Ask what comes off the car, what happens to the old paint, what happens if rust or old filler turns up, and whether the door shuts are painted on a colour change. Then ask how the price is confirmed, how you pay, and what you'll get in writing.
Two quotes can sound like the same job and be nothing like it. The answers to these questions are what tell you.
What comes off the car, and what gets masked?
Ask for the list. Masking a part is quicker than taking it off, but the paint stops at the edge of the tape, and up close that edge can show. With the lights, badges, handles, trim and seals off, the paint goes right round every edge and under where the seals sit.
Ask what happens to the parts too. Ours are bagged and labelled as they come off, so everything goes back where it came from.
What happens to the old paint?
Ask whether it's being flatted or taken back to bare metal. Flatting means sanding the old paint smooth so the new paint has something to grip, and that works on sound paint. Paint that is cracking, crazing or lifting can't be painted over, so it has to come off.
If a shop plans to flat over paint that's already failing, the new paint can fail with it.
What happens if you find rust or old filler?
Ask this one before you book, because it's the answer that can change the price. Nobody can see what's under the paint until it comes off, and a sound-looking car can have rust under a seal or old filler in a wing.
What you want to hear is that you'll be shown what turns up, and told what it needs, before any extra work starts. That's how we work: we show you what we find and which repair we'd do before we go ahead.
Agree it up front rather than saying "do whatever it needs". Citizens Advice says that if you told the garage to do whatever needs to be done, you gave them the right to decide what work to do.
Are the door shuts and engine bay painted on a colour change?
They should be, and it's worth asking outright. A same colour respray can stop at the outside panels. A colour change also means the door shuts, the inside of the bonnet and boot, the engine bay and under the seals, or the old colour shows every time a door opens.
That's why a colour change takes more strip-down and more hours. See resprays for what each involves. A new colour also goes on your V5C, and GOV.UK explains how.
What paint and finish will it be?
Ask what goes on, in order. On ours it's primer, colour and lacquer, then flatted and polished. Ask too whether the finish will be solid, metallic or pearl, and gloss, satin or matt. Each one changes the work, and how a later repair is matched.
How is the price confirmed, and when do I pay?
Ask whether the figure you're given is a quote or an estimate. Citizens Advice puts it plainly: a quote is when a trader has promised to do work at an agreed price, and should say what work will be done. An estimate is the trader's best guess.
We give a rough price from photos, then confirm it once the car is here and stripped, and show you anything we've found. Bigger jobs are priced and paid in stages, so ask how the stages are split before you book. See prices for how we quote.
How long will the car be off the road?
Ask, and ask what could make it longer. Rust found in the strip-down and parts that need replacing are the usual reasons.
What should I get in writing?
The job as you agreed it. That means what comes off, what happens to the old paint, the colour and finish, the price, and how anything extra gets agreed. An email is fine.
Keep the invoice with the car's papers. If the colour has changed, a future repair will need the new mix, not the one on the factory paint code label.
Will I see photos as it goes?
Ask, because once the new paint is on, photos are the only way to see what was under it. On a restoration we photograph each stage, so you see what was found and what we did. On a respray, we show you anything we find once the car is stripped.
What if something isn't right afterwards?
Tell the shop first, and do it in writing so there's a record. Citizens Advice says that if the work wasn't done with reasonable skill and care, you have the legal right to get the work done again or a price reduction.
Send us a few photos and what you're after from the quote form.
