Workflow context
Auto-service authorization can evolve from an initial inspection to an estimate, additional repairs, parts approval, financing acknowledgment, and vehicle pickup. Each stage should identify the vehicle, requested work, price basis, and person with authority to approve. SignApprove can retain repair-authorization PDFs, recipient fields, updated approvals, balance records, and audit events. It does not diagnose a vehicle, estimate mechanical safety, create a lender agreement, verify warranty coverage, satisfy a state repair-facility rule, or prove ownership. Shops must use forms and notices reviewed for their jurisdiction, services, storage practices, environmental duties, and financing relationships.
Prepare the PDF and fields
Include customer and shop names, vehicle year, make, model, VIN or another controlled identifier, mileage, reported concern, diagnostic authorization, proposed parts and labor, tax and fee treatment, estimate limits, storage or teardown terms, warranty language, and pickup authorization. Protect keys, identity documents, and full payment details outside the PDF. An added-repair request should identify what the technician found, added cost, and schedule impact. Do not overwrite the initial estimate. If third-party financing is discussed, distinguish an acknowledgment or referral from lender approval. A balance can be recorded in SignApprove, while live client checkout remains unavailable until provider validation is complete.
Route approval and retain proof
A service advisor prepares the estimate and confirms shop approval before sending. The registered owner, authorized driver, fleet representative, or insurer contact must be assigned according to the actual approval process; the platform cannot infer authority. Additional work receives a separate traceable approval. At pickup, a release can identify completed work, final balance status, returned parts when applicable, and the person receiving the vehicle. Delivery email should be tested and urgent safety communication should use the shop’s established channels. Retain signed estimates, changes, final invoice references, hashes, and events under the shop’s record policy.