Acra as my broker, they are located on Winston Churchill (details at the end).
My insurance company is ProSeguros which is owned and managed by Banco Progreso.
Police report in hand, I call my broker. I'm passed through to the guy that handles my account. Emilio Chea, nice guy with perfect English, which is handy as sometimes I can get a little tongue twisted trying to explain car/tech details in Spanish.
He tells me he will fax the forms I need to fill out to make a claim. Plus a list of recommended repair shops my insurance company deals with. As soon as he receives back all the forms from me, he will send out an accessors to take a look at the jeep.
The next day Emilio calls me back to arrange a time for the accessor to look at the jeep.
The accessor turns up smack on time, has a good look, takes a million photos and leaves.
Finding a Repair Shop:
I made a post on the message board asking if anyone had any good experiences with local panel shops.
http://www.dr1.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41217
Only one name came up, Altima Auto. I had them on my list of approved repair shops, so I stated to do a little investigating. I called a few local BMW, Porsche and Merc dealers.
The same name came up twice, a pretty good sign.
I gave Altima Auto a call and arranged to take the jeep for a quote.
They offered to pick the jeep up, but it was still drivable, so not necessary.
By the way, the insurance company only required 1 quote, in the past in other countries it's always been at least 3, strange?
The shop manager (Manuel Pujols) at Altima takes a good look at the jeep and also shows me around the facilities. The place is pretty well organized, with a modern computer controlled spray booth, aligning jig etc, but more importantly lots of high end Jeeps, Mercs etc. That's a good sign, at least that must have an idea of what they are doing.
2 days later Manuel (Altima) faxes me back a quote for my insurance company.
RD$104,000, I'm glad I have full insurance!
Couple of days later the insurance company gives me a call and informs me
everything is approved.
The Repair Job:
Altima had a few problems getting the right door from Santo Domingo Motors (Nissan Dealer) but eventually after 4 weeks it was all sorted out and they had all the parts.
Altima came and picked up the Jeep and told me they would need it for 7-10 days. No problem, fortunately I had access to another car.
I asked them to call me as the Jeep progressed so I could take photos for an
article that I would eventually write up on the complete experience.
4-5 days later they called me to say the Jeep was stripped down and getting ready to be sprayed. Altima is only 10 mins away from the office, so I drove over and took a few photos.
I'm no car expert, but I have been in enough shops to know if they are organised and have a clue. The prep work looked good and obviously the Puerto Rican chop guys they had working with them knew their stuff
3-4 days later Altima called me and said the Jeep was ready.
I drove over and had a good look at the Jeep. They had done an excellent job, one of th best spray jobs I have ever seen. The color match was perfect and no signs of over spray or that the Jeep had been in an accident.
Manuel gave me the keys and told me if I ever have a problem, bring it back and they will take care of it. I signed off on the the Jeep, I was very happy
When I was driving away I noticed a small nick in the arm rest on the passenger side. It must have happened when they was re-assembling the door. Emmmm
Time for a u-turn and get them to replace or fix it.No problem, bring the car back tomorrow and we will take care of it.
I took the car back the next day and they took care of it.
Overall Experience?
Excellent, took longer than I expected, but from the police report to picking
up the Jeep after it was repaired was hassle free.
I hear lots of horror stories here of insurance companies, bad repair jobs etc.
I guess it comes down to due diligence and sometimes paying to be fully covered with a reputable company.
I would without hesitation recommend Franco & Acro as a broker and Altima Auto if you need your car repaired.
Their details below:
Franco & Acra Tecniseguros S.A.
Av. Winston Churchill #32
Santo Domingo
Tel: (809) 535 8388
Contact: Emilio Chea
Altima Auto, S.A.
Calle Yaguajal esq. Resp. Yaguajal No. 1
Los Rios, Santo Domingo
Tel: (809) 238-0999
Contact: Manuel Pujols
