Comments on: Review of Great Plains Auto Body in Omaha, NE

By: tdaxp

tdaxp — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 15:02:26 +0000

Jay,

You are exactly right. We had much better luck with Body Pros [1], which is as good an example of ‘Joe’s garage’ as you can find — and much closer to Great Plains, too!

Jen & Josh,

Sorry you had these experiences, but I am glad to know that we were not alone!

[1] http://www.bodyprosomaha.net/

By: Josh

Josh — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 19:34:52 +0000

They do a horrible paint job and messed with my door. I would not recommend them at all! They will not take any blame for damages they cause and tell you that there’s nothing to do. Horrible shop!

By: Jen

Jen — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:19:11 +0000

We had a similar experience with GP. They would not give us a bid without agreeing to get the car fixed. Our car was damaged enough that we thought we might not want to fix it. After much haggling with them about their bid process they said they would do a complete estimate and “teardown” for $192. We agreed to this because we felt it was fair to pay them for their time. However, they then would not give us an written estimate. They kept saying we had to get it from our insurance adjuster. In past experience, we hired a body shop to give us a bid, then the adjustor does his bid and we compare the two to come to an agreed cost for the damages. After my husband called and spoke forcefully with GP they did fax us our bid. It was, however, more than what the insurance adjustor actually sent into our insurance company. I think there is something fishy going one with GP and the indepenant adjustor that Fidelity sent out to appraise the damage to our car. The insurance adjustor didn’t want us to see the bid. I contacted the insurance commission, they said to make a report online but to also report it to the attorney general’s office dealing with consumer complaints to deal with the body shop. These types of things are hard to prove because there are communications happening between insurance and body shop that we are not in on but you’d like to trust them. I won’t use GP again either.

By: tdaxp

tdaxp — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:08:44 +0000

I found “Joe’s garage” — I found Body Pros [1] that did the work I wanted for an amount less than the deductible (!), in a day (!), and did more than we had asked (!). Amazingly good service. All future work will be done with them.

[1] http://bodyprosomaha.net/

By: Michael

Michael — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:10:15 +0000

Could be worse. Between a hailstorm and a drunk driver, my car was totalled back in August:(

By: Jay

Jay — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:42:48 +0000

I find, via google, that Great Plains is a multi-franchise business throughout Nebraska and Iowa. I wouldn’t bring a wheelbarrow to an automotive repair franchise. You’re much better off with a local “Joe’s garage” type that lives and dies on word of mouth. They’ll probably charge a bit more (though less than a dealer) but you will likely not suffer such nonsense.
It seems odd that your insurance agent didn’t provide a loaner vehicle, which in my experience is the norm. Weird that they relied on the repair shop and didn’t go with a national rental agency.

By: tdaxp

tdaxp — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:45:32 +0000

After an individual at Great Plains refused to allow me to speak to the general manager because the insurance company told them not to (?!?!?), I reported this to American Family. This was then promptly forwarded straight to the general manager.

It is too bad if all of this is because of one rogue employee who was left unsupervised by the general manager’s vacation.

By: Catholicgauzette

Catholicgauzette — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:50:19 +0000

I am a member of “Yelp” — and use it all the time to find great restaurants, services, and referrals. It is uber popular in large cities, not sure if it is in yours, but it’s worth putting this comment on there for others to see. I make reviews for most things in the current city that I live, in former cities, and places that I’ve visited.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/great-plains-auto-body-omaha