A carbon frame, a crash and a request for a report
A rider comes in after being knocked off. Their bike has a scuffed carbon top tube, a bent rear mech, a broken shifter lever and a front wheel that no longer runs true. They are claiming through their insurance, or through the other party's, and need a written estimate of repair costs or a report on whether the bike is repairable.
Your senior mechanic inspects it, takes photos on their phone, looks up prices for the parts, some of which are hard to find, and writes a report in a word processor that evening. The rider comes back twice asking for it. Then the insurer asks for a breakdown in a different format.
Each report is written from scratch
Insurance estimates are occasional, so no process has built up around them. Each one is a fresh document, written by whoever knows how, with prices looked up again and photos copied from a personal phone. The information is all there in the shop, but it is not organised for this job.
- Photos are taken on personal phones and pasted into a document.
- Parts prices are looked up again for each report.
- The report layout depends on who writes it.
- Inspection findings are not linked to the bike's workshop record.
- There is no record of which reports were issued and when.
Why this matters to your shop
A report that takes an evening to write is expensive time, especially for your most experienced mechanic. A rider waiting for it is stuck without a bike, and the delay is felt as your delay. Inconsistent reports also invite questions from insurers, which means more back and forth.
We do not give opinions on claims or on what an insurer should pay. The inspection findings are your mechanic's professional view; the tool makes sure they are recorded clearly and quickly.
An estimate tool built for crash inspections
We build an inspection and estimate tool for the workshop.
- The mechanic works through the bike on a tablet, area by area: frame, fork, wheels, drivetrain, brakes, cockpit and accessories, marking each as undamaged, damaged or needing specialist inspection.
- Photos are taken for each damaged area in the tool, so they are labelled and stored against the report.
- Replacement parts are chosen from your EPOS or distributor price data, and labour from your standard job list, so the figures come from one place.
- Anything the mechanic cannot assess, such as internal carbon damage, is recorded as needing specialist inspection with a note.
- The tool produces a report with the shop's details, the bike, the findings, photos and the itemised estimate, in a layout you approve.
- Each report is stored against the bike's history with the date issued, and a reference the rider can quote to the insurer.
| Area | Finding | Estimate line |
|---|---|---|
| Frame | Top tube damage, specialist inspection advised | Inspection fee as your policy |
| Rear mech | Bent, replace | Part and fitting from your lists |
| Shifter | Lever broken, replace | Part and fitting from your lists |
| Front wheel | Out of true, repairable | Truing labour |
Reports done while the rider waits, or the same day
Inspections are thorough because the checklist covers every area. Reports are consistent whoever writes them. Prices are current. Riders get the report quickly and insurers get a clear, itemised document. If the repair goes ahead, the estimate becomes the workshop job, so nothing is retyped.
If you charge for inspections and reports, the fee can be added to the job in the same step. That decision, and the fee, are yours.
Do insurance estimates eat up your evenings?
- Crash reports are written from scratch in a word processor.
- Photos come from staff phones.
- Riders chase you for reports.
- Insurers ask for more detail or a different format.
- Only one person knows how to write them.