# Our Process > Intake to release, with the timeline attached to each stage so nothing depends on chasing us for an update. Source: https://fleetservicesocrv.com/about/our-process Business: Fleet Services OCRV, 23281 E La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887 Phone: (714) 909-1844. Serving Santa Ana, California, about 17 miles from the facility. A fleet repair here runs through seven stages: photo intake, written scope and price band, authorization and deposit, teardown and supplement, repair, refinish, and quality release. Each stage has a stated timeline. The purpose of publishing them is that a fleet can plan route coverage against real dates instead of guesses. ## Why the timeline is published The single most common complaint about body shops from fleet operators is not price. It is not knowing. A unit goes in, the days pass, and every update requires a phone call that produces a vague answer. Publishing the stages and their durations fixes the structural cause. If you know teardown takes one to two business days and that a supplement decision follows it, you know when to expect a revised number. If you know parts lead time is the variable that moves a schedule, you know which question to ask. None of this makes a repair faster on its own. What it does is make the schedule legible, which is what allows a fleet to sequence units instead of losing them all at once. ## Where schedules actually slip Two things move a date: teardown discoveries and parts lead time. Everything else is fairly predictable. Teardown discoveries are structural. A dented panel hides a deformed support, a cracked weld or corrosion that started at a fastener and spread behind a surface nobody could see. That is why a scope from photos is a band rather than a number, and why a shop quoting a single confident figure off a phone photo is either padding it or about to write a supplement. Parts lead time is the other one, and on commercial units it is frequently the larger factor. A body panel for a common cargo van is on a shelf. A cab panel for a specific model year chassis, or a compartment door for a service body, may not be. Ordering parts for a whole group of units at once is the single most effective way to collapse that. - Teardown reveals scope the photographs could not show - Parts lead time on chassis specific panels moves dates more than labor does - Supplement approval speed depends on how the first submission was documented - Multi unit jobs collapse lead time by ordering the group together ## What a written scope contains A scope should be readable by someone who is not a body technician, because the person approving it usually is not. Line items at the posted rates, a labor hour band, the materials calculation, and the turnaround tier the job falls into. Where something cannot be established without teardown, the scope says so explicitly rather than burying the risk in a number. That is more useful than false precision, and it is the difference between a supplement that is expected and a supplement that feels like a bait and switch. ## Quality release Nothing leaves without a release inspection. Panel gaps and alignment against the opposite side, refinish inspected under corrected lighting for colour match and texture, corrosion protection restored where a panel was cut or welded, and all equipment reinstalled and function tested. On a unit that took structural work, measurements are confirmed against the reference before refinish rather than after, because a colour matched panel on a frame that is out of tolerance is a repeat visit. ## Questions ### How long does a fleet repair take Light cosmetic work is one to three business days. Moderate body work is four to eight. Structural work is two to four weeks. A full refinish is two to five weeks. Equipment install is three to ten business days. Parts lead time is the variable most likely to move any of those. ### What is a supplement and why did my estimate change A supplement is a revision after teardown reveals damage the photographs could not show. It is normal on structural work and it is not a pricing tactic. The original scope should state where teardown could change the number, so the revision is expected rather than a surprise. ### Do I have to chase you for updates No. Each stage has a stated duration, so you know when the next milestone lands. If something moves the date, typically a parts lead time or a teardown discovery, you hear about it when it happens rather than when you call to ask. ### When is the deposit due At authorization on jobs above $2,000, at 50 percent. Jobs above $10,000 take an additional 25 percent when parts arrive. The balance is due at pickup. Established fleet accounts can run net 30 terms instead. ### Can you start before the carrier approves Teardown can often start once you authorize it, because establishing actual damage is what the adjuster needs to see. Full repair waits on approval so the work is not performed against a scope the carrier has not agreed to pay for. Documenting properly at first submission is what shortens that gap.