Guides for body shops: check-in, repair authorizations and customer updates
Plain answers for collision and auto body shops: what to put on your check-in and repair authorization forms, how to handle tow-ins and damage photos, and how to keep customers posted without the phone ringing all day.
Guides
- Body shop check-in: the complete guide for collision repair shops
What a collision shop check-in form should capture, how estimate, drop-off and tow-in check-ins differ, paper vs digital, and getting the authorization right.
- Auto repair authorization form: what to include, e-signatures and state rules
What to put on a body shop repair authorization form, when an e-signature counts under ESIGN and UETA, how state rules differ, and how to prove what was signed.
- Damage photo intake and online estimate requests for body shops
Which photos to ask customers for, how online estimate requests work, how to set expectations about photo estimates, and how to handle the photos privately.
- Hoja de recepción de vehículos para talleres de hojalatería y pintura
Qué debe incluir la hoja de recepción de vehículos de su taller: datos, revisión de daños e inventario, fotos, firmas y autorización de reparación.
- How to cut "is my car ready?" calls with text updates
Which repair milestones to text, example messages you can copy, and the opt-in, 10DLC, STOP and HELP basics for body shop status texts, with primary sources.
- Kiosk, QR code or website: three ways to check customers in
A counter tablet kiosk, a QR code or texted link, or a website button: the honest pros and cons of each for body shop check-in, and how to set them up well.
- Spanish-language check-in for body shops
Why and how to offer Spanish check-in at your body shop: which screens and texts to translate, a glossary of shop terms, agreements in Spanish, and staff tips.
- Texas auto repair authorization: what the law actually requires
We found no general Texas auto repair act. What the DTPA, the worker's lien, the repossession notice and Texas e-sign law mean for your authorization form.
- Tow-in intake: getting a signed authorization when the customer isn't at the shop
How a body shop can collect contact, vehicle, insurance and a signed repair authorization for a towed-in car when the owner is away, and what to check first.
Comparisons
- Best body shop check-in software in 2026: an honest roundup
CCC, Mitchell, Tekmetric, Shopmonkey, AutoLeap, Shop-Ware, EasyRepair, kiosks, DocuSign and IntakeBay: intake features and public prices, checked October 2026.
- IntakeBay and your shop management system: an intake layer, not a replacement
How IntakeBay fits beside CCC ONE, Mitchell, Tekmetric or Shopmonkey: what each does, where they overlap, and when you don't need a separate check-in tool.
- IntakeBay vs paper check-in forms
Paper check-in forms vs IntakeBay for body shops, row by row: cost, legibility, photos, signatures, search and what happens when the internet is down.