Jeff, put on your big boy pants and just do it.
You have received tons of opinions at this point. Yet, you continue to try your case in the court of internet opinion. Try it in real life and move on.
She will also need to prove pre-loss condition is better than the repair. Best thing to do is get a quote to fix it, offer that to her and she pays any excess. If she doesn't accept, let her sue you. It will probably be a small claims court and you will present evidence that the fix you offered...
I have no clue why anyone in this business would not form an LLC under which to conduct their operations. It's just not smart not to do it.
Now, for the OP, the problem here is he has a PR problem. I think his question was how to handle that PR problem.
The way to handle that PR problem is to...
Isn't getting them to sign a release at least worth a try? If you do work for a truely litigious client, there is nothing that will stop them from suing you. You cannot stop someone from suing you. Whether or not they win is a different question.
If that is the case, then you will only pay what...
Instead of having her get a quote and giving her money, you should arrange to have the paint damage repaired. All you are required to do is repair it to the same condition that it was in when she brought it in.
Also, get people to sign a release.
If you are only doing a few cars a month...
Form an LLC and operate under the LLC. Everything will get reported on your schedule C.
The advantage to an S Corp is if you are making over ~$115,000 a year on the detailiing business. What you do is you pay yourself a salary until you max out on...
Oh...I threw NXT paste on the rims to see how it works. If you guys are interested, I will let you know what happens as for as protection. Rims look REALLY nice right now.