Auto Insurance Claims: Auto Insurance Claim, auto insurance claim, auto body shop

Question
My son's car was sideswiped while parked near his home in a Boston suburb.  On a separate occasion, his car was keyed on the hood and door.  I called the insurance company who told me that we would have to put in two claims.  The sideswipe was considered a collision and the deductible would be $500.  The keying would be considered vandalism and the deductible would be $300. They suggested I get an estimate on my own to decide whether we wanted to put in a claim.  The estimates for the sideswipe and keying are each about $1,000. So for $2,000 worth of repair, it would cost us $800 (the two deductibles) if we put in a claim. Because there is a possibility of a recurrence given where my son lives, we are thinking of putting in a claim, taking the money and not doing the repairs at this time.  However, the auto body shop said that even though the estimate was for a total of $2,000, the insurance company would only issue a check for about 80% of the value and not come through with the rest unless and until we actually have the work done. Is that true?  Also, if we do put in the two claims, would my son's insurance premiums go up?  Since neither incident was his fault, I'm thinking no. Another idea we had was to hold off all together and put in a claim in the future should my son's living situation change. The auto body shop wouldn't suggestion that option saying that would cause a problem should a third incident occur before we had the car fixed. Any advice or suggestions.

Answer
Hi Elaine,

The insurance company can not hold back money until you have the repairs done. They can only withhold the deductibles. The body shop id correct that you should not wait. If another incident did occur, it may be hard to seperate the damages. Jyst go ahead and make the claim, it will not raise your rates.

I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh