Why Your Insurance Estimate Is Usually Missing Important Repairs

You get an initial insurance estimate for your car’s damage and breathe a sigh of relief – it seems straightforward. But then your body shop contacts you saying they found more damage and need to file a supplement with the insurance. What gives? It turns out, it’s incredibly common for the initial insurance estimate to miss important repairs or damage. Don’t panic: this isn’t necessarily foul play, but rather a result of how the estimating process works. Let’s explore why that first estimate is often incomplete and what happens next.

The Nature of Initial Estimates

When an insurance adjuster or appraiser writes an estimate, they often do so before a thorough teardown of the vehicle. For convenience, many estimates are done by visual inspection or even photos (through apps or email). This means they are documenting the obvious external damage – scratched bumper, bent fender, broken light, etc. What they can’t see is what’s beneath the surface. Modern cars have a lot of hidden components: behind a bumper cover there are absorber foams, sensors, mounting brackets; under a dented panel there could be structural reinforcements or wiring.

As a result, initial estimates are typically preliminary. Insurance companies even acknowledge this – they expect supplements. In fact, industry data shows that around 63% of collision repairs require at least one supplemental estimate beyond the original. That means a majority of claims have additional damage or necessary work found later.

Common things missed in initial estimates:

• Hidden Structural Damage: The adjuster might price a new bumper and fender, but until the shop removes those, they might not see a bent radiator support or frame horn. These are critical (and expensive) to fix but hidden initially.

• Mechanical Issues: An impact could damage suspension or alignment, but you often can’t tell until the car is on a lift. Or maybe the AC condenser was punctured behind that grille – not evident until the car is disassembled.

• Interior Damage: Airbags deploy? The estimate might note airbag replacement, but perhaps not the dash assembly that cracked, or the seat belt pre-tensioners that also fired. Interior trim can also crack from impact shock.

• Electrical Components: Today’s cars have sensors, cameras, radar units. A minor bump might misalign a radar sensor, but that might only be discovered when the car is scanned or during calibration.

• Refinish and Blend Operations: Sometimes estimates from insurance don’t include blending adjacent panels or the full refinishing required for a seamless paint job. A quick estimate might list repainting the replaced door, but a quality repair will also blend into the fender and rear door for color match. Those blends are “important repairs” for appearance that might not be on the first sheet.

• Structural Weld/Sectioning Procedures: Modern repair procedures from manufacturers might require additional steps. For example, aluminum body repairs or high-strength steel parts might need special rivets or sectioning. If the adjuster isn’t specialized in that, the shop will add it once they review OEM repair guidelines.

• Small Parts and Hardware: Clips, fasteners, seals – these often get added later. An adjuster may not list every clip that breaks upon removal; the shop will include them in a supplement so the new parts are properly secured.

Why Doesn’t Insurance Catch Everything?

There are a few reasons:

• Limited Inspection Time: Adjusters handle many claims. They typically allocate maybe 30 minutes to an hour per car inspection. They note the obvious and move on. They rely on the body shop to find the rest during repairs.

• Photo Estimates: Many insurers now do “virtual estimates” from photos you send. These are notorious for being incomplete. They’re good for very minor fender-benders, but anything moderate or worse, a photo won’t show inner damage. Insurance knows a photo estimate is just to get the ball rolling; the shop’s tear-down will reveal the true scope. In fact, a photo estimate often intentionally undershoots because they assume more will be added once a shop reviews the car.

• Conservative Approach: Insurers may purposely write for the least they see and see if the shop contests it. It’s almost a negotiation tactic – start low, then add as needed. They will never pay for something not proven damaged. So they won’t replace, say, a steering rack unless there’s clear evidence. The shop might find that evidence once on a lift.

• Expertise and Tools: Some complex damage requires measurements (frame alignment check, electronic scans) that aren’t done at initial estimate. Only once at a repair facility can those diagnostics occur. For example, a scan tool might reveal a fault code for an impact sensor – now the shop knows that sensor behind the bumper is bad, and it goes on supplement.

The bottom line: that initial estimate is often just a starting point.

The insurance company isn’t going to pay for things until they’re shown they’re necessary. This is why insurers encourage or require a tear-down at a certified shop early on. A professional shop will dismantle the damaged area after getting approval to do so, then create a thorough repair plan, and submit a supplemental estimate for any additional damage found.

The Role of Supplements – Getting All Repairs Covered

A supplement is essentially an additional estimate or request for payment for repairs not included in the initial estimate. Collision repair supplements are extremely common and not a bad thing – they ensure all necessary repairs get done and paid for by insurance.

Industry reports show that nearly two-thirds of repairs need at least one supplement, and many need two or more. This reflects the complexity of modern vehicles and hidden damage. Shops file supplements to address items that were initially overlooked or unknown:

• If hidden damage is uncovered (e.g., bent radiator support, damaged wiring harness), they document it with photos and notes, then submit to the insurer for approval.

• If parts prices change or additional parts are needed (maybe the estimate had a fender, but once apart the fender mounting bracket was also cracked), that gets added.

• If certain repair procedures or calibrations are required that were not on the initial sheet, the shop will include them. For instance, after repairs, many vehicles require post-repair ADAS calibrations (lane assist, etc.). These are often omitted from initial estimates but absolutely must be done – thus, added as supplements.

A good body shop actually expects to do supplements. It’s part of the collaborative process to restore your car fully. According to a 2024 industry report, common reasons for supplements include hidden damage beneath panels, items initially overlooked, and issues only clear after diagnostic scans or part removal. Structural damage, safety system calibrations, and additional manufacturer-required steps are among the top supplemental add-ons.

So, don’t be alarmed if the shop tells you, “We’ve found more damage and need to file a supplement.” This is normal. It actually benefits you – it means they are ensuring nothing important is left unfixed, and that the insurance will cover it. By filing supplements, certified shops make sure your vehicle is repaired completely to manufacturer standards, not just patched up to the initial estimate.

Without supplements, you’d either get an incomplete repair or have to pay out of pocket for the shortfall. Neither is acceptable. That’s why the supplement process exists: to capture everything the first estimate missed.

What You Should Do as a Car Owner

• Choose a repair shop experienced with insurance claims. They will know how to document and communicate supplements effectively. An experienced shop will take photos of every hidden crack or bent part to show the insurer, speeding approval.

• Allow a thorough inspection. If your car is borderline drivable, it can be useful to get it to the shop for a teardown. Some insurers even pay for “repair planning” time – meaning the shop can charge a bit for the time to dismantle and estimate, because it ultimately saves money by uncovering everything at once. A thorough initial tear-down can lead to one big supplement rather than multiple small ones.

• Stay informed. The shop should let you know if something major crops up beyond the initial scope. For instance, finding frame damage could extend repair time. They’ll negotiate with insurance for you. But as the owner, you can ask for an updated timeline or any changes in repair approach.

• Trust the process (within reason). It’s normal for the total repair cost to increase from that first estimate. Sometimes customers see an initial $5,000 estimate turn into an $8,000 final bill after supplements. This doesn’t mean someone is price gouging – it usually means the damage was more extensive than it looked. Insurance will cover it if properly documented. If you ever feel something is fishy, you can ask the shop or adjuster for explanation of each supplement item – they should be able to show you the additional damage or requirement.

Why Does Insurance Write Low First, Then Approve More?

It might seem inefficient, but it’s how the industry has long operated. Insurers manage millions of claims with a step-by-step approach:

1. Provide an initial estimate to set a baseline and give the customer something to start the claim (and if repairs are minor and go exactly as thought, great).

2. Rely on the body shop to be the expert in fully assessing the damage during repairs. The shop essentially becomes an agent to identify everything needed.

3. Approve supplements as needed. They often want the shop to justify them, which is fair – it controls costs by not blindly paying for things without proof.

Sometimes people misinterpret a missing item on an estimate as the insurer trying to “lowball” them. While insurers do aim to control costs, it’s not usually malicious. They genuinely might not know something is damaged until shown evidence. And they will (or should) pay for it once shown.

Case in point: An initial estimate might not include a wheel alignment. But after collision, an alignment check is important. A good shop will perform one and if adjustments are needed (indicating suspension was knocked out of spec), they’ll charge that to insurance. Studies show a vast number of initial estimates require supplements once detailed inspections are done – hidden damage is the norm, not the exception.

The Upshot for You

Don’t be surprised when your repair needs “more money” than the first insurance quote. This is often just the reality of collision repair. The crucial thing is: you should not have to pay that difference (aside from your deductible if applicable). The onus is on the insurance to cover all accident-related damages. The supplement process is the mechanism to do that.

From your perspective:

• Your car will be fully repaired to pre-accident condition (or as close as humanly possible).

• The insurance will end up paying whatever it actually costs (minus any deductible).

• The timeframe might adjust if there’s more to fix or parts to order that weren’t initially known. Be a little patient – better to discover and fix now than to have problems show up after you thought the car was done.

In the end, initial estimates are usually missing important repairs because they are preliminary and often superficial by nature. The real, complete repair plan emerges with a skilled body shop’s assessment and supplement submissions. This two-step (or multi-step) process is there to protect you from incomplete repairs. So, the next time you see that first insurance estimate, take it with a grain of salt – it’s not the final word, just the opening chapter in the story of getting your car safely back on the road.