Home > For Law Firms > Full PD Service
Full PD Service for California law firms
Property Damage Claim Management for California Personal Injury Firms
Property damage claim management is the day-to-day handling of the vehicle side of an auto accident claim, from the first repair estimate through the final payment. It covers repairs, supplements, rental, total loss valuation and diminished value. Collision Assistant runs that work for California personal injury firms and returns a documented file your attorney approves.
Talk to Our TeamTalk to us about the Full PD Service
Fields marked are required.
Collision Assistant is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. See our privacy policy.
The service, defined
What is property damage claim management for a personal injury firm?
Property damage claim management means one team owns the car while your firm owns the injury. In most California auto cases your client has a bodily injury claim your attorneys work and a property damage claim that moves on a much faster clock, often with its own adjuster at the same carrier.
The PD file carries its own estimate disputes, rental deadlines and paperwork. Left with a paralegal, it competes with medical records and demand prep. Left with the client, it tends to stall at the first low estimate or the first rental cutoff, and your office hears about it on every call.
Collision Assistant takes that file off your desk. We coordinate the repair or the total loss, keep the documentation complete and report back to your team at each milestone. Your attorneys stay counsel of record, make every legal decision and approve anything that goes to the insurer as a demand.
Why the PD file matters to the injury case
Insurers routinely point to damage photos and repair totals to argue that a low-impact crash could not have caused injury. A first estimate rarely tells the whole story. Teardown findings, approved supplements and the final invoice give your attorney the full repair picture instead of the opening number.
$15,000
California’s minimum property damage liability limit per accident since January 1, 2025, under SB 1107. When several vehicles are damaged and the at-fault driver carries only the minimum, that amount is shared across every property claim from the crash.
What is included
What does the Full PD Service cover?
The Full PD Service is property damage claim management from start to finish. It covers every task on the vehicle side of a California auto claim, from the first call with your client to a closing file your attorney can use in the injury case. Here is what that work includes.
Intake and claim setup
We contact your client, collect photos, the police report number, claim numbers and vehicle details, and confirm which coverage the repair runs through based on your attorney’s direction. Clients new to the process can read how a car insurance claim is filed.
Estimate and shop placement
Your client can use any licensed shop they choose. If they want a recommendation, we place the vehicle with a shop in our vetted California collision repair network and get the written estimate started.
Supplements and repair tracking
Hidden damage found at teardown goes back to the insurer as a supplement. We track each supplement, parts delays and the completion date so nobody at your firm has to call the shop.
Rental and loss of use
We coordinate the rental with the paying carrier and request extensions ahead of the cutoff date, backed by the shop’s repair timeline, so your client is not left without a car mid-repair.
Total loss review
When the car is totaled, we check the valuation report against California’s total loss rules: identified comparables and itemized, supportable adjustments. Anything that does not hold up goes to your attorney with notes. Background on how a total loss decision is made.
Diminished value estimate
For repaired vehicles on third-party claims, we prepare a diminished value estimate from the repair record and vehicle history. Your attorney decides whether to pursue it. More on diminished value claims in California.
PD demand draft
We assemble estimates, invoices, rental records, photos and valuation notes into a PD demand draft. Your attorney edits it, signs it and decides when it goes out.
Status updates and closing file
Your team gets milestone updates while the claim runs and a closing file with every document the property damage claim produced, organized for the injury case.
How it works
How does a case move from your firm to a closed PD claim?
Our property damage claim management process moves each case in six steps, and your firm stays in control at the points that need a legal decision. You submit the case once and we carry it from there.
1
Submit the case
Send your contact details through the form on this page. We follow up to collect the client’s details, the date of loss, any claim numbers and the attorney’s instructions.
2
We reach your client
We introduce ourselves as working with your firm, collect photos and documents, and confirm where the vehicle is.
3
Repair or total loss
The shop’s teardown or the carrier’s valuation sets the path. We run whichever one the vehicle takes.
4
The file builds as we go
Estimates, supplements, rental records, photos and carrier correspondence land in one case file under one case number.
5
Attorney review
Disputed valuations and demand drafts go to your attorney before they go to the insurer. We never sign a release for your client.
6
Closing file delivered
When the property damage claim pays, your team receives the complete file for the injury case and your records.
Fit
Which firms is the Full PD Service built for?
The service is built for California personal injury firms that take auto cases and want property damage claim management without running a PD desk of their own. It is a poor fit for a few situations, and we would rather say so up front.
A good fit
- California PI firms with auto caseloads and no dedicated PD department.
- Firms where paralegals lose hours each week to adjuster, shop and rental calls.
- Cases where the vehicle is in repair, is a likely total loss, or was repaired and may carry diminished value.
- Firms that want every PD document in one place before the injury demand goes out.
Not the right fit
- Collisions outside California. The rules and repair network we work within are California only.
- Firms looking for a vendor to negotiate or settle the claim on its own. Settlement authority stays with your attorney.
- Cases where the client already settled the property damage claim and signed a release.
California specifics
Which California rules shape the property damage side of a case?
Five public rules set the ground for most California PD claims, and our process is built around them. The table summarizes each one and what it changes on the file.
Rule
What it says
What it changes on the PD file
Insurance Code § 758.5
An insurer cannot require repairs at a specific shop, and may only recommend one when the claimant asks or has been told in writing of the right to choose.
Your client picks the shop. We work with that choice or place the car in our network on request.
10 CCR § 2695.8(e)(4)
An insurer cannot require a claimant to travel an unreasonable distance or wait an unreasonable time for an inspection, an estimate or a repair at a specific shop.
Inspection delays are logged with dates so your attorney sees them.
10 CCR § 2695.8(b)
Comparable vehicles used to value a total loss must be identified by VIN, stock or order number, or plate, and deductions that cannot be supported may not be used.
Valuation reports are checked line by line before your attorney responds.
Code of Civil Procedure § 338(c)
Three years from the collision to bring a claim for damage to personal property, including a vehicle.
The PD deadline runs apart from the two-year injury deadline in § 335.1, and both are tracked on the file.
SB 1107 (2022)
Raised minimum property damage liability to $15,000 per accident, effective January 1, 2025.
Multi-vehicle crashes against a minimum policy get flagged to your attorney early.
Collision Assistant is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. This table summarizes public California rules for orientation. Your attorneys decide how they apply to a case. Sources: California Insurance Code; California Code of Regulations, Title 10; California Code of Civil Procedure; SB 1107 chaptered text. Reviewed September 2026.
The difference
How is Collision Assistant different from a body shop or a claims vendor?
A body shop sees the repair and a claims vendor sees the payout. We start from the repair side and build property damage claim management around it, with your attorney holding every decision that carries legal weight. You can read more about Collision Assistant.
Built on the repair side
Collision Assistant was built to connect California drivers with vetted collision repair shops. Shop relationships and repair timelines are the center of what we do, which is where most PD delays start.
Your attorney keeps authority
We do not give legal advice, negotiate the injury claim or sign anything for your client. No demand leaves our system until someone at your firm approves it.
One case, one file
Intake, vehicle, repair, rental, valuation and demand records all sit under a single case number, so the closing file matches what actually happened on the claim.
The client's shop choice is protected
We never steer a client away from a shop they picked. Our network is there for clients who ask for a recommendation.
FAQs
What do firms ask before they submit a case?
Do personal injury lawyers handle property damage claims?
Practices vary. Some firms run PD in-house, some handle it as a courtesy for injury clients, and some leave it to the client. The Full PD Service lets a firm cover the vehicle side fully without assigning it to a paralegal.
Can the property damage claim settle before the injury claim?
Often, yes. Repair costs and vehicle values are easier to document than injuries, so the property damage claim usually resolves first and on its own. Your attorney decides how to resolve it and reviews any release before the client signs.
How long does a client have to file a property damage claim in California?
Three years from the date of the collision under Code of Civil Procedure § 338(c). The personal injury deadline under § 335.1 is two years, so the two claims run on different clocks.
Can my client choose their own body shop?
Yes. California Insurance Code § 758.5 bars insurers from requiring a specific shop. If your client has no preference, we can place the vehicle with a shop in our vetted network.
Is diminished value recoverable in California?
On a third-party claim against the at-fault driver’s insurer, post-repair loss in value is treated as recoverable property damage, reflected in jury instruction CACI No. 3903J. Standard first-party collision coverage generally does not pay it. We prepare the estimate and your attorney decides whether to pursue it.
Does Collision Assistant negotiate with the adjuster?
We handle the working contact: scheduling inspections, sending documents, following up on supplements and rental dates. Positions on value, demands and settlement come from your attorney.
What do we need to submit a case?
The client’s name and contact details, the date and location of the collision, any claim numbers you have, where the vehicle is now and the handling attorney’s instructions. Missing items can follow later.
Will you contact our client directly?
Yes, once you submit the case, and always as working with your firm. We copy your team on milestones and route any legal question straight back to you.