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Industry Year in Review—A Month-by-Month Look at the Most Interesting Collision News of 2012 by John Yoswick
A lot happens in the collision repair industry, so trying to compile it all into a single year-end review is a challenge. But here’s our look at what we saw as among the most important or just plain interesting and memorable news item, event or quote from each of the last 12 months.
January State Farm’s George Avery announced that his company is testing the electronic parts ordering system “PartsTrader” with two collision repair businesses. He declined to identify the shops, saying that it
is too early in the testing “to put those folks under the microscope and ask, ‘What do you think of the new system?’” Lots of shops have since voiced what they think of the system. By the end of the year, the program was being George Avery rolled out to a fifth market (Chicago) for a total of about 600 Select Service shops.
February John Borek of Autocraft Bodywerks in See Year in Review, Page 23
Northeast Shops Still Recovering from Sandy
See Still Recovering, Page 10
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
When Hurricane Sandy charged into the East Coast in late October, she devastated many homes and businesses. Her most vicious attack was perpetrated in NY and NJ, leaving millions with flooded properties and no power. Sandy’s effects on the auto body industry were no different. Many collision repair facilities in the area were destroyed, and equipment and tools were demolished. Some still had not reopened as of the middle of December. Three shop owners took the time to share their stories.
Bobby Zigman, owner of Collision Depot in Oceanside, NY, suffered personal and business losses as a result of Sandy since his home is near his shop and both were flooded. Zigman notes that the storm left five or six feet of water in his shop and parking lot, completely wiping out all of his shop and office equipment. Though Collision Depot technically remained open after the storm, the flooding ruined equipment and lack of both phone connections and electricity prevented them from performing any actual repair work for about two weeks. Zigman’s dedicated
Change Service Requested
by Chasidy Rae Sisk
VOL. 3 ISSUE 11 JANUARY 2013
New Alabama Collision Association Launches Consumer TV Advertising Campaign
Alabama repairers who recently formed a new association called ALARISE (Alabama Automotive Repair Industry Society of Excellence) recently launched a new advertising campaign with a commercial airing through December on the largest cable network in central Alabama. The campaign aims at consumer awareness. To watch the commercial, go to www.alarise.com. ALARISE held a meeting for 30 founding and charter members Dec. 8. The meeting included presentations by Charter Media Account Executive Torrie Grelle, Collision Automotive Repair Services, Inc. Operations Director Matt Boyles and attorney Kirby D. Farris from the law firm of Farris, Riley & Pitt, LLP. Grelle provided details about the ALARISE commercial currently air-
ing and the reach of the campaign (250,000 households) with over 800 commercial spots purchased. Boyles provided an overview of how a shareholder of CARS can benefit. Boyles discussed the intent in the formation of CARS and how, as a group, benefits can become more available as compared to an individual. Boyles discussed the opportunities of how CARS can assist ALARISE. Attorney Farris provided information to the group on Alabama law and how issues faced by individual business members of ALARISE could be addressed. Farris also provided a comparison of the mirror image of the medical insurance industry of 15 years or so ago to today’s automotive insurance industry. Comparison of the two industries issues of rates and requireSee ALARISE, Page 5
GCIA Reviews the Events of 2012, Expects Another Busy Year in 2013 As the Georgia Collision Industry Association looks back at 2012 and closes a busy year, the association is already making plans for 2013. Here is a recap of the events that the GCIA held in 2012: ● In January, Dave Gruskos from Reliable Automotive Equipment spoke to members regarding the new repair technology in today’s industry. He spoke about the new highstrength steel that is now involved in the production of many of the vehicles on the road today and the new tools, training and materials needed to repair them. ● In March, the GCIA conducted its sixth annual labor rate survey of the Metro Atlanta area. 292 Metro Atlanta shops completed the survey online or were contact by CSi Complete. According to the results, the average Metro Atlanta rates were $42 on body and refinish labor and $30 on paint and materials. • In March, Rick Palmer from Computer Logic discussed paint and material compensation and how the rule of thumb method (Refinish Hours x Material Rate) was outdated and does not take into accounts special colors,
tri stage and various other factors. Several states have used Palmer’s PaintLogic program to invoice the insurance companies and be paid properly for paint and material. ● In May, GCIA members attended the Georgia Insurance Property and Casualty Advisory Committee at the Georgia Insurance Commissioner’s office. The association was able to address paint and material caps, sales tax and the manipulation of the databases. In addition, the GCIA scheduled an additional meeting with P&C director Steve Manders to discuss these issues ● In June, Ray Gunder, Barrett Smith and Attorney Brent Geohagan provided a special legal presentation to teach members how to take their businesses back from insurer influence and learn how to address short pays and breach of contract. This was a well attended meeting with over 80 people in attendance. ● In August, several GCIA board members met with Senator Jack Murphy to discuss many issues that are affecting Georgia consumers. The association discussed P&M caps, See GCIA Recap, Page 37
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2 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
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Contents 26 Insurers Now Paying Gunder’s Rate
Likes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Elektron Joins VSG Family of Brands . . . . 34
Increases. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Former GM Engineer Convicted of
Damages for Loss of Vehicle Use. . . . . . 8
Honda’s ProFirst Shop Recognition
AL Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Collecting Boyd Grows in FL with 14 New Locations . 4
Stealing GM Trade Secrets . . . . . . . . . . 11 Program Puts Shops First . . . . . . . . . . 14
FL Man Accused in Ponzi Scheme Registers
Hurricane Sandy Whips Up the Highest
Florida Auto Angels Give 11 Vehicles as
Idaho, Utah, and Nebraska Collision
Florida Judge Upholds Repairs Right to
Industry Year in Review—A Month-by-Month
New Businesses, Including Body Shop. . 6 Holiday Gifts to Local Needy Recipients . 37 Hold Power of Attorney . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Florida OIR Approves More Take-Outs
Auto Sales in 4 Years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Groups Join SCRS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Look at the Most Interesting Collision
News of 2012 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
from Citizens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Mitchell Repair Center ToolStore Integrates
Forward to Another Busy Year in 2013 . . 1
MO Shop Owner Admits $2 Million Fraud
Georgia’s Tax Changes on Leased Cars . 5
NASCAR Scam Leads to Prison . . . . . . . . . 4
Groups Join Forces to Raise Concern about
Mississippi Association Back in 2012 . . . . 3
New Alabama Collision Association Launches Consumer TV Advertising Campaign . . . 1
The Dynamic Duo of Phillips Paint &
Auto Body in Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Thief Locks Himself Out of His Own
Getaway Car . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
COLUMNISTS
Franklin: Integrity Sells! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Insider: Not All Insurance Executives
with Car-Parts.com Pro Search . . . . . . 35
on Bank Loans. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
NC Repairer Sues Insurer on Behalf
of Customer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
NC Shop Sues Six Insurers . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 New Low-VOC Bumper & Cladding
Adhesion Primer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
New SEMA Scholarship in Dick Dixon’s
Name Planned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
New Spies Hecker Sealer Delivers a
Smooth Finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
No Surprise: Teens Text Behind the Wheel
More Than Their Parents Realize . . . . . 17
Are Created Equal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Northeast Shops Still Recovering
Industry Standards in the U.K. Sees
Rhode Island Shop Owner Arrested Again . 11
Yoswick: Former Advocate of Collision
Need for Them Here. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
NATIONAL
3M Awards Final “Ticket to the Track”
VIP Grand Prize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
44 Techs Honored at ASE . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 American Honda Launches Two New
from Sandy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Sandy Caused Thanksgiving Car
Rental Shortage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Sandy Forces Automakers to Scrap
Damaged New Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
SCRS Welcomes Utah as 40th
Affiliate Assoc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
SEMA Unifies Racing Industry Trade Shows. 17
Consumer Websites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Sherwin-Williams Sets First Quarter
Moves Forward into 2013 . . . . . . . . . . 26
State Farm Updates ASA on PartsTrader
Estimating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Study Finds Aging Population Won’t
Price ... Sometimes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
TV Public Service Commercial for
ASA Collision Division Recaps 2012,
Audatex Extends Contract with Boyd for Auto Insurance Consumers Shop for
Automaker, OEM and Recall News . . . . . . 22
CAPA’s Lighting Standard Expanded to Include Testing of HID Lamps, and
Positioning Motors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
DEG Redesigns Website and Adds Top 10
list and Twitter, See ‘www.degweb.org’ . 36
Education Foundation Plans for 2013
Summer Golf Fundraiser in Boston . . . . 39
Education Foundation Wants Facebook
on May 23, was heavily attended by repairers, vendors, and representatives from the attorney general’s office and the department of insurance.
Training Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Pilot Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Topics of discussion included the PartsTrader program, steering and the refusal of many insurers to acknowledge all necessary repair operations as described in the respective procedure pages of all major data providers. Also discussed was the necessity to begin using a material calculating program to document true paint and material charges instead of the outdated and inaccurate system historically used by the industry. Subsequent monthly meetings were held in all regions of the state in an effort to recruit new members, share information, and monitor progress in the association’s efforts to improve the business atmosphere and heighten consumer awareness as to their collision repair options and rights. Numerous sponsors have stepped up to the plate, offering financial support for the association’s efforts, further validating the association’s position. Membership continues to grow and 2013 promises to be a year of change in the collision repair business in the state of Mississippi.
Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Assistant Editor: Melanie Anderson Contributing Writers: Tom Franklin, Stefan Gesterkamp, John Yoswick, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess, Rich Evans, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Jay Lukes (800) 699-8251 Sales Assistant: Louise Tedesco Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia
Indexof Advertisers
GCIA Reviews the Events of 2012 and Looks
In 2012, the long dormant Mississippi Collision Repair Association saw a reawakening, due in large part, to the looming prospect of the mandated electronic parts procurement program. “Many see State Farm’s PartsTrader program as an unwarranted and unnecessary intrusion into the collision repair business by one of the nation’s largest insurers,” said MCRA member Bill Fowler. The first association organizational meeting, held in Jackson, MS,
Southeast
REGIONAL
Mississippi Association Back in 2012
Serving Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and adjacent metro areas, Autobody News is a monthly publication for the auto body industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2013 Adamantine Media LLC.
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Allan Vigil Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Auto Data Labels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 36
Car-Part Pro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
CSS USA, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Mazda Wholesale Parts . . . . . . . . . 38 Mercedes-Benz Wholesale Parts
Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers. 29
MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 5 Nalley BMW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Don Reid Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Nissan Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . 35
Increase Accident Rates . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers
Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . 31
Body Shops Aimed at the Dangers
Garmat USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Sam Galloway Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Gus Machado Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Serra Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
of Texting, Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
White Still Favored as Most Popular
Car Color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
WIN Launches 2013 Scholarship Program . 8
WIN Seeks 2013 Sponsors . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Women’s Industry Network Reports
‘Winning’ Growth in 2012 . . . . . . . . . . 31
Equalizer Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
FL, GA, AL, MS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Gray-Daniels Auto Family . . . . . . . . . 2 Haydell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts
Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-21
Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . 38
Intertape Polymer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Palmers Toyota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Safety Regulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
SCA Appraisal Company . . . . . . . . . 4 Serra Automotive Group . . . . . . . . . 13
Southtowne Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Subaru of Gwinnett . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 35 Sullivan PDR Estimator . . . . . . . . . . 11
Jim Ellis Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Tameron Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Malco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
VIM Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers. 40
Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 12
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 3
SCRS Welcomes Utah as 40th Affiliate Assoc.
The Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) recently announced the Utah Auto Body Association as the 40th state or regional organization to join the Society as an Affiliate Association. The Utah Auto Body Association is the first statewide collision repair association in Utah’s history. “There’s been a growing interest in forming an association in our state for some time, given the rapid changes our industry is experiencing,” explained Chairman Bob Torrey, who was part of the organizing group forming the association. “Our belief is we will be better equipped to handle the challenges facing us if we are united in our efforts and communicate well with each other. With the help of Janet Chaney of the CARS Cooperative, who was instrumental in helping us see the advantages of coming together and how to do it effectively, we’ve began making rapid progress toward this goal.” The Utah Auto Body Association has made it a priority to vigorously recruit new members. “Our initial emphasis is seeking out quality training and education for our members,” said Torrey. “We are also committed to working effectively
with the state legislature to ensure the interests of our industry are well-represented.” The association’s November membership meeting was a direct reflection of its focus, with subject matter surrounding the potential impact upon collision repairers of recently enacted laws pertaining to air quality standards, including a Utah legislator as a guest speaker. The association’s interest in aligning with SCRS comes from the same place. “Getting exposure to a group of outstanding collision repair professionals like those found in SCRS, and their network of existing Affiliate Associations, will be very helpful to our members,” stated Torrey. “They possess a lot of accumulated knowledge and experience, and can help us be responsive and effective in dealing with the issues that we will be facing in the coming years. With SCRS, we’ll benefit from having a national profile, as well. Partnering with them will help give the Utah Auto Body Association credibility and information right out of the gate. They’ve already served as a model for us in many different ways.” The association’s inaugural meeting is scheduled for January.
NC Repairer Sues Insurer on Behalf of Customer
Michael Bradshaw of K&M Collision in Hickory, NC, recently filed a lawsuit against Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company on behalf of his customer and the insurer’s policyholder. Only after unsuccessful attempts to have his customer’s insurer provide ample consideration for reasonable and necessary parts, procedures and materials was it necessary to inform his customer of the short pay by their insurer. The customer authorized K&M to proceed with the repairer’s recommended repair activities and signed documentation authorizing Bradshaw to act in his behalf in filing a lawsuit against their insurer seeking full compensation for the repairer’s recommended and performed activities. The claim includes denial of procedures including test-drive, removal of molding adhesive from painted panels, tint color, finish sand and buff and underpayments of numerous other reasonable and necessary processes including body, refinishing and mechanical and frame labor rates, material allowances and storage charges for the insurer’s delays. The total amount sought in the lawsuit is $2,956.98 plus legal fees and costs. To avoid the necessity of holding
the vehicle until receipt of full payment, K&M Collision allowed their customer to take possession of the properly repaired vehicle with the understanding that all billings remained their full responsibility in the event the insurer failed to provide full payment. Michael Bradshaw states, “We value our customers and work hard to ensure their repairs are done properly, thoroughly and in a timely manner. It’s unfortunate that such legal activities have become necessary. Consumers rely upon insurers to be there in their time of need and when they need them most, and when they fail to keep their promise, who can blame the consumer for becoming upset. Our efforts will be to illustrate to the court the insurer’s intentional Breach of Contract, Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices and their acting in Bad faith.” “When an insurer fails to fully ascertain the full extent of all loss related damages and /or fails to provide proper consideration for each necessary process, part and/or material, the failure can be defined as either ignorance, gross incompetence or intentional misrepresentation… or a combination thereof,” said Barrett Smith of Auto Damage Experts.
4 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
NC Shop Sues Six Insurers
A Belmont, NC, auto body shop recently filed 16 lawsuits on behalf of their customers. Pack Brothers Collision Center filed lawsuits against Nationwide, State Farm, Allstate, GEICO, Penn National and Amica. The suits allege that the insurers refused to pay for “reasonable and necessary” parts, procedures and materials to return customers’ vehicles back to “pre-accident condition.” The total amount sought in the lawsuits is in excess of $23,000, plus legal fees and court cost.
NASCAR Scam Leads to Prison
A Los Angeles man was sentenced to 6-1/2 years in prison for his involvement in a $13.5 million fake NASCAR merchandise business. Federal prosecutors say 66-year-old Eliott Dresher was also ordered to pay $8.8 million in restitution. Dresher is accused of taking money from family, friends and others over an 11-year period to invest in a business that would buy overstock NASCAR apparel and sell it at a profit. In reality, he had no relationship with the car racing organization, nor its licensed manufacturer or distributor.
Boyd Grows in Florida with 14 New Locations
In early December, the Boyd Group Income Fund announced it had completed the acquisition of three organizations known as Autocrafters, which operates 14 collision and glass repair centers in northern Florida. Boyd acquired three different companies under the trade names Autocrafters Collision Repair, Walker Collision Repair and S&L Auto Glass, which collectively operate as Autocrafters. The organization serves the Florida markets of Jacksonville, Gainesville and Tallahassee, and generated sales of $32.6 million in 2011. The $19.5 million transaction, which is the Boyd Group’s fourth multi-location acquisition this year and its third in Florida, was completed Nov. 30. The Boyd Group now operates 37 locations in Florida. At the end of last year, Boyd did not have any shops in Florida. With the Autocrafters acquisition, the Fund adds 14 new locations to its North American footprint, bringing the total number of locations to 220 across 14 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces.
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Continued from Cover
ALARISE
ments being determined by someone other than the actual provider of services had virtually all in attendance nodding in agreement with the assessment. Steve Plier, acting executive director for ALARISE, provided a short presentation on the importance of working together to address the mountain of issues the industry faces today. Plier challenged the attendees to step forward as an industry to work to develop relationships with the education systems to bring awareness and education not only to the consumer on issues, but also to candidates for the workforce of the future. The challenge of working to develop an apprenticeship program with local technical schools was identified as a pressing issue to address the acute shortage of qualified technicians. Plier also challenged the group to make sure as a business owner, manager or individual that each person take actions on the issues that are concerning to them. ALARISE will conduct a statewide membership drive with a goal of 150 members during 2013. Alabama collision repairers and repair vendors interested in becoming a member of ALARISE, please go to www.alarise.com for more information or call Steve Plier at 205623-9307.
Groups Join Forces to Raise Concern about Georgia’s Tax Changes on Leased Cars by Auto Remarketing Staff
The American Financial Services Association and the National Vehicle Leasing Association recently joined forces to urge Georgia lawmakers to reconsider legal changes in regard to financing companies paying taxes when vehicles are leased. Officials used the joint letter to the Georgia Department of Revenue Office of Tax Policy to raise significant concerns about a law that requires finance companies that provide vehicle leases to pay an initial Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) in addition to the monthly sales taxes on the lease payments. AFSA said it was approached by a couple other trade associations representing the leasing industry about the issue. AFSA sought input from these groups, invited them to cosign the letter and ultimately NVLA did. The letter suggests that GA HB 386, which was signed into law on April 19, will result in substantially higher overall costs for leasing versus purchasing a vehicle, putting leasing at a competitive disadvantage and denying some consumers the benefit
of leasing. The letter noted that discouraging leasing could negatively affect tax revenue generation in the state, because a leased vehicle generates more revenue because of the frequent ownership change. To keep a finance company’s cost of a purchase or lease agreement relatively the same, AFSA and NVLA recommended that Georgia either exempt leases from the TAVT and continue to hold them liable for sales and use tax, or adopt the tax purchase model in which TAVT is paid each time vehicle ownership is changed, without additional monthly sales taxes. The two officials who signed the letter were Danielle Fagre Arlowe, AFSA’s senior vice president of state government affairs, and NVLA executive director Jack Tracey. “Imposing increased costs on lessors puts leasing at a competitive disadvantage and can deny some
consumers the benefits of leasing by raising the price of leasing relative to buying,” Fagre Arlowe and Tracey wrote to Georgia officials. “Leasing is an affordable way for many consumers to drive vehicles with the latest safety and emissions equipment, and the law should not disadvantage leasing relative to purchasing. “Our members believe that the costs to them of a purchase or lease agreement should be broadly the same,” Fagre Arlowe and Tracey continued. “This can be achieved either by adopting the tax purchase model, in which TAVT is paid each time vehicle ownership is changed, without additional monthly sales taxes, or by exempting leases from the TAVT and continuing to hold them liable for sales and use tax. This latter solution has the advantage that it would not increase the tax base and thus stay true to the intent of the law.”
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FL Man Accused in Ponzi Scheme Registers New Businesses, Including Body Shop
Anthony Fregenti, accused of operating a Ponzi scheme involving highend motorcycles and exotic cars, is listed in state records as having registered four new businesses this year while he awaits trial on multiple felony charges related to his businesses in Flagler County, FL. The 41-year-old former Palm Coast resident now living in St. Augustine faces 33 felony charges including organized scheme to defraud, grand theft, securities fraud, sale of unregistered securities and sale of securities by an unregistered dealer, according to the Flagler County Clerk of Court. The charges are associated with businesses Fregenti ran in Flagler, most of which had “Dark Hawk” as part of the name. Fregenti is listed as “registered agent” of four new businesses in St. Augustine, according to the Florida Department of State Division of Corporations. He is associated with 14 businesses, according to the Division of Corporations website, but only four are active. One of those is Cruisers Auto Body which, according to its website, has locations in Palm Coast, Jacksonville, Hastings, Palatka, in addition to St. Augustine. The principal
address is listed as 620 S. Holmes Blvd. but the business website shows an Old Moultrie Road address. “Cruisers Auto Body is a one stop auto body shop as well as a car body shop for the finest quality car dent repair, auto glass repair, car paint repair, collision repair for any vehicle,” according to the website, which states Cruisers has been in business for more than 35 years, and more than 15 years in St. Augustine. Filing for the business was done on Jan. 27 and amended on Nov. 13. Documents for Cruisers Auto Sales and Cruisers Automotive Group, which share the Holmes Boulevard address, were filed Sept. 28. A fourth business, Cruisers Automotive Centers, filed two days earlier on Sept. 26. Harold Gear, 53, is listed as manager of the Automotive Group; chief financial officer, president and vice president of the Auto Sales Corporation and the Automotive Center. Nicole Gear, 22, who has the same home address as Harold Gear, is listed in association with Cruisers Auto Body but her title isn’t clear. Harold Gear declined to comment about his business relationship with Fregenti. “I don't want to talk about any of that,” he said.
Florida OIR Approves More Take-Outs from Citizens
Approved “take-out companies” in Florida have been given the go-ahead to remove another 65,990 policies from the state’s bloated insurer of last resort, reported Chad Hemenway of PropertyCasualty360.com. The policies are set for depopulation from Citizens Property Insurance Corp. in January. This newest round of take-outs approved by the state Office of Insurance Regulation is in addition to 310,000 policies the office approved for depopulation in November and December. The OIR says 87,337 policies have been taken off of Citizens’ books as of October 2012. Policyholders of Citizens—which has faroutgrown its intended means to become the state’s largest provider of property insurance—have the option to remain with the state-run insurer. According to OIR, the recentlylicensed Heritage Property & Casualty Insurance Co. has added 20,000 policies to its initial request to take 60,000 from Citizens. Southern Oak Insurance Co. has been approved to remove another bundle of 10,000 policies in January to go along with a 10,000 bundle it was approved to take in November. Added to the list of take-out
companies is United Property & Casualty Insurance Co. The insurer has been green-lighted to remove 20,990 policies in January. But United P&C is no stranger to the take-out process. It was approved to remove two bundles in 2011. The other take-out companies included in the November-January take-out approvals are: Florida Peninsula Insurance Co.; Homeowners Choice Property & Casualty Insurance Co.; Southern Fidelity Property & Casualty; and American Integrity Insurance Co. of Florida. Each company is based in Florida. Companies looking to potentially remove a total of 375,990 policies from Citizens from November to January are doing so without the financial incentives proposed by Citizens as part of a controversial plan to loan its surplus.
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6 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Michelle Milligan, a spokeswoman for the state’s Division of Corporations, said it’s not a requirement for the owner of a business to also be the registered agent. Lindsey Fregenti, Anthony Fregenti’s wife, is also listed as a manager of Cruisers Automotive Group. She shows a Townsend, GA, address on the filing paperwork, but other records indicate she has the same Stratford Mills Boulevard address as her husband. Palm Coast residents Devin Kolb, 31, and Michael Stevens, 45, were recently arrested. Both are charged with money laundering in connection with their dealings with Fregenti and Dark Hawk. In addition to money laundering, a first-degree felony, Stevens is charged with ‘structuring,’ a second-degree felony, meaning that he may have evaded currency-transaction reporting requirements, according to court documents. A pre-trial hearing for Stevens is scheduled for Jan. 9. The State Attorney’s Office has yet to file formal charges against Kolb, who was working in a timeshare business in Flagler when arrested.
Thief Locks Himself Out of His Own Getaway Car
A surveillance video at Lou’s Super Service Auto Repair in West Park, FL, caught a thief in the act of stealing batteries from the business on Nov. 11. However, the suspect locked himself out of own his getaway car and had to break a window. Surveillance video shows the suspect parked in the lot and walking back and forth between a trash removal truck and a car as he loads two batteries into his front and back seat. The video shows the suspect closing the back passenger door, then pulling on the door handle and realizing he’s locked himself out. He walks around to the driver side of the car and unsuccessfully tried to get inside before walking to the garbage truck to grab a crowbar. He smashes a small rear, passenger side window of the car and opens the door from the inside, the video shows. He loads two more batteries into the trunk of the gold color Chevrolet and drives away. The suspect is thought to be in his late 20s to early 30s, wearing a blue shirt, blue jeans, a black belt and dress shoes.
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 7
26 Insurers Now Paying Gunder’s Rate Increases
As of late November, 26 insurers have elected to provide full compensation for Gunder’s Auto Center’s labor rates and material invoicing. This past August, Ray Gunder placed a notice in his reception area and provided handouts to all auto appraisers and insurer claim representatives who visited his shop that new labor rates and allowances were in effect. As reported Sept. 12, (“15 and Counting”), with the exception of a handful, most insurers have conceded to paying without argument (excluding Infinity who later acquiesced after a Gunder filed a lawsuit against them). The increases include labor, refinishing labor, frame labor, mechanical labor rates and the invoicing of PMC Logic for all body and refinishing related materials. Currently, those insurers include: MetLife; Kemper Services’; Westfield Comp.; Auto Owners; Acceptance Casualty; Liberty Mutual; Amica Mutual; Horace Mann; The Hartford; Direct General; Zurich American; Mercury; Esurance; Security National; *Infinity; Occidental; First Acceptance; GMAC; Esis; Specialty Products Claims (a division of Nationwide); Sentry; Michelin Tire Company; Grange Mutual; CNA; Global Indemnity; and Commerce In-
AL Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Collecting Damages for Loss of Vehicle Use
The Alabama Supreme Court has changed a 57-year-old standard on how commercial vehicle owners get compensated when their vehicle is totaled in an accident. The court held in 1955 that an owner who recovered damages for the total loss of a vehicle could not also get damages for loss of the use of the same vehicle. The Supreme Court changed that Dec. 7 to say the owner could recover damages for the destroyed vehicle and for loss of use. However, damages are limited to a reasonable time required to find a replacement vehicle. The ruling came in an appeal by Huntsville Cab Co. The company received compensation for a wreck that totaled a cab. But it also wanted to recover $7,000 in income lost while waiting a month for a replacement.
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surance. Some insurers are taking Gunder to court, arguing that Gunder, with the Power of Attorney, has no standing to file lawsuits on behalf of his customers. It’s anticipated that the court will hear arguments from all defendants and render a joint verdict for all 25 cases. The hearing occurred on Dec. 13. See adjacent story. Defendants include: State Farm, Allstate, USAA, Travelers, Infinity, and Geico. “This hearing and the judge’s ruling will be significant and may set a strong precedent regarding similar efforts of quality-minded independent repairers across the country,” Gunder said. “We are very confident that the decision will be in the favor of our customers and support the right for repairers to stand in the shoes of their customers if and when such issues regarding the full payment of any and all “Reasonable and Necessary” charges should arise. I’m excited to bring this matter to closure as it will only embolden us to move forward in serving our customers in an unencumbered fashion. This will also hopefully open a door to better communications and cooperation with insurers to better serve our mutual customers.”
WIN Launches 2013 Scholarship Program
The Women’s Industry Network has several Conference Scholarships available for its upcoming 2013 Conference. Full-time students, instructors and collision shop employees are encouraged to apply for scholarships to attend this year’s conference in Phoenix, AZ, on May 5-7. Student scholarships include conference registration, one-year membership to WIN, two night’s hotel expense and travel expenses. Instructor scholarships include conference registration, one-year membership to WIN, two night’s hotel expense and travel expenses. Collision shop employee scholarships will include conference registration, one-year membership to WIN, two night’s hotel expense and travel expenses. The deadline for applications is March 8. For scholarship requirements, see WIN’s website. Scholarship submissions should be mailed to WIN Scholarship Committee; c/o Beverly Rook-Twibell, Safelite Solutions 1820 N Corrington Avenue Kansas City, MO 64120. For further information please contact Beverly Rook-Twibell at (816) 678-4777 or via email to Beverly.Rook@Safelite.com.
8 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Florida Judge Upholds Repairs Right to Hold Power of Attorney in Cases Against Insurance Companies
On Dec. 13, a judge’s ruling gave Florida repairers the green light for power of attorney. Brent Geohagan was the attorney representing both Ray Gunder of Gunder’s Auto Center, Inc. and Paul Hawks of Bernies Paint & Body, Inc., both of Lakeland, FL, in defending the repairer’s rights to stand in the shoes of their customers as their Power of Attorney. Judge Reinaldo Ojedo patiently listened to State Farm’s contentions as to why the six lawsuits Ray Gunder has filed against the nation’s largest personal auto insurer should be dismissed on grounds that Gunder did not having standing based upon the Power of Attorney granted by his customers. Progressive Insurance’s legal counsel was also present for the same issue relative to a lawsuit levied against them by Paul Hawks on behalf of his customer and the insurer’s policyholder. After hearing arguments from both State Farm’s counsel and Brent Geohagan, the judge ruled that the repairers do indeed have legal standing on behalf of customers who grant
them Power of Attorney, and as such, he denied the insurer’s motions to dismiss all seven cases. Brent Geohagan stated, “I feel strongly that the court made the correct decision and while this is but one more in a long line of victories for Ray and his customers, that is warranted and well deserved, Brent Geohagan it’s a significant victory for the entire collision repair industry in Florida and beyond … and the fight goes on and will as long as need be!” “I was extremely proud while I sat watching and listening to Brent’s passion, preparation and expertise as he defeated each of the insurer’s arguments,” said Gunder. “This is a huge deal, as once again, State Farm’s efforts to avoid disclosure of their internal business practices have been unsuccessful. We’re excited as to see what will be revealed in upcoming depositions and discovery,” Gunder said.
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 9
Continued from Cover
Still Recovering
employees still went to work, and he paid them to help restore the shop and clean their tools and equipment. Since then, Collision Depot has installed some generators. Even though they are now fully operational, they are still restoring their building and replacing the $750,000 loss in equipment as they go, due to a lack of insurance. More than 250,000 cars in the NY and NJ area have been totaled due to severe flooding, and Zigman notes a decrease in business because of the vast number of destroyed cars and the influx of rental vehicles in the area. He shares that though he is receiving occasional repair requests caused by the storm, his only hope for now is for the general public to get back on their feet. Zigman says he has noticed increased difficulties with insurance companies as they are investigating claims in greater depth and just generally giving consumers a harder time obtaining repairs. They’ve opted to total many of the damaged vehicles. The insurers have also given Collision Depot some problems regarding partially and fully repaired vehicles that had not yet been picked up; the insurers are objecting to paying for the repairs on vehicles that were totaled by Sandy’s flooding. Despite the challenges that he faces daily, Zigman maintains a positive outlook and puts his efforts and focus into rebuilding. He states, “What gets me through living with this tragedy is remembering 9/11 and knowing this is nothing but lifestyle changes compared to what others went through then. We will get through this.” Burnside Collision of Inwood, NY, was similarly struck by Sandy’s devastating impact. With several feet of water in their office, all computers and desks were destroyed and had to be replaced. Over two feet of water in their work area demolished their equipment, submerging and ruining their spray booth motor and their CarO-Liner’s mechanisms. Additionally, the flooding destroyed a number of partially and fully repaired vehicles stored on the property, including police cars and Burnside’s tow truck. All of this destruction forced owner Ronnie Marciano to shut down for two and a half weeks. Though Marciano has noticed an influx in repair business since the
storm, he initially had to turn away a great deal of business due to the damage done to his shop, thus losing potential business in addition to the loss of work-in-progress. Several completed cars were also destroyed, and one completed repair which was being stored was completely flooded out, forcing Marciano to fight with the insurance company in order to get paid for the work he had already completed. In addition to the general frustration of declining customers’ repair requests, Marciano faced the difficulty of expenses without the ability to capture business and revenue. Burnside Collision’s current focus is on repairing and replacing the equipment damaged by the storm. Marciano’s house was also flooded, as was his estimator’s and office manager’s homes. Employees who were not affected came to the shop to start working on repairs and get the business back up and running, said Marciano—a credit to his employees’ dedication and his relationship with them. Because of this extra effort, Burnside Collision was able to meet payroll obligations instead of utilizing FEMA’s layoff program. Noting that insurance companies are currently focused on picking up submerged cars, Marciano expects to see more storm-damaged vehicles in the future. He suggests that many consumers may not yet realize that their cars were damaged by salt water, and he also suspects that some people have avoided submitting claims for fear their insurer will total their vehicle. Though insurers are totaling many cars, Marciano notes that they’ve returned to standard procedure with handling claims. Initially, the volume of claims was overwhelming, causing delays, but by using independent appraisers to manage their volume, insurers have been able to return to normal processing times. Burnside Collision has seen very few flooded cars come in for repairs due to the challenge that owners face when trying to retain their vehicles. Marciano believes that insurance companies should be making decisions on a case-by-case basis instead of making a blanket decision to total so many vehicles. In spite of their own problems, Marciano and his staff helped unload a truck filled with supplies sent from Florida to provide relief for victims of Hurricane Sandy. Marciano sees this tragedy as a learning experience, stating “We will pick up the pieces and
10 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
work diligently to move forward and develop better plans for the future to become a better, more prosperous business than before.” Of the three shops described here, Tony D’s Auto Body of Atlantic Highlands, NJ, seems to have suffered the most severe losses. Owner Tony Dellapietro notes, “We lost everything. And I mean everything!” With five feet of water in the shop, all of his tools and equipment were destroyed. With the help of his parents and dedicated employees, Dellapietro has begun cleaning and oiling his equipment, but not his personal toolbox, which he began accumulating when he was 11 years old. He laments, “I started this business in 2003. What I built in ten years was wiped out in ten hours.” Because of difficulties with his insurance, Dellapietro has been forced to explore loan options to avoid having to close. He has purchased new office desks and computers, and an electrician has replaced outlets in the shop. For now, everything is still up in the air as the funds for shop repairs just aren’t there. Dellapietro has been forced to utilize his savings and other assets, and being forced to turn busi-
ness away has been devastating. “You just don’t get rich in this business,” says Tony. He has been unable to turn a profit since Sandy, and the bills just keep accruing. Employees of Tony D’s are currently relying on unemployment insurance since the shop is still closed. Dellapietro is busy dealing with disaster unemployment issues. On the day that Sandy hit, police had to force Dellapietro out of the building, but he could not extract the cars he was working on as there was already three feet of water in the yard. All seven cars in his shop were totaled, whether partially or fully repaired. Dellapietro admits that he was very emotional when he saw how badly his shop was damaged, and he has been seeking spiritual comfort. He has no clue when he will be able to reopen, and he notes “It feels like I’m starting over again.” These three shops are just a small sampling of the businesses that were damaged by Sandy. There are many options to contribute aid for Sandy’s victims. One such option is Hurricane Sandy New Jersey Relief Fund, P. O. Box 95, Mendham, NJ 07945-0095.
Auto Insurance Consumers Shop for Price ... Sometimes
An overwhelming majority of auto insurance buyers who switch carriers make the change based on price, but not many are actively shopping around, according to a survey from InsuranceQuotes.com. In a national telephone survey of 1,000 adults conducted in early November by Princeton Data Source for InsuranceQuotes.com, within the past 12 months only 21% of those surveyed say they shopped for car insurance. Of those shoppers, 43% switched carriers. The vast majority who switched, 81%, made the change because of price. “This suggests that many people who shopped around liked what they found,” says John Egan, managing editor of InsuranceQuotes.com in a statement. “Consumers don’t care as much about customer service or reputation—they want to know who’s going to save them the most money. Everyone should take an hour or two to compare a few different carriers. It can’t hurt, and you might be amazed by how much money you can save,” Egan said.
Rhode Island Shop Owner Arrested Again
The owner of a Pawtucket car shop accused of scamming customers was arrested again by Rhode Island State Police. Dino Coccia was taken into custody in North Providence by the Violent Fugitive Task Force Nov. 29 on four Superior Court Bench Warrants: Failure to Appear/Unlawful Appropriation; Failure to Appear/Unlawful Appropriation; Failure to Appear/Obtaining Money under False Pretenses; Failure to Appear/Obtaining Money under False Pretenses. Coccia is the owner of America Sales and Collision Center. He was arrested in May after he was accused of selling two customers the same car and renting out cars he was supposed to be repairing. More than two dozen people have come forward, claiming to be victims of his scheme. In July, the Attorney General filed 50 new charges against him, including obtaining money under false pretense, unlawful appropriation, uttering bad checks and one count of attempted larceny.
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Former GM Engineer Convicted of Stealing GM Trade Secrets for Possible Use in China
A former General Motors engineer with access to the automaker’s hybrid technology was convicted Nov. 30 along with her husband of stealing trade secrets for possible use in China. Shanshan Du won a transfer within GM in 2003 to be closer to the technology and then copied documents until she accepted a severance offer and left the company in 2005, prosecutors said. Du and Yu Qin were found guilty by a federal jury in Detroit after a trial that lasted weeks. Qin also was convicted of wire fraud and attempting to obstruct justice by shredding documents. They shook each other’s hand after the verdict but declined to comment, as did their attorneys. The couple face up to 20 years in prison. No sentencing date has been set. Prosecutors told jurors that GM trade secrets were found on at least seven computers owned by the Oakland County couple. The government doesn’t believe the information ever made it to China, although Qin had set up his own company, Millennium Technology International, and claimed to have made contact with GM competitors overseas.
Defense lawyers acknowledged that GM information was in the couple’s possession, but they downplayed the commercial significance. In her closing argument, Assistant U.S. Attorney Cathleen Corken said Du, 54, was the “linchpin” in the scheme because of her job at the automaker. “It can't happen without her,” the prosecutor said. Corken noted that the agents kept an eye on the couple after searching their home in 2006 and watched Qin dump shredded documents in a grocery store trash bin. “Is that the conduct of innocent people?” she asked. Corken said the technology was worth at least $40 million, the price that other automakers paid GM to get it. Du and Qin, both U.S. citizens, had been under scrutiny for years after GM accused them of theft. They were charged in 2006 with destroying documents sought by investigators, but that case was dropped while investigators pursued a broader probe that led to an indictment in 2010. U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade has referred to trade secrets as the “crown jewels of private industry.”
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American Honda Launches Two New Consumer Websites by Ed Attanasio
American Honda recently launched two consumer-related websites to provide pertinent and timely information to owners of Hondas and Acuras. See next story for new collision center focused Honda website.
parts became apparent through their focus groups, Ledoux said. “We learned that most people do not know that aftermarket parts could be installed when their cars are being repaired at a body shop or collision center. They understand that aftermarket parts are used in the mechanical
Collision.Honda.com tells owners of Hondas and Acuras what to do when they get in an accident in its Accident Assistant section, while they get a glimpse into what happens when their cars get fixed by accessing the site’s Collision 101 section
Earlier this year, the manufacturer launched its collision consumer site, Collision.Honda.com, after years of development and the early reviews are very positive, according to Gary Ledoux, Honda’s Assistant National Manager of Wholesale Parts Marketing. Last month, the carmaker also launched AirbagAware.Honda.com, a site the company created in response to the burgeoning problem associated with the proliferation of counterfeit airbags on the market. After polling its customers and getting their feedback through several focus groups, Honda saw a need for both new websites, Ledoux said. “We conducted several focus groups in 2009, and we learned some very interesting things. The average consumer knows that their car gets wrinkled up, they take it to the body shop and a few days later they get it back and it’s straight and shiny again, but they have absolutely no idea what goes on in the background. So, one of the main things that we cover on Collision.Honda.com is an in-depth look into the collision industry from the consumer’s perspective,” Ledoux said. Another need for education about
world, because they drive by the parts stores every day, but they’re not aware that aftermarket parts exist in the collision industry. In the past, they assumed that OE parts were being used in their cars. They didn’t realize there was an alternative. When we explained this fact to the people in our focus groups, some of them were visibly upset, because they all thought they were getting OE parts.” In the past, Honda created collateral pieces to convey important messages to its owners, but now they’re embracing the Internet to achieve the same thing, Ledoux said. “Years ago, we created a brochure called “What to Do When You Get in an Accident”, designed for new owners of Hondas or Acuras. We put them in every car we manufactured, and did it for several years. It cost a lot of money to produce them and when we conducted a survey, we found out that most of these brochures died a slow death in the bottom of peoples’ glove boxes. So, we decided to put the information online, so that people could access it quickly and easily.” The Accident Assistant section of the site deals with what to do after an accident, and the section titled Colli-
12 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
sion 101 focuses on factors and issues drivers can and should deal with before an accident takes place, Ledoux explained. “Collision 101 is a primer on how to deal with body shops, by providing a glimpse into the industry from a consumer’s perspective. It’s a very thorough approach with a ton of value-added features.” The website includes pages that deal with repairs, parts, insurance relationships (DRPs), safety tips, a shop locator, a collision glossary (that goes from Accident Forgiveness all the way to Waterborne Paint), news, views and a special section that features Honda’s position statements can be found in the Collision 101 section. Honda has included a series of position papers on Collision.Honda.com as well. “We didn’t know what the response would be to the position papers, but it’s been exceptional,” Ledoux said. “They deal with all of the topics that people are concerned about and they want to know our stance on all of them. They deal with subjects like aftermarket vs. OE parts, wheel repairs, safety recalls, structural parts replacement, salvaged and used airbag
components and unibody repairs and salvaged/recycled parts. It covers the entire gamut and evidently it’s going to be a very popular part of the site.” In the News, Views and More section, users can access the latest and greatest stories about the collision industry, with a focus on relevance to the consumer, Ledoux said. “This is an ever-changing section of the site, because we’ll be posting new articles on there all the time. In addition, we have a Hall of Fame page in that section, which consists of stories about people or companies within the collision industry that do good things for other people on a regional basis. That means that only the people in those areas know about it. Our Hall of Fame will bring national attention to these efforts and we want them to get out there, because they deserve the accolades. Also, our Rear View section is going to be a lot of fun, providing historical capsules that relate to the automotive history, as well as the world of collision repair.” In addition to creating Collision.Honda.com, Honda also reSee American Honda, Page 16
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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 13
Honda’s ProFirst Shop Recognition Program Puts Shops First by Ed Attanasio
and knowledge provide a platform for business and personal excellence, generating benefits for both the organization and the customer, including increased operational efficiencies, reduced cycle times, minimized repair mistakes, and most importantly, complete and safe repairs.” Honda said all shops that qualify as a ProFirst shop will receive a plaque, free access to Honda and Acura parts catalogs and bulletins, access to service and repair information, and placement on the company’s shop-locator tool on its consumer website: collision.honda.com.
When American Honda Motor Co. Inc. launched its ProFirst (ProFirst.Honda.com) body shop recognition program on Oct. 17, the automaker was pleased with the positive feedback it received from dealerowned and independent collision repair facilities alike. Representing Honda’s updated approach to online information, ProFirst is fueled with the newest technology, partnered with names like OEConnection and I-CAR and backed by the power of one of the nation’s most popular automotive nameplates. The program’s mission is to promote comprehensive and safe repairs of Honda and Acura vehicles, and to provide support to shops that have demonstrated a commitment to high levels of customer satisfaction. There are a few requirements that shops must fulfill in order to qualify for the ProFirst program including use of OEConnection’s Collision Link tool and meet a level of IThe landing page for Honda’s new ProFirst website is CAR training. designed to help and market body shops that qualify Participating shops must also be designated as I-CAR Gold “As the new Honda and Acura Class Professional businesses and models become more and more sohave a minimum of one technician phisticated and technologically adwho has completed I-CAR’s Collision vanced, it requires a collision repair Repair for Honda and Acura Vehicles technician with higher knowledge and course (HON01), according to Gary skills to properly repair them,” Ledoux, the Assistant National ManLedoux said. “Partnering with I-CAR ager of Wholesale Parts Marketing for in this context helps promote training American Honda Motor Co. and thus promote safe and complete These requirements are a big in- repairs of Honda and Acura automogredient and one reason why I-CAR is biles. pleased to be a part “With a new program involving of the ProFirst pro- hundreds and hundreds of shops, we gram and Honda’s needed a new way to manage it and approach to train- the ProFirst website really kicks it up ing and recogni- a notch,” Ledoux added. tion. “It’s meant to “Profirst.honda.com makes it elevate the cus- quick and easy for the shop to enroll, tomer experience and then after qualifying, an easy way Gary Ledoux and enable shop through which to access the parts catemployees to work up to their full po- alog and service and repair informatential,” said John Van Alstyne, pres- tion. Automating the enrollment and ident and CEO of I-CAR. “Training administration process was one of our
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main goals and we achieved it.” Acura. That’s why we joined right “Once a shop becomes a ProFirst away and are happy to be involved is shop, we offer them the advantage of such a new probeing listed in our shop locator site, gram.” which is attached to our new conDan Stander is sumer site (Collision.Honda.com) that the owner of Fix we launched in mid-September,” Auto Highlands Ledoux said. “Shops are very interRanch in Littleton, ested in this aspect of the consumer CO. Stander is acsite, because it gives them more expotive in the national Dan Stander sure to an automobile brand with a industry associalarge number of units in operation.” tions such as NACE and was one of Bob McSherry, owner of North the first body shops to achieve Haven Auto Body in North Haven, CT, Honda’s Level 3 and is happy to be a was the first shop to sign up for ProFirst last October. “As a body shop, I would have to say it is pretty slick,” he said. “The parts catalog is very helpful and we understand that Honda is going to be promoting both sites pretty quickly here, so that will be instrumental. It’s a win-win, because what Honda is saying is that shops that do the right thing are going to get recognized for it.” ProFirst is an excellent The site’s Shop Locator will allow customers to find tool, said McSherry, because Honda-approved body shops in their respective regions he fixes a lot of Hondas in his part of Connecticut. “We see at least part of ProFirst, he said. “The repair 50 Hondas a month, which is essen- updates are excellent and perfect for tially 20% of all the vehicles we re- us. We repair as many as 50 Hondas pair. We use CollisionLink at least every month, so updated collision re50–60 times every month as well and pair data is essential to our success. If we can’t find it in our estimating system, we know we can go there to find it. We’re excited to be a Level 3 shop on ProFirst and know it will make us a better shop as a result.” As the carmaker’s website manager, Ledoux’s job is now a little easier with the new site and its added technology. “We receive updated information from I-CAR and OEConnection every night. As soon as a shop becomes an I-CAR Gold Class shop, we know it right away. We also track a shop’s Collision Link usage on a daily basis so as soon as they qualify for Once the user inputs their zip code or address, they will ProFirst, we know that right find a list of ProFirst Honda collision facilities within the away as well. The process is parameters they’ve set, both quickly and easily quick and easy for us, quick we’re proud to say we’re an I-CAR and easy for the shop, and the best part Gold shop with all of our 14 producis, ProFirst costs the shop nothing. It’s tion technicians trained on Honda and a win-win for everyone.”
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On Creative Marketing Integrity Sells!
with Thomas Franklin
We recently ended an election campaign season during which exaggerations, misrepresentations and outright lies were rampant. It made me think of John, a small shop owner who surprised me when I asked where his customers came from. He had been in business for nearly 30 years, but he told me he didn’t rely on any corporate referrals, dealership business or any of the other usual sources that many shop owners tell me are vital to keeping them in business. “So,” I said, “where does your business come from?” He replied, “My customers just keep coming back. After 30 years, you accumulate a lot of customers.” Right away I thought about many other owners who complain to me that they have lost a lot of their old customers. They tell me their customers are swayed by steering, websites, ads, and news stories designed to scare them away from small shops. I asked John if that happened to him. “Sometimes,” he replied, “but mostly when they try to sway my customers, they fail. My customers are my friends. Good friends never desert you.” John isn’t the only small shop owner in business for more than 20 years. What does he do different that binds his customers to him with such loyalty? I overheard a couple of conversations with his customers. I noticed that John was scrupulously honest. He went to great pains to get the truth of the situation across to each customer. It Continued from Page 12
American Honda
cently launched a second consumer-related site, AirbagAware.Honda.com, an effort that became necessary when the carmaker encountered a growing problem associated with counterfeit airbags. “A few years ago, we began seeing more and more of these counterfeit airbags,” Ledoux explained. “Consumers need to know the facts so they can insist that only OE airbags are used. It’s a life and death situation, so we’re very concerned and want to be proactive in providing valuable information to the public about this controversy.”
appeared to me that no prospective customer would ever doubt John’s integrity. There was no phony “trust me” kind of selling on his part. He simply came across as 100% sincere and 100% determined to give or get for his customer the best deal possible. That kind of integrity speaks for itself. I’m sure some would say to me, “Of course he comes across with integrity after 25 or 30 years! Who wouldn’t? But how can you communicate integrity instantly when you are meeting a prospective customer for the first time? Or when you’ve only been in business for less than a year? I recently had some work done on my house. The handyman that did the work sent me a thank-you note (not something I’ve ever received from a handyman before) and also he sent me something else I had never received from a handyman before: something he called “The Code of a Handyman.” It was a statement of his personal commitment to do a good job, to be on time, to perform as promised, to provide top service for a fair price, and a few other commitments to reassure me and his other customers that neither he nor anyone working with him would ever steal anything or knowingly damage any property or falsely represent what had been done. In short, it was a code of handyman honor, a pledge of integrity far more effective than verbally boasting of his integrity. Ralph Waldo Emerson once commented on a
AirbagAware.Honda.com launched in mid-December and is full of useful data, including safety advisories provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA), useful news about airbags, videos, and documentation that explains the difference between a Honda and a non-Honda airbag. One of the featured videos appearing on both websites is called “Use Your Melon,” a 30-second commercial that shows exactly what happens to a watermelon when an airbag opens too late. “It’s quite a visual and people have been talking about it since we produced it,” Ledoux said. “It illustrates how crucial airbags are and how things can go wrong if they’re not genuine.”
16 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Tom Franklin has been a sales and marketing consultant for fifty years. He has written numerous books and provides marketing solutions and services for many businesses. He can be reached at (323) 871-6862 or at tbfranklin@aol.com. See Tom’s columns at www.autobodynews.com under Columnists > Franklin
boastful political speaker. He noted, “The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our valuables.” The dictionary defines ‘integrity’ as follows: 1. Rigid adherence to a CODE of behavior. 2. The state of being sound; unimpaired. 3. Completeness; unity. Codes of ethics are often provided by various industry associations and also franchise operations. Such a ‘code,’ posted in a conspicuous place, can serve to reassure the prospective customer that this place of business is committed to following a definite criterion of ethical behavior. Of course the prospect can only hope the business owner and employees will actually adhere to the code they have posted, but at least the promise is there for all to see. Recall that the third definition of ‘integrity’ was “completeness; unity.” It comes from the same root word as ‘integrated.’ That word has come to have a racial connotation, but actually
means “to make into a whole by bringing all parts together.” The business owner who has ‘integrated’ into his or her community and become an ‘integral’ part of that community, is generally viewed as concerned and thus trustworthy. It is no longer necessary to ‘sell’ the public on one’s integrity. During the worst of the recession in the early 1990s, John Baraona, owner of ‘Fussy Cleaners’ in Akron, OH, offered free dry-cleaning services to temporarily unemployed customers. When they finally landed new jobs in the cleaned and pressed clothes John had provided for them, they became his most loyal customers. Was there any further need for John to publicize his integrity? Integrity sells! In the short run, it may always be possible to lie and deceive, to gain a temporary victory. But in the long run one’s reputation for integrity, trustworthiness and honesty is the best sales and marketing asset of all.
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No Surprise: Teens Text Behind the Wheel More Than Their Parents Realize In a study by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, it was found that teens text while driving more than their parents think they do, the Detroit News Washington Bureau recently reported. But the good news, according to preliminary findings of the study by Toyota Motor Corp. and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, is that parents have a lot of influence on how their teens drive. None of this should come as surprising news. The survey of more than 5,500 16–18 year-olds and parents, the largest study of its kind, found that teens who think their parents are distracted drivers—eating while driving, looking for things, or focusing on passengers and passenger behavior—are much more likely to engage in risky driving behaviors themselves. The study said that 61% of parents and 54% of teens report they use hand-held cell phones while driving. According to the study, parents underestimate how much teens text behind the wheel: 26% of teens read or send a text message from a smartphone at least once every time they
drive, but only 1% of parents believe their teen does this. The worst news is that one in five teens admit to extended, multimessage text conversations while driving, according to the study sponsored by Toyota’s Collaborative Safety Research Center in Ann Arbor, which conducts studies with hospitals, universities and research institutes to promote safety. More than two-thirds of teens, 69%, report driving with two or three teen passengers and no adults in their car, which, according to a study by the AAA Foundation, is associated with a doubling of the driver’s risk of being killed in a crash. 44% of teens admitted to driving with more than three teen passengers and no adults, which quadruples the driver’s risk of being killed. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens. Last year, seven teens a day died, on average, in the U.S. from injuries sustained in road accidents, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Be the driver you want your teen to be,” said Tina Sayer with the Collaborative Safety Research Center.
SEMA Unifies Racing Industry Trade Shows
The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) announced it has finalized an agreement to purchase the International Motorsports Industry Show (IMIS), the racing trade show that has been held annually in Indianapolis since 2009. The IMIS will be consolidated with the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Trade Show, which returns to Indianapolis for 2013 and beyond. The 2013 PRI Trade Show occupied the entire Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, with Thursday, Friday, and Saturday Show days, December 12–14, 2013. The acquisition unifies the racing industry’s two trade shows into one, creating the opportunity for exhibitors and buyers to do business in a single location. “The racing industry needed to have just one motorsports trade show in the U.S. I’m proud to say we’ve accomplished that,” said Scooter Brothers, SEMA chairman of the Board of Directors. “We have all worked toward a common goal, and have succeeded on behalf of the industry. To have a single home for the racing trade show is clearly the best thing for the industry, and working together with Chris Paulsen (co-
founder of IMIS), we got it done.” Both the PRI and IMIS trade shows will take place as scheduled for 2012. The PRI Trade Show was held Nov. 29–Dec. 1, in Orlando. The IMIS was held Dec. 6–8, in Indianapolis. The IMIS transaction is set to close in December 2012. “We formed IMIS in 2009 to bring a hardcore racing tradeshow back to Indianapolis,” Paulsen said. “We grew a lot faster than we ever could have dreamed of and we couldn’t be happier that a hardcore racing tradeshow will remain in Indianapolis for years to come. SEMA will be great stewards of the hardcore racing industry and I couldn’t be more pleased that Indianapolis will remain the center of motorsports both on and off the track.” “Being from Indiana, having a hardcore racing trade show in Indianapolis was very important to me,” said Tony Stewart, three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and co-founder of IMIS. “That’s why I got involved with Chris and Jeff (Stoops, co-founder of IMIS) to help form IMIS and bring back a show to Indianapolis. I know SEMA will do a great job to make sure Indy remains the place for hardcore racing.”
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Study Finds Aging Population Won’t Increase Accident Rates as Baby Boomers Get Older As baby boomers age, there has been a growing concern that traffic fatalities and vehicle crashes will spike, especially since older drivers already are a high risk segment, but a new study finds that these changing demographics won’t cause the crisis many are predicting, says Consumer Reports. The new study by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) looked at the changing demographics and how it could affect insurance claims and found that while the driving population is expected to increase and older drivers will account for a larger percentage, there will not be an increase in collision claims based on their predictions. In addition, while a higher number of older drivers will be on the road, there will be a decrease in drivers under age 30, who have the highest claims overall. HLDI analysts also looked at collision claims if more seniors continue to drive. They increased the rate of insured drivers by 20% for people over 65 and found that it still didn’t change the insurance claim frequency. Looking at current trends, the
overall claim rate is decreasing and will actually be lower in 2030 than in 2010. The study only looked at lowseverity crashes and didn’t make a prediction on fatal crashes, which is higher for older drivers because their fragility makes them more likely to die in a crash. There could be a higher rate of fatal crashes in the future, but health improvements could also make them less likely to die in those crashes. Safer cars may also help contribute to a reduction in fatality rate as new technologies can help older drivers avoid crashes in the first place. The issue of older drivers is a complicated one. In Consumer Reports’ October 2012 article “Risky Drivers,” crash risks of older drivers was looked at and found that it is not only high traffic fatalities that are of concern, but what they should do when they can’t drive anymore. Unfortunately, there aren’t many transportation alternatives for seniors who need to give up the keys. Small community organizations are working to increase mobility and offer ride shares, but not nearly enough to handle the future demand.
Audatex Extends Contract with Boyd for Estimating Audatex North America, Inc. announced a new multi-year agreement with The Boyd Group Inc. to provide estimating software and related tools to support the multi-shop operator (MSO) in the U.S. and Canadian markets. The Boyd Group operates more than 200 locations across the four Canadian provinces under the trade name Boyd Autobody & Glass, and in 14 U.S. states under the trade names Gerber Collision & Glass, Pearl Auto Body and The Recovery Room. Boyd also operates Gerber National Glass Services, an auto glass repair and replacement referral business with approximately 3,000 affiliated service providers throughout the United States. “Through an ongoing commitment to excellence, the Boyd Group is a leader in the collision repair industry and continues to build momentum as one of the fastest growing multi-shop operators in North America,” said Wolfgang Ahrens, Managing Director of Audatex US. “Audatex is pleased to extend our business alliance with the Boyd Group as we support their U.S. and Canadian operations with the industry’s most intelligent and complete
estimating and collision repair solutions,” Ahrens said. Boyd and its predecessor companies have been Audatex customers for more than 25 years. More than 100 of Boyd Group’s collision repair centers will use Audatex Estimating technology, leveraging features such as intelligent 3D graphics, colorcoded parts and digital imaging to ensure estimating accuracy and efficiency, as well as the highest levels of customer satisfaction. “We have established and maintained a long-standing alliance with Audatex because the company continues to innovate and address the dynamic business and technology needs of our repair centers and employees, so that they in turn can better serve our customers,” said Tim O’Day, President and COO of the Boyd Group’s U.S. Operations.
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New SEMA Scholarship in Dick Dixon’s Name Planned Plans are in motion to institute a SEMA Memorial scholarship in the name of Dick Dixon, long time SEMA member and educator from La Verne, CA, who lectured at Cal State University San Bernardino, and who championed higher education for young people who wanted a future in the automotive and related industries. Dixon passed away on Nov. 15 after waging a tough battle with cancer. Even as the disease had him in great pain, he spent some of the last days of his life among colleagues, friends, and students at the annual SEMA Show meetings in Las Vegas. “He was there to see his friends, and to pass the baton on in his way,” said Pat McInturff, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Management at San Bernardino. “He was weak, but every student, every friend that he spoke to about his ideas for new projects buoyed him up. He never allowed the conversation to become about himself and his problems; it was all about the future, the students.” “Dick was more than a colleague,” said McInturff, “He was an inspiration for all of us, he truly enjoyed teaching and he particularly loved helping students to understand the value that a solid business educa-
tion would have in their future in the automotive industry.” Dixon came to formal teaching somewhat later in life. A lifelong motorsports junkie, an open-wheel racing driver in his youth, a magazine publisher, writer, and skillful organizer, he was involved in countless facets of the automotive business throughout his life. He touched hundreds of lives in hundreds of different ways, but it always his boundless enthusiasm that
Dick Dixon Obituary
The SEMA website published the following obituary: Writer, educator and industry speaker Dick Dixon passed away in his sleep November 15 after battling cancer. He lived by the philosophy that life was a sandbox from which to learn, work and play. He thought of himself as an unconventional get-it-done-right guy, who “worked like a 270 Offy.” Dixon grew up in Hawthorne, CA, and earned his masters degree in management and marketing at California State University Dominguez Hills. Most recently, he was the director of the International Motorsports Alliance at California State University, San Bernardino and chairman of the Automotive Trades Institute. Dixon was a lifelong auto-
his friends will remember and miss most of all. At Dick’s request, there was no funeral, and his wife Judi has asked that friends and associates remember Dick by contributing to this scholarship. Contributions should be made directly to SEMA. Checks should be made out to: SEMA Memorial Fund earmarked: “Dick Dixon” and sent to: 1575 S. Valley Vista Drive, Diamond Bar, CA 91785-0910. motive and motorsports enthusiast and 30year member of the aftermarket and motorsports industry. A three-time SEMA Ambassador of the Year and Motorsports Legends Hall of Fame inductee, Dixon received numerous industry awards and spoke at industry events nationally. He authored the Cal State/SEMA-endorsed aftermarket management and marketing education certificate program and served on the SEMA Scholarship Committee for 13 years. Dixon was a former professor and motorsports administrator at Indiana and Purdue Universities. He was also managing editor and publisher of the Hot Rod Parts Guide and chairman and CEO of the Automotive Education Alliance. Dixon actively participated in SEMA’s ARMO, HRIA, YEN, and SBN councils.
44 Techs Honored at ASE
The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) recognized 44 automotive professionals at its Fall Board of Governors meeting held Nov. 14 at the Hilton Palacio del Rio in San Antonio, TX. The annual awards banquet spotlights top scorers on the ASE Certification Tests. Thirty-seven companies from both OEM and Aftermarket segments sponsored the individual technician recognition awards in the Auto, Truck, Collision and Parts categories, along with three instructor awards, and one recognizing a U.S. Air Force technician. In addition to looking for top scores on ASE tests, award sponsors may also consider such factors as on-the-job excellence, community service and more when selecting honorees. “ASE has been honoring the best of the best in our industry for more than 30 years, and we are proud to once again recognize 44 outstanding individuals from all across the nation,” said Tim Zilke, ASE President & CEO. “This is all made possible by the support of our many award sponsors, whose ranks include some of the best-known names in the industry.”
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Ford Fusion Wins ‘Green Car of Year’ Title
Ford Motor Co.’s all-new Fusion won Green Car Journal’s “Green Car of the Year” title at the recent Los Angeles Auto Show. The Fusion beat out the Dodge Dart Aero, Ford C-Max, Mazda CX-5 SKYACTIV and the Toyota Prius c. It is the eighth consecutive year that Green Car Journal has recognized a “Green Car” of the year. Previous winners include the compressed natural gas-powered Honda Civic in 2011 and the range extended plug-in hybrid Chevrolet Volt in 2010. The Fusion comes with multiple internal combustion engine options, and as a hybrid and plug-in hybrid model. Ford’s Fusion has a base price of $21,700; the hybrid model, which gets a combined 47 miles per gallon, starts at $27,200. The C-Max hybrid, which also gets a combined 47 miles per gallon, starts at $25,200. The winner was selected by a jury of environmental leaders, including Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, Ocean Futures Society President JeanMichel Cousteau, Global Green USA President Matt Petersen, “Tonight Show” host and auto enthusiast Jay Leno, and Green Car Journal staff.
GM Recalls 2012 Buick Verano, Chevy Cruze, Sonic
GM is recalling 2,949 model-year 2012 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Cruze and Chevrolet Sonic vehicles because the airbags could fail, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The recall involves the driverside front airbag, which contains a shorting bar that could intermittently contact the airbag terminals, NHTSA reported. If the bar and terminals are contacting each other at the time of a crash, the airbag may not deploy. This increases the risk of injury.
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Volkswagen Beetle Recall
Volkswagen is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Beetle vehicles, manufactured from Feb. 2012 through Aug. 2012, and equipped with leather sport seats. If the right front passenger seat gets wet, the occupant control module may not properly detect the presence of a child restraint installed in the seat. If the control module does not detect a child seat installed, the airbag will not turn off. If the airbag does not turn off, in the event of a crash necessitating front airbag deployment, a child secured in the child seat may be at an increased risk for serious injury. Volkswagen will notify owners, and replace the control modules, free of charge.
Ford Recalls Escapes, Fusions for Engine Fires
Ford Motor Co. issued its fourth recall Nov. 30 for its 2013 Ford Escape SUV, citing a fire risk. The recall affects 73,320 Escapes, as well as 15,833 midsized 2013 Ford Fusions. Some 80,000 of the recalled vehicles were in the U.S. It’s the latest setback for the Escape, introduced in June and a key vehicle in Ford’s lineup. The Dearborn automaker urged owners of the vehicles with 1.6-liter engines to contact dealers immediately, to arrange loaners. But unlike an earlier Escape recall, this one didn’t caution drivers to stop driving them. The recall is for Escape and Fusion SE and SEL models with a 1.6-liter engine. The company said it has not yet established repair procedures, and can’t say when owners will be able to get their cars fixed. A Ford spokesman said engine overheating can lead to fluid leaks, which may come in contact with a hot exhaust system and trigger a fire. Ford said it received 13 reports of engine fires that followed overheating. No injuries have been reported. Ford told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that the first report of an Escape fire was Sept. 7 in Florida.
22 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
150,000 Toyota Tacoma Trucks Recalled Due to Rust
Toyota is recalling its popular Tacoma pickup truck, sold in certain parts of the country. At issue is the carriers that hold the emergency spare tire underneath the truck may not be adequately protected from the chemical road deicers used in several states. If the tire carrier rusts, the spare tire may fall off the truck and present a road hazard, increasing the risk of collisions. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the rust problem affects 150,000 2001 to 2004 model year Toyota Tacoma fullsize pickup trucks sold in so-call “rust belt” areas of the U.S., including: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Washington, DC. Toyota has not yet developed a remedy to this situation, but they will notify owners when a fix is in place.
Hyundai, Kia Faces $775 M Lawsuit Over Fuel Economy Lies
A lawsuit was filed against Hyundai Motor Corp. and Kia Motors Corp for over $775 million in damages due to the auto companies admitting they overstated the fuel economy in close to 1 million vehicles in the U.S. and Canada. Reuters reported the lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for Central California on behalf of 23 Hyundai and Kia vehicle owners. The lawsuit is expected to challenge Hyundai and Kia’s compensation plan that they have set to satisfy disappointed customers. The South Korean automakers admitted they had overstated the fuel economy on 13 Kia and Hyundai models after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a report about the mistakes. The agency looked into the matter after over a dozen customers filed complaints.
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January 2013
GM to Hasten Development of Electric Vehicles in China
General Motors Co. said it is increasing the speed of its development of electric vehicles in China, where it will build and sell an all-electric Chevrolet Sail Springo in addition to selling the Chevrolet Volt extendedrange plug-in electric. GM recently announced plans to build 500,000 vehicles a year by 2017 that would be powered in some way by electricity. That would include plug-in electrics, pure electrics, mild hybrids that use the company’s eAssist technology and full hybrids, according to the automaker. GM China opened an advanced materials lab in Shanghai in Sept. 2011 where employees work on battery technology and lightweight material research. Workers there can build cells for lithium-ion batteries.
Volt Sales Plummet Due to Inventory Issue
Chevrolet sold 1,519 Volts in November, a 33% rise over the same month a year ago. But that was only about half the record 2,961 vehicles sold in October and 2,851 in September. Don Johnson, U.S. vice president of Chevrolet sales and service, attributed the fall in Volt sales from its record-setting tally in October as an inventory issue, felt particularly hard in California. “Dealers are just clamoring for more,” he said of the California market, where GM sells about 34% of Volts and where it recently had just an eight-day supply of the vehicle. Inventory is now up to 23 days for California and about 60 days for U.S. supply, which Johnson described as ‘ideal.’ Volt sales through 11 months this year totaled 20,828. It’s difficult to tell whether expiration of favorable sales incentives also led to the fall in Volt sales. Without special incentives, the Volt costs $39,145 before a $7,500 federal tax credit. That’s more expensive than the base prices for Toyota’s Prius plug-in ($32,000), Ford Motor Co.’s C-Max Energi plug-in ($32,950) and Nissan Motor Co.’s allelectric Nissan Leaf ($35,200).
Continued from Cover
Year in Review
Austin, TX, wasn’t accepting the explanation from American National Property and Casualty Company (ANPAC) that an appraiser working on its behalf was just using “an outdated document” when denying the shop’s supplement for color sand and buff. In a follow-up letter to the Texas Department of Insurance, Borek pointed out that the document looked like a page from the Audatex guide to estimating, but shows that color sand and buff is included in refinish times; Borek says an Audatex manager who searched the Audatex/ADP “Database Reference Manuals” back to 1993, concluded that the page is “most certainly not a document from ADP/Audatex.” “This manufactured document can only achieve one goal, which is to convince uneducated consumers and shops that this operation is included so they can ‘short pay’ the claim,” Borek wrote in his follow-up letter to the Department of Insurance.
March Chrysler became the latest automaker to announce a certification program
for both independent and dealership collision repair shops. Certification requires meeting more than 40 standards including maintaining I-CAR Gold Class status and using squeeze-type resistance spot welding equipment. Under the program, if all OEM parts are used on a job, that will be noted on the vehicle’s CARFAX report, along with the fact that the vehicle was repaired a Chrysler-certified shop.
April LKQ Corporation worked to counter ongoing liability concerns for shops about use of alternative parts by announcing that in addition to a lifetime warranty on its Eileen Sottile non-OEM parts, it would indemnify shops against injury or damage caused by a defective vehicle part distributed by LKQ. The “Promise of Protection” says it covers a “licensed automotive repair shop” that purchases the part from LKQ, excluding claims arising from shop negligence or malfeasance. LKQ’s move followed Diamond
Standard’s announcement in January that it was offering ASA member shops coverage under a $40 million liability insurance policy for any liability issues related to the performance of Diamond Standard non-OEM structural parts.
May Eileen Sottile of the Quality Parts Coalition (GPC) urged attendees at the Auto Body Parts Association (ABPA) conference to contact Congress to support the coalition’s legislation (HR 3889) that would reduce the time automakers can use design patents to prevent other companies from producing replacement crash parts. Sottile said the bill would reduce the patent protection from 14 years to just 2.5 years. Despite a public relations and lobbying effort funded by LKQ Corporation ($3.7 million), Nationwide and State Farm ($115,000 each), Allstate ($92,000) and others, the bill never got beyond a hearing in the U.S. House.
June Insurer groups’ radio ads and other efforts were successful in convincing Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee to veto legislation that would have given shops in that state the right to sue in-
surers directly in small claims court over disputed repair costs. Chafee said he believed the bill would have given shops rights that exist in “no other state in the nation,” and would have “hurt Rhode Island consumers” by raising the cost of auto insurance. The legislation, supported by the Auto Body Association of Rhode Island and passed by lawmakers, also would have strengthened the state’s anti-steering law, and would have required that damages exceed 75% of a vehicle’s value before that vehicle can be declared a total loss. The association issued a statement expressing its disappointment with Chafee’s action. “Though his veto Rob Knott message states that he is concerned about the consumer, he clearly put the consumer and small business’ interests aside and bowed to the pressure of the real ‘special interest group’ —the billion-dollar insurance companies,” the association’s statement read. See Year in Review, Page 25
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 23
Industry Insight
John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in the family and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.
Advocate of Collision Industry Standards in the U.K. Sees Need for Them Here with John Yoswick
Include Mike Monaghan as among the proponents of the benefits of collision repair industry standards. What effect did he see such standards having in the United Kingdom? “The bad repairers went away. The incompetent and inefficient and illegal repairers went away,” Monaghan
said. “The insurance carriers got more integrity, better safety, better customer service. They got better value from their supply chain.” Monaghan spoke at the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) in Las Vegas in November. As a three-shop operator in the United Kingdom in
Other perspectives on standards in the U.K.
As an advocate for implementation of a set of collision repair standards here, Mike Monaghan, at the most recent CIC, spoke mostly of the upside of the standards he helped develop in the United Kingdom. But others there, even those who support the standards, acknowledge some challenges they pose. In the U.K., more than 840 shops (out of an estimated 1,400 that participate in insurer direct repair programs) have earned certification under the 5year-old set of repair standards. Although the standards were developed by an inter-industry effort, the implementation of those standards and certification of the shops is overseen by Thatcham, an insurer-funded research organization. “It’s basically a get-of-jail-free card for insurers,” said Chris Mann, publisher of Bodyshop Magazine in the U.K., has said of the standards program. “If something goes wrong and they are asked, ‘Why did you choose this body shop,’ just saying, ‘It’s cheap and it’s there,’ is not a very good answer to a court. But ‘I chose this body shop because it is independently-audited through this standards program,’ means you’ve taken the due care that a reasonable organization should do. I think that’s a big, big plus for insurers.” But Mann also points out that without such standards “against which their suppliers can be measured...the only criteria insurers can use is price.” Certified shops also have the benefit of using the “Kitemark” logo, somewhat equivalent to the “Good Housekeeping” seal of approval in this country in that it is widely recognized by U.K. consumers as a designation of some level of performance among the companies and products that have earned its use. Paul Gange, the president and chief operating officer of Fix Auto USA, said that while he believes in the value of standards for the industry, he’s observed some of the challenges with the program in the U.K., where a similar Fix Auto organization has more than 60 franchises. Gange noted that at one point in the U.K., there were multiple competing sets of industry standards, and shops found themselves being required by different insurers to implement multiple standards “This was, at the very basis, a bit of a mess,” Gange said. Gange also said that while single standards program now in the U.K., is “at its essence positive, it’s riddled with bureaucracy, and along with bureaucracy comes costs.” Gange said that shops in the U.K. feel they bear the burden of these costs, which include $30,000 to $80,000 in terms of an initial implementation fee, along with the equivalent of just under $8,000 a year in annual training. 24 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Yes, it absolutely can, but what it can’t do is constantly wait and react. It has to take control.” Are minimum requirements enough? He challenged whether repairers or insurers clearly have defined what “good” looks like. He pointed out one example in a draft revision of CIC’s definition of the minimum requirements for a shop, which calls for shops to have a minimum of one technician certified in welding. Monaghan asked about a shop that has six or eight technicians, only one of which who is certified and who is gone for a day when welding is done on vehicles. “Is that safe? Is it right? I seriously don’t think so,” Monaghan said. “If you’re welding a car, you should be tested before you get to weld.” He said that part of the problem with not having standards is that repairs are too often designed based more on negotiated cost. “You need to understand there is
1988, he said was discouraged with having to compete with other repairers that he didn’t feel had made the investment he had in equipment and training. He wrote a white paper outlining what he felt a “good shop looked like,” and over the course of three years helped craft one of the first set of collision repair standards in the U.K. Though some others have pointed to some downsides to the standards program in the U.K., Monaghan was unequivocal about the positive impact of the standards. He began his argument for standards in the U.S. by noting that change is inevitable, and that too often collision repairers allow themselves to remain only on the receiving end of that change. “The tragedy for our industry is we react too late. We react to everything and then we seek to blame,” Monaghan said. “Can the collision industry take control of its market and its destiny?
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an independent correct repair, and that has to come first, and only… then do you figure out, and if necessary negotiate, the cost,” he said. Monaghan said over the course of three years, he took his white paper to shops, insurers and automakers for input, and by 1991 it was ready to be implemented as a standard. “The good shops that wanted to differentiate themselves stepped up and said, ‘If that means I have to be audited four times a year, front door to back door, looking in every dark corner, then that’s the standard I want to be identified with,’” Monaghan said. The standard was eventually adopted by 13 insurers (who required it be met by shops on their programs) and 11 auto manufacturers, Monaghan said. Though Monahan didn’t mention that another set of standards was also vying for adoption by shops and insurers, he did say that in 2007 he stepped aside and the current single standards program in the U.K., implemented by the insurer-funded research firm Thatcham, moved forward. The issue of costs Monaghan returned several times at
CIC to the topic of the impact of standards on costs. He acknowledged that in some instances in the U.K., repair costs (and the percentage of vehicles declared total losses) have risen. But he said the reduction in costs associated with variability and other issues declined. “If you get the right people, the right repairers with the right materials and the right skills and training—if you get all those things more frequently—then you reduce the variables,” he said. “There is less rancor, less rework, less supplementaries. All those factors were contained and scaled back considerably.” Monaghan, who recently moved to the United States, clearly has an interest in playing a role in the development of standards here. “I’m living here now, and I’m willing to help CIC or anybody else in this industry with my knowledge and background,” Monaghan said. “I think the U.S. can achieve something quite spectacular (and) does not need to go through the pain we went through… “If the repair industry does not embrace this and take charge of its own destiny, then it will be a victim of change.”
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Continued from Page 23
Year in Review
July Some good news for shops worried about the growing amount of accident-avoidance technology in vehicles: It’s not all working. The July issue of “Status Report” from the Highway Loss Data Institute examined insurance claims data to see what impact crash-prevention technology is having. “Forward collision avoidance systems, particularly those that can brake autonomously, along with adaptive headlights, which shift direction as the driver steers, show the biggest crash reductions in the studies,” the publication stated. “But one feature, lane departure warning, appears to hurt rather than help, though it’s not clear why, and other systems aren’t showing clear effects on crash patterns yet.”
August DuPont announced it was selling its 11,000-employee automotive paint business to private equity firm The Carlyle Group for $4.9 billion in cash. “Through targeted investments we will support DPC’s product development and growth objectives as it transitions to a stand-alone company,” Greg Ledford of The Carlyle Group said. The Carlyle Group earlier in the summer had announced it was acquiring majority ownership in the Texasbased Service King Collision Repair Center chain.
September The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly held a workshop on the topic of most-favored-nation (MFN) clauses, such as the basis for State Farm’s pricing requirements for its Select Service shops. “Although at times employed for benign purposes, MFNs can, under certain circumstances, present competitive concerns,” the two agencies noted. “This is because they may, especially when used by a dominant buyer, raise other buyers’ costs or (prevent) wouldbe competitors from accessing the market. Additionally, MFNs can facilitate collusion and stabilize coordinated pricing among sellers.” October Speaking at NACE in New Orleans, representatives of State Farm, Allstate
and Nationwide said that any MSOs on their DRPs are measured as individual shops and must compete to perform as-such. George Avery of State Farm said his company’s experience with M2, the 27-shop consolidator in California that closed suddenly back in 2005, led his company to focus on finding topperforming individual shops, whether stand-alone or part of an MSO. Rob Knott of Nationwide concurred. “We think the mom-and-pops still have a place,” Knott said. “Some of the challenges that the MSOs have is over-saturation in certain marketplaces, so you’re not going to put (all their shops in a market) on (the direct repair program). And then there’s the consistency issue, when they expand too fast and aren’t able to maintain the same service levels and quality.”
November Toyota previewed a new “predictive estimating” system it is creating that incorporates all necessary parts Rick Leos and Toyota-recommended procedures along with links to all related Toyota bulletins and published documentation. Toyota’s Jerry Raskind called the system a “game-changer,” in that rather than having an estimator start from a blank page and add line items based on what they know or can locate about OEM procedures, the system begins with a complete estimate and allows the user to omit items as appropriate. “Everything you need to fix our cars correctly and to our standards is there,” Toyota’s Rick Leos said.
December The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released revised estimates indicating that 230,000 vehicles in Eastern states had been damaged by super-storm Sandy. New York had the most vehicles affected by the storm with 130,000 while New Jersey generated 60,000 claims.
John Yoswick, a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988, is also the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). He can be contacted by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 25
ASA Collision Division Recaps 2012, Moves Forward into 2013 The ASA Collision team, composed of ASA staffer Denise Caspersen and ASA collision members participating on the ASA Collision Division Operations Committee, led by team director Dan Stander, owner of Fix Auto Highlands Ranch, with input from the ASA Board of Directors, had a productive 2012 representing the ASA membership and engaging with the various segments of the industry that affect the ASA collision repair membership. ASA is fortunate to have willing volunteers with diverse backgrounds actively donating their time, mindshare and leadership in addressing actions and issues of the association. “ASA’s collision division functions extremely well as a team and approaches things just that way, as a team,” said Caspersen. Just as the collision repair industry faced multiple challenges and changes in 2012, so did the volunteers and staff of ASA’s collision division. Following the release of a revised ASA crash parts policy, supporting the original part as the standard of measure, and a joint statement with AASP and SCRS recommending that original manufacturer repair procedures be considered as the standard, the ASA’s collision team began 2012 with the announcement of a strategic alliance with alternative parts manufacturer, Diamond Standard, that afforded ASA members with product liability protection against the unlikely scenario of damage or personal injury directly related to use of Diamond Standard parts in the repair. In early 2012, ASA Arizona played a vital role in bringing about the removal of language from House bill 2394 which would have forced shops, in many situations, to absorb the costs associated with vehicle storage or bill it to the vehicle owner. This was accompanied by ASA Texas bringing forth opposition to proposed licensing ordinances in early 2012 followed by ASA Texas challenging the state’s franchise tax law in mid 2012. At the federal level, ASA began the year monitoring an auto parts bill, H.R. 3889, Promoting Automotive Repair, Trade and Sales Act (PARTS). The bill would amend the U.S. design patent law to change the period of design patent protection for automakers from 14 years to 30 months. ASA joined with 10 other automotive groups in opposition to the bill while monitoring actions in the U.S. House
Judiciary subcommittee. Continuing a long-standing tradition of ASA calling for the repeal of McCarran-Ferguson, ASA showed support for federal bill, H.R. 5 asking for the restoration of the Application of Antitrust Laws to Health Sector Insurers, which passed on the House floor in the first quarter. Also related to insurance, ASA attended a workshop in the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice review of Most Favored Nation (MFN) clauses within the insurance industry. Prior to the workshop the FTC noted: “The most commonly used MFN provisions guarantee a customer that it will receive prices that are at least as favorable as those provided to other buyers of the same seller, for the same products or services. Although at times employed for benign purposes, MFNs can, under certain circumstances, present competitive concerns. This is because they may, especially when used by a dominant buyer of intermediate goods, raise other buyers’ costs or foreclose would-be competitors from accessing the market. Additionally, MFNs can facilitate collusion and stabilize coordinated pricing among sellers.” ASA will continue interest in Most Favored Nation discussion in 2013. The 2012 ASA legislative objects and can also be located on the ASA legislative website at www.takingthehill.com – sidebar – Legislative Objectives - http://www.takingthehill.com/objectives.htm. 2013 ASA legislative objects will be appearing there in the very near future. In addition to working with SCRS and AASP on seeing vehicle manufacturers repair procedures recognized as the standard for repair procedures, ASA continued in the three’s mutual support of the Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) program, which continues to provide free industry support for addressing questions of information provided the industry leading information providers. Throughout 2012, ASA’s collision division also provided the ASA membership with representation by taking part on the on the I-CAR Board of Directors, the CIECA Board of Directors, the WIN Board of Directors, CIC meetings and the CIC Data Privacy committee. ASA looks forward to continued interactions with these bodies in 2013. These items were in addition to the lengthy and extensive engagement
26 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
of ASA’s collision team centered on the electronic parts procurement application currently piloted by State Farm. During many conversations, ASA’s collision division has been met with both support and disappointment of ASA’s approach of professionalism, factual understanding and industry engagement in addressing this pilot. During the early stages of the pilot, information was presented to the industry which brought both concern and confusion to the ASA membership. In early April, the ASA collision team took on the challenge of providing ASA’s membership and the collision industry with as much verifiable information as possible through the engagement with as many segments as possible, in addition to speaking directly with State Farm and the application’s designer, PartsTrader. Over the past months, this approach also called for the ASA collision volunteers to express the concerns of the ASA membership (initially centered around the repairer/supplier relationship, and then expanding to specifics of the application, and now on ‘what happens to the collision repair shop’s profit
on parts?’) and follow up on requests for data on what are the affects of the pilot are on those participating. The December 2012 expansion of the pilot to the 475 Select Service shops in the Chicago, IL, area will broaden the test market to approximately 600 collision repair facilities currently on the Select Service program. To date, ASA has provided the industry with 13 statements focused on the State Farm Select Service pilot, including: initial details of the pilot; public request for result data of the pilot; overviews of industry meetings; changes to the pilot and detailed coverage of ASA’s ongoing conversations with State Farm. ASA will continue to be a part of conversations, advocacy and communications about the State Farm electronic parts procurement application in 2013. ASA’s communication pieces specific to the State Farm pilot can be located on the ASA website at www.ASAshop.org. Click on “Tools & Resources,” then “State Farm Pilot Program.” And lastly, the ASA collision team spent many hours designing and See ASA Recaps, Page 37
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Hurricane Sandy Fuels Auto Sales Not Seen in Four Years In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, same month a year ago, according to automakers reported the highest level the research firm Autodata. Because of new vehicle sales —1.1 million— of Hurricane Sandy, it is expected that the best month since January, 2008. the industry will exceed 2012 sales Sales for new cars rose 15% in No- forecasts and that recovery will convember. The increase in sales is at- tinue into 2013. tributed to totals due to the hurricane, Kelley Blue Book sees the storm which slammed into the East Coast in demand continuing through Decemlate October. It is estimated that ber which could possibly end up being 200,000 vehicles will be replaced in the strongest month in vehicle sales in the Northeast. November, 2012, 2012. marks the industry’s best monthly sales rate in four years nationwide. Compared to last November, sales rose 11.9% from a year earlier, topping analyst forecasts. That put sales at an annual pace of 15.5 million vehicles, according to Autodata. So, how good were November sales? Honda and Cars totaled by Hurricane Sandy Nissan had the best November and BMW its best U.S. month The storm damaged more than ever. Automakers sold more units in 230,000 vehicles, including 190,000 November than in October, only the in New York and New Jersey, accordsecond time that has happened in 24 ing to estimates from the National Inyears of records. surance Crime Bureau. But analysts Analysts say that between 20,000- say only about 25% of those cars will 30,000 of the sales during November be replaced with new ones because the were by consumers replacing Sandy replacement value in most cases flooded, damaged or destroyed vehiwould only be enough to replace a cles. Some analysts say that those conused car with another used car. sumers who meant to buy in October In addition to Hurricane Sandy were delayed by the hurricane and helping to lift auto sales to a four-year waited to purchase in November when high, healthy sales in November are things calmed down. also attributed to the need to replace In West Babylon, NY, the Honda aging cars and a steady supply of fresh, dealership there move its entire new new models with superior fuel econand used car inventory inland as the omy, the New York Times reported. storm approached because their regu- Typically, the end of the year is a good lar lot was swamped. season for the auto industry anyway, especially for those offering good rebates. Analysts said the strong sales across the industry proved that the gain was the result of more than just sales delayed by Sandy. Most believe that sales would have been above the 15 million pace even without the storm’s effect. “I’ve been in business since 1964, Besides the surge in new car sales and I’ve never had a month like this bedue to the storm, reports say U.S. car fore,” said Gary Schimmerling, presbuyers are returning to showrooms in ident of the Honda dealership, about 45 recent months due to pent up demand minutes east of Manhattan on Long Isand because Americans are feeling land. He sold more than 250 new vehimore confident in the economy, becles in November, versus 100 in a cause there has been some improvetypical November, Schimmerling said. ment in the job market, and consumers The New York Times reported have easier access to credit and fithat preliminary figures showed that nancing. 1.14 million vehicles were sold in NoJesse Toprak, an analyst at Truevember, in contrast to 994,000 in the Car, said that larger economic worries
28 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
such as the fiscal cliff have had little impact on car buyers, at least so far. “Right now, consumers are feeling better about making big ticket item decisions,” said Toprak. But, he added, that could change depending on the political climate and the stock market. However, automakers fear that talks of the ‘fiscal cliff’ could put a damper on the party, if Congress and the White House can’t reach an agreement. The ‘fiscal cliff’ term refers to the tax increases and government spending cuts set to roll into effect starting Jan. 1 if the government can’t come to an agreement to cut the deficit. Toprak and other analysts believe that car sales will get an additional lift from Sandy in the coming months, as consumers move to replace damaged cars after they’ve received checks from their insurers. “It typically takes 90 days to sort out the impact of a storm like this,” said Michelle Krebs, a senior analyst for Edmunds.com. AutoGuide.com reported one analyst who said he doesn’t read too
much into the November increase of auto sales. “Automakers do not sell cars to customers, they sell to dealers,” said Jim Hall, Managing Director of 2953 Analytics. “And retailers replenish their inventory faster than consumers purchase vehicles, so that could explain a lot of the sales bump. There is nothing worse for a dealer than to be low on stock.” Toyota and Honda reported large increases in sales that were partially due to replacing storm-battered vehicles. Toyota said its November sales jumped 17.2%, and Honda reported at 38.9% increase. One analyst said Honda is the most popular brand in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Nissan said its sales increased 12.9% in November. General Motors reported a low sales of increase of just 3.4%, mostly because of a drop in truck sales. Ford Motor Company reported its sales were up 6.4% in November because of the popularity of the Focus sedan and C-Max hybrid models. Chrysler fared well with a 14.4% increase in November.
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Sandy Forces Automakers to Scrap over 15,000 New Vehicles In the wake of Hurricane Sandy’s de- ties, destroyed homes and eroded natstruction, automakers were forced to ural barriers such as beaches after it scrap more than 15,000 new vehicles struck Oct. 29. Fisker Automotive Inc., a startup damaged by the storm. Nissan estimated more than 6,000 maker of luxury plug-in hybrids, lost Nissan and luxury Infiniti brand cars 338 of its $103,000 Karma sedans at and light trucks were not going to be the port of Newark, New Jersey, inable to be sold because of storm dam- cluding 16 that burned in a fire trigage. Including used autos and those of individual owners, approximately 200,000 will have to be replaced, said Larry Dixon, senior analyst for the National Automobile Dealers Association. “Total vehicles affected may be about one-third of what we saw with Hurricane Katrina, and that was about Cars damaged in Manhattan from Hurricane Sandy. 600,000” used and new vePhoto by: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg hicles, said Dixon, based in gered by salt water, said Roger McLean, VA. Sandy, the biggest Atlantic storm Ormisher, a spokesman for the Anain U.S. history, raked New Jersey, heim, California-based company. “We don’t have a full estimate of New York and the surrounding region with 100 mile an hour winds and led the cost to replace them yet,” he said. to at least 100 deaths. The storm’s The closely held company’s cars were surge of more than 13 feet inundated being processed for delivery to dealtransit tunnels and underground utili- ers when the storm arrived. Replacing
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338 Karmas at the $103,000 base price would total $34.8 million. Some 4,000 Toyota and Lexus vehicles were at the company’s port facility in Newark, CA, when the storm hit, said Jana Hartline, a spokeswoman for Toyota’s U.S. unit in Torrance, CA. “We have about 1,300 that we are taking a second look at” that may be salvaged, she said. “A little bit under 3,000 will likely be scrapped.” Another 825 vehicles in dealer inventory were damaged by Sandy and can’t be sold, Hartline said. Honda and Acura dealers expect to have to scrap about 3,440 vehicles, said Chris Martin, a spokesman for Honda’s U.S. unit in Torrance, CA. Scrappage decisions will be determined by dealers and their insurers, he said. Additionally, about 500 U.S.-built vehicles Honda was preparing to export from the FAPS Inc. port facility in Newark were also damaged, Martin said. Chrysler dealers lost about 750 vehicles from their stock due to hurricane damage, said Ralph Kisiel, a
MO Shop Owner Admits $2 Million Fraud on Bank Loans
The former owner of a northwest Missouri auto body shop has admitted defrauding three banks of more than $2 million. The U.S. Attorney's office says 35-year-old Clint Edward Dukes, of Mayview, pleaded guilty to bank fraud Nov. 28 in federal court. Dukes owned the now-defunct Dukes Auto Repair in Higginsville from 2004 to 2011. In his plea, Dukes admitted obtaining nearly $3 million in loans from First Community Bank, US Bank and First Central Bank by falsely claiming he had repair contracts with the state. He also used phony paperwork to hide the fact that he was using loans from each bank to pay off previous loans from the other banks. Prosecutors put the total loss to the banks from the seven-year scheme at slightly more than $2 million.
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spokesman for the Auburn Hills, Michigan-based carmaker that’s majority-owned by Fiat. Hyundai Motor Co. U.S. unit lost 400 vehicles, said Lori Scholz, a company spokeswoman in Costa Mesa, CA. Kia Motors Corp., a Hyundai affiliate also based in Seoul, has about 200 vehicles “damaged beyond repair,” said Scott McKee, a spokesman for the company’s U.S. unit in Irvine, CA. The company’s dealers in Bay Ridge, New Jersey, Jersey City and Staten Island “lost most or all of their inventory,” McKee said. New York and New Jersey are among the top 15 U.S. states for vehicles in operation and auto dealerships, NADA said in a report. The two states also have a larger portions of cars than trucks and non-U.S.-based brands account for a significant share of total sales, the dealer organization said. There are 886 auto dealerships in New York and 463 in New Jersey, according to NADA.
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Sandy Caused Thanksgiving Car Rental Shortage
Superstorm Sandy created a shortage of rental cars as the storm damaged thousands of cars, including those advertise owned by To rental companies. Thanksgiving Christmas are normallycall and Advertising Sales at: busy rental periods. 800-699-8251 To help ease the shortage, car rental companies drove in thousands e-mail: advertising@autobodynews.com of vehicles from elsewhere in the country. They also kept older models www.autobodynews.com that they would normally sell to used-car dealers. • Hertz held on to older vehicles that were scheduled to be sold. It also brought in extra cars and even rented trailers and generators to keep Seeopen the N some locations destroyed by the storm. • Avis Budget brought in 6,000 extra cars from elsewhere in the country. • Enterprise Holdings moved 17,000 www.autobodyn cars to the Northeast region from other parts of the country. Another 10,000 brand new cars, set for other states, were instead redirected to New York and New Jersey. Thousands of people in the Northeast are still without vehicles. Some cars were flooded by surging waters andTo willadvertise be replaced with new onescall onceSean insurance checks at: are cut. Hartman Others were damaged by falling trees 800-699-8251 and debris and are in body shops.
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The Dynamic Duo at Phillips Paint & Auto Body in Carrollton, GA by Barrett Smith, President, Auto Damage Experts, Inc.
Congratulations to Sheilah Phillips, her husband Wes and two of their collision techs for their recent successful completion of the I-CAR welding class. While this may seem like no large accomplishment to some, one needs to understand that Sheilah is a true Southern Belle who less than a few years ago had little to no experience in the technical aspect of collision repair… let alone running a well respected high-quality collision repair facility. Following a serious motorcycle accident in 2007 that placed her husband Wes in recovery and physical therapy for an extended time, Sheilah found herself at the helm of Phillips Paint, Body & Towing, the family’s 30-year-old collision repair business located in Carrollton, outside of Atlanta, GA. “I only came in to answer phones for Wes and I was appalled by the treatment he received from insurance companies,” Sheilah said. “Our PPG rep wanted me to go to estimating class but I didn’t see the point since I was only helping out until Wes could find someone to run the office permanently and I could go back to the farm and my horses!” Besides taking on the normal dayto-day activities of running a business, Sheilah found herself at a significant disadvantage in directing her technical staff due to her total lack of understanding of how a vehicle should be repaired. While they respected her as “the owner’s wife,” their technical staff were “old school” longtime employees who took exception to what appeared to be a ‘rookie female’ telling them how to do their jobs. She soon realized that she needed to gain the knowledge and insights to fully understand and ensure repairs were being performed to the highest level. Sheilah began an extensive and often exhaustive regimen of reading everything she could find and attending every available training event to gain the knowledge to properly manage their team members as well as the company’s day-today activities. In no time she found that the entire shop’s production staff needed ongoing training and she began the task of making it happen.
Thus far Sheilah’s education includes management training through PPG MVP Business Solutions, AAM Chief Technology training in Computerized Measuring, Design Based Repairs, and Structural Damage Analysis I-CAR Platinum Individual Estimator, Refinish, Steel and NonStructural.
and to acquire and maintain the ing the way, they are a powerful pair, equipment needed to repair the rap- a “Dynamic Duo” if you will, with a idly-changing vehicles in today’s new sense of independence and who market. Through my training with will be making a positive difference Chief I have found myself to be in- in their market place, the collision recredibly interested in the way cars pair industry and in the lives of their are designed and how they react in a employees! I am very proud of Sheilah and Wes in their ongoing accollision.” Smith said, “I first met Sheilah complishments and proud to have and Wes at the CCRE meeting them as friends and part of ADE in Philadelphia early in 2012 Consulting team of enthusiastic and and again at the free legal dedicated professionals.” seminar which Ray Gunder, his attorney Brent Geohagan Phillips Paint, Body and Towing and I provided in Lakeland, 804 Newnan Rd. FL, in April, 2012. We met Carrollton, GA 30117 again at the free legal seminar (770) 834-6919 Phone we provided to the Georgia (770) 838-0759 Fax Collision Industry Associa- Blog: www.phillipsmyride.com tion (GCIA) in June 2012. She’s not afraid to learn. I Sheilah and Wes are currently seekhave found Sheilah to be a ing additional skilled team members (From left) Adrian Nicely, Barry Richardson, Sheilah spitfire and her energy perto join their company and to help and Weston Phillips meates throughout the com- take it to the next level of success. She was offered and accepted to pany! Wes is recovering nicely from serve on the ASA Georgia Board of his injuries and has re-gained the ex- For an opportunity to join this well-reDirectors for 2012–2014. citement and a sense of the enjoy- spected, quality-minded, family-owned “It didn’t take me long to see first- ment he had when he initially got and operated company; e-mail your hand that many insurance company into the collision repair business. resume to: Sheilah@phillpspaintandclaims people were simply out of With his wife and partner now lead- body.com line!” Sheilah said. “Through my ongoing efforts to learn as much as I can, I have met and become friends with many excellent industry leaders including Ron Perretta through PPG Management training, Danny Hernandez, GA shop owner and past ASA Georgia President and Barrett Smith of Auto Damage Experts, Inc. (ADE). They have shown me how to get out from under the insurance industries thumb, write proper estimates and to get fair compensation for our customers and our technicians. It is a challenge every day. I am so thankful for the way the Equus industry in general tries to help their fellow colleagues excel.” “I recall Barrett Smith speaking at the seminar in Florida and everything he said resonated with me and I knew then I was ready to go to the next Tameron, your trusted automotive wholesale parts supplier, is now level. I have and continue to face delivering Genuine Hyundai replacement parts to your area. many challenges but thanks to his coaching we are gaining the insurer’s Please call your salesman for details! respect and for the first time we are www.tameronhyundai.com being fairly compensated for our efforts and the associated liabilities. Parts Department: Barrett has taken my thinking to a whole new level.” 1-800-467-0699 “I’ve also learned that “profit” 205-443-7651 Direct is not a dirty word and we must 205-443-7656 Fax 1595 Montgomery Highway • Birmingham, AL 35216 profit in order to educate ourselves
30 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
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Women’s Industry Network Reports Winning Growth in 2012 by Kelly McNalis
In retrospect, it’s apparent that 2012 was another “winning” year for WIN, the Women’s Industry Network®. WIN is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing women in the collision repair industry with educational opportunities that create a platform for success, as well as recognition for excellence and leadership within the industry. WIN has reported growth in several areas of the organization in 2012, from enhanced membership services and additional sponsorship opportunities, to improved internal operations and a refined governance structure. The organization reported a 50% increase in member engagement since 2010 and a nearly 13% average increase in conference attendance since 2007. The organization published its first annual Report to the Industry, which gave visibility and transparency to the organization’s activities, financial data, and sponsors. Victoria Jankowski, WIN Chair stated, “While this committee-run organization has come a long way, focus
on the core mission remains the same; a strong sense of community, scholarship support, and ongoing educational efforts for our members.” WIN has increased its visibility within the industry in a variety of ways. Its members have made an impact on membership through networking, personal connections, and corporate awareness.
Enhanced publicity efforts around the 2012 Annual Conference in Atlanta, GA, generated buzz beginning three months prior to the event and featured an expanded scope of speakers covering a variety of topics. As an example, Robyn Benincasa, adventure racer, firefighter and motivational speaker, addressed the conference’s theme of, “Be the Change.” “Her message of strength, perseverance, and accomplishment both resonated and inspired everyone in the
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room,” said Ruth Weniger, WIN Communications Chair and CEO of Airbag Solutions. A variety of sponsorship levels and conference sponsorship opportunities have helped spread organizational awareness of WIN within sponsoring companies, as well as the industry at large. The greatest expenditures in the WIN budget are related to the Annual Educational Conference, which provides attendees with an opportunity to interact with their collision industry peers and receive educational opportunities. Once sponsorship is secured, WIN subsidizes 35% of each attendee’s cost to attend the conference. To continue strengthening its program and providing measurable improvements in 2013, the WIN Board Strategic Planning Session identified three primary objectives at the start of 2012: ● Enhance the value of WIN membership and sponsorship ● Increase industry visibility of WIN, our activities and our members ● Establish a more robust operational and governance structure for the Board of Directors
Jankowski stated, “Like any growing organization, WIN will continue to be challenged with building stronger operational processes, creating consistency in communication that supports the WIN mission, and tracking progress so we can support continued success.” The Board and committee members are engaged and confident that these objectives will align WIN for another successful year in 2013 and enable the organization to continue its momentum. “WIN will continue to explore new ways to connect with women in the industry, keep our sponsors engaged, and support the positive energy our network brings to the overall industry community. As the organization grows, expect to see more ways WIN can contribute,” Jankowski said. “We are ever grateful for the continued generosity of our sponsors who support our efforts to engage women in the Collision Repair Industry and we welcome new members and sponsors who are similarly committed to advancing our mission,” she said. To learn more about WIN, visit www.womensindustrynetwork.com.
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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 31
Inside Insurance
The Insider is a corporate-level executive with a Top 10 auto insurer in the U.S.. Got a comment or question you’d like to see him address in a future column? Email him at Auto.Insurance.Insider@gmail.com
Not All Insurance Executives Are Created Equal with The Insurance Insider
Being an insurance executive has its a different world. It’s people like Bob pros and cons. I guess it’s not really that cause lower-level insurance comdifferent from any other job – with pany employees that you have to work with Rae with Siskto think and act like empowered one exception. We are Chasidy the ones with the gold, and the evil body shops are dictators towards shops. the ones that are trying to get it. That makes my job unique because not everyone gets with to Chasidy Rae Sisk play the role of the leprechaun. Although I am joking, there are a lot of similarities between insurance company employees and the leprechaun at the end of the rainbow protecting the pot of gold. We are unique, misunderstood, It isn’t a healthy situation but it’s deceptively sneaky at times – and con- one that is tolerated at various levels tinuously worried about someone tak- because Bob is a company man, and ing our money. he watches our money and is helping With the holiday season here, to eliminate fraud. When Bob identiperhaps I should be making comparfies a shop that he thinks is over-writisons between Santa Claus and insuring estimates or not properly repairing ance executives, but that would be vehicles, his view is considered justiridiculous. We are nothing like Santa fied. Sadly, Bob’s word is taken as if it because we don’t give anything away. were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke I guess we more closely resemble or John. Ebenezer Scrooge, if trying to stay An even sadder reality is that Bob within the holiday theme. never worked on a car in his life. He Why am I telling you something couldn’t tell you a weld nugget from a you already know? After all, we all chicken McNugget, yet he is judge know that grass is green, there is no and jury on a proper repair and repair such thing as paint caps or Santa Claus, hours. and insurance executives are all misers How is this possible? Because (present company excluded). Actually, most insurance company executives I’m telling you all of this because not are born on a different side of town all insurance company executives are and have years and years of drinking created equal. Even though it is fun to from the same water fountain. I’m throw jabs at defenseless suits, the renot sure how I escaped because I ality is that there are a few good ones was drinking the same stuff. But for among us (present company included). most of us, all of our experience is But please meet Bob. Bob is an insurance-related, so we don’t know insurance executive who works with what’s really on the other side of the me. Although Bob doesn’t wear green, wall. Depending upon your mentors isn’t short and doesn’t have red hair, within an insurance company, your he is very much a leprechaun. I don’t vision of body shops can end up know when or why he became so bit- being tainted. ter and perpetually worried about the I am grateful that I’ve had many evil body shops stealing money. But level-headed bosses over the years. I he has more conspiracy theories than do recall one in the early 1980s that the George Bush administration. looked just like the nutty professor. It’s extremely difficult to work I’ve never asked Bob, but I am willwith guys like Bob because he lives in ing to bet that he spent a lot of time
Northeast News Shop Showcase
working for that mad scientist. He despised body shops, and Bob is exactly the same. I think he wakes up every morning with sole purpose of penalizing shops. While Bob actually does find some shops that are thieves and couldn’t repair a Radio Flyer wagon correctly, the vast majority of his hysteria should be viewed as nothing short of a witch hunt. This story doesn’t have a happy ending. Bob isn’t a mythical character. He is someone who is still very active in our business. I believe he will retire in a few years but the damage has already been done. I think every insurance company has a Bob. Insurance companies have made positive changes over the past 30 years, but they’ve been unable to fully rid themselves of the cancers like Bob. They are the old-timers who are carry-overs from a time when shops and insurance companies were sepa-
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32 JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
rated by the Berlin Wall. I’m grateful to have been there when both that wall was erected and when it was torn down. I found out that the people on the other side of the wall are just like me. You can’t fight with the Bobs of the world because you won’t win. There is no answer or fix. The best you can do is to know your enemy. Debating, arguing and offering personal opinion will surely raise the ire of the cunning and deceptive leprechaun. Only facts and documentation are worth their weight in gold. Just don’t tell Bob that. He might try taking both of them for his overflowing pot. “The Insider” is an auto insurance company executive who wishes to remain anonymous. This column reflects solely the opinion of The Insider as it offers an unvarnished look at various issues impacting the collision industry.
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Sherwin-Williams Sets First Quarter Training Classes
Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes announced its training sessions designed to help automotive collision professionals in the first quarter of 2013. These upcoming business-building and production-excellence courses are being provided through classroom, web and hands-on settings at numerous Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes training centers located in metropolitan areas across the United States and Canada. The classes are designed to increase shop productivity as well as specifically focus on: painter certification, AWX Performance Plus™ waterborne refinish systems, color adjustment and blending, fleet refinishing, accurate estimating, workshop efficiency and much more. According to Rod Habel, Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes Director of Training Operations, all the new classes have been developed for 100% digital training; the brand has converted all of its hands-on training classes from standard, printed manuals to digital textbooks. “Converting all of our Training Manuals from paper to digital has provided our employees and customers with an enhanced learning experience,” says Habel. “It has established Sherwin-Williams Automotive as a
Elektron Joins VSG Family of Brands
Vehicle Service Group (VSG) has acquired the assets of Elektron Bremen GmbH, a global manufacturer of resistance welders, plasma cutters and battery service equipment based in Bremen, Germany, since 1942. Elektron joins Chief Automotive Technologies™ in VSG’s portfolio of top collision repair brands. Chief is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of frame-pulling equipment, vehicle-anchoring systems, computerized measuring systems, and vehicle frame specifications. Chief is also a leading provider of comprehensive training on structural analysis, computerized measuring, collision theory and repair. “The Elektron acquisition enables us to offer collision repair shops a ‘total repair solution,’” explains Gary Kennon, president of VSG. “We can now supply equipment to diagnose and identify collision damage, repair the damage through pulling the frame, replacing parts or welding, and document that the vehicle was returned to the original manufacturer’s specifications. Elektron is an important strategic component as we continue building our global collision business.”
category leader in training practices and demonstrated our environmental consciousness by eliminating the use of thousands of pages of paper each year.” Details on some of the 2013 first quarter training sessions include: Fleet CFR in Reno, NV, Jan. 7; AWX Performance Plus™ Waterborne Refinish System Painter Certification in Atlanta, GA, Jan. 14; AWX Performance Plus™ Waterborne Refinish System Painter Certification in Dallas, TX, Jan. 14; ATX™ Refinish System Painter Certification in Dallas, TX, Jan. 17; Color Adjustment & Blending in Atlanta, GA, Jan. 21; AWX Performance Plus™ Waterborne Refinish System Painter Certification in Philadelphia, PA, Jan. 21; Estimating Solutions for Profit in Atlanta, GA, Jan. 24; ATX™ Refinish System Painter Certification in Philadelphia, PA, Jan. 24; Painter Certification in Dallas, TX, Feb. 11;Fearless Plastic Refinishing, in Philadelphia, Feb. 22. For a complete listing and more information about Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes training or other products, visit the training section at http://www.sherwin-automotive.com/Training/TrainingCourseSc hedule.aspx or call 1-800-SWULTRA (1-800-798-5872).
3M Awards Final “Ticket to the Track” VIP Grand Prize
Paint technician Neil Smith of Masters Auto Body in Charlottesville, VA, was the final VIP Grand Prize winner of 3M’s “Your Ticket to the Track” sweepstakes. Smith and his guests will attend an expense-paid trip to the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion’s Week in Las Vegas. Accompanying Smith during his Vegas experience are Masters Auto Body owner Jeff Cotton, E&M Auto Paint Supply representative Stan Fitzwater, E&M owner Terry Whitmore and their guests. Smith’s VIP prize package includes round trip airfare and hotel accommodations, admission into NASCAR Victory Lap and NASCAR After the Lap meet-and-greet with a NASCAR personality, tickets to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards Ceremony, and a 3M Racing merchandise gift bag.
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TV Public Service Commercial for Body Shops Aimed at the Dangers of Texting and Driving PreFab Ads recently introduced “Text Crash,” a TV/Internet commercial aimed at increasing public attention of the hazards of texting while driving, making it available to auto body shops nationwide.
Chuck Jessen of Jessen Productions in San Rafael, CA, wrote, directed and produced “Text Crash,” which opens with a young woman texting her boyfriend while driving. As a result, she runs a red light and Tbones a van in the intersection. In the eerie aftermath, amidst the wreckage and against the wail of the approaching sirens, a “ping” is heard—a text from her boyfriend, wondering where she is. The words “Please don’t text
and drive. We don’t need the business that bad” fade up, followed by the logo sponsoring auto body shop. Designed as a body shop-sponsored public service announcement (PSA), “Text Crash” will be making its December debut in 14 U.S. markets and one Canadian market, with more body shops signing on to run it every week, according to Jessen. “Body shop owners seem to easily recognize the potential good will this PSA could generate in their local communities,” Jessen said. “Nearly all the shops running this spot say they have fixed cars damaged from a texting-while-driving incident. Hopefully the awareness generated by this spot will help take this tragic trend in another direction.” “Text Crash” is just the latest of 17 collision repair commercials Jessen offers through PreFab Ads (prefabads.com), a division of Jessen Productions, LLC. It can be viewed on prefabads.com and YouTube. To view “Text Crash” go to: http://www.prefabads.com/text_crash.php.
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Mitchell Repair Center ToolStore Integrates with Car-Parts.com Pro Search
Mitchell recently announced a new technology integration with CarPart.com as a partner in the RepairCenter™ ToolStore, making it possible for body shops to search for green parts in the Car-Part Pro marketplace directly from the RepairCenter Workspace. The Car-Part Pro value added marketplace, designed for body shops and insurance appraisers, is now seamlessly integrated into RepairCenter through the RepairCenter ToolStore. Car-Part Pro allows professionals to search by delivery date, warranty, recycler certifications, and part quality, and returns all inclusive pricing results from a database of 140 million parts, 4,200 recyclers, and hundreds of alternative parts providers. The built-in Live Service™ messaging feature allows realtime communication with part suppliers, and Car-Part.com’s exclusive SmartVin™ technology decodes VINs to simplify part choices during the search. “This integration gives Mitchell customers the ability to search for green parts and see only those that can be delivered within their cycle time window, meet their warranty criteria,
and conform to their quality standards,” says Jeff Schroder, founding CEO of Car-Part.com. “We know it’s crucial for shop’s profitability to have all the information they need at their fingertips, and we’re excited to provide a simple and powerful solution directly integrated into Repair Center.” In addition to passing data to facilitate parts lookup and ordering, the RepairCenter ToolStore also provides the ability to receive data back from Car-Part Pro. This two-way integration empowers shops to eliminate the manual steps required to update relevant parts costing and estimate information in RepairCenter, further simplifying workflow. CarPart Pro interface is offered at no additional cost in the RepairCenter ToolStore and takes just one click to activate. To learn more about RepairCenter, visit www.repaircenter.mitchell.com,or to get additional information about building your own application in the ToolStore, contact Mitchell by email atRepairCenterInfo@mitchell.com or telephone at 1-800-238-9111.
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New Low-VOC Bumper & Cladding Adhesion Primer
Urethane Supply Company’s new Bumper & Cladding Coat Adhesion Primer is an advanced, low-VOC, solvent-based primer designed to stick to problem plastics, such as TEO, TPO and PP, without sanding or pretreatment. The primer is designed for easy refinishing of new, unprimed OEM replacement bumpers. The Bumper & Cladding Coat Adhesion Primer is compatible with all popular urethane and waterborne base-clear topcoat systems and many single stage products. It does not have to be scuffed or sanded and may be topcoated at any time after application. Due to the primer’s low VOCs, it can be used in all 50 states and Canada. “The low-VOC formula sprays smoother and has improved topcoat compatibility over our previous formula,” said Urethane Supply Company President Kurt Lammon. “Plus, the simple, ready-to-spray, 1K formulation means there’s no waste, and what a technician doesn’t use can be poured back into the can.” In addition, technicians can mix Give us your opinion on shades to match the desired tint to reduce the amount of topcoat required to achieve the final color match.
New Spies Hecker Sealer Delivers a Smooth Finish
Spies Hecker® introduces Permasolid® Spectro Sealer 5450, a premium 2K high solid system that can be used as a wet-on-wet sealer, underhood color or as a flexible sealer for plastic repairs. Fast and easy to apply, this low VOC sealer delivers excellent coverage and a smooth finish. Designed for use with all Spies Hecker® base coats, Permasolid® Spectro Sealer 5450 is an excellent choice to help increase productivity and profitability. Spraying requires only 1.5 coats with no flash-off time between coats. Permasolid® Spectro Sealer 5450 is currently available in black and white. Red, blue, green and yellow will be available in 2013. All colors can be mixed together to get an unlimited number of colors, including shades of gray. “Permasolid® Spectro Sealer 5450 helps technicians to achieve great results faster and easier,” said Debbie Curry, product manager, North America. “It lays down quickly and if needed, nib sands easily. Additionally, it can be used to make underhood colmatters affecting the industry. ors a one step process.” For more information, visit SpiesHeckerUSA.com or call 1-888-371-3313.
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DEG Redesigns Website and Adds Top 10 list and Twitter, See ‘www.degweb.org’ The Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) recently announced the launch of its fully redesigned website, located at www.degweb.org. The redesigned site provides a new look and improved navigation, as well as new features to enhance the end-user’s experience. The functions of submitting an inquiry and viewing previous inquiries are still active, central components of the website, but the new design produces a better visual experience and allows the DEG to communicate more frequently with the industry about database related issues. The most significant website addition is the ‘Top 10 List’ for each of the three estimating platforms. In contrast with DEG inquiries that are typically year/make/model-specific, these lists are populated by end-user input reflecting macro-level issues or enhancements users would like to see addressed within these estimating products. Estimating Guides and Procedural Pages are still readily accessible with the new design, and the user will have the ability to receive Tweets about new and previous inquiries that are important to the collision industry by following @thedegweb. Top10 List The DEG was built to help address in-
dividual database issues on specific vehicles. While this core purpose remains focused, the associations who built and continue to fund the DEG also often address more global issues, or suggestions to improve the estimating system products, directly with the information providers. These macro issues are fully driven by end-user feedback, so the DEG website can be used to both accurately compile this feedback, and to then display it transparently for public viewing by both end users, and by the information providers. These Top 10 lists have been compiled so that your most pressing collective issues can be clearly conveyed to the information providers with the hope that they will improve their systems in ways that are most meaningful to you and your business.
Estimating Guides and P-Pages Each estimating system has its own set of estimating guides or p-pages which have always been available on the DEG website. The DEG is now able to create links to these guides on the home page, allowing DEG visitors easy access to these important guides with minimal navigation or searching. Twitter The DEG is now using Twitter to push
important information to the industry about database issues and concerns. You can follow the DEG on Twitter, @thedegweb. “The DEG is excited about our ability to continually enhance the user experience when submitting IP inquiries, and the agility this new site allows in our communications with the collision industry,” states Barry Dorn, DEG Joint Operating Committee member. “We feel that the existence of the DEG has resulted in significant content improvement in these estimating products, and the new features within our redesigned website should result in greater transparency of end-user issues resulting in positive changes.” The Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) is an initiative that was developed to help improve the quality and accuracy of collision repair estimates, through proactive feedback from the collision repair industry and other "end users" to the Information Providers (IPs) that supply the databases for the various estimating products. The DEG is created, equally funded and maintained by the Automotive Service Association (ASA), the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers (AASP) and the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS).
WIN Seeks 2013 Sponsors
The Women’s Industry Network (WIN) is seeking corporate sponsorships to help expand its 2013 educational and mentorship programs offered to women in the automotive industry. WIN offers several levels of corporate sponsorship opportunities, including bronze, silver, gold, platinum and diamond, as well as sponsorship of its annual Educational Conference. Each sponsorship enables the organization to provide women in the collision repair industry with educational opportunities that position them for future success. All sponsors of WIN are recognized on the organization’s website, promotional items, signage, and membership functions and activities. Visit WIN’s website to view the monetary donation amounts associated with each level of sponsorship. “WIN is dedicated to providing women in the automotive industry with a platform for growth,” said Victoria Jankowski, chair of WIN’s board of directors. For more information about sponsorship opportunities, contact WIN board member Susanna Gotsch at sgotsch@cccis.com.
CAPA’s Lighting Standard Expanded to Include Testing of HID Lamps and Positioning Motors Keeping pace with the latest lighting technology, the Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA) has added new testing requirements to cover electric motors, actuators, and high intensity discharge (HID) lamps. The new requirements were approved by CAPA’s Technical Committee, an inter-industry consensus body made up of collision repairers, distributors, insurers, technical experts, and manufacturers. CAPA is the only independent certification body in the U.S. for aftermarket lighting parts that tests for, and confirms compliance to, FMVSS 108, as well as true comparability to the car company brand counterpart. “I’m proud to report that CAPA Standards are keeping pace with the latest technology and complex components used in today’s headlights,” said Jack Gillis, CAPA’s Executive Director. “Thanks to CAPA’s Technical Committee, which is undoubtedly one of the greatest quality resources in the industry, the CAPA standards enable informed choices in even the very newest products. The fact is, nobody can simply look at an aftermar-
ket light and know if it truly matches the car company brand part or fully complies with FMVSS 108—that’s why CAPA’s independent certification program is so important,” said Gillis. The CAPA 301 Lighting Standard include: headlamps, taillamps, stop lamps, turn signals, and fog lamps. Parts that have been certified to the CAPA Lighting Standard are clearly marked with CAPA’s unique, tamper-proof Quality Seal. The CAPA Seal, each with a unique number, represents independent verification of both compliance to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 and comparable performance to the car company brand parts. Like all CAPA Standards, the updated CAPA 301 Lighting Standard test procedures and tolerances are available to the public at no charge via the CAPA website. “Full transparency is a critically important component of the CAPA Certification Program,” said Gillis.
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Florida Auto Angels Give 11 Vehicles as Holiday Gifts to Local Needy Recipients Auto Angels of the Florida Autobody Collision Alliance (FACA) mid-state chapter gave 11 reconditioned vehicles and mechanical services to local residents in need of dependable transportation. More than 260 applications were reviewed to choose the 11 recipients of the refurbished donated vehicles. In addition, three other recipients with disabled vehicles in need of repair were chosen to received gifted repairs. A presentation of the gifts took place Dec. 20, just in time for Christmas, at Victory Church in Lakeland, FL. “It always seems like each year’s event gets better than the last and this year is no different,” said David Stewart of Stewart Auto Repair, this year’s Auto Angels co-chair. “We’ve been gifted some great vehicles which have been reconditioned by some great local repairers and their staff. A task only made possible with the financial support and efforts of many vendors and suppliers who provided everything from cash donations, engines, transmissions, tires, materials, gas/gift cards and title work. Without the efforts, resources, hard work and dedication of those who gave their time and abilities, Auto Angels simply wouldn’t exist.”
Ray Gunder of Gunder’s Auto Center and Auto Angels’ co-chairman said, “We would like to give credit to those FACA members who made the program the success that it continues to be and express our sincere gratitude to the vehicle donors and those who continue to support the Auto Angel program.” Participants included: FACA Repairers Auto Body Resurrection Bernie’s Body Shop Gunder’s Automotive Jenkins Collision Center Maurice’s Auto Repair Meisner’s Paint And Body Stewart Auto Repair
Parts Suppliers All Pro Used Auto Parts Bartow Ford Bill Currier Ford LKQ Corp. NAPA Auto Parts: Lakeland NAPA Auto Parts: Winter Haven Ben’s Paint Supply Color New Upholstery Media Auto Damage Experts, Inc. Lakeland Media Real Success Radio
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Local Car Dealers Hill Nissan Regal Automotive Group Stingray Chevrolet Winter Haven Honda
Refreshments Sub N Such Publix Auburndale Shane’s Rib Shack Express Auto Body - Drinks Community Southern Bank–Food Trays Center State Bank–Food Trays
Special Gifts Polk Sheriff Charities Jerry Wattron, America’s Auto Body, Schaumburg, IL, $1000 cash gift Steve Barger of Enterprise Holdings, Lakeland, FL, $1500 cash gift Transportation Boltons Towing – Winter Haven Central Towing – Winter Haven Jenkins Towing – Lakeland Maurice’s Towing – Lakeland Wemer Towing– Lakeland Victory Church Van Continued from Cover
GCIA Recap
manipulation of the database, and sales tax on paint and materials. Senator Murphy said he would work with the association to address these issues through legislation. ● In September, Allstate Insurance notified their repair facilities that they would no longer reimburse sales tax on paint and material. The GCIA contacted the Georgia Insurance Commissioner’s office and Senator Jack Murphy to help resolve this issue. Senator Murphy contacted the Georgia Department of Revenue and had them contact GCIA Executive Director Howard Batchelor. After several weeks of discussion, Allstate reversed their decision and began reimbursing shops again for the sales tax.
Continued from Page 26
ASA Recaps
leading in the educational elements of Automotive Service and Repair Week (ASRW), which took place in New Orleans, LA, in October. During the week, ASRW conducted more than 80 educational sessions, along with NACE forums and the Assembly, a town hall type discussion for repairers only. For those attending ASRW in 2012 and taking part in the invaluable educational activities, it’s likely you heard from ASA’s collision team in various sessions, panels and forums. ASA’s communications pieces specific to all the other above mentioned actives of the ASA collision division for 2012 are found at www.asashop.org. Click on “News & Events,” then Latest News – 2012 Press Releases. The key driver in ASA collision team actions continues to be centered on the engagement of the ASA collision leadership and the ASA membership at large. To be a part of the conversation, continue to contact ASA’s collision division manger, Denise Caspersen by email; denisec@asashop.org or phone at (817)-514-2906. ● Also in September, State Farm spokesman George Avery spoke to members to discuss the new PartsTrader program. Over 140 people attended to hear Avery discuss why State Farm implemented this program and why they were trying to lower the list price on parts. Several shops from the Alabama area that were on the program expressed serious concerns on how this would affect their gross profit on parts. ● In October, the GCIA held its 16th Annual GCIA Golf Tournament at Trophy Club of Atlanta in Alpharetta, GA. 72 golfers enjoyed a beautiful day of golf and fellowship. Some of the projects the GCIA is working on for 2013 include: ● Meeting with PartsTrader on Thursday, January 17. ● Extrication program ● 7th Annual GCIA Labor Rate Survey.
Idaho, Utah, and Nebraska Collision Groups Join SCRS
The Idaho Autobody Craftsman Association and the newly-formed Utah Auto Body Association have become state affiliate associations of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists; the Idaho group, dormant for nearly a decade, had more than 50 attendees
at a recent meeting, and the Utah group is the first statewide collision repair association there. Also looking to revitalize itself is the Nebraska Auto Body Association, which will hold a meeting January 19 in Ashland, Nebraska.
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 37
State Farm Updates ASA on PartsTrader Pilot Program State Farm recently provided ASA with a PartsTraders update. Dan Stander, AAM, ASA’s collision division director and owner of Fix Auto Highlands Ranch in Littleton, CO, and Denise Caspersen, ASA collision division manager, received updates from State Farm about the insurer’s current pilot, which uses the PartsTrader electronic parts ordering application. Representing State Farm on the call was George Avery, claims representative, and State Farm staffer Duane Willemain. The November update was the first of several expected from the insurer, which has committed to keeping ASA members abreast of the pilot and its potential effect on future State Farm Select Service participants. The ASA collision leadership and staff continue to focus on providing ASA members and the industry with accurate information about the pilot, while engaging and advocating on behalf of collision repairers. The pilot expanded into Chicago, IL, on Dec. 10, and will increase involvement to nearly 600 Select Service collision repair facilities of the
10,300 shops participating nationwide in the State Farm Select Service program. The following updates were provided to ASA during the call: ● Pilot locations in Charlotte, NC, and Birmingham, AL, now have the ability to do 30-minute quotes—resulting in all four original pilot markets now having a 30-minute quote window. ● Regarding estimating systems, Audatex; CCC Information Services; and Mitchell International all have twoway integration in all four markets. ● A change has been made in the process of writing estimates to better accommodate alternative pricing. According to State Farm, if a shop has alternative pricing available through a different source, State Farm is recommending Select Service shops write estimates with those prices—therefore utilizing price matching. ● In Chicago, business meetings are set with multi-shop organizations and all Select Service repairers. Chicago is recognized as a heavy consolidator market. Items for the meetings include:
QUALITY IS ALL WE THINK ABOUT. THAT AND QUALITY.
– An overview of the program – Handouts about the program – Preparation material for the Dec. 10 “live” date – PartsTrader started hosting meetings Nov. 12 for dealers and parts suppliers. – Select Service shops have been asked to identify suppliers. – To date, 466 letters from State Farm to suppliers have been sent out. – 500–600 suppliers have been identified in the Chicago market. – To date, 475 of 477 Select Service shops have registered. ● Regarding cycle time improvements, State Farm said it was hard to prove, at this point, any cycle time improvements linked to the application. State Farm does not expect an immediate or large reduction in cycle time. ● Regarding “saving of total losses,” State Farm said that at this point there is not enough data to validate this. Nor is there data that demonstrates an increase in recycled or alternative parts. ● PartsTrader is moving forward with integration into the various collision management systems.
● No evidence to date on reductions in parts profit, according to State Farm. ● The length of the Chicago pilot is unknown. According to State Farm, once a change is introduced into the application in pilot, it is necessary for the change to “mature” to determine the impact of the change. This impacts the end date. ● The PartsTrader application has undergone at least seven updates since the initial pilot release in March 2012. ● PartsTrader has announced it will not charge suppliers until 2014. “For the ASA collision membership volunteering on the operations committee, the focus continues to be one of information, engagement and impacting the outcome in the most positive way on behalf of repairers. It was apparent early on that the ‘train had left the station’ in regard to stopping this application from being piloted. The ASA team made the decision to focus on accuracy and engagement, and will continue to do so as this pilot continues and future items arise,” said Caspersen.
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Education Foundation Plans for 2013 Summer Golf Fundraiser in Boston Registration and event sponsorship is will take place as part of the event, now available for the Collision Re- presented by LORD Corporation. Inpair Education Foundation’s 12th an- dividuals can sponsor golf balls ($25 nual golf fundraiser event taking each ball/ 5 for $100) that will be place Thursday, July 25, 2013 in Boston, MA. Golfers will enjoy a round of golf at the South Shore Country Club, a championship par 72 golf course designed in 1922 by Wayne Stiles and features rolling topography, elevated approaches, and pristine conditions. As the Education Foundation’s 2012 golf fundraiser soldout six months in advance, industry professionals are encouraged to register for this year’s golf If your golf shot is not so reliable, a helicopter golf fundraiser early as it is anticipated ball drop might be your best shot at a $1000 to be sold-out by early 2013. This closest-to-the-pin win fundraiser takes place in conjunction with the Collision Industry Con- dropped from a helicopter over a hole ference (CIC) and I-CAR industry on the South Shore Country Club golf meetings being held that week in course the day of the event. Whoever Boston, and funds raised through this sponsors the numbered golf ball that event assist the Education Foundation goes in the hole (or the closest to the in providing support to collision repair pin) will win a $1000 American Exstudents and their school’s collision press gift card. Participants do not programs. need to be present to win and only Even if you can’t attend in per- 1,500 golf balls will be sold. son, industry professionals can still Early-bird individual player regscore a hole-in-one through the heli- istration is $225 p/person ($900 fourcopter golf ball drop fundraiser that some team) before April 1, 2013 and
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$275 p/person ($1,100 foursome team) after April 1, 2013. Registration includes 18 holes of golf, cart rental, complimentary beverages/snacks on the course, BBQ lunch, dinner, attendee promotional items, and the opportunity to participate in several contests on the course. For those attendees who will be traveling into Boston to attend industry meetings that week, complimentary transportation will be provided to and from the industry events to the golf course. This fundraiser event is open to all industry professionals and registration spaces are availableon a firstcome, first-serve basis. Those interested in registering, sponsoring, and/or participating with the golf ball drop fundraiser should contact Director of Development Brandon Eckenrode at Brandon.Eckenrode@edfoundation.org, 847-463-5244, or visit www.CollisionEducationFoundation.org for more information.
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Education Foundation Wants Facebook Likes
The Collision Repair Education Foundation and LORD Corporation, the maker of Fusor products, are partnering to provide safety glasses to collision students. Until Dec. 31, for every individual who “Likes” both organization’s Facebook pages, LORD will donate a pair of safety glasses (up to 10,000) to collision school programs through the Collision Repair Education Foundation. “Like” the organization’s Facebook pages by visiting: ● www.facebook.com/CollisionRepairEducationFoundation ● w w w. f a c e b o o k . c o m / p a g e s / LORD-Fusor-Automotive-RepairAdhesives/531537473524134 Collision Repair Education Foundation Director of Development Brandon Eckenrode noted, “Due to school budget reductions, there are many collision school instructors who don’t have the ability to purchase safety glasses for their students. Through LORD’s generosity, we can help keep up to 10,000 collision students safe. Please “Like” both of our Facebook pages before the New Year so that we can provide the full amount of safety glasses to collision students this upcoming spring semester.”
White Still Favored as Most Popular Car Color White/white pearl dominates the global automotive color popularity ranks for the second consecutive year, according to the 2012 DuPont Automotive Color Popularity Report, released Dec. 6. Black/black effect moves into second place in the global ranks this year, largely due to the increased popularity in the Asia Pacific market as this color has a worldwide perception of high quality and luxury. Silver fell to third, as its popularity has waned due to its overall gradual decline, especially in the critical large automotive markets of Europe and Asia. The DuPont report, in its 60th year, is the largest and longest running report of its kind in the automotive industry. It is the only report to include global automotive color popularity rankings and regional trends from 11 leading automotive regions of the world. North American vehicle color in 2012 was once again dominated by white/white pearl, with 24% market share, putting it in first place for the sixth consecutive year. It also led the compact/sport and truck/SUV segment. Black/black effect was at the top of the intermediate/CUV segment and
luxury/luxury SUV segment popularity ranks. It represented 19% of the overall market, maintaining second place in vehicle color popularity in North America. Compared to metallic versions, solid blacks are most favored in the truck segment. Metallic blacks brought interest to the market and have been widely used in all segments, especially in luxury/luxury SUV. For the first time since 1998, silver did not lead in any of the North American vehicle segments, which may be attributed to the increased influence of black and white as status symbols for luxury and quality. However, silver held steady in third place overall with 16% market share. Gray rose two percentage points this year with increases in the truck, luxury and intermediate vehicle segments. The top four preferences, white, black, silver, and gray, have represented the majority of popularity the last 10 years. Red rounded out the top five color choices across each vehicle segment and consequently, overall in the region, with 10% of the market. Popularity rankings of bright colors: red (10%), blue (7%), brown/beige (5%), yellow/gold (2%), and green (2%).
www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 39
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