March 17, 2014—A multiple-shop operation in the Columbus, Ohio, market has filed multiple lawsuits against State Farm Insurance, seeking recovery from alleged short-pays, as well as legal fees and court costs.
In all, the six-facility Three-C Body Shops has filed 89 suits against State Farm since November 2012, all alleging the insurer’s “repeated underpayments for services generally rendered and charged to their customers when their vehicles have been deemed total losses.”
Three-C Body Shops is seeking $296,807.93. State Farm had previously agreed to pay $31,565.03.
Bob Juniper, owner of Three-C, has been an active voice in the industry’s pushback against insurers and their direct repair programs, speaking out in a number of local television and radio consumer awareness campaigns.