Auto Insurance Claims: Auto Hail Claim, auto body shop, hail damage

Question
I own my vehicle free & clear and received significant hail damage this past weekend on my truck in MN. My questions are:
1.) Do I have to go to their claim center for their estimate or can I get estimates to prove the cost to repair the damage?
2.) Is there a law that would prevent them from mailing the claim check directly to me, rather than sending this to the auto body shop that gave me the estimate?
3.) Let's say I decide I don't want to fix the damages because it's an older vehicle, and want to sell the vehicle "as-is." Is there anything wrong with getting the claim check to make up for the difference in which I took a loss on the vehicle? I.E... Say it's worth $5,000 and they estimate the damage at $3,000. I decide to sell for $1,500, then pocket the difference to make up for the pre-hail damaged value of the vehicle. I would just like to know my rights ahead of time before dealing with the claim center and/or agent.
Thanks,

Answer
Hi Ryan,

You can get an estimate from where ever you chose to. However the insurance company has the right to inspect and verify the damage before issuing payment. You should go to the insurance company facility to get an initial estimate and then verify with your own estimate.

Once that is out of the way, they can make the check payable only to you. You do not have to have the vehicle repaired. You can sell it as is and keep the insurance money to make up the difference.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh