Vehicle Damage Assessor

ACTIVATE GROUP LIMITED; Bristol; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading vehicle repair group in Bristol is seeking a qualified Vehicle Damage Assessor to oversee bodyshop operations and provide repair estimates. The ideal candidate will have strong negotiation skills and experience as an estimator, working to meet customer service agreements and KPIs. The role offers competitive pay, bonuses, extensive benefits including health plans, and opportunities for progression within the company.

Benefits

33 days holiday including bank holidays

Annual and monthly performance bonus

Health Shield cash health plan

Annual pay review

Enhanced parental leave

Life assurance three times basic salary

Free breakfast cereals and milk daily

Free fruit every Monday

Free breakfasts delivered on Wednesdays

Qualifications

• Qualified ATA VDA Vehicle Damage Assessor.
• Experience as an estimator in the automotive industry.
• Skills in valuation and negotiation for vehicle repairs.

Responsibilities

• Assist in overseeing Bodyshop operations to meet SLAs and KPIs.
• Provide estimates for repairs on damaged vehicles.
• Manage customer complaints and service quality.

Skills

ATA VDA Vehicle Damage Assessor

Relevant experience as an estimator

Ability to qualify and quantify repairs required

Ability to negotiate effectively with third parties

Audatex Trained

Escribe trained and Adherence

Ability to discuss and negotiate agreeable solutions

Ability to maintain personal technical knowledge including SMART repairs

Job description

Job title: Vehicle Damage Assessor
Department: Activate Accident Repair
Reports to: Bodyshop Manager
Hours: 45 hours per week

We're looking for a Vehicle Damage Assessor to join the friendly, fast‑paced team at our state‑of‑the‑art Bristol body shop. Help deliver outstanding service/high‑quality repairs for our customers, and in return you'll receive competitive pay and bonus, opportunities for progression and great benefits!

Role overview

As a qualified ATA VDA Vehicle Damage Assessor you will assist the Bodyshop Manager to oversee all aspects of the Bodyshop, ensuring customer service level agreements (SLAs) and site key performance indicators (KPIs) are met while maximising profitability. Provide estimates for the cost of repair for damaged vehicles.

Benefits

• 33 days holiday (including bank holidays)
• Annual and monthly performance bonus
• Health Shield cash health plan for all
• Annual pay review
• Enhanced Maternity / Paternity / shared parental / adoption pay
• Life assurance: three times basic salary
• Free breakfast cereals and milk daily
• Free fruit – every Monday
• Free breakfasts sent to site every Wednesday

Key Responsibilities

• Assist with planning resource and equipment levels around budgets and financial plans.
• Establish and maintain control of consistent workflow within the Bodyshop through effective capacity planning.
• Adhere to operational workshop loading system in line with company policy/procedures, ensuring all targets and deadlines are met or addressed.
• Manage daily production co‑ordination.
• Regularly and consistently review site KPI performance to identify areas of potential shortfall against plan, delivery of average repair cost target, CSI targets and customer service scores.
• Manage customer complaints from initial contact through to conclusion. To carry out any root cause analysis on each complaint, identifying and implementing any actions required.
• Promote good communication throughout all areas of responsibility, develop and foster a pro‑active attitude through regular, open and honest communication that supports the achievement of Company objectives.
• Carry out a visual inspection to identify any accidental damage caused to avoid uninsured loss damage costs.
• Estimate by considering the most economical repair method.
• Maintain awareness of incoming vehicles and flag any issues.
• Awareness and compliance of Health & Safety requirements.
• Ability to create an estimate both manually and via company systems.
• Verbal explanation of the repair procedure and process to the workshop and customers and variable levels of understanding.
• Ability to value a vehicle at a market value in order to determine the repairable economics of a damaged vehicle.
• Ensure all chargeable materials are recorded on job cards for invoicing purposes.
• Review all open job cards (daily) and report any ongoing and recurrent work in progress problems.
• Assist in the correct evaluation and justification of bodywork warranty claims and provide comprehensive explanations thereof.
• Estimate repairs required together with the time to be allowed, materials and parts required for repairs and explain work required, to customers and to insurance and other assessors in an efficient, pleasant, courteous and professional manner.
• Make efficient use of all modern estimating methods and work in line with approved times set by Thatcham and/or other authorised repair times.
• Bring to customers’ attention any problems, faults and other issues that might impact on the performance and safety of their vehicles.

Skills & Experience

• ATA VDA Vehicle Damage Assessor.
• Relevant experience as an estimator.
• Ability to qualify and quantify repairs required.
• Ability to negotiate effectively with third parties.
• Audatex Trained.
• Escribe trained and Adherence.
• Ability to discuss and negotiate agreeable solutions to customer problems.
• Ability to maintain personal technical knowledge and skills including SMART repairs.

What you can expect from us

At Activate Group, looking after team members is a major priority, and we'll make sure you have all the support you need to succeed.

From little perks like free fruit, breakfast cereals, to impressive rewards for our employee of the month, we'll go out of our way to show how much we appreciate the effort you put in.

A bit about us

Named by the Sunday Times as one of the UK’s 100 fastest‑growing private companies, we employ more than 900 team members nationwide.

We work with some of the UK's largest fleets and insurance companies, supporting drivers that have been involved in a road accident at our contact centres in Halifax and Peterborough.

We look after every step of the repair process, repairing vehicles at our own Activate Accident Repair body shops, and through a UK‑wide network of independent repair partners.

Our Values

• Make it happen – Be accountable. Take the initiative, work fast, and do a great job.
• Strive for better – Be bold. Challenge the norm – make small improvements often.
• Win together – Be a team‑player. Win together, learn together, respect each other.