Back of camper is coming off!!

[brianharrison]

So the repair is not done, and the insurance has paid out the estimate of the repair costs to you and you are responsible for getting the repairs done?

My expectation would be that the costs would cover the work to move the end wall back into it's original place, reattach with LONGER screws, and seal all external joints along fiberglass/moulding with good quality sealant that has is UV stabilized. Also repair internal mouldings to return the inside finish to as-new condition.

I would encourage you to verbalize your expectations to the repair shop before they begin work and get confirmation the actual repair costs will be under or near the insurance pay out amounts.

Hopefully you can get the unit repaired to your satisfaction.

Take care,
Brian

 

[Silverado23]

You can certainly work with your adjuster to get more if more damage is found. Just make sure to get authorization from the adjuster prior to getting additional work done. The repair guys may need to document and wait for authorization before proceeding when starting the repair. It can be very difficult If you have the repairs completed and then try to get additional compensation without prior authorization from your adjuster.

 

[jwpurdy]

This happened to me twice on my 2008 Sundance. The first time was in 2010 on left side and I had it repaired local. The second time was 2012 on a trip back to Heartland plant in Indiana for delam repair. I noticed the back coming loose from the right side this time about half way to Indiana from Colorado when fueling up. The highways and interstates were so rough that I believe that was what caused the separation. When I got to Heartland they looked at it and denied any liability and I paid to have it repaired again at RV Capital who was already supposed to be doing the delam repair. When I took a Heartland plant tour I talked to a plant supervisor and he admitted that when they built the unit that they used to short a screws and the screws would either work loose or break off and to make sure they used longer screws that would screw all the way into the wooden plug inside the aluminum frame. While at RV Capitol I saw another Sundance on their lot with the same problem. This is a defect that Heartland will not stand behind I am sorry to say and the reason I no longer own a Heartland product. Good Luck

 

[shelly556]

Well now my understanding from the adjuster is to hold the check until we take it in. I guess if we deposit or cash it, that's it. He said they have pay us what he estimated to for now? Then when we take it in, if there is more damage (not water he said) then they will stop payment and issue another check. I suppose I'm use to car claims, I've never dealt with anything like this.

 

[danemayer]

Well now my understanding from the adjuster is to hold the check until we take it in. I guess if we deposit or cash it, that's it. He said they have pay us what he estimated to for now? Then when we take it in, if there is more damage (not water he said) then they will stop payment and issue another check. I suppose I'm use to car claims, I've never dealt with anything like this.

My experience with auto and RV claims over the past couple of years is that the adjuster estimates the cost of repair, and cuts a check for that amount less the deductible. If the repair shop later determines the repair will actually cost more than estimated, they or you contact the adjuster who reviews the additional cost and a supplemental check is issued. The checks may be issued to you, or to the repair shop. If there's a loan on the RV, and you want the check sent to you, the check will typically be made out to both you and the lender and you'll need the lender's endorsement in order to deposit or cash it.

If you deposit the insurance check, before you go to the dealer to pick up the repaired unit, check with the dealer to see what type of payment you need to bring. In our case, they didn't want to take a credit card because the cost of the repair was too large (they didn't want to pay the card fees). They took personal checks, but they used a check guarantee company that had no history on us (we don't write many checks anymore), so the guarantee company wouldn't guarantee the check. I finally got the office manager to call our credit union to verify the account balance. But they easily could have told us to come back with cash or cashiers check.

 

[ParkIt]

We had the option up front to have funds for repair deposited to our account or to the repair shop, of course I told them the shop since our front cap may be a layer by layer fixing issue and we won't have to continue to mess with that part. Shop needs more to fix it? Fine, they send a notice to insurance and not us until the job is done to our satisfaction.
The damage was done by a tow company dropping the cap onto his bed.

There is another scenario that I have seen while working at an RV/Trailer dealership: they pack them in close and sometimes damage would occur to the next unit. Was yours parked at a storage lot? If so someone else could have caught the back end and pulled/pushed it just enough for it to work its way loose.