Our Process
The six stage repair sequence from intake through delivery, including where supplements and carrier approvals fit.
Short answer. Every job at OCRV Center follows the same six stages: intake and photo documentation, written estimate, authorization and deposit, teardown with supplement, repair across departments, then quality check and delivery. West Covina owners get updates at each stage rather than having to call for them.
OCRV Center works in shop at 23281 La Palma Ave in Yorba Linda, about 22 miles and 30 to 45 minutes from West Covina.
Request a quote
Tell us about the vehicle and the damage. Insurance walk ins are welcome.
Why a repair process needs to be written down
Most owners who arrive here have been burned by a shop with no process. The vehicle sat. Nobody called. The final invoice contained lines nobody had explained. Three weeks in, a part turned out to be backordered and nobody had checked.
A written process fixes that by making each stage produce an artifact. Intake produces photographs and a condition report. Estimating produces a written document with line items. Authorization produces a signature. Teardown produces a findings report. Repair produces stage photographs. Delivery produces a final invoice that maps line for line to what was authorized.
None of this is exotic. It is what a well run collision center does on a passenger car. It is unusual in RV repair, which is exactly why RV repair has the reputation it has.
Stage one, intake and documentation
You arrive, ideally after calling (949) 799-3387 so a bay and an estimator are ready. We walk the vehicle with you. Every damaged area gets photographed from multiple angles, including underneath and from the roof where relevant.
We ask what happened, in detail. On a collision, the impact direction determines where we look for secondary damage. On water intrusion, the weather and the timeline tell us whether we are chasing a seam, a fitting or a long standing failure. On a systems fault, we want to know what the vehicle was doing when it failed and whether it has been intermittent.
We also record what the vehicle is: year, make, model, floor plan, chassis, slide mechanism type, roof membrane type, and any prior repair history you can supply. That combination determines parts availability, which drives the schedule more than labor does.
Stage two, the written estimate
The estimate lists every operation with labor hours at the applicable rate, every part with its part number and price, and materials calculated on the posted formula. Body and paint labor bills at $210 per hour, mechanical and electrical at $260, diagnostics at $285 with a one hour minimum credited against an authorized repair, and detail at $95.
Collision estimates are written at the shop and insurance walk ins are welcome. RV systems estimates covering slides, awnings, plumbing, electrical and generator work are $150, credited against an authorized repair.
Along with the numbers, you get our expectation of what teardown will reveal. On a laminated body we will say, in writing, that core separation of a certain extent is likely and that a supplement will follow if so. That expectation is the single most useful thing on the document, because it sets the ceiling before you commit.
Stage three, authorization, deposit and carrier approval
Nothing is disassembled until you authorize in writing. On an insurance job, we also need the carrier to approve the estimate or issue their own. Where the two differ, the shop and the adjuster reconcile it with photographs and documentation before work starts, not after.
Deposits are 50 percent at authorization on any job over $2,000. An additional 25 percent is due when parts arrive on any job over $10,000. The balance is due at pickup. Special order parts require full payment at the time of order because a cap or panel molded for a specific coach cannot be returned or resold.
On a direct billed insurance job, the carrier pays the shop and you are responsible for your deductible plus any upgrades you elect that fall outside the claim. Those get quoted and authorized separately so there is never a blurred line between claim work and owner elected work.
Stage four, teardown and the supplement
Teardown is where an RV repair either becomes accurate or becomes a fiction. Panels come off, the roof membrane gets lifted at the affected seam, interior finish panels get pulled where structure needs to be seen, and moisture readings get logged across a grid rather than at one spot.
What we find gets written up with photographs and measurements. If the damage exceeds the estimate, which on collision work it usually does, a supplement goes to the carrier with the evidence attached. We do not proceed past the authorized scope until that supplement is approved, because performing unapproved work is how owners end up in a fight over an invoice.
This stage is also where a total loss conversation happens if it is going to. If teardown reveals that repair cost is approaching or exceeding actual cash value, we say so immediately and give you and the adjuster the documentation to make that call properly.
Stage five, repair through the departments
Structural first. If the frame, crossmembers, A frame, pin box or a commercial chassis rail is out of spec, it gets measured and corrected before anything cosmetic happens. There is no point hanging a panel on a body that is not square.
Then composite and body. Failed core gets removed back to sound laminate, new core is bonded, skins get vacuum bonded flat, seams get properly bedded, and any framing repair happens before the skin closes. Aluminum skin and cap work follows the same sequence.
Then systems, while the vehicle is open. Wiring that was pulled, plumbing that was crushed, slide mechanisms, awning hardware, appliances. Doing this while walls are open saves the owner enormous labor compared with coming back for it later.
Then interior. Subfloor, flooring, cabinetry, wall panels, upholstery. Then paint and refinish: preparation, sealer, base, clear, and blend into adjacent panels so the repair does not read as a rectangle in sunlight. Then reassembly, decals and graphics.
- Structural measurement and correction before any panel work
- Composite core removal, replacement and vacuum bonding
- Framing repair and corrosion protection on every opened seam
- Systems work performed while the structure is open
- Interior rebuild from subfloor outward
- Refinish with proper blend panels, in a downdraft booth
- Reassembly, sealing, decals and final adjustment
Stage six, quality check and delivery
Before a vehicle is called ready, it goes through a check that is separate from the technicians who did the work. Water test on anything involving a seam, a roof or a window. Operation test on every slide, awning, jack and door that was touched. Electrical load test where power systems were involved. Color evaluation under both booth light and natural light, because metallics and pearls read differently outdoors.
Then you get the walk through. We show you what was done, where the repair boundaries are, and what to watch for. On sealant work we tell you the reinspection interval. On slide work we show you the correct operating sequence, because a large share of slide failures come from operating the room with the jacks in the wrong state.
The final invoice maps to the authorized estimate line by line. Anything that changed has a supplement behind it that you already saw. Balance is due at pickup, and no vehicle leaves the property until it is paid in full.
How communication works during the job
You get contacted at every stage change: authorization, teardown findings, supplement submitted, supplement approved, parts arrival, paint, and ready for pickup. If a stage is going to take longer than expected, you hear that when we know it, not when you call to ask.
The most common cause of delay is not shop capacity. It is parts. RV parts supply is genuinely unreliable, particularly for discontinued models and for molded caps and panels. When a part goes on backorder we tell you the same day and we tell you what the alternatives are, including aftermarket, salvage or fabricated substitutes where those are appropriate.
The second most common cause is carrier approval time on a supplement. That is outside our control, but the documentation quality is not, and a well documented supplement gets approved faster than a vague one.
Questions we get asked
Why does my estimate go up after teardown
Because a laminated body hides its damage. From outside you see a crease and a scuff. Behind the skin the impact has separated the core over a much larger area, sometimes pushed a framing member out of plane, and possibly opened a seam that has been letting water in since the incident. A responsible estimate says this will happen. A supplement documents exactly what was found, with photographs, before any additional work proceeds.
How often will I hear from the shop while my RV is here
At every stage change, and any time something moves the schedule. That means authorization, teardown findings, supplement submission and approval, parts arrival, entry into paint, and completion. On a long job with quiet stretches, such as waiting on a molded cap, you will still get an update rather than silence. If you prefer a specific contact method, tell us at intake and we will use it.
Can I come see the vehicle mid repair
Yes, with a call first. Mid teardown is actually the best time to visit, because the walls are open and you can see the condition of the framing and core for yourself. It is far more informative than photographs. What we ask is that you call (949) 799-3387 to arrange it, because an unannounced visitor on an active shop floor around a lifted coach is a safety problem.
What happens if I do not approve the supplement
We stop at the authorized scope and we do not perform the additional work. If the additional work is structural or sealing related, we will tell you plainly what the consequence of leaving it is and note it on the file. In some cases the correct outcome is that you take the vehicle in its current state and make a decision later. What will not happen is unapproved work appearing on your invoice.
How do you decide what order the work happens in
Structure before cosmetics, always. Frame, crossmembers, A frame, pin box or chassis rail get measured and corrected first. Then composite and body. Then systems while the structure is still open, because doing wiring and plumbing with walls closed doubles the labor. Then interior, then refinish, then reassembly and sealing. Deviating from that order is how a repair ends up needing to be undone.
What is checked before you call it finished
Water testing on any seam, roof, window or door that was opened. Operation testing on slides, awnings, jacks, doors and steps. Electrical load testing where power systems were involved. Color evaluation in booth light and natural light, since metallics and pearls flop differently outdoors. The check is performed by someone other than the technician who did the work, which is the only way a quality check catches anything.
How long between authorization and the vehicle actually going into a bay
It depends on shop load and on whether parts need to arrive first. On collision work where teardown is needed to order parts, the vehicle goes in quickly because teardown is the gating step. On planned work such as a repaint or an interior remodel, we usually schedule a start date once materials are in hand rather than holding your vehicle here waiting. We tell you which situation applies at authorization.
Ready to get a written estimate
We write estimates at the shop and bill your carrier direct. 30 to 45 minutes from West Covina on the 57 and the 91.