Industry Terms

Aftermarket Parts
Blending
Insurance Estimate
LKQ
OEM
Pre-Loss Condition
QRP
R&I
R&R
Shop Estimate
Steering
Sublet
Supplement
Third Party Claimant
Unibody 

Aftermarket Parts

These are parts that are manufactured by companies other than the (OEM) Original Equipment Manufacturer.  Sometimes this is O.K. and sometimes it's not.  It all comes down to the quality of the part.  Sometimes these parts are just as good as the OEM parts.  They may have even been made by the same manufacturer.  Other times the parts are not of good quality and may not provide a good repair.  These parts should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and only used when they are of equivalent quality to the OEM parts they are replacing.

Blending

The one question that all of our first-time customers ask is: "Is my paint going to match?"  While there is no such thing as a "perfect" match, the color can be custom tinted to a point where the color is close enough for a blendable match.  That's where blending comes in.  Blending is a technique used during the final refinishing of your vehicle to ensure as close a color match as possible.

Insurance Estimate

The preliminary assessment of damages and costs of repairs that will be used as a guideline for making repairs to the vehicle.

LKQ

LKQ refers to Like Kind and Quality parts.  This generally refers to used parts from a vehicle recycling center or salvage yard.  These parts are defined as Like Kind and Quality because they are from a vehicle just like the one being repaired.  Typically they should be from a vehicle the same year model, or newer, as the vehicle being repaired.  These parts differ from A/M and QRP parts because they are just like OEM parts they're just being re-used from another vehicle.  Just like A/M and QRP parts, LKQ parts should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and only used when they are of equivalent quality to the OEM parts they are replacing. 

OEM

OEM refers to Original Equipment Manufacturer.  Basically this means the parts specified will come from the manufacturer of your automobile.  For example, if you have a Mazda, the parts would be purchased from a Mazda parts supplier.  This doesn't mean that Mazda actually made the part, but that they have had the part manufactured for them to a specific set of criteria and standards.

Pre-Loss Condition

Overall condition of vehicle immediately preceding collision, vandalism or theft.

QRP

QRP refers to Quality Replacement Parts or Quality Recycled Parts.  When used as Quality Replacement Parts it is an alternate acronym for the A/M acronym defined above.  When used as Quality Recycled Parts it is an alternate acronym for the LKQ acronym defined below.  These terms are being used more in the electronic estimating systems to give the impression that the parts being listed on the estimate are quality parts.  Again,  these parts should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and only used when they are of equivalent quality to the OEM parts they are replacing.

R&I

Remove and Install. To remove and install existing components.

R&R

Remove and Replace. To remove old components and replace with different ones.

Shop Estimate

The preliminary assessment of damages and costs of repairs that will be used as a guideline for making repairs to the vehicle.

Steering

Illegal practice whereby a representative of the party paying the bill tries to influence a vehicle owner to take their vehicle to a particular person or body shop for repairs.

Sublet

To contract services to be performed by an outside company, i.e. alignments, glass replacement, theft recovery. 

Supplement

An already calculated estimate to which a change has been made. Supplements occur after a vehicle has been torn down and it is determined that additional repairs and/or procedures will be needed to repair the vehicle to pre-loss condition. 

Third Party Claimant

The other party's insurance company is responsible for paying for the costs of the repairs.

Unibody

A type of body construction that doesn't require a separate frame to provide structural support for the vehicle's mechanical components. Also called "unitized".