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VOL. 7 ISSUE 6 MARCH 2018
Owners of Michigan Rehab Clinic Accused in $1M Staged-Crash Scheme, 8 Others Already Convicted
A Career Painter’s Personal Experience is Cautionary Tale for Others
The owners of a physical rehabilitation clinic in Grand Rapids, MI, are accused in a $1 million scheme to defraud insurance companies by staging crashes and fraudulently submitting bills for physical-therapy services. Eight others have already been convicted for staging crashes in the area. Maria Del Carmen Ramirez-Rodriguez, a.k.a. Maria Del Carmen Pou, and Marvin David Ramirez are named in a 14-count indictment alleging conspiracy to commit mail fraud against
Back in 1985, the actor Yul Brynner was dying from cancer when he told a television audience on “Good Morning America” that what he really wanted to do was film a commercial that said, “Now that I’m gone, I’ll tell you this: Don’t smoke. Whatever you do, just don’t smoke.” When he died several months later, his wish came true when a public service announcement was produced telling the world to quit smoking. Today, it is one of the most memorable anti-smoking statements ever made and is often re-broadcasted all over the world. In life, we learn from others’ mistakes so that we don’t repeat them. In this story, a career painter has sage advice for painters and techs who don’t wear proper gear when painting cars.
by John Agar, MLive.com
no-fault auto insurance companies, healthcare fraud and mail fraud. The indictment was recently unsealed after Ramirez's arrest. Eight suspects, including residents of Wyoming, Lansing and Florida, have been convicted in the case. He was arraigned Thursday, Feb. 1, in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids. He pleaded not guilty and was released on bond. No date has been set for the co-defendant. The alleged fraud began in DeSee Staged-Crash Scheme, Page 33
Mistrial Declared in Joliet, IL, Body Shop Murder Trial, Drug Use by Victims and Killer Alleged by John Ferak, Joliet Patch
Alex Alonso and his wife, Andrea, on the beach in Florida. A former painter/tech, Alex has stage 4 kidney cancer and wants other collision professionals to be aware of the hazards associated with not wearing the proper gear on the job
Alex Alonso is 52 years old and originally from Bronx, NY. His father, Jesus, was born in Uruguay and came to the U.S. to eventually open a twoSee Cautionary Tale, Page 28
CIC Industry Meetings Discuss CCC’s Changes to ‘Secure Share’, Retains Interest in EMS Format
than requiring the use of the newer “BMS” data export file, reducing deChanges that CCC Information Servvelopment costs or forced timelines ices recently announced related to its for third-party providers to gear up to “Secure Share” data-exchange program receive BMS files. were a frequent focus of discussion at CIC Chairman Guy Bargnes said the Collision Industry Conference the CIC task force that developed early (CIC) and other meetings held recently last year to address concerns related to Secure Share successfully fulfilled in Palm Springs, CA. CIC’s mission to bring inCCC in December andustry stakeholders together nounced that it was dropping to “discuss issues, enhance plans for a 50-cent-per-estiunderstanding, find common mate fee for third-party ground and communicate providers (such as rental car companies, shop management possible solutions.” “This is a really great exsystem providers, CSI servample of the difference that ices, etc.) wishing to receive Dan Risley CIC can make when everyestimate data from CCC ONE users. It also eliminated registration body is working together for a comfees for those third-parties, and said it mon goal,” agreed ASA Executive would continue to allow such data Director Dan Risley, one of three cotransfers to be done via the commonly chairs of the CIC task force. See CCC’s Changes, Page 50 used “EMS” data export file rather by John Yoswick
Outside the scene of the crime. Image via Joliet Patch
girlfriend made several trips to Specialty Fleet on March 8, 2016. Martin was trying to find a certain type of bolt to fix his girlfriend’s blue Mazda. See Joliet Shop Murders, Page 18
Change Service Requested
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
Joshua Martin, 28, grew up in Joliet, IL, around the Oram family. He spent considerable time at the family’s body shop, Specialty Fleet Painting, 809 E. Cass St. Martin stopped there on March 8, 2016, making him one of the last people to see Mike Oram, 48, and Jamie Wills, 43, alive, before both were bludgeoned to death with a hammer and a pipe wrench, according to testimony on Jan. 23 during the first day of the double murder jury trial of William “Billy” Krasawski. As it turns out, Martin and his
by Ed Attanasio
Presorted Standard US Postage PAID San Bernardino, CA Permit #2244
2 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Cedar Rapids, IA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
AASP-MN Holds Raffle for 2012 Custom
Students Repair Police Cruiser Totaled
AASP-MN’s Automotive Scholarships
Talent Tours Offer Inside Looks Into
Fat Bagger Razorback Motorcycle. . . . . . . . 6 Are Up For Grabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Arcanum, OH, Body Shop Manager
Retires After 48 Years. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
During 2016 Cavs Celebration in OH . . . . . 15 Technical Careers in MI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
COLUMNISTS
Burlington, ND, Auto Body Shop Fights
Attanasio - Too Many Shops are Advertising
Career Academy Students Assist Iowa
Ledoux - Audi’s Mark Allen Interviewed
Crash Sends Cash Flying All Over Illinois
Ledoux - In Reverse: John Loftus,
Fire Damages Elite Auto Body in
Phillips - Enterprise Shares Company’s
Hit and Run Leaves Shop with a Mess,
Phillips - How to Build Customer Loyalty,
Indiana Passes Approved Autonomous
Sisk - Management Success Shares Shop
Margaret Dunning Foundation Grant
Yoswick - 5 Years Ago, CT Shops Still
City in Zoning Dispute. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Body Shop for Job Shadow Day . . . . . . . . 10 Highway. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Orange City, IA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Help Needed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Vehicle Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Supports Auto Tech Program in MI . . . . . . 14
Meriden, KS, Body Shop Owner Could Only
Watch as Fire Destroys Classic Cars. . . . . . 6
MI Clinic Owners Charged in $1M
When They Should Be Marketing . . . . . . . 32 on Shop Certification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 The “Dragon Slayer”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Successful Recruitment Strategies . . . . . . 46
Prepare for the New Customer Mindset. . . 38
Resolutions That Stick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Hopeful That Judgment Against
Insurer Would Hold. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
NATIONAL
Insurance Scam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1,000+ Students Registered for CREF
Police Officer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1Collision Announces New Call Center,
Rates In the Country, Rates are Up
42 Apprentices Join Service King’s
MI Collision Repair Shop Owner Bribes
Michigan Still Has Highest Auto Insurance
20% Since 2011. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Spring Career Fairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Phone App . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 Training Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Missouri House Considers Anti-Vehicle
A Career Painter’s Personal Experience
Mistrial Declared in Joliet, IL, Body Shop
Bill Garoutte to Take Helm at National
Safety Inspection Legislation . . . . . . . . . . 12
Murder Trial, Drug Use by Victims and
is a Cautionary Tale for Others . . . . . . . . . . 1
Auto Body Council . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Killer Alleged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chuck Sulkala Scholarship Fund to Honor
Generation, Family-Owned Shop . . . . . . . . . 9
CIC Industry Meetings Discuss CCC’s
New Baden Auto Body in IL Becomes 3rd Northwest Technical School Shows Off
Project Car in Maryville, MO . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Owners of Michigan Rehab Clinic Accused in $1M Staged-Crash Scheme, 8 Others
NABC Founder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Changes to ‘Secure Share’, Retains
Interest in EMS Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
GCIA Kicks Off 2018 with Presentation
by Attorney Erica Eversman . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Already Convicted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Industry Invited To Sponsor Uniforms
Create Process for Duplicable Business . . 58
Mike Anderson to Host Free Webinars
Expands Building in IL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
NY Auto Body Shop Releases Humorous
Phillips - Indiana MSO Discusses How to
Pinto's Kustoms & Collision by ‘ProDaddy’ Proposal To Repeal Michigan's No-Fault
Car Insurance System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
for Collision Education Students . . . . . . . . 63
on Locating OEM Procedures . . . . . . . . . . 62
Video to Ease the Stress of Collision
Repair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Senate Bill 164 Prohibits Steering in IN,
Pittston, PA, Man Faces Fraud Charges
Springfield, MO, Body Shops are
PPG Funds Refinish Student Scholarships
IABA Learns From Process . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Slammed with Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Storm Keeps Body Shops Busy in
Over Auto Insurance Claim . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Through CREF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
ical care for someone catastrophically injured in a car accident. Experts say that also leads to more fraud. The Zebra suggest drivers shop around for new rates every six months to a year. Also, be mindful of what kind of car you drive. “Shop around for auto insurance premiums for the vehicle you might be considering purchasing before you actually buy that vehicle. A lot of people might forget to take that into consideration because in Michigan, those rates might be more than your car payment,” says Zebra’s Neil Richardson. You can also save money by purchasing a policy in full, raise your deductible and bundle your auto insurance with your homeowners or rental insurance.
Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Contributing Writers: John Yoswick, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk, David Luehr, Stacey Phillips, Victoria Antonelli, Gary Ledoux Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Bill Doyle, Norman Morano (800) 699-8251 Office Manager: Louise Tedesco Digital Marketing Manager: Bill Pierce Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia Graphic Designer: Michelle Lucas Online and Web Content Editor: Rochelle Beckel Accounting Manager: Heather Priddy Editorial/Sales Assistant: Randi Scholtes
Serving Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin and adjacent metro areas. Autobody News is a monthly publication for the autobody industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2018 Adamantine Media LLC.
Audi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 52 Axalta Coating Systems . . . . . . . . . . 5 BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Bettenhausen Automotive . . . . . . . 28 Blue Springs Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 63 Bob Hook Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 CarcoonAmerica Airflow Systems . 22 Charles Gabus Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 ChemSpec USA, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Classic Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Courtesy Subaru. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Diamond Standard Parts, LLC . . . . 43 Dominion Sure Seal . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 ECS Automotive Concepts . . . . . . . 18 EMS Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Equalizer Industries, Inc. . . . . . . . . . 8 Erhard BMW of Bloomfield Hills . . . 38 Erhard BMW of Farmington Hills . . 38 GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . 65 Griffin Automotive Group . . . . . . . . 53 GYS Welding USA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-17 Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers. . 60 Infiniti of Naperville . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Insta Finish Car Care . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Island Clean Air, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Jack Phelan Chrysler-Dodge-JeepRam of Countryside . . . . . . . . . . 23 Jake Sweeney Chevrolet . . . . . . . . 42 Kelly BMW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Kia of Des Moines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Kia Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . 61 Killer Tools and Equipment Corp . . 27 Launch Tech USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Laurel Auto Group of Westmont . . . 57
Luther Bloomington Acura-Subaru. 45 Luther Hopkins Honda . . . . . . . . . . 48 Malco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Maplewood Toyota-Scion . . . . . . . . 39 Matrix Automotive Finishes. . . . . . . 11 Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 64 McGrath City Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . 52 Mercedes-Benz . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34-35 MINI Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 62 Mirka USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers. 64 MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40-41 Morrison’s Auto Parts . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Nissan/Infiniti Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 O’Reilly Auto Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Original One PartsTM . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Patrick BMW MINI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Patrick Hyundai. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Polyvance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 PPG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Reliable Automotive Equipment . . . 26 Richfield-Bloomington Honda . . . . 36 Robaina Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . . . 37 SATA Dan-Am Company . . . . . . . . . 7 Spanesi Americas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 58 Symach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 The Sharpe Collection of Automobiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Toyota of Des Moines . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 62 VanDevere Kia-GM . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Volkswagen Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Zimmer Chrysler-Dodge-JeepRam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Autobody News Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018; (800) 699-8251 (760) 603-3229 Fax www.autobodynews.com editor@autobodynews.com
Midwest
REGIONAL
Michigan drivers have been complaining about the state’s higher than average auto insurance rates. Now, there is more reason to be frustrated. A recent survey shows Michigan is the most expensive state in the country. Overall, rates are 20 percent higher than they were in 2011. The latest numbers come from thezebra.com—the nation’s leading search engine for auto insurance rates. It puts Michigan at the top with an average annual premium of $2,610. The least expensive state is North Carolina at $865 per year. One of the main reasons Michigan came out on top is its no-fault insurance law. It is the only state in the country that provides unlimited lifetime med-
Index of Advertisers
Contents
Michigan Still Has Highest Auto Insurance Rates In the Country, Rates are Up 20% Since 2011
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 3
udelv Makes Public Road Test Delivery From Autonomous Last-Mile Delivery Vehicle udelv, a Burlingame, CA, company, pulled the wraps off its autonomous, last-mile delivery vehicle Jan. 30 and made the world’s first public road test deliveries from Draeger’s Market in San Mateo to two nearby customers. The 2.5-mile loop, with traffic lights, lane changes, un-signalized left turns and two delivery stops, was accomplished flawlessly. In compliance with existing California
The distinctive orange udelv customized vehicle is built on a fully electric powertrain and features 18 secure cargo compartments with automatic doors using a cloud-based proprietary technology that is shared between the vehicle, customers and merchants. The vehicle can drive for up to 60 miles per cycle and can load up to 700 pounds of cargo
regulations, the vehicle was supervised by a safety driver and in test mode. The distinctive orange customized vehicle is built on a fully electric powertrain and features 18 secure cargo compartments with automatic doors using a cloud-based proprietary technology that is shared between the vehicle, customers and merchants. In its current configuration, the vehicle can drive for up to 60 miles per cycle and can load up to 700 pounds of cargo. A dedicated application is available on iOS to track and potentially reschedule deliveries, with an Android version to be released soon. To complement its autonomous driving technology and ensure reliability of the service, udelv also created an ultra-low latency teleoperations system to monitor and control the vehicles remotely and allow for overrides and human-assisted guidance in unique situations. udelv anticipates that its new vehicle will bring forth a dramatic drop in the cost of local deliveries, add delivery window flexibility and See Last Mile Delivery, Page 14
CA Self-Driving Report May Validate Consumer Concerns by Chanell Turner, CBT Automotive Network
Would you allow your car to take control of your commute? This is the question many car buyers are still wrestling with. While companies like Tesla, Waymo and even Ford are looking ahead to pushing the boundaries of fully autonomous features in vehicles, the public at large still seems to be on the fence. A study by Carinsurance.com, an online insurance comparison and rate quote company, revealed that 80 percent of its 2,000 respondents would not purchase an autonomous car if given the opportunity. A similar sentiment took place during an MIT survey in 2017. Out of 3,000 respondents, 48 percent said they would never buy a self-driving car because they were not comfortable with the lack of control, and felt the vehicles were not safe. Do consumers have something to worry about? Are their feelings valid?
The Annual Autonomous Vehicle Disengagement Report California implemented a program where manufacturers have the opportunity to test self-driving cars on public roads. The Department of Motor
Vehicles in the state recently released its Annual Autonomous Disengagement Report to reveal how many disengagements the various vehicles experienced during test runs. According to the Department of Motor Vehicles, a disengagement is defined as when a failure of the autonomous technology occurred or if the test driver felt the need to disengage the autonomous mode and manually take over for the safe operation of the car.
GM, Mercedes, and Nissan Reveal Progress This year, 19 manufacturers were included in the report. Recognizable brands such as BMW, Ford, Honda, and Volkswagen did not test any vehicles in 2017 on California’s public roads. General Motor’s Chevy Cruise drove more than 130,000 miles on the public streets of San Francisco with 105 disengagements. GM recorded that most disengagements were attributed to precautionary takeovers to address planning or controls. Mercedes-Benz tested three autonomous vehicles on California roads last year, and in total all three drove more than 1,000 miles. There were 240 manual and 602 automatic disengagements. Nissan tested five cars, including
4 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Tesla On ‘Auto-Pilot’ Crashes Into Culver City, CA, Fire Truck
by Emily Holland, Culver City Patch
Culver City Fire Department’s Engine 42 was struck by a Tesla sedan while working a freeway incident Jan. 23, according to CCFD.
Credit: Culver City Fire Department Twitter
The Tesla was traveling at 65 miles per hour—the driver reportedly told firefighters that the vehicle was on auto-pilot. This is the second accident involving a Tesla on auto-pilot in the last two weeks, according to ABC7. Tesla’s auto pilot feature is an advanced driver assistance system that uses cameras, sensors and various vehicle systems to maintain the speed of the car, prevent them from
three versions of the Leaf. The manufacturer reported the vehicles rode a combined 5,007 miles with 24 disengagements in the year. Two of the most common issues cited for the separations were a software crash or GPS signal issue.
Small Autonomous Automakers Show Promise Waymo, formerly the Google self-driving car project, drove more than 350,000 miles last year and experienced only 63 disengagements. The top two reasons cited were unwanted maneuvering of the vehicle and perception discrepancy. Artificial intelligence company, NVIDIA, had two vehicles drive a combined 505 miles with 109 disengagements. Tesla, a company that has almost become the face of autonomous cars, did not test any vehicles under California law. Instead, the company cited how it gathers autonomous vehicle data from customer-owned cars in shadow mode during normal operation.
There is Still Cause for Concern This report is groundbreaking in that it allows the public a detailed glimpse into real performance data of autonomous vehicles. Even though they
running into slower-moving cars ahead, keep the vehicle in the lane and even change lanes for the driver, according to Auto Trader. Very few other cars have all of these systems, and Tesla gives control of all of them to the car’s electronic capabilities, requiring much less input from the driver, according to Auto Trader. The National Transportation Safety Board will be coming to California to examine the crash, according to ABC7. No one was injured. The first Tesla autopilot crash occurred Jan. 13 on the Bay Bridge. The suspected drunk driver had passed out behind the wheel, ABC7 reported. CCFD warns drivers to stay alert while behind the wheel. We thank Culver City Patch for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com were not included in some reports, many manufacturers did detail the reason for each disengagement. Most automakers seemed to have more successes than failures, but is the public comfortable with seeing a “software crash” or “precautionary takeover” as reasons for manual takeovers? A 2017 AutoTrader Car Tech Impact Study gave some additional insight into how drivers feel about autonomous vehicle technologies. Niche autonomous features were cited as having low awareness and appeared polarizing to respondents. Forty-eight percent of respondents were uninterested in fully autonomous technology. Unfortunately, car companies have a bit of a perception problem when it comes to selfdriving cars. While it is normal to experience failures and hiccups during experiments, consumers seem to be on edge with the safety factor of autonomous vehicles. Will the natural experimentation phase of these automobiles throw car buyers off? Only time will tell as manufacturers push forward on their quest to produce a fully autonomous vehicle.
We thank CBT Automotive Network for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 5
Meriden, KS, Body Shop Owner Could Only Watch as Fire Destroys Classic Cars by Morgan Chilson, The Topeka Capital-Journal
During the early hours of Feb. 7, Mike Garrison stood in front of his Meriden, KS, auto body, restoration and paint business and watched it burn to the ground.
High Torque Racing Auto Body and Paint Inc. in Meriden, Ks, burned down Feb. 7, along with rare and classic cars that were parked inside. Credit: Chris Neal/The Capital-Journal
Inside the 12-year-old building that housed High Torque Racing Auto Body and Paint Inc. were six vehicles, including an irreplaceable classic 1967 Buick GS-400 convertible. Only 421 were built, he said. “It’s brutal,” Garrison said. “I had two restored cars that were 24 hours away from leaving. The other was a ’69 Camaro convertible Restomod that had a custom paint job on it, and it was
totally frame-off restored. There were just a couple of pieces and parts and a buff job, and it was ready to leave. I could have had it done today. Both of those cars are big five-figure cars. “The big thing is some of these cars are irreplaceable. I’m heartbroken over it. You have no idea. Until somebody’s lived it, they never have any idea.” Also in the building at 3245 82nd St. in Meriden were four other cars, including a 1957 Chevy and a 1972 convertible, Garrison said. Garrison said he received a notification about 3:30 a.m. of a burglary call. “I got there really quick,” he said. “The next thing I know, when I go to open the door, it was full of smoke. I went around and unlocked all of the doors for the firemen. By the time they got here, the smoke was pretty thick.” When the firefighters opened the door, it became clear the fire was extensive. “I just had to sit and watch it burn,” Garrison said. His business carries insurance, and Garrison said he hopes he has enough coverage for a claim that may near $1 million. The building alone was valued at $250,000, he said.
AASP-MN Holds Raffle for 2012 Custom Fat Bagger Razorback Motorcycle
The Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Minnesota (AASP-MN) recently kicked off raffle sales for a 2012 Custom Fat Bagger Razorback motorcycle and bike trailer.
The motorcycle and trailer were a generous donation from honorary AASP-MN member Roger Bonn, recently retired from Peter’s Body Shop, St. Cloud, and his wife, Jill. Funds raised from the raffle will support the MNCARS (Minnesota Careers in Auto Repair & Service) campaign, whose goal is to raise awareness and recruit people into Minnesota’s technical college automotive programs (collision and mechanical) and industry careers. The motorcycle is valued at $30,000 and features: • Jim's 120-cubic-inch, 121 horsepower racing engine with diamondcut heads, coupled to a 6-speed
Harley Davidson Screaming Eagle transmission • Vance and Hines 2 into 1 ProPipe Exhaust • An array of parts from RC Components, including but not limited to: • front and rear wheels • front and rear brake rotors • brake calipers, air cleaner • Dakota digital instrumentation with Harley cruise control • Very nice one-of-a-kind custom paint scheme • 18,000 miles, ene owner; original custom-built bike • Brand-new Drop Tail single bike trailer that folds to stand against a wall for easy storage Tickets for the raffle are $20 each or six for $100, and are available for purchase (cash or check only) by contacting the AASP-MN office at 612-623-1110 or aasp@aaspmn.org. No more than 3,000 tickets will be sold. The winner of the motorcycle and trailer will be drawn on June 27, 2018, at Veit Automotive Foundation in Maple Lake, MN. Winner need not be present to win. Must be 18 years of age or older to purchase a ticket or win the prize. Winner is responsible for any applicable fees or taxes.
6 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Still, just hours later, he couldn’t move past the loss of the classic cars, and he had to make the tough calls to the cars’ owners.
Mike Garrison, owner of High Torque Racing Auto Body and Paint Inc. in Meriden, KS, stands near a handicap van his shop had been working on before a fire the morning of Feb. 7. Credit: Chris Neal/The Capital-Journal
“I’ve talked to them in the calmest way I can,” Garrison said. “It’s devastating.” Although he suspects the fire may have started in an electric heater, Garrison said he will await an official report. Chuck Hanna brought his replica 1966 Shelby Cobra to High Torque to have it painted. “He painted it and it just is fantastic,” Hanna said. “That’s been back
almost six years ago now. And everybody just raves about the paint on the thing. He just to me is second-to-none when it comes to his detail and work and things of that nature.” Hanna said Garrison is wellknown in the region’s drag racing community. After the Cobra paint work, Hanna also has taken personal cars to the business for body work. “People stood in line to get their cars to him,” he said. Garrison also operates a custom automobile upholstery store at 421 N.E. US-24 highway in Topeka. He currently is in the process of relocating the upholstery business to 1931 N.W. Topeka Blvd., which is being remodeled. He said he will rebuild the Meriden business. “I’m going to have to tackle it with a bulldozer first—clean it all up and start over,” Garrison said. “That’s the only thing you can do. I started from the dirt, 11 or 12 years ago, and I’ve just got to start it over again. I don’t want to do anything else. This is what I do. I love doing cars. I love coming to work. This is the best job I’ve ever had in my life.” We thank The Topeka CapitalJournal for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 7
Northwest Technical School Shows Off Project Car in Maryville, MO
hicle from a state of rust and dents to its original polished condition. One recently restored, ‘50s-era car “It was a mess,” Wiederholt said. was on display at Kansas City’s World “It had rust; it had old dents and old of Wheels event the weekend of Feb. fillers. So we had to take it all the way 9–11. down to metal.” While Wiederholt himself has plenty of experience in body work, having run his own shop in the past, he likes to highlight how much work is done by the high school juniors and seniors who take part in the program. “I’ve got 26 [students], and all 26 of them have had their hands all over this thing,” Wiederholt said. Working with older cars like the Metropolitan has its A 1957 Nash Metropolitan undergoes restorations at own challenges, according to Northwest Technical School. The car was picked by the Wiederholt. Often, cars recollision repair technology program to be on display at quire the students to learn how World of Wheels in Kansas City, MO. Credit: Jessika to repaint, re-weld and reEidson, The Forum wire. Sometimes parts are not The Berkshire green, 1957 Nash even available to purchase for older Metropolitan showed off the work models. done by Northwest Technical School’s “You run into everything on these Collision Repair Technology Pro- —like other nasty body work that’s gram. been done previously,” Wiederholt Ronald Wiederholt and his stu- said. “The side chrome is not availdents have worked throughout the able, so we had to actually ping it out, school year to restore the donated ve- sand it and polish it all to save it.” by Jessika Eidson, The Maryville Forum
8 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Jimmy Raymond is in his second year of the program and said the class has helped him see what he is capable of.
“They have speakers come from different hot-rod shops from all around Kansas City,” Wiederholt said. “They talk about the people that they hire and the different things that they can go into.” This isn’t the first car Wiederholt and his students have repaired, and it certainly won’t be the last. According to Wiederholt, he intends to sell the Nash and buy a rare ‘67 Plymouth Belvedere for the next class to work on.
Trace Hunt and Jordan Sutter work in Northwest Technical School’s auto body shop. The students repaired the ‘50s-era car under the instruction of Ron Wiederholt. Credit: Jessika Eidson, The Forum
“It was cool doing it for the first time last year and then seeing the outcome,” Raymond said. “It was new to me, so I didn’t know I was able to do something like that.” Raymond and his classmates displayed their work all weekend at World of Wheels. The students also participated in “Student Day,” during which they met professional auto body mechanics and learned more about career options.
Dustin Riddle works on a vintage Metropolitan. Students took on many repairs such as welding, painting and rewiring to restore the car. Credit: Jessika Eidson, The Forum
“If we do a rotisserie 10-point build on that, we can get $40,000–$50,000,” Wiederholt said. “We can take that money and put it back into the program.” We thank The Maryville Forum for reprint permission.
New Baden Auto Body in IL Becomes 3rd Generation, Family-Owned Shop by Staff, Herald Publications
When Brian Hoerchler was a young boy, he would oftentimes help his dad at the family auto body shop, sweeping floors and doing other odds-andends projects. Now, he is the new owner of New Baden Auto Body. On Jan. 1, Brian took over the family business from his dad, Tim Hoerchler, making New Baden Auto Body a third-generation, family-owned-and-operated business. Before Tim Hoerchler was the owner, his dad, Harold Hoerchler, started the company. “My dad started the business in 1957, and the first shop was right across from the (now police station) on Hanover Street,” Tim Hoerchler said. The shop moved in 1966 to where they are now, on South Railway Street. “There used to be a lumber shop there, and they tore it down and put in the auto body shop,” Tim Hoerchler said. Harold Hoerchler ran the business until April 1, 1979, when Tim took over. Throughout the years and the changing of hands, the services had changed too. “From 1957 until 1979, the services that we offered were just auto
body repair, painting and towing,” said Tim Hoerchler. He added that when he took over in ‘79, they added 24-hour towing and in-house framework. They have also added vehicle air conditioning work
Tim Hoerchler (right) hands over the “keys” of New Baden Auto Body to his son, Brian (left), now the third-generation owner of the family business
and selling tires to their list. Now that Brian Hoerchler is in the picture as the owner, he said that plans for the future include bringing the business back onto Hanover Street so they can be seen more by customers and residents. “Where we are located now, a lot of people don’t really see us or know about our business,” said Brian. “Since we are not on the main street, we oftentimes get overlooked.” Brian also said that he’d like to do more mechanical work and hire another employee in the future. Brian is
definitely no stranger to the business. He helped his dad as a kid at the auto body shop, even before he began working there after high school. Tim Hoerchler said he’s not going anywhere yet though; he plans to stick around for a while, helping out at the shop. “And make sure I drive Brian crazy every once in a while,” he laughed. The transition of the company to his son is very exciting for Tim. “It’s a third-generation business, and there are not a lot of third-generation body shops in this area,” he said. New Baden Auto Body takes pride in its work and customers. “We have guaranteed our work from day one. We don’t have comebacks that cost a lot of money to have fixed,” said Tim Hoerchler. “We have always guaranteed and will continue to guarantee our work. We want to service the people and do a good job and do it right. That’s always been our goal.” The Hoerchlers said they accept all insurance work. “Don’t ever let the insurance company tell you where to take your car,” said Tim Hoerchler. “You pay for it. You pay for the insurance. It’s up to you— not the insurance company—[to determine] where your car gets fixed.”
In addition, they stress supporting local businesses. “Your local businesses are the ones that support your children’s sports and academic programs, so work with your local businesses,” said Tim Hoerchler. “You need to do your business in town so we can keep business in town.” New Baden Auto Body offers a virtually unlimited list of services because of its 59 years in the auto body repair business. When it comes to its business, it offers its customers fair and honest pricing to go along with its expert results. Listed below are the services the shop offers its clients: • 24-Hour Towing • Auto Body Repair • Auto Body Collision Repair • Frame Straightening • Tire Installation • Dent Removal • Auto Glass Repair • Insurance Claim Processing
For more information about New Baden Auto Body, stop by and see Brian at 302 S. Railway St. in New Baden, or call (618) 588-4571.
We thank Herald Publications for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 9
Career Academy Students Assist Iowa Body Shop for Job Shadow Day by Hans Madsen, The Messenger
Mike Sittig, a body technician at Curt Bacon Body Shop, got a little help Feb. 2 with preparing the surface of a damaged door that he was going to repaint. His temporary assistant, Lexy Beck, 18, a senior at Eagle Grove High School in Eagle Grove, IA, even had a bit of previous experience. “My dad and I rebuilt a 1952 pickup,” she said. “We left the outside rusty. It’s a rat rod, but we restored the interior. He let me do a lot of the grinding.” Beck was among dozens of students who got to experience the workplace during the Iowa Central Community College Career Academy Job Shadow Day on Feb. 2. The job shadow at the body shop let her experience firsthand what a day at work might be like. “It gives me an inside look at what I’d be doing on a workday,” she said. “This is actual work.” After graduating, she plans on enrolling in the Iowa Central Auto Collision Program. “This just proves to me [that] I like it,” she said. Sittig had no trouble recommending either his profession or the Iowa Central course to learn it. “You have to have the education,” he said. “Soak in everything you can.” He said he enjoys the transition that he can achieve. “It’s the love of cars,” he said.
“It’s the ability to take something that looks like junk [and make it look] nice again.” Colleen Bartlett, a career academy specialist with Iowa Central’s North Central Career Academy in Eagle Grove, said an opportunity to job shadow offers the students several benefits.
Lexy Beck, 18, of Eagle Grove, works on roughing up the surface of a door to be repainted at Curt Bacon Body Shop in Fort Dodge Feb. 2. Credit: Hans Madsen
“A student can explore a career and talk to a professional to find out what education is needed, the future for the job and the skills needed,” she said. “Job shadows are a way to explore what jobs are in our region and what the expectations are.” She said that 57 businesses from Fort Dodge, Clarion, Eagle Grove, Humboldt, Webster City and Storm Lake were involved in the job shadow. Career Academy students attend the Clarion-Goldfield-Dows High School as well as high schools in Eagle Grove, Fort Dodge, Humboldt and Webster City. Students also attend
Crash Sends Cash Flying All Over Illinois Highway by Scott Andera, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
You’ve heard of market crashes? Well, on Jan. 23, a couple of drivers in Illinois took that a step further, creating a real-life cash crash.
Credit: The News-Gazette
A black passenger car carrying money and cash-out vouchers spun out of control, smacking into a guardrail and a truck with a flatbed trailer. That sent cold, hard cash onto the cold,
hard pavement of eastbound Interstate 74 just east of Mahomet, according to the Champaign News-Gazette. Illinois State Police trooper Tracy Lillard said both vehicles wound up in the center median, and a third vehicle swerved and detoured into a ditch to avoid the first crash. The driver of that vehicle was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Lillard told the News-Gazette. The other drivers had minor injuries. The highway, however, was shut down for nearly an hour, backing up traffic for four miles, according to the Illinois State Police. None of the drivers were identified in the report, though if you think you still might have a shot at free money, police said they cleared all the cash. We thank St. Louis Post-Dispatch for reprint permission.
10 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
from St. Edmond Catholic School in Fort Dodge. Tanner Dennis, 18, a senior at Fort Dodge Senior High, was shadowing Tony Blomberg, installation manager at Access Audio & Accessories in downtown Fort Dodge. He’s still, like many high school seniors, not 100 percent locked into a career choice. “I’m kind of exploring,” he said. “I know I want to do something electrical.” As part of their morning work day, Dennis got to watch Blomberg install wiring in a new Fort Dodge Police Department squad vehicle and do a remote start installation. It’s high tech. Blomberg—with several bundles of multicolored wires in his hand—was reading the instructions for the specific car they were working on on his tablet. “It’s complicated,” Dennis said. “I’m just watching right now.” Blomberg said his work is very much learn-on-the-job. “When I first started, I had no clue,” he said. “Watching and handson, it’s easier to learn.”
Dennis would get his chance to plug in a few wires. “Sure,” Blomberg said. “If he wants to.” Chloe Knigge, 16, a junior at Eagle Grove High School, immersed herself in a business environment at the Greater Fort Dodge Growth Alliance offices. She, too, is still trying to narrow down her career choice. “I don’t know yet,” Knigge said. “I’m interested in anything that has to do with business.” Among the staff at the Growth Alliance, she got to visit with Kelly Halsted, economic development director. “I think it’s great,” Halsted said. “I didn’t have that opportunity in school. This is real-life experience and a chance to see what happens.” Knigge got to meet all the staff at the Growth Alliance and learned about their various roles. At the end of the day, she still wanted to pursue a business career. “This is reassurance of what I want to do,” Knigge said. We thank The Messenger for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 11
Proposal To Repeal Michigan’s No-Fault Car Insurance System by Staff, UpMatters.com
State Rep. Beau LaFave recently joined House colleagues in unveiling an eight-bill package repealing Michigan’s no-fault car insurance system to bring significant relief to drivers paying the nation’s most expensive insurance premiums.
The proposal repeals the nofault system and moves Michigan to a full-tort system similar to other states, such as Wisconsin. Another bill in the package continues benefits for everyone already receiving lifetime health care after a catastrophic traffic accident. “I promised during the campaign that I would come to Lansing, play nice and try to reform no-fault,” said LaFave, of Iron Mountain. “The
Lansing special interests refused to negotiate in good faith, and House Bill 5013 failed. I’m not playing ‘Mr. Nice Guy’ anymore. The arguments in support of no-fault have run out of gas. The time has come to repeal it.” Michigan drivers will still be required to have insurance, but these bills provide them with more choice and flexibility by eliminating the mandate to buy unlimited medical coverage. Accident victims will have the ability to sue at-fault drivers for economic damages and non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering. The legislation also includes a “legacy fee” to continue to fund the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association (MCCA) until it is no longer needed. The MCCA system will be closed to new entrants. “We don’t want anyone already catastrophically injured to lose their benefits,” LaFave said. “We will implement a legacy fee to make sure those now receiving treatment can continue to do so by funding the MCCA.”
MI Collision Repair Shop Owner Bribes Police Officer by Robert Snell, The Detroit News
A city police officer in Detroit, MI, has pleaded guilty to extortion for pocketing bribes from an auto collision shop owner.
Charles Wills, 52, struck a plea deal in federal court Feb. 8 for his role in a broader corruption scandal involving six current and former officers that emerged in December. U.S. District Judge Robert Cleland will sentence Wills on June 12 in federal court in Port Huron. The extortion charge is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Wills admitted to accepting more than $4,000 from a Detroit collision shop operator in exchange for referring owners of two abandoned vehicles to that repair shop. Wills received
the payments in September 2014. “This is another stain on the badge, but it’s important to point out that this doesn’t reflect on the entire Detroit Police Department. The majority of our officers do a wonderful job,” Detroit Police Chief James Craig said Feb. 9. Wills is the fifth person charged in the extortion scandal to plead guilty. The others are: ● James Robertson, 45, pleaded guilty to two counts of extortion. ● Jamil Martin, 46, pleaded guilty to one count of extortion. ● Martin Tutt, 29, pleaded guilty to two counts of extortion. ● Anthony Careathers, 52, pleaded guilty to one count of extortion. A sixth person, Deonne Dotson, 45, is awaiting trial. “The vast majority of Detroit Police Officers are courageous, dedicated, superb public servants, but unfortunately these defendants are an exception to that rule,” U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider said in a statement Feb. 9. Staff writer George Hunter contributed.
We thank The Detroit News for reprint permission.
12 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Colorado abandoned its nofault system in 2003. According to a 2008 governor’s study, the average car insurance premium in the state decreased 35 percent since the state moved to a tort car insurance system. Michigan drivers could see greater savings by parting ways with its no-fault system, which is the only one in the nation mandating unlimited medical coverage. Florida, one of the 12 states operating with a nofault system, is also debating repeal. LaFave said the plan would bring more insurance companies to the state, including some that have been avoiding Michigan because of its no-fault system. LaFave also noted that the competition from more companies doing business in Michigan will even further drive down car insurance rates. The bill package, House Bills 5517-23, were formally read into the record the week of Feb. 4. This information was provided by the office of State Representative Beau LaFave We thank UpMatters.com for reprint permission.
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Missouri House Considers Anti-Vehicle Safety Inspection Legislation
On Feb. 7, the Missouri House Transportation Committee held a hearing to address House Bill (HB) 1444. HB 1444 would repeal Missouri’s vehicle safety inspection program. During the hearing, proponents of HB 1444 cited consumer expense and overall inconvenience as justification for the legislation. They also claimed a lack of evidence as to the program preventing accidents, injuries and deaths. Ben Steinman, ASA-Midwest member and owner of Ben’s Auto Body in Mexico, MO, gave testimony supporting the program, along with representatives from the Missouri State Highway Patrol, AAA and other organizations. Following the hearing, Steinman said, “I see vehicles in my shop daily that are unsafe to operate on the highways. If this bill passes, I would be very concerned about the safety of my family and, for that matter, all motorists on our roadways.” ASA continues to oppose HB 1444 and encourages all interested parties in Missouri to visit TakingTheHill.com and click “Alerts” to contact their state representatives in opposition.
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 13
Margaret Dunning Foundation Grant Supports Auto Tech Program in MI by Staff, Hometown Life
The Educational Excellence Foundation, serving the Plymouth-Canton Community Schools district, received a grant of $53,000 from the Margaret Dunning Foundation to support equipment upgrades in Canton High School’s CTE automotive technology program. The grant funded the purchase of two pieces of equipment—an alignment machine and a paint prep station, which will expand the safety and technological capacity of the program. A critical component of the automotive technology program is having students diagnose all problems with vehicles that are brought to the shop, located in Canton High School, and complete the repair. The alignment machine allows students to utilize current technology and align the majority of vehicles on the road. It also teaches students how to service vehicles with new steering and suspension designs such as electronic steering, electronic ride control and even autonomous driving cars. “I have started to see students take to doing alignments and not give up until the vehicle is 100 percent corContinued from Page 4
Last Mile Delivery
significantly reduce carbon footprint. Clean and affordable deliveries, combined with returns made easy, will meaningfully improve people’s daily lives. “Deliveries are the perfect first application for autonomous vehicles,” said Daniel Laury, CEO of udelv. “Customers simply open the locker with a press of a button on their mobile device, and the vehicle heads on its way to the next delivery or back to the store. “This is a historic revolution in transportation. We are reinventing deliveries. McKinsey estimates that 80 percent of all package deliveries will be autonomous in the next decade. I am very proud that udelv is first and leads this revolution.”
rect. These are students who are going into the automotive repair business and have a drive for doing alignments. It will only pay off for them in the future,” CTE teacher Jerry Lickey said. “This is the first step in turning the ad-
Students in Canton High School’s CTE automotive technology program work with the alignment machine that was purchased with funds through a grant from the Margaret Dunning Foundation
vance automotive training center into a true state-of-the-art training center, and we are truly excited about what the future will bring.” The second piece of equipment is a paint prep work station for students in the automotive paint collision repair and restoration program. This prep station is utilized in all aspects of “Our customers are very techsavvy,” said Richard Draeger, owner, Draeger’s Market. “We look forward to adding the udelv autonomous vehicle and its cost reduction factor to our delivery fleet.” The company, with several technology patents pending, is planning to test dozens of udelv vehicles on the roads in a few states within a short timeframe. udelv is planning to use a subscription business model to roll out its vehicle fleet. Led by Laury and CTO Akshat Patel, former Tesla and Apple special projects engineer manager, udelv is listed on the California DMV Autonomous Vehicle Tester Program under the name of CarOne LLC. The company is funded by a group of investors that includes prominent U.S. and international venture capital funds as well as private investors.
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14 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
the painting and auto body repair process and provides students and faculty the safest workspace possible by mitigating many pollutants, dust and debris that is generated when working on the vehicles. The automotive technology program has gone through substantial change throughout the years, transitioning from an “automotive hobby shop” to an “automotive training center.” The curriculum has become more rigorous and the program has had an increase in enrollment. These two pieces of equipment purchased with the grant from the Margaret Dunning Foundation help provide a relevant, rigorous and engaging curriculum. “We were thrilled to receive the support from the foundation,” EEF Executive Director Gretchen Ward said. “This equipment helps give our P-CCS students a unique skill set that will help them transition into the workforce or advance their studies in post-secondary education in the safest environment possible.” The EEF, founded in 1985, is a nonprofit 501(c)3 corporation for the exclusive purpose of providing financial and other support for students and teachers in the Plymouth-Canton Community Schools district. The
foundation enhances educational experiences by funding projects not supported by tax dollars. Additionally, the foundation provides financial and grant-making services to a number of donor-advised funds, facilitates scholarships and hosts a number of fundraising events. The Margaret Dunning Foundation was founded by Dunning in 1987. She was born in 1910 in Redford Township and moved with her mother to Plymouth in the 1920s. During her lifetime, Dunning was a successful business woman, philanthropist and civic booster. She was a major supporter of many Plymouth nonprofits, including the Plymouth District Library and the Plymouth Historical Society. In addition to her personal philanthropy, Dunning was a classic car enthusiast and regular participant in the Woodward Dream Cruise with her 1930 Packard 740 Roadster. Dunning died in 2013 at the age of 104. Her estate provided additional funding for the Margaret Dunning Foundation, which continues to support her charitable interests and legacy. For more information, go to www .margaretdunningfdn.org. We thank Hometown Life for reprint permission.
MI Clinic Owners Charged in $1M Insurance Scam
by Ryan Smith, Insurance Business America
The owners of a Michigan physical rehabilitation clinic have been charged in connection with a $1 million insurance swindle that involved staging car
accidents and submitting bogus claims for physical therapy services. Eight other people have already been convicted in the scam. Maria Del Carmen RamirezRodriguez, aka Maria Del Carmen Pou, and Mavin David Rodriguez have been indicted for allegedly conspiring to commit mail fraud against insurance companies, healthcare fraud and mail fraud, stated an MLive.com report. According to the government, the scam ran from 2011 to 2014. Ramirez-Rodriguez and Rodriguez
owned and operated Primary Rehab Center in Grand Rapids, MI. Prosecutors said that they used “patientrecruiters” who found people who were “willing to participate in staged automobile accidents—accidents that were planned out before they occurred,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald Stella said in the indictment. “Defendants also asked the patient recruiters to find individuals who had experienced their own automobile accidents, but were not truly in need of any medical treatment.” Recruits were usually paid anywhere from $500 to $1,000 to claim they’d been injured in the crashes, MLive.com reported. According to prosecutors, the defendants coached the recruits on what symptoms to report. If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison for the mailfraud charges and five years on the healthcare fraud charges, MLive.com said. We thank Insurance Business America for reprint permission.
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Students Repair Police Cruiser Totaled During 2016 Cavs Celebration in OH by Sam Allard, Cleveland Scene
During the joyous, raucous celebration of the 2016 Cavaliers championship on the streets of downtown Cleveland, OH, fans destroyed a police cruiser. This was small potatoes compared to the revelry and mayhem in Philadelphia Feb. 4, but the cruiser’s damage in Cleveland was nevertheless considered extensive and beyond repair. Two people were arrested. But the story has a happy ending.
As originally reported by Fox 8, Max Hayes High School teacher Greg Boykin saw the busted cruiser on the news that June night and saw
a potential project for his students. Max Hayes, formerly a vocational high school, now gives students opportunities to learn high-tech skills in the fields of construction, engineering, manufacturing and mechanics. Boykin approached the city about letting his auto body students try their hand at repairing the damaged vehicle. For the past year and a half, students have been working on a complete refurbishing effort: sanding, painting and buffing the exterior and replacing its roof, hood and side panels. Fox 8 reported that materials were donated by Sherwin Williams, Safelite Auto Glass, Meguiar’s, Dollar Bank and United Sales.
And recently, the students completed the repair and returned it to the Cleveland Police. It’ll reportedly be put back into service as a zone car. The city’s Division of Motor Vehicle Maintenance Commissioner Jeff Brown was ecstatic. He’d pegged the vehicle as totaled and said the city had planned to scrap it for parts, and that the Max Hayes students’ work saved the city about $10,000.
“It’s absolutely fantastic,” he said.
We thank Cleveland Scene for reprint permission.
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Hit and Run Leaves Shop with a Mess, Help Needed
A hit-and-run that occurred Saturday, Feb. 3, around 4 a.m. in Letcher County, KY, has left Waylon’s Auto Body Shop with a mess. Waylon Church, the owner, has many unanswered questions and says the driver
is still unidentified. The collision was caught on surveillance video. The footage shows the driver veering off the road, smashing into a car, and then hitting two more. Church says the car looks to be a dark colored, early 1990’s to early 2000’s Toyota Camry with a lighter colored bumper. If you know who was driving the vehicle, you are asked to call the Jenkins Police Department at 606832-4411.
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 15
H ONDA ILLI NO I S
Honda Superstore of Lisle Ch i ca go /Su b u rb s
866-874-6632 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5 hondaparts@auto-plaza.com
Schaumburg Honda Automobiles Sch a u m b urg
847-884-8898 847-884-6632 Dept. Hours: M-F 6:30am-Midnight; Sat 8am-5pm k.kelley@rohrman.com IND I AN A
Basney Honda M i sh a wa k a
800-877-7477 574-255-2179 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-2
Bob Rohrman Honda La fa ye tte
800-488-3537 765-448-1000 Dept. Hours: M 7:30-8; Tue-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-3 Brho.partsmgr@rohrman.com
Bosak Honda H ig h l a nd
800-542-6725 219-922-3102 Dept. Hours: M 8-5; Tue 8-8 W, Thu, F 8-5; Sat 8-4 davepropeck@bosakmail.com
A CU RA OH I O
Columbia Acura Ci n ci nn a ti
800-654-3553 513-530-0698 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5:30; Sat 8-12 columbiaparts@mail.com IL L IN O IS
Acura of Libertyville Li b e rty vi ll e
847-680-7333 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 7:30-4 kmilz@acuralibertyville.com
Arlington Acura in Palatine Pa l a ti n e
800-991-8438 847-991-9005 Dept. Hours: M-W 7:30-7:30; Thu-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-3 aaip.partsmgr@rohrman.com
16 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Please contact these dealers for your Honda or Acura Genuine parts needs. I NDI A NA
M INNE SO TA
M IS SOU RI
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Honda of Fishers
Luther Hopkins Honda
Frank Leta Honda
F ishe r s
Ho pkin s
S t . L ou is
Be d ford
800-806-6404 317-299-3723
800-328-6016 952-908-8585
888-680-6025 636-336-5003
800-509-9057 440-786-3363
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6 honda-west@att.com
Dept. Hours: M-Thu 7-9; F 7-6; Sat 8-4 tim.lewis@hopkinshonda.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 7-5 hondaparts@frankleta.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-4 jayhondaparts@gmail.com
Honda of Tiffany Springs
Great Lakes Honda
Victory Honda
Richfield-Bloomington Honda
Pl ymo uth
MI C HIG A N
800-824-4646 734-453-3600 Dept. Hours: M 7:30-8; Tue-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-4 Karl_messer@victoryplymouth.com
Zeigler Honda Ka la ma zo o
888-342-1678 269-585-5812 Dept. Hours: M-Thu 7-8; F 7-6; Sat 8-4 bobsmith@zagteam.com MI N NES O TA
Brookdale Honda B roo k lyn Ce nter
800-899-8900 763-331-6880 Dept. Hours: M-Th 7-9; F 7-6; Sat 8-6 parts@lutherbrookdalehonda.com
Buerkle Honda St. Pa u l
800-592-9514 651-484-0975 Dept. Hours: M-Thu 8-9; F 8-6; Sat 8-4:30 hondaparts@buerkle.com
IL L INO IS
K a ns a s C it y
Ak ro n
R ichf ie ld
816-452-3221
800-328-2703 612-866-8197
Dept. Hours: M-Fri 7-6; Sat 7-4 parts@hondaoftiffanysprings.com
330-633-8197 330-633-6060
Dept. Hours: M-Thu 6:30-9; F 6:30-6; Sat 6:30-5 parts@rbhonda.com
Roper Honda
M ISS OUR I
Bommarito Honda Ha ze lwoo d
800-731-8270 314-731-8270
Jo p li n
877-244-6632 417-625-0846 Dept. Hours: M, W, Th, F 7:30-6; Tu 7:30-7; Sat 9-1 dvice@roperauto.com N EBR AS KA
Superior Honda of Omaha
Ed Napleton Honda
O m ah a
S t . P et e rs
800-875-4190 636-928-4400 Dept. Hours: M-Sat 7-6 gethondaparts@napleton.com
Frank Fletcher Honda C ol um bia
573-818-3650 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 gropp@fletcherauto.com
888-408-0911 402-408-1100 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5:30; Sat 8-6 ianw@hondaofomaha.com
Honda of Lincoln Li n co ln
800-742-7811 402-437-1201 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5:30; Sat 7-12 hondaparts@hondaoflincoln.com
Buerkle Acura
O rl a ndo Par k
Mi nneap ol i s
Tr oy
708-460-6369 708-403-7770
800-717-3109 763-488-1122
800-935-0923 248-643-0900
Dept. Hours: M-W 8-5:30; Thu 8-7 F 8-4:30 Sat 8-2 acuraparts@rizzacars.com
Dept. Hours: M, F 7-5:30; Tue-Thu 7-7; Sat 7:30-4 acuraparts@buerkle.com
Dept. Hours: M 7:30-8; T-F 7:30-6; Sat 10-3 parts286@acuraoftroy.com parts287@acuraoftroy.com
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Dept. Hours: M 6:30-6; Tue-F 6:30-9; Sat 8-4 parts@bloomingtonacura.com
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Dept. Hours: M-F 7-9; Sat 8-6 acparts@mcgrathag.com
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 17
Continued from Cover
Joliet Shop Murders
Martin testified he was a third cousin through a marriage to the Orams, and was always a welcomed visitor at their shop. That night, he made two visits to the Cass Street body shop after dark— first around 8 p.m. and again around 9:30 p.m. Martin vividly remembered a few people were hanging out inside the body shop: Oram, his girlfriend, Wills and “him,” he testified, pointing his finger into the courtroom. “Him,” Martin testified, was the man in the gray suit with the blue tie sitting next to Will County Public Defenders Alexander Beck and Amy Christiansen. The defendant, “Billy” Krasawski, is 42. “This was the first time I had ever met him,” Martin testified, referring to the double murder defendant. “They were in there smoking cocaine—Mike, Jamie and the defendant,” Martin told the courtroom. Prosecutors asked their witness if the three were being secretive about their crack cocaine use. “No, [it was] right in the open,” Martin answered. As for Martin, he steered clear of the drugs and searched the garage for another bolt to test on his girlfriend’s car, he testified. At one point, he noticed “Billy” wander over to the back of the garage, an area commonly called “The Hole.” “I told Mike (Oram) and he said, ‘Oh, don’t worry about it,’” Martin testified. “That’s where they kept all their tools (that) they lock down at the end of the night.” Martin testified Oram was not discreet about smoking crack cocaine inside the family-owned business as long as his father, who owned the place, was not around. Doug Oram and another son, Doug Jr., discovered Mike’s bludgeoned body the following day around noon. Joliet Police officers were on the scene within minutes. “If his dad wasn’t there, he just [smoked],” Martin testified, referring to Mike Oram’s penchant for smoking crack cocaine in the body shop. “Mike was always open with it.” During cross examination, defense attorney Beck asked, “Did you ever smoke crack cocaine?” “No,” Martin answered. “I never
did it.” Beck asked how Martin knew for sure the substance being smoked was crack cocaine. “I’ve seen him doing it, and they were doing it right out in the open,” Martin testified. Wills was also smoking crack cocaine, Martin told the courtroom. “Yeah, they were always together,” Martin remembered. However, Martin admitted during testimony that he was currently on probation for a drug-related offense. When Beck pressed him about crack cocaine, Martin testified, “I sold it once or twice.” Next, Assistant State’s Attorney Jeffrey Tuminello handled the questioning for Leah Spalliero, the girlfriend of Martin. When they pulled up to the body shop on the night of March 8, 2016, there was a maroon Ford Mustang parked outside, she testified. The red Mustang belonged to the murder defendant, according to prosecutors. “Was the red Mustang still there when you left?” Tuminello asked. “Yes,” Spalliero testified. Another woman, Felicia Carnes, 28, testified that she drove to the body shop with her 5-year-old daughter to set up an appointment with Mike Oram to have her car’s muffler and brakes repaired. She had just finished her shift at Subway, she recalled. When Carnes had permission to enter the garage, “Jamie was in there. Everybody was in there on a chair.” Carnes thought she got to the garage around 9:50 p.m. and probably left around 10:40 p.m. “It was the defendant and it was Jamie and Mike ... Nobody left,” she testified. “Silly question, but Jamie and Mike—they were alive when you left?” Tuminello asked his witness. “Yes,” Carnes testified. The other Will County public defender, Amy Christiansen, tried to poke holes in the woman’s testimony. As a result, Carnes conceded during cross examination that she did not see anybody upset or angry while she was inside the Cass Street garage. “They were just laughing and giggling,” Carnes testified. Christiansen asked whether Mike Oram looked like he “was afraid of Billy.” “No,” Carnes answered. Christiansen repeated the ques-
18 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
tion, but asked whether Jamie Wills seemed “afraid of Billy.” “No,” Carnes repeated.
Mistrial Declared At 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, Will County Judge Dave Carlson declared a mistrial in the double murder trial for defendant William “Billy” Krasawski. Wednesday’s turn of events was stunning for everyone in Courtroom 407, including the three prosecutors and the two public defenders representing Krasawski. The situation arose within a matter of minutes after the prosecution summoned Joliet Police Department detective, Tom Ponce, a 34-year police veteran, to the stand. After Ponce recited his professional background, he was asked to explain his involvement in the March 9, 2016 double murder case inside the Joliet body shop on East Cass Street. According to Ponce’s testimony, the defendant was in Chicago Heights and he was being detained on a parole violation. The witnesses were not supposed to testify about the defendant having had a criminal history. At that point, one of the public defenders, Alexander Beck, arose from his chair and objected. The jury was
sent out of the courtroom for about 15 minutes. The issue at hand was Ponce’s testimony informing the jury that the defendant was already a convicted criminal. Outside the jury’s presence, Judge Carlson told everyone that his only recourse, given Ponce’s testimony, was to declare a mistrial and start the legal process all over. After all, if Krasawski is found guilty of first-degree murder, he faces a sentence of natural life in prison. “Nobody is pleased; we feel that the trial was going real well, but in order to preserve Billy’s rights, that was definitely the only choice, we, as well as Judge Carlson, had,” Will County Public Defender Amy Christiansen told Joliet Patch immediately after the judge dismissed the jury. Public defender Alexander Beck emphasized to Patch that his client maintains his innocence in the 2016 double murders on Joliet’s east side. Wednesday afternoon’s testimony from the Joliet Police detective tainted his client’s right to a fair trial, Beck said. Before Judge Carlson rendered his decision, there was interesting debate within the courtroom, outside the See Joliet Shop Murders, Page 30
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 19
Burlington, ND, Auto Body Shop Fights City in Zoning Dispute by Jill Schramm, Minot Daily News
An ongoing zoning dispute between the City of Burlington, ND, and the owner of an auto body business continues to work its way through court. The City of Burlington brought a complaint in North Central District Court in June 2016 against Alton Johnson of J & J Auto for operating a wrecking and salvage business in a neighborhood commercial district, in violation of city code. A status hearing is scheduled for April 16. The city alleges the property is “a visual eyesore, attracts vermin and pests, and presents a hazard to health and safety.” Johnson has responded that he operates an auto body repair business at 144 Ida Avenue that includes buying, dis-
mantling and repairing damaged automobiles and temporarily storing automobiles and parts. He claims the zoning
J & J Auto in Burlington has been the subject of a legal battle over zoning between the owner and the city. Credit: Jill Schramm, MDN
ordinance is invalid because it was not drafted in accordance with state law. He
Storm Keeps Body Shops Busy in Cedar Rapids, IA
by Phil Reed, KCRG-TV9
Operations Manager Trent Thompson with Bob Mickey Collision Center in Cedar Rapids, IA, said they just got caught up on fixing cars from December’s major snowstorm. They had about 60 cars come in during that time, and he’s expecting about the same after the snowstorm on Feb. 5.
20 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
also asserts his shop operates as a permissible nonconforming use. Johnson has sought dismissal of the city’s complaint and filed a counterclaim alleging illegal taking by the city of his property in refusing to allow his business. The city has asked the court to dismiss the counterclaim. The city granted a building permit in 1973 that led to the opening of the body shop. A fire in 1989 forced the business to relocate, but Johnson states in court records that he continued part of the business at the original site. In 1991, Johnson leased space to a metal recycling/salvage business, which operated until 2012. During that time, Johnson again states he continued to use part of the property for auto body and repair.
Many of those cars arrived Feb. 6 as tow bans were lifted. Thompson said it’s hard to handle all of the cars arriving at once. He said most of the damage the shop sees comes from rear end collision, or cars sliding into a ditch. The shop’s workers are going to be putting in long hours to get vehicles fixed as fast as possible, so they ask people to be patient. Thompson said, “As we get more infor-
In March 2013, the city notified Johnson that his intended use of the property was not permissible under the zoning ordinance. The city sent a cease and desist notice in September 2013. Johnson then began a civil action against the city. The judge’s order determined Johnson needed a variance. However, Johnson claimed in responding to the June 2016 complaint that the city was ignoring his request for a variance. The city acted on his variance request to deny it in December 2016. Johnson filed a court appeal in January 2017. A March 29 status conference is scheduled on the appeal.
We thank Minot Daily News for reprint permission.
mation from insurance companies and parts vendors throughout the process, we transfer that information to our customers to keep them up to date with what’s going on. And sometimes in situations like this, that’s the best we can do—keep you informed and up to date.” We thank KCRG-TV9 for reprint permission.
Arcanum, OH, Body Shop Manager Retires After 48 Years by Susan Hartley, Early Bird Paper
Not too many people can say they’ve been on the job for the same company since the age of 16. Arcanum, OH’s Russ Julien is an exception. For nearly 50 years, Julien has been a fixture at Troutwine Auto Sales Inc. in downtown Arcanum. Julien was hired by Web Troutwine in 1970, while a student at Arcanum High School. He said he took the job “washing cars and sweeping floors” at the dealership. “I was paid $1 per hour,” Julien recalled. “And I always had some money in my pocket.” Following high school graduation in 1972, Julien attended the former General Motor’s Fisher Body School in Cincinnati, where he was trained in collision repair and refinishing. He returned to Troutwine Auto Sales Inc. as a body technician and, following the retirement of Ralph Eubanks in 1974, Julien took the position of body shop manager at the age of 20, supervising employees Boyd Hunt and Larry Fox. Much has changed within the
automotive industry during the past 48 years, Julien said. “You used to open the hood and all you’d see is an engine,” he laughed. Today’s vehicles are “so complex with
had one customer who lives in Dayton give me a call the other day to tell me how much he liked working with me.” Julien and his wife, Deanne, have been married 38 years and are parents of two children and grandparents of two grandchildren. Julien said he plans on spending time with his grandchildren as well as doing some “25-year maintenance” on his home. “We lost our house in the Arcanum tornado in 1992,” Julien explained. The “new” home he built is now 25 years old and needs some painting and upkeep, he Troutwine’s new body shop manager Bobby Vale, left said. is filling the shoes of Russ Julien, right. Julien retired “I have plenty of interests Feb. 2 after 48 years of service. Credit: Susan Hartley to keep myself busy,” he said. computers” running every component. “They (Troutwines) have been wonJulien said the one thing he’ll derful people to work for. We didn’t miss most is working with all the cus- even work the week of the tornado, but tomers he’s met at Troutwine’s. still got a paycheck.” “I like the small town,” he said. Bobby Vore, a 1988 Arcanum “I [have] some of the same customers graduate, will be taking Julien’s posiI’ve had for years. I dealt with some tion as body shop manager, with longof the same people for the past 20 or time employee Jason Fox working 30 years and can tell you what cars with him, said dealership owner Jim they’ve owned over the years. I even Troutwine.
“He’s just taking up where I’m going to be leaving off,” Julien said of Vore, who has been working at the dealership since July 2017. Vore also will be performing many repairs as time allows. Vore learned his trade while in high school at the Montgomery County Joint Vocational School, now the Miami Valley Career Technology Center. He began his career in 1986, at Howell’s Body Shop in Brookville. He also worked for a time at Weber Body and Frame in West Alexandria. “I plan on retiring from here myself,” Vore said, welcoming those looking for quality truck and auto body repairs to stop in Troutwine’s and ask for his assistance. We thank Early Bird Paper for reprint permission.
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 21
Senate Bill 164 Prohibits Steering in IN, IABA Learns From Process by Chasidy Rae Sisk
On Jan. 30, Senate Bill 164, proposed in early January by Senators Mark Messner and Chip Perfect, was approved by a Senate vote of 49-0. The bill sought to prohibit several practices by insurance companies and collision repair facilities that impact relationships with customers, but the final version holds several amendments from the Senate Insurance and Financial Institutions Committee. Senate Bill 164 will be effective on July 1, 2018. The Indiana Auto Body Association (IABA) took an active interest in this initiative, with several board members attending hearings in support of the bill. According to IABA President Doug Martin, “The association felt this
bill was important for consumer rights— It’s about how the claims process should be conducted for them.” The first part of the bill addresses steering by limiting the insurer’s ability to force an insured to a drive-in claim center or similar facility. It also prevents shops from intimidating claimants to boycott a similar facility, as well as from denying SOP access to an insurance representative during normal business hours. IABA is happy that this measure passed because it’s the first anti-steering legislation in Indiana. Senate Bill 164 also forbids insurers to “unilaterally, arbitrarily disregard a repair operation or cost identified by an estimating system, the use of which has been agreed to by the insurer and the repair shop for determining the cost
of the repair.” Martin feels it’s imperative that these “not-included operations be considered in the cost of the repair because they’re often about quality and safety.” Several items were removed from the initial draft, including a requirement for insurers to conduct a physical inspection before adjusting an appraisal if the extent of damage was disputed by the shop and a prohibition for the insurer to specify the use of a particular vendor for parts or material procurement. IABA only learned about Senate Bill 164 two weeks before the hearings, and though not all of the items they had hoped for were included in the bill’s final version, Martin feels it
was still beneficial. “Customers will get better repairs altogether,” he said. “We finally have anti-steering legislation in Indiana, and it’s been a great learning process for all of us. We need to get more shops involved and hope to gain strength by growing IABA’s membership so we yield even better results in the future.” IABA will be holding its first round of meetings for 2018 during the week of February 12–15 for all its different chapters across the state. Martin anticipates discussion of Senate Bill 164 as well as conversations about what association members want to know so the board of directors can prepare its agenda for the rest of the year. For more information, visit www .iaba.info.
seeing a very strong surge,” said Aaron Bruton of Hammer’s Autoworks. By “strong surge,” Bruton is referring to the parking lot full of cars needing repairs after taking a toll from the arctic blast. “It’s always a boost for sure. We’re going to see the suspension hits that people, unfortunately, get into ditches and hit curbs,” said Bruton. The day after the storm, more than a dozen cars poured in
needing work. “It was a pretty big, active morning for us in particular,” said Bruton. “Guys stay late [and] come in early. Some guys come in weekends. We try and develop some shifts that try and accommodate the surge as best we can.” The priority right now is to repair the cars that aren’t drivable. “If it’s very minor damage—scuffs, scratches, those types of things—we’re
seeing several weeks in some cases for wait times,” said Bruton. And while we still have six weeks of winter weather left, Bruton advises to always leave at least three car lengths between you and the car in front of you during icy weather. He also says to never slam on your brakes.
Springfield, MO, Body Shops are Slammed with Work by Brea Douglas, OzarksFirst.com
The day after the Super Bowl Sunday winter blast, Hammer’s Autoworks said it received 20 drop-offs from tow-ins. “This last storm was Super Bowl Sunday. Everybody was out and about celebrating the game and going to different places, so there was a lot more traffic on the road even though the weather was happening. So as a result of that, we’re
We thank OzarksFirst.com for reprint permission.
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 23
Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by ‘ProDaddy’ Expands Building in IL by Jill Moon, The Telegraph
The expansion of an East Airline Drive auto body shop benefits much of the business corridor, its owner said.
Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by “ProDaddy’s” business’s bread and butter is collision work, which makes up the majority of the shop’s business. Shop hours are from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Credit: DRB Photography, for The Telegraph
Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by “ProDaddy,” 57 E. Airline Dr. in Rosewood Heights, IL, is part of a tight-knit group of business owners who support one another and pay it forward whenever possible, the auto body shop’s owner, Ethan “ProDaddy” Humbert, explained. A couple miles’ stretch of Airline Drive, in Rosewood Heights/East Alton, IL, is home to several hometown Madison County businesses that try to keep the market share moving
Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by “ProDaddy’s” specialization includes exotic body modifications. Credit: DRB Photography, for The Telegraph
between them. Humbert not only gives credit to his staff for Pinto’s Kustoms and Collision by ProDaddy’s growth, but also to his neighboring business owners. During a discussion with his neighbors about his customized painting and auto collision shop gaining 52 feet by 80 feet of space, due to an upcoming expansion at the rear of the property approved by Madison County officials, the neighborhood’s business community fully supported the decision, Humbert noted. He estimated the new construction will be complete
within the next five months. “The neighbors think it’s great for the community’s economy,” he said. Humbert, a 1994 Alton High School graduate, started growing his business and reputation as a custom painter with a small shop, ProDaddy, in Wood River a dozen years ago. He also attended Alton’s former technical school, J.B. Johnson, while simultaneously attending classes at AHS from 1993 to 1994. He graduated with honors from Ranken Technical College for auto collision repair. He was enrolled from 1994 to 1996, which was also when he drag raced for the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). Now, big-name racers in that organization, the International Drag Bike Association (IDBA) and No Hatin’ Drag Racin’ Organization (NHDRO), the Midwest’s largest motorcycle dragracing series, race bikes painted and sponsored by Humbert via his custom painting business. ProDaddy moved to Rosewood Heights seven years ago when Humbert bought Pinto Kustoms and Collision from former owner John Panapinto, to whom Humbert talks every few weeks. Humbert simply added his nickname moniker, “ProDaddy,” to the shop’s title when he became the owner. “John is a great body man. He left me a great business with established customers,” Humbert said. Humbert admitted his occupation hasn’t made him rich, but in the last few years he’s made money. “The graphics are all airbrushed or pinstriped—no decals,” said Humbert, who does his shop’s painting himself. He recently bought a new home with wooded acreage in Bunker Hill. “That’s a dream I’ve wanted for a long time,” said Humbert, who still owns his house of the last 18 years in Wood River, undecided whether to sell it. “Absolutely the growth of this business enabled me to realize that dream. But, [for] the first few years, I didn’t make any money.” An enthusiast of motorcycle drag racing since his early teens, now Humbert paints and sponsors professional drag racers’ bikes for the organizations NHRA, IDBA and NHDRO, to which pro-racer Bill DeShong belongs. DeShong, Albany, IN, owner of PortTech, specializing in cylinder heads and racing engines, currently races a
24 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
ProDaddy-painted-and-sponsored bike. Sponsored NHDRO racers also include Ryan Reed and Hurley Davis, who are Humbert’s close friends.
Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by “ProDaddy” business’ heart and soul are in custom painting. Owner Ethan “Pro Daddy” Humbert, of Bunker Hill, does all of the shop’s custom painting work himself, and sometimes in collaboration with Granite City artist Mike Schaffner. Credit: DRB Photography, for The Telegraph
“We take pride in what we do. If it’s not right, we won’t let it leave,” Humbert said. He characterized his shop manager of five years, Mark Schandler, as a “stud.” “The shop doesn’t really function without him,” Humbert said. He described his pair of body
men—Jeff Laughlin and Greg Houser—as “amazing.” Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by ProDaddy’s business’s bread and butter is collision work, but the heart and soul of it are in custom painting and exotic body modifications. “We do a ton of custom motorcycles. We do the majority of Ted’s Motorcycle World (in Alton),” Humbert noted. “If 10 bikes drive by here, I probably did three of them.” He collaborates on Pinto shop work with Granite City artist Mike Schaffner. “We do a lot of the custom work together,” Humbert said. “We—all these guys—work together.” That goes for his fellow business owners along Airline Drive, including Airline Pawn Shop owner Mike Weller, who also owns AP Cigar Co. on E. Airline Drive. “He sends me tons of work and vice versa,” said Humbert, whose shop also mutually sublets work with Mobile Accessories’ owner Jamie Foster, who specializes in window tints and remote starts. See Pinto’s Kustoms, Page 27
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Talent Tours Offer Inside Looks Into Technical Careers in MI work with the school districts in getting these kids out to see real-world stuff,” said Dale Verran, Michigan Copper Country Intermediate School Works! business services consultant. District and Michigan Works! recently The CNA students visited the teamed up to offer “talent tours” for Omega House, Eisenhower Center, UP Health System—Portage, Aspirus Keweenaw and the Lighthouse at Hancock and Hubbell. The automotive class visited Northern Auto, Keweenaw Automotive, Keweenaw Chevrolet, Copper Country Ford and Houghton Powersports. “We’re trying to show those students what’s available. We wanted to give Scott Bukovich, service manager for Keweenaw Automothem a variety,” said Vertive, speaks with automotive tech students during a talent ran. tour held by the Copper Country Intermediate School DisHe explained that every trict and Michigan Works! Photo by Katrice Perkins/ Daily place is different, and the Mining Gazette students can learn and see the students in the automotive tech- new and different things at each place. nology and certified nursing assistant “We want to show them they can (CNA) Career and Technical Educa- stay in this area. They can know what tion (CTE) classes. these employers are looking for so The purpose of the tours is to they’re ready to enter the world when allow the students to see different they graduate,” said Verran. workplaces in their respective fields, The tours were held during Janask questions and learn. uary. The last ones were on Jan. 31 “Michigan Works! is trying to for the CNA class and Jan. 25 for the by Katrice Perkins, The Daily Mining Gazette
automotive class. Completion of the class offers students the ability to take their respective state tests to qualify them to work in the field. CNA student Jordyn Rowe said her favorite place they toured was the lighthouse. “I like the lighthouse because I want to work in a hospital, and it gives you that feeling,” said Rowe. CNA instructor Lorie Maki said the classes are important because once students have passed the state tests, they have many career opportunities. They can use those skills after high school. “It’s helpful because they can work part-time while in college and help with the expenses,” said Maki. The goal for the instructors is to educate the students and show them the endless possibilities. “Ultimately, we want these students to pursue an education in some type of health care profession, and once they receive that education they will come back to our area and be health care providers,” said Maki. We thank The Daily Mining Gazette for reprint permission.
Indiana Passes Approved Autonomous Vehicle Bill
The IN House unanimously passed a bill that provides a basic framework for autonomous car regulation in Indiana, and paves the way for driverless cars in the state’s future. The National Highway and Transportation Safety Administration has approved guidelines for the autonomous vehicle industry, and 21 states have passed legislation related to autonomous vehicles. Indiana is currently not one of those states, but House Bill 1341 seeks to change that. House Bill 1341 requires all automated vehicles to be registered with the BMV; allows licensed drivers to operate automated vehicles on the highway; and establishes an automated vehicle oversight taskgroup that would have to approve he operation of self-driving cars that don’t require a driver in any capacity. Bill author Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, said that residents’ safety is their number one priority. “We’re committed in the state to moving forward and encouraging innovation, but we’re just not going to compromise Hoosier safety,” Soliday said.
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Continued from Page 24
Pinto’s Kustoms
Humbert also shares a special connection with Winners Circle Tire and Automotive owner Danny Michel, whose shop is located across the street from the St. Louis Regional Airport. “We send him a lot of scan issues, related to ‘check engine’ light codes, and any mechanical issues unrelated to auto collision,” Humbert explained. “Danny—he just has a heart of gold.” Humbert also named Top Secret Designs’ owner, Josh McDowell, a friend and overall collaborator in keeping Airline Drive businesses alive and well. Top Secret Designs provides auto vinyl lettering and logos that are not painted. “There’s this thing, to keep business thriving here,” Humbert said. Humbert’s causes are as important to him as his paying customers. “My entire family [is made up of] survivors of cancer,” said Humbert, whose late grandmother remained cancer-free for the last 20 years of her life. “So, I’ll do anything cancer-related in the community. I love to do tributes to
cancer survivors, and I do memorials for cancer victims.” In fact, Humbert’s girlfriend, Megan Grantham, 28, who has stage 3 ovarian cancer, is undergoing chemotherapy treatments. A benefit for Grantham, who is the mother of 7-year-old Waylon, will take place Saturday, March 31, at event host’s Airport Plaza Bowl in Bethalto. Check-in starts at 5:30 p.m. and bowling starts at 6:30 p.m. Play includes nine-pin no-tap, Scotch doubles and tournament. The cost is $25 per team. Humbert also participates in the annual Blessing of the Bikes in Roxana with his father, George Humbert, a retired pastor from Alton’s former College Avenue Presbyterian Church that merged with Wood River’s United Presbyterian Church. For more than three years, he served as Alton’s Oasis Women’s Center’s current board president. The nonprofit organization assists victims of domestic violence and prevention. Humbert, a humble straightshooter and father of two—Ethan Conner Humbert Jr., 13, a student at East Alton-Wood River High School; and, Paige Humbert, 22, a University of Missouri-Columbia graduate who
recently moved to New York City— softens when it comes to his family. His dad was deemed Alton’s Man of the Year years ago. His mother, Lynna Humbert, is a retired registered nurse who was in charge of an Alton Memorial Hospital surgical department. Both of Humbert’s parents are 72 years old. Humbert’s sister, Shanna Schulz, of Georgia, married an aeronautical engineer with Delta. They are parents to son Hayden, 15, and daughter Erika, 11. Pinto’s Kustoms & Collision by ProDaddy is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Visit www.pintoskustoms.com, its Facebook page or call 618-258-8208 for more information. We thank The Telegraph for reprint permission.
Your leading source for MIDWESTERN Collision Repair News! midwestern.autobodynews.com
Chuck Sulkala Scholarship Fund to Honor NABC Founder
The Chuck Sulkala NABC Appreciation Scholarship Fund has been established to honor the 50-year career and legacy of the retiring Founder and Executive Director of the National Auto Body Council (NABC).
NABC Chairman Darren Huggins presents Chuck Sulkala, with commemorative plaque honoring his years of service
“We know of no better way to thank and immortalize Chuck’s significant contributions and impact than to help ensure that a future generation of collision repair professionals will benefit from the many opportunities created during Chuck’s labor of love to transition the image of body shops into today’s respected collision repair industry,” said Darren Huggins, NABC Chairman. The Sulkala scholarship fund, which will be administered by the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), was announced at the National Auto Body Council’s Annual Member Reception in Palm Springs.
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Cautionary Tale
man restoration shop where Alex started working at age 12. After high school, Alex took a six-month course on automotive repair, learning a lot of things he already knew, he said. “In the Bronx, people fix their cars right out in the street, and I started working on my friends’ vehicles while I was in high school,” he said. “Back then, we learned by doing, so when I went to auto tech school, I knew a little more than just the basics.” Father and son worked side-byside restoring primarily classic American cars, and pretty soon, the quality of their work brought them more and more customers. After a while, they moved the business out of the city and continued flourishing. “We moved upstate to Prattsville, NY, where we opened J. Alonso Body Shop in a small facility,” Alex said. “I learned how to do it all—disassembly, sandblasting, painting—you name it. We would turn around our restorations in 4–6 weeks on average, which meant that we were working all the time, but the shop was literally 3 feet from our house, so it was convenient. I would take multiple photos at every stage and put together an album for every customer with 200–300 pictures of their restoration, and they loved it! We built a reputation for quality and [fast work].” In 1989, Alex and his father moved to Montevideo, Uruguay to run a restoration and body shop, where the
business took off despite issues along the way. “We worked on cars for the Israeli, Russian and Spanish embassies on mostly high-end European cars,” Alex said. “Armed guards would come and inspect the vehicles after the repairs and stick mirrors underneath them to make sure everything was safe. They called us the gringos and used to tell us, ‘You gringos do good work.’” Uruguay doesn’t make it easy for collision repairers to do their job, Alex said. “There are a lot of DRPs available to shops in the U.S., but in Uruguay, there is just one insurance company and it is owned and operated by the government,” he said. “The insurance adjustors had all the power and they were a nightmare to deal with. They had a monopoly, so they were rude and nasty all the time and we had to fight with them on every supplement—It was awful.” In 2000, Alex moved to Florida, where he had to go back to square one upon his return. “By the time I got back, it was a different ball game and I couldn’t get a job without a work permit,” he said. “So, I had to take a course and prove what I could do, and then the only job that was available paid $8 an hour. I was working in the hot sun outside painting cars for a shop that charged $300 for a paint job. Luckily, I became friends with a couple of the paint reps there and they helped me get a better job. After a couple years, I was making $1,200 a week working flat rate for a
PPG Funds Refinish Student Scholarships Through CREF
The PPG Foundation has provided $20,000 in funding for the Collision Repair Education Foundation, which will be awarded to students who have demonstrated a career interest in automotive collision repair and refinish. The scholarships, $5,000 each, are awarded annually to full-time students attending a post-secondary school with a focus on degree programs in collision repair. The funds may be used to assist the students with educational expenses such as tuition, books, tools and equipment. Scholarship award winners will be announced later this spring. Domenic Brusco, PPG Automotive Sr. Manager, MVP Business Solutions & Industry Relations, said, “PPG proudly supports the Collision
Repair Education Foundation’s effort to promote careers in the collision industry and assist future professionals as they train for a career. It is more important than ever to showcase the industry as a rewarding career option for students and, through these scholarships, we can help remove some of the financial barriers they face during their technical education.” Industry members interested in working together with the Collision Repair Education Foundation in supporting secondary and post-secondary collision repair students, instructors and their school programs should contact Director of Development Brandon Eckenrode at 847463-5244 or Brandon.Eckenrode@ ed-foundation.org.
28 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
top shop.” In 2012, Alex experienced back pain, so he went to a chiropractor— but it didn’t solve the problem. Finally, he got an MRI. When he went to the orthopedist to find out the results, they met him at the door. “They told me that I had a tumor in one of my kidneys and that I needed to go to the doctor right away,” Alex said. “They removed it and I thought I was out of the woods, but I was wrong.” Today, Alex has stage 4 kidney cancer and the doctors give him 1–2 years to live. The last doctor he saw told him that he wasn’t willing to do any more surgery at this point, because it would possibly make his condition even worse. He is battling for his life and taking chemo pills every day, keeping his hopes up and proceeding as best he can. “I can’t prove it and I’m not blaming anyone, but I know that the risks I took over all the years finally caught up with me,” he said. “I was a mechanic when I was younger and always elbow-deep in all kinds of transmission fluids, brake fluids, motor oil and carburetor cleaner—you name it. I never wore gloves or any protective gear, because when you’re young, you
think you’re a superhero. But all of that stuff gets into your blood, and where do you think it ends up? Your kidneys—that’s right.” After 25 years in the paint booth, Alex also realizes maybe a little too late that wearing a breathing respirator and a full suit is a must, he said. “In Florida, it gets really hot and humid, so sometimes I would either wear a half-suit or take it off and not wear gloves at all,” he said. “I tell painters now to put that mask on; don’t be stupid the way I was. In the early years, some of the equipment wasn’t all that great, but now with all of these oxygen-supplied air respirators, a painter can be safe all the time. Some shops stay on top of it and make safety a priority, but when things get busy and there are a lot of cars in the shop, it can be discarded very easily.” Staying hopeful and positive, Alex wants painters out there to know that their safety and health should be more important than any paycheck. “I am hoping that painters will read this and learn from my mistakes,” he said. “Don’t take shortcuts and compromise your health, because life is precious and no one is indestructible.”
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Fire Damages Elite Auto Body in Orange City, IA
by Staff, KIWA Radio
A business building housing an auto body shop was damaged in a fire on Tuesday, Jan. 30 in Orange City, IA. According to Orange City Fire Chief Denny Vander Wel, about 5 p.m., the Orange City Fire Department was called to the report of a structure fire at Elite Auto Body and Digital Plus- US Cellular on Highway 10 West. The chief said the fire department saw heavy smoke from the outside as they approached the scene. He said people who noticed the fire tried to put it out with dry chemical extinguishers. Vander Wel said firefighters also initially used dry chemical extinguishers because it was a metal building and there was an obvious electrical short going on. He said that once the utility department shut off the power, they switched to a water extinguisher. He said they also used a Sawzall to cut out part of the building that had been burning so it wouldn’t reignite. He said the fire and smoke were limited to the outside of the building and inside the wall. He said there was no Continued from Page 18
Joliet Shop Murders
jury’s presence, on how to deal with the Joliet detective’s error. Ponce was also sent to the hallway so he was oblivious to what was being said about his brief testimony on the stand. The lawyers and the judge appeared stunned that a veteran such as Ponce would blurt out an answer that, even the prosecution, acknowledged warranted a mistrial. Krasawski, who is extremely talkative and antsy in Courtroom 407, told the judge he was leery about having a mistrial declared, if it meant many more months before his case would finally go trial. The double murder defendant has remained in the Will County Adult Detention Facility since his arrest in March 2016, just a few days after the murders occurred. “I’ve already done two years in a bathroom,” the defendant told the judge. “Mr. Krasawski, I get it,” Judge Carlson responded. “I’m still a bit taken aback (by) what was said ... that it was in a trial of this magnitude with people who are experienced knowing
fire or smoke damage to the inside and the black smoke was caused by burning vinyl siding. Vander Wel said no injuries were reported. The fire department was assisted by the Alton Fire Department. Vander Wel said they did ask for Sioux Center’s RIT team to come to the fire, but firefighters had the fire out before they got there, so they were told to turn around. Vander Wel said the RIT team is basically a team to rescue firefighters in an emergency situation, and that he had called them as a precaution. He said the cause of the fire appeared to be an electrical short in the meter base. Chief Vander Wel reported that there was moderate damage. He figured the exterior damage at around $20,000, but the electrical equipment plugged in may be damaged, so that figure could go up quickly. He said they used minimal water to fight the fire, and crews were on scene for about an hour. We thank KIWA Radio for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com the ramifications of it.” Carlson explained that at this stage of the judicial process, Krasawski is presumed to be an innocent man in the eyes of the justice system. “The words seemed so ridiculously unimportant, but I have no doubt an appellate court would disagree with that,” Judge Carlson told everyone. At one point, Krasawski asked if Judge Carlson could perhaps bring the jury back into Courtroom 407 and ask them what they remembered hearing Detective Ponce say on the witness stand. Carlson explained there are strict rules governing how judges can interact with juries during a trial. “I can’t ask those questions,” Carlson responded. He then informed the defendant that if he let the trial proceed and the jury found Krasawski guilty, an appeals court would certainly reverse his conviction and send the case back to the Will County Courthouse for a retrial. “I promise you those little words would be as bright as day to them,” Carlson said. Krasawski thanked Carlson for being a fair-minded and even-keeled judge. Still, the defendant wanted to
30 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
AASP-MN’s Automotive Scholarships Up For Grabs
Thanks to another successful fundraising drive within the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Minnesota (AASP-MN) membership, the association will be awarding scholarships to select students enrolled in post-secondary automotive (mechanical or collision) programs.
Scholarship awards will be $1,000 per student and can be applied towards tuition or tool purchases. Recipients must be entering their first or second year of a two-year NATEFcertified automotive program in the fall of 2018. Applications will be reviewed by a committee of industry representatives, with consideration given to scholastic achievement, education and career goals, financial need and written recommendations. Applications must be postmarked no later than March 31, 2018. Applications can be downloaded from the association’s website, www.aaspmn.org or submitted online at www.automotive
know how long will it take before his second trial could begin? “As soon as possible,” Carlson answered. “My plan is I’ll take up motions on Monday at 9:30 a.m. ... and pick a new trial date. No one wants to kick this down the road.” Next, Krasawski asked what would prevent this same blunder at his second trial. After all, Krasawski’s mother and his sister are expected to testify for the Will County State’s Attorney’s Office against him. They already know his prior criminal history, he reminded the judge. “How do we prevent this?” Krasawski asked. Carlson assured the defendant it was his job to ensure that Krasawski’s rights to due process are not violated in any way. Then, shortly before 3 p.m., the jurors were ushered back into Carlson’s courtroom for what had to be a stunning announcement. “I have declared a mistrial in the case,” Carlson told them. “You no longer have to sit and hear the case. There probably will be a new trial here. Thank you, we appreciate your service.” We thank Joliet Patch for reprint permission.
scholarships.com/AASP-MN. Online submissions give students the opportunity to compete for several different awards, including those offered by the Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium Scholarship Committee and more than 40 other automotive aftermarket organizations and companies. Specific requirements for each organization’s awards can be found at www .automotive scholarships.com. The Education Fund was established in 2002 to provide financial resources to support automotive students, enhance automotive programs and raise awareness of career opportunities in the independent automotive service industry. Since that time, nearly $208,000 has been distributed directly to students enrolled in automotive programs through the association’s scholarship program and Skills USA competition. In 2001, AASP-MN’s efforts to attract a future workforce expanded significantly with the creation of Minnesota Careers in Automotive Repair and Service (MNCARS), a statewide initiative to encourage high school students to pursue an education and career in the automotive service and collision repair industry. Visit www.carcareers.org to learn more.
1,000+ Students Registered for CREF Spring Career Fairs
The Collision Repair Education Foundation announced that more than 1,000 students have registered for its first three spring career fairs being held in Tampa and Miami, FL, and San Antonio, TX, during February and early March. The current Spring 2018 schedule includes: • Feb. 14 – Tampa/Orlando, FL – Hillsborough Community College • Feb. 16 – Miami, FL – Robert Morgan Education Center & Technical College • March 1 – San Antonio, TX – Judson High School • March 16 – Los Angeles, CA – SEMA Headquarters Office • April 6 – Chicago, IL – Tech-Cor • April 7– Phoenix, AZ – LKQ • April 13 – Denver, CO – Manheim • April 18 – 19– Greensboro, NC – North Carolina SkillsUSA State Competition • April 24 – Atlanta, GA – Maxwell Technical High School • April 26 – Boston, MA – Assabet Valley Technical High School • May 16 – Nashville, TN - TBD • Dates & Locations TBD: Dallas, TX; Houston, TX
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Media and Publicity for Shops
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
Too Many Shops are Advertising When They Should Be Marketing with Ed Attanasio
Ryan Taylor is a former body shop owner who invented Bodyshop Booster in 2009, an app that streamlines the estimating process for both customers and shops. He advises collision repairers all over the world on marketing, the customer experience and how to generate more business by using his tools.
which is different from an impulse purchase, where people are motivated and engaged. An on-demand purchase is like finding out your house is flooded or you have diabetes—it’s not
Why do many body shops stumQ: ble when it comes to marketing and advertising, while others seem to
push all of the right buttons all the time?
When I owned my own shop A: and business started to lag, I thought I could offset it by marketing
my business aggressively, so I spent $100,000 on things like radio advertising, and it didn’t even move the needle. I was shocked, so I brought in a lot of experts, and we tore the collision repair industry apart. We found out that when people get in an accident, it’s an on-demand purchase,
Ryan Taylor, the creator of Bodyshop Booster, advises collision repairers all over the world on marketing and advertising
an acquisition that you wake up in the morning anticipating. I’ve never heard anyone say, “Wow, I hope I get in a wreck today!” Most marketing firms provide services to companies that sell prod-
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ucts or services that fall into the impulse decision category, such as new cars, vacations, electronics—things that get people excited. So, if you’re working with a conventional marketing company, they probably don’t know enough about the collision repair industry to be effective. Their experience is buying media (such as print, radio and TV broadcast advertising) because that caters to the entire market. But, as a body shop, your customers are limited, so why are you wasting money to advertise to everyone? In summary, remember that your customer does not want to be your customer, and secondly, there is a very small marketing footprint to get to that customer when they need you—all things I learned the hard way.
Why is it dangerous for shops Q: to rely heavily on their DRPs for the majority of their revenue?
Back in 2011, one of our major A: DRPs (28 percent of our total volume) contacted us with a “courtesy
call” that was far from being courteous. They told us that they were going to give all of their work to a consolidator with 300-plus locations, so we lost nearly one-third of our business with one phone call. Every shop knows that this is an exposure spot for us, but we usually think that it will happen gradually or taper off over a 5–10 year period, rather than in 30 seconds. So, after losing that big DRP, we started looking for ways to diversify our business, and one of them was fleet work. We charted it out and found out that customer pay has been growing. In 2008, it was 5 percent and today it’s 20 percent—and there are a lot of reasons for that. Our analysts are telling us that it will be around 30–38 percent by 2020 and eventually, the DRP system will go away altogether. There are a lot of
reasons why the insurance companies can profit by eliminating their DRP programs, and they’re starting to figure it out. So, we see a major shift in DRPs and a lot of this new technology (Allstate’s new photo app, for example) is aiding them in this shift. In Canada, shops are very DRP-dependent, so we haven’t seen this change there yet, but we believe it will happen there too within the next 3–5 years. Another change we’ve seen is that now with deductibles going up ($500– $1,000 on average), the market will split and more cash-pay customers will emerge. In North America, 44 percent of all repairs are what we call Type 1 repairs, which require 11.9 hours or less to complete the job. With all of the new collision avoidance systems, we are seeing more and more of these types of repairs. So, many of these are now customer pay. If the consumer has a $1,000 deductible, for example, and the job is going to cost them $1,500, that’s now within their threshold, so they’re going to pay it rather than call their insurer. Experts claim that word-ofmouth is the best way to get Q: new customers, but how can you man-
age this and reap the benefits?
A:
The latest studies show that every happy customer has the potential to affect 4.1 other people around them. The challenge is how to get them to refer you. Extensive research shows that your average customer will only drive 15 minutes to get an estimate, but they will travel up to 35 minutes for a repair. By harnessing the power of technology, you can get customers who are outside the 15-minute window to commit to a repair appointment and thereby expand your market reach. Studies show that 74 percent of customers make their decision based on convenience. All over the world, deductibles are on the rise, causing customer pay to be more and more common, so capture more work by making the estimate process easier, because ease of doing business is why 83 percent of people will go online to check out repair shops. Supply them with what they are looking for, and you will capture new business. Customers are afraid to make an insurance claim because they fear drastic premium increases. Capitalize on that by making the estimate process smooth and educational.
Continued from Cover
Staged-Crash Scheme
cember 2011 and ended May 2014, the government said. The government said four defendants set up medical clinics, then billed for services after recruiting others to act as victims of car crashes, records said. The defendants owned and operated Primary Rehab Center LLC, at 2055 28th Street SE in Grand Rapids. They used "patient-recruiters" to find people "willing to participate in staged automobile accidents—accidents that were planned out before they occurred," Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald Stella wrote in the indictment. "Defendants also asked the patient recruiters to find individuals who had experienced their own automobile accidents, but were not truly in need of any medical treatment." Those recruited were usually paid $500 to $1,000 to falsely claim injuries from crashes and become patients of the rehabilitation center, the government said. The defendants "coached the patients on what symptoms to report to" doctors to obtain a prescription
for physical therapy, the indictment said. The defendants submitted over $1 million in fraudulent healthcare claims, the government said. The government is seeking a judgment for return of those funds. The defendants face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of any of the five mail-fraud charges, and up to five years on the nine healthcare-fraud charges, court records said. A worker at the rehab center, Yoisler Herrera-Enriquez of Wyoming, was earlier sentenced to four years, nine months, in prison. He was linked to others who have already been sentenced to prison: Belkis Soca-Fernandez of Tampa, Florida, 11 years, three months; David Sosa-Baladron of Tampa, Florida, 10 years; Antonio Ramon Martinez-Lopez of Port Richey, Florida, seven years, three months; Gustavo Acuna-Rosa, formerly of Lansing, two years, two months; and Eduardo Pardo-Oiz, formerly of Lansing, two months. They were ordered to pay restitution ranging from $145,000 to $895,000, records showed. Two others were sentenced to probation.
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34 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 35
National News
Chasidy Rae Sisk is a freelance technical writer from Wilmington, Delaware, who writes on a variety of fields and subjects, and grew up in a family of NASCAR fans. She can be contacted at crsisk@chasidyraesisk.com.
Management Success Shares Shop Resolutions That Stick with Chasidy Rae Sisk
On Wednesday, Jan.10, Management Success Senior Consultant Jim Saeli presented a webinar on “Secrets to Success: Shop Resolutions that Stick.” He began by noting, “You probably set goals at the beginning of your business and have achieved them, improving your business and acquiring better control of it. But as time passes, we all tend to lose focus and fall back into old habits and may ask ourselves, ‘What am I missing?’” While it’s easy to think it’s all “fine,” Saeli considers this a bad fourletter word. “If you’re not expanding, you’re contracting,” he said. “If things are just fine, they will catch up with you.” It’s easy to lose focus, so he suggested looking at the shop's basics, some of which are so basic that they’re easy to overlook until it’s too late. It is important to monitor all aspects of one’s business because it’s easy to get lost in the day-to-day actions of shop production and to stop seeing everything, until someone else points out the change. “When you first opened your shop, you set a goal and worked to achieve it, but it’s important to set new goals once you reach your first goal,” Saeli encouraged. “Or maybe you set a goal and had a hard time focusing on the new goal because things changed. There will always be these types of situations in a business, such as changing employees, but you have to figure out how to keep your eye on the ball, and with the start of the New Year, this is a great time to sit down and establish goals for 2018!” Saeli suggested getting in the habit of looking back at goals to determine if they were achieved. He stressed the importance of writing down goals and also encouraged attendees to write down their vision and look at it occasionally. “Your business will always be a work in progress, and your vision will change as your business grows,” he said. “Your job as the owner is to set goals for your business so that you’re the one directing the shop, and you do this by planning. “The owner’s responsibility is to improve the existing situation and
move it toward the idea or vision you have for your business.” He polled attendees to determine how often they plan, suggesting it’s important to decide what each person wants to accomplish this year and emphasizing the importance of writing down plans.
Asking how shop owners track their progress, Saeli informed them that they should be tracking their KPIs and using these numbers to determine whether they’re heading in the right direction. Keep your KPIs up-to-date, look at them weekly, and then make corrections based on that information. According to Saeli, “Your KPIs are a roadmap that allows you to see the past and plan for the future. It’s helpful to put them into graph form to evaluate them quickly. Not having them is like trying to diagnose a check engine light on a car just by listening to the vehicle—and none of you would ever do that! Call this your scan tool; it’ll help you figure out what’s going on with your business.” Figure out your goals by starting with a sales target, broken down into sales for a month and a week, and then figure out the billed hours needed to achieve this goal. Saeli believes that working out weekly targets is a great start, but next, shop owners must share this information with their employees and remind them of it on a regular basis. “This is one of the reasons to have weekly meetings,” he said. “It allows you to go over your targets and reinforce your expectations, plus it helps get everyone behind you, working towards those goals.” When an employee is not producing the way they used to, Saeli advised the shop owners to sit down with them to find out why, suggesting that the employee may need help establishing goals, they may simply need to be pointed in the right direc-
36 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
tion or they may require additional training to improve their competency. “Talking to your employees is a win/win/win situation,” Saeli noted. “They are better able to help the customer, the shop and make more money themselves. It’s important that we do not become so engrossed in the day-today that we forget about training. “Have you reached your goals? Have you lost your passion for the business? You must see when you reach your goals and set new ones to have something to reach towards, to look forward to. Goals are key, and having them written down helps visualization.” Some ideal targets Saeli suggested for both the individual and their businesses are sales targets, turning over responsibilities to associates and spending a certain number of days away from the shop to do enjoyable things. “Money helps you get things, but time is very valuable,” he pointed out. Noting that all professionals have
coaches to point them in the right direction, Saeli asked attendees about who helps them keep their eyes on their business goals, point them in the right direction and keep them focused and successful. He then shared information on Management Success’ Shop Business Analysis product, which is designed to help in this aspect. As the webinar concluded, Saeli observed, “The more training you receive, the better equipped you are to handle situations, and you become more competent at running your business by setting up a training plan. It’s important to identify the key actions that must occur in order to achieve your goals.” Due to the positive feedback received from this webinar and an overflow of attendees, Management Success will be presenting a live webinar on the same topic with a different presenter and a guest shop owner on Wednesday, Jan. 24.
Richfield - Bloomington Honda At Richfield - Bloomington Honda we maintain a comprehensive inventory of high quality, Honda Genuine parts. Our Honda Parts professionals are here to answer your questions. Overnight parts ordering available.
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 37
Shop Strategies
Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications, and is co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.” She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
How to Build Customer Loyalty, Prepare for the New Customer Mindset with Stacey Phillips
According to surveys conducted by Phoenix Solutions Group (PSG), close to 80 percent of body shop customers choose a collision repair facility that they feel has their best interests at heart. Nick Schoolcraft, president of the Illinois-based company, said shop owners and employees need to stop worrying about what their insurance partners and competitors are doing and how they are marketing. Instead, he stressed the importance of understanding how to best interact with customers and connect with them emotionally. “A collision is an extremely emotional event. We really need to focus on building a strong relationship with customers as soon as they walk in the door,” said Nick during a presentation he gave this past November at the SEMA show in Las Vegas, NV, as part of the SCRS Repairer Driven Education Series. He told conference attendees that taking the time to build this type of relationship will help shops
gain repeat customers, referrals, inNick. “Truly understanding your cuscrease sales and ultimately, run a more tomers is the only way to build loysuccessful business. alty.” Nick’s father, Steve, founded PSG During his SEMA presentation, in 1988 following a car accident. “The Time Has Arrived for Change,” “The experience was so horrible, Nick discussed the new consumer he set out to change the industry,” said mindset. Nick. “Customers are expecting Since then, the company different types of experiences has concentrated 100 percent than they used to,” he said. of its efforts on developing “They are no longer delineatmarketing strategies for repair ing between a retail store and facilities. Part of that focus ina body shop.” cludes surveying collision Instead, they are expecting clients, which gives the com- Nick Schoolcraft, the same type of experience president of pany tremendous insight on they receive from forwardcurrent industry trends and Phoenix Solutions thinking companies, regardGroup ensures shops have a multiless of the industry. dimensional understanding of the voice “Eighty-seven percent of conof the customer. sumers measure all brands against Based on PSG’s research, the comApple, Amazon and Netflix, so having pany found that most shops focus on a deeper understanding of the voice of quality. the customer is critical for businesses “Quality isn’t a differentiator or operating today,” explained Nick. motivator—it’s an expectation,” said PSG surveys specifically focus
on gathering this type of information for the collision repair industry. “Gone are the days where quality and efficiency led the charge for how people chose a body shop,” he said. “Those reasons are actually 1 percent of the total decision that we see in our data.” Nick said customers are now choosing where to take their vehicles based on past experiences, reputation, honesty and additional factors that lead to a really great customer experience. “What’s even more interesting is that in the past 10 years, we’ve seen a 750 percent increase in the number of decision factors that people go through when deciding on a body shop,” said Nick. “More people want the opportunity to make a decision on their own. They don’t want to be told what to do or where to bring their cars.” He pointed out that this movement toward consumer choice is becoming
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apparent with insurance companies too, which has been demonstrated by the recent closing of estimating facilities and the implementation of mobile estimating applications. With an extensive background in marketing, Nick joined Accenture six years ago as a subject matter expert focusing predominantly on customer and employee experience strategies for Fortune 100 brands. “The best type of marketing today is word-of-mouth—interactions with human beings,” he explained. “The ability to connect with a human being is the best way to sell anything. You typically want to buy from those you care about.” Typically, after individuals have been in an accident, they go through a series of processes such as calling the insurance company, the police and the rental car company. When it comes to making a final decision on which shop they ultimately go to, they reach out to those they are closest to, such as friends and family, as well as do online research. “By understanding what your customers want, how they are feeling and what they are looking for, you have the opportunity to differentiate yourself
through empathy,” said Nick. “This ensures a shop has a leg up when selling its services.” He also recommended offering customers an experience that is unmatched. “The problem is that a lot of body shops believe it’s all about getting the vehicle in and out,” said Nick.
a mutually beneficial relationship with customers in which they feel part of the repair process has been shown to drive best-in-class experiences. Over the last year, a large part of what PSG has set out to do is understand the areas of the business where it could enhance interactions with customers. This has led to three top prior-
PSG surveys have consistently shown that customers expect that the car will look the same as it did before the accident. “The differentiator is the shop’s ability to connect one-on-one with the customer,” Nick said. By taking the time to really understand customers and learn exactly what they want, Nick said shops can drive a better marketing strategy and enhance customer interactions. Being courteous, shaking hands, looking a customer in the eye and keeping customers informed about the repair process all contribute to connecting with them emotionally. Nick said that
ities for 2018: social media, employee engagement and dynamic marketing. “We are keeping my dad’s legacy as close to heart as we can and finetuning it to be more adaptive to today’s industry’s needs,” said Nick.
“The ability to connect with a human being is the best way to sell anything. You typically want to buy from those you care about.” — Nick Schoolcraft
1) Social media “I believe a lot of people in the industry today don’t necessarily understand how to use social media effectively,” said Nick. “The misnomer is that many believe that social media should be used as a conversion tool, but the real goal of social media is to create awareness and have a social conversation with those who are following
you.” As more people become interested in what you have to say, Nick said, a better social media following will result. Deep customer insight is also critical for businesses, according to Nick. PSG uses the insights gathered from its unique survey to build a robust social media marketing strategy for customers. This involves creating captivating, unique content to drive engagement. “Social media is only beneficial when the content is relevant to its followers—not through generic, recycled content about cars. If you are posting the same thing that your neighbor is posting or other shops in the country are, your relevancy isn’t really shown,” he explained. “Google and the other search engines pick up on that and it hurts you in the long run.” In addition, he recommended having a consistent look, tone and feel with all social media posts. “This requires a lot of work and insight, but the benefits are far greater when done the correct way,” he said. 2) Employee engagement Another key focus this year for PSG is See New Customer Mindset, Page 48
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In Reverse
John Loftus – The Dragon Slayer with Gary Ledoux
Gary Ledoux is an industry veteran with 48 years’ experience in the automotive and OEM collision parts industry. His column appears exclusively in Autobody News. He can be reached at YesterWreck@yahoo.com
“In the early 1980s, body shops had it a lot of travel. tough,” said industry veteran John Loftus continued, “I certainly Loftus in a January 2018 interview. stayed in plenty of hotels. But I often “They needed someone or some- stayed in the homes of shop owners thing to pull them together and repre- and industry colleagues—a great sent them on a national scale. They respite from a hotel room. They knew needed some cohesion. Every shop I was working hard for them, and they owner was fighting their own individ- treated me like family. I always tried ual battles with insurance companies.” to return the favor. One of the shop At that time, auto body associaowners even flew me around the Midtions operated at the state level. One rewest in his private plane. gional association, IASA, represented “The organization back then never both the collision and mechanical sides had a lot of money. But we got by. And of the business in 13 states. In fact, if I was asked to speak somewhere, Loftus spent about three years somehow we found a way to as the Collision Industry Dipay for it. In fact, the first time rector for IASA after spendI was asked to speak in Euing 13 years as the owner and rope, I almost turned it down because I didn’t know how we operator of Hawthorne Auto would pay for it. But someBody in Hawthorne, CA, and several years serving in varihow it got done. ous volunteer roles for the “When I first started, John Loftus California Autobody Associsometimes it was hard to get ation. Loftus was a key player in the through to some shop owners. They formation of the CAA for southern Caljust didn’t get it. I told them they had ifornia and spent a year as the director. to start looking at their own costs, like ASA was around at that time as a nathe insurance companies look at theirs. tional organization. They were wasting so much money. At Loftus knew change was coming, one of my first speaking engagements, but it needed help. Other industry I talked for an entire hour and got zero leaders realized it too. So they formed reaction. At another place, I wasn’t a new industry organization, and gave getting through, so we pulled the table Loftus the reins. On Sept. 25, 1982, cloth off one of the tables where we the Society of Collision Repair Spe- had just had dinner, and I stood up on cialists (SCRS) was formed with goals the table and spoke! Some shop ownof providing body shops with techni- ers had to hear me say the same thing cal training and management educa- a couple of times before it sunk in.” tion, improving the quality standards When asked about how many of collision repair services, raising the places he had visited and where he professional standing of those en- spoke, Loftus noted that he had been gaged in the collision repair industry to 44 states and 20 different countries. and securing the financial position of “I stood in front of an industry individuals within the industry. It was group in England [on my first trip to Euthe first national organization dedi- rope] and told them how things worked cated solely to the collision industry. in the U.S. and the battles we had with When asked what SCRS was like insurance companies and adjusters,” he in its early days, Loftus responded, “The said. “They all sat there nodding, beSCRS office was wherever I said it was! cause it was no different an entire ocean I had a home in Texas, a home in Caliaway. Then we went to France, and then fornia, and some friends in Missouri— Germany and then Canada… everywhere we went, the industry problems Bill Wicklund of Wicklund’s Auto Body, where I stayed occasionally,” Loftus were the same. We went to Russia— noted. “I was there so often, I became an that was almost comical. They were still ‘honorary Wicklund.’ If I had access to a repairing cars there like it was 1950.” phone and a fax machine, that’s where Laughing, Loftus said, “I don’t my office was. We made it work!” think they wanted me to speak—I think Back then, as it does today, the they wanted me to teach them modern position of SCRS Director called for repair methods!”
42 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
In the 1980s, the OEs generally were not as attuned to the collision industry as they are today. But Loftus was quick to point out that SCRS had a good relationship with Toyota back then, as they were some of the first to produce and widely distribute collision repair manuals. He noted that GM was also part of the collision landscape at the time. If there is anything John Loftus is famous for, it’s his self-proclaimed mantra, “Working together is the most important work we do”—and he lived that every day. Loftus is a very one-onone guy and liked to work with individuals. If shops called to tell him that they were having issues with a particular insurance company or a particular adjuster, he would visit them or get the parties on the phone and work things out. “We never threatened to sue them,” said Loftus. “We were never condescending to any party. I always treated the shop and the insurance company
with dignity and respect, and we always came to a resolution because I listened to all parties, and we kept the customer in mind. The consumers spent a lot of money in insurance premiums—now it’s time for the insurance company and the shop to make things right for them because that’s what they paid for.” Loftus remembered one particular instance where an insurance company wanted a shop to clip the rear end of a car. The shop knew it was an unsafe repair, refused to do it, and the shop was removed from that carrier’s DRP program. The shop called Loftus to see what could be done. In a short time, Loftus had talked the insurers into totaling the car, the shop was reinstated in the insurer’s DRP program and the adjuster was exposed for having some ulterior motives for wanting the car clipped. When asked about his “finest moment” as SCRS Director, Loftus pointed to a brochure called “Insured Motorists’ See John Loftus, Page 52
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Historical Snapshot
—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, 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.
5 Years Ago, CT Shops Still Hopeful That Judgment Against Insurer Would Hold with John Yoswick
20 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (March 1998) A credible study of the true costs and savings of using non-OEM crash parts could be a solution to the ongoing parts debate. That was one point of apparent agreement among panelists discussing parts-related issues during the Automotive Service Association’s annual meeting in Florida in March. “Cycle time is probably the key buzzword that we’re going to hear in the next two or three years,” said Joe Sanders, the former director of ASA’s Collision Division. “That’s really going to drive everything that changes in our industry in the future. Aftermarket parts are probably the worst villain to cycle time you can imagine. So when we get sophisticated enough to measure the economic impact that aftermarket parts have on cycle time, I think we can finally settle in and put those parts in
the right place.” Insurers don’t deny that non-OEM parts can result in costly delays, Sanders said. “But the insurers don’t know whether the cost-saving of streamlining your production will eventually
In 1998, former shop owner Joe Sanders said the industry needed a study into the true costs—including reduced cycle time—of using non-OEM parts
equate to lower costs to repair the cars,” he said. “So sooner or later, it’s going to take some entity to do a
good, strong study to figure out how to measure what it cost us in production delays, and what it costs the insurers in rental cars. Then I think we can sit down and revisit this issue.” – As reported in The Golden Eagle. Twenty years later, the debate over the true costs and savings of using non-OEM parts continues.
15 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (March 2003) Two years ago, Caliber Collision Centers’ CEO Matthew Ohrstein was quoted as saying that many in the collision repair industry seemed to have an incorrect assumption about the speed with which consolidation of the industry would take place. “Three or four years ago when we started, back in 1997, I think there was this expectation in this industry that consolidation would be this huge wave that would take over the industry,” he said. “But look at other indus-
tries. It can take 20, 30 or 40 years to consolidate just 30 percent of an industry.” Ohrnstein’s words may have provided some comfort to independent shops convinced the torrential pace
In 2003, Matt Ohrnstein was the CEO of Caliber Collision and accurately predicted that consolidation of the industry would take decades
of consolidator acquisitions in the late 1990s was set to continue. And he certainly set the tone for the two
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years that have followed in which consolidators for the most part have appeared to focus much more on integration, implementation and dramatic growth. – As reported in Autobody News. Ohrstein later left Caliber (the company added 68 shops during his seven years there) and formed Symphony Advisors consulting firm; he died in 2013 at age 57. But his comments about the likely speed of consolidation of the industry have been proven out. Twenty years after he pioneered the entry of large investors into the industry, the Big 4 consolidators still have less than 25 percent of the market, a share one analyst predicts they won’t reach until 2021.
10 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (March 2008) Eileen Sottile of the Quality Parts Coalition predicted that without changes to U.S. patent law, the increasing number of OEM patents on crash parts could lead to the “extinction” of the non-OEM parts industry and independent repairers (because higher OEM parts prices would total more cars). But Brad Mewes of Craftsmen
Auto Body in Cerritos, CA, pointed to a 2005 European study that found that pricing for replacement parts was on average 7.3 percent higher in countries without such design protections.
In 2008, Eileen Sottile of the Quality Parts Coalition predicted dire outcomes for the industry if federal patent protection on OEM crash parts wasn’t amended
In a letter to Mewes last week, Sottile says the European study is flawed because it looked at list prices for OEM parts, not the “typically much lower” “market prices.” The study, she said, also mischaracterized the level of patent protection in two European countries. Given this, Sottile said the study should have shown that OEM parts prices are actually 3.6 percent lower in
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countries without design protection. – As reported in CRASH Network (www.CrashNetwork.com), March 17, 2008. Ten years later, the non-OEM parts industry continues to fight for federal legislation that would slash design patent protection automakers’ hold on crash parts, though the nonOEM parts industry is still thriving and the percentage of vehicles being declared a total loss has remained fairly steady—between 14 percent and 17 percent throughout the last decade. The prospects of the federal legislation moving forward took a hit in January when Sen. Orrin Hatch (R.-Utah), the bill’s chief sponsor in the Senate, announced he is retiring at the end of this year, and Rep. Darrell Issa (R.-Calif.), the bill’s chief sponsor in the House, announced his retirement as well.
5 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (March 2013) At last weekend’s East Coast Resolution Forum and Leadership Meeting, the president of the Auto Body Association of Connecticut said that more than three years after an associationled class action lawsuit resulted in a jury award of $15 million against The Hartford, no money has been received.
A jury essentially found in 2009 that unfair trade practices by the insurer led to suppressed shop labor rates. Tony Ferraiolo was unsure why there has been such a long delay in the judge’s issuing of a final judgment on the verdict in the case, but said that he expects that to happen soon, which would also bolster a similar lawsuit pending against Progressive Insurance. He said attorneys continue to pursue the Progressive lawsuit despite not having received payment in either case. “That’s telling you these class action lawsuits might have some merit for all of us when they pan out, but you’re talking 10 years before they are done,” Ferraiolo said. “That’s a long time. One of the named plaintiffs in the case has sold his shop in the meantime. So these class action lawsuits are important, but not our total answer. We’re committed to keeping them going.” – As reported in CRASH Network (www.CrashNetwork.com), March 18, 2013. In 2015, the Connecticut Supreme Court overturned the lower court’s judgment against The Hartford. The jury in the case found that The Hartford violated the state’s unfair trade practices act by See 5 Years Ago, Page 48
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Tips for Busy Body Shops
Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications, and is co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.” She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
Enterprise Shares Company’s Successful Recruitment Strategies with Stacey Phillips
Just over 60 years ago, Jack Taylor Ranging in age from 16–38 (dependfounded Enterprise Rent-A-Car in St. ing on the source), the millennial genLouis, Missouri. eration wants to make a contribution He opened the small business in to the company they work for and unthe basement of a Cadillac dealership derstand why they are doing what they with just seven vehicles. A decorated are doing and how it has an impact. At naval pilot, Taylor named the company the same time, learning new things is after the WWII aircraft carrier on which a priority as well as having access to he had served—the USS Enterprise. additional development and training. Since then, the company has grown to According to a study conducted by include 100,000 employees and nearly LinkedIn and Snagajob, an online em10,000 locations in more than ployment website specializing 90 countries worldwide. The in the hourly marketplace, 71 Taylor family acquired Napercent of the hourly worktional Car Rental and Alamo force is under the age of 30. Rent A Car in 2007 and fully The majority of those who integrated all three car rental were part of the study said brands two years later under they value scheduled flexibilthe corporate parent name En- Pam Webster, AVP ity in a job; 59 percent felt that terprise Holdings, which is flexibility would result in talent acquisition for Enterprise still privately held. higher job productivity. Over Holdings Taylor’s philosophy was half said that learning new to take care of employees and cus- things or having access to professional tomers first, and profits and growth development opportunities would enwould follow. Pam Webster, AVP tal- courage them to stay at their job. ent acquisition for Enterprise HoldClose to 90 percent of millennials ings, said Taylor’s philosophy still said that a reward system during their holds true today. training would boost their engagement, “He never intended for Enterprise and half said that having friends in the to be the largest; he wanted us to be the workplace would motivate them and inbest,” said Webster. “Jack always said crease productivity. They also value regwe’re in the people business—not the ular feedback from their employer about car business.” how they are performing, and 33 percent Webster said an important aspect prefer recognition over higher pay. of the company’s success has always What are some of the issues been a focus on building a talent stratcompanies are facing in terms of egy. With an extensive background in recruiting? recruiting, Webster shared Enterprise’s successful approach during an AkRecruiting is not easy, and can be zoNobel Acoat Selected performance challenging in the collision regroup meeting held in San Diego, CA. pair industry due to a shortage of skilled This included the recruitment process, labor and an aging workforce. New veemployee engagement, training and hicle technologies are driving significant development. changes in vehicle repairs, which ultiThe following information is based mately requires more extensive training on Webster’s presentation, “Building a for technicians. Currently, more people Talent Strategy — Enterprise’s Apare leaving the workforce than entering proach to Solving Our HR Opportuniit. Whether you are a large or small ties,” which was part of AkzoNobel’s company, not having the talent you need early bird training sessions held prior to to grow and support the business you are the performance group meeting. running can make a big impact. How would you define today’s Job seekers today want to work typical job seeker? where they want, when they want and how they want. This is often referred to The largest workforce we have as the “free agent” mentality. It’s a chaltoday—estimated to be about lenge, especially for brick-and-mortar 77.2 million—is Gen-Y, millennials. types of businesses, such as collision re-
pair shops that don’t offer that flexibility. For many job seekers, it is now socially acceptable to change jobs. According to a study by Monster, 70 percent of the workforce is willing to do this. Typically, a 20-year-old will have seven different jobs during their twenties. That makes it tough for employers because turnover is expensive. It costs you money and time, and it impacts your ability to deliver on the services you provide—namely, getting cars repaired and back to their owners. Work/life balance has been found to be more important to today’s job seekers than how much they earn. Employers are finding that workers prefer more flexibility, fewer hours and to make less money. That can be a big challenge.
have to step back and put the candidate hat on. Think about how job seekers who want to work in the collision industry search for jobs. The largest job board today is Google. It’s where most people start their job search. Google is based on keyword relevancy. This determines how information about your company shows up in the search results. Therefore, when you’re posting a job on a job board or aggregator, take time to think about what keywords job seekers will search for. Glassdoor and Indeed are two of the top online sources for potential hires. The majority of job seekers go to these sites to do their research. Glassdoor started as a job review site and expanded to become a job aggregator, while Indeed started as an aggregator and is now a job review site.
are job seekers looking Q: forWhere employment? You mentioned that Enterprise is As a business owner trying to Q: in the “people” business. How A: find a new hire, sometimes you See Enterprise Shares, Page 54
Q: A:
Q: A:
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Continued from Page 39
New Customer Mindset
offering dynamic online learning and training for shops. The company recently invested in a learning management system that will assist collision repair facilities in choosing the training courses that best meet their needs. “The training will be individually tailored to each shop and be directly related to the metrics PSG gathers,” said Nick. He said this will help customers better understand the information the company supplies and provide employees with tactics on how to improve performance metrics. “We want to ensure our customers’ employees feel as though they have the tools they need to become better educated, and we also want to put in measures for the ownership team to better understand how their employees are doing and the competencies that are occurring within their shops,” he explained. The courses will be focused on management skills and what Nick referred to as the “soft skills” of the industry. Continued from Page 45
5 Years Ago
requiring its appraisers to enforce an artificially low labor rate determined by the insurer rather than approaching the appraisal “without prejudice against, or favoritism toward, any party involved to make fair and impartial appraisals.” But The Hartford argued in its successful appeal that the “parties involved” were the insurer and insured, because an appraiser “could not possibly owe a duty of impartiality or reasonableness to the very shops with whom he is negotiating on behalf of an employer.” The state Supreme Court agreed that the unfair trade practices act does not “regulate the conduct at issue” in the case. “It would be patently unreasonable…for us to conclude that the [insurer] is lawfully permitted to determine the hourly labor rate that it is willing to pay for auto body repair [but] that [its] apprais-
“PSG has always been focused on the front of the house instead of the back of the house, and our focus will continue to remain there,” he said. These include courses on topics such as how to set proper expectations up front for customers, how to communicate effectively throughout the repair experience and how to follow up with customers after delivering their vehicles. The courses will be based on the metrics PSG gathers from shop customers and are expected to be available within the second quarter of 2018. “One of the things that my father always wanted to do is be everything for everybody at every point of the day,” said Nick. “This is our way of extending that to the industry.” Many of the trainings will resemble what Steve created, while being updated to industry standards and expectations.
3) Dynamic marketing PSG also plans to offer shops the ability to market to their individual customers dynamically by personalizing post-repair follow-up letters. Currently, PSG assists shops by sending out hand-signed letters that are foers are ethically required to disregard that determination when negotiating on the [insurer’s] behalf,” the Court wrote in its unanimous decision. Shops, the
In 2013, Tony Ferraiolo of the Auto Body Association of Connecticut was still hopeful that a $15 million judgment against The Hartford would hold (but it was later overturned by the state’s Supreme Court)
Court said, are capable of representing their own interests and “certainly are under no obligation to accept insurance-related work that is not sufficiently remunerative.”
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cused on particular parameters. “The future letters we send out to customers will change based on the feedback we gather,” said Nick. “They are going to be highly personalized to the individual while incorporating elements the shop wants to market, which will garner a much better response and build trust.” Nick said that this will help address the needs of customers more directly as well as allow more freedom in choosing the types of messages sent. “Ultimately, it enables a more personalized experience for shops and their customers,” he said. “Our mission for 2018 is transformation—solidifying the core that my dad created over the past 30 years, which is ensuring we are 100 percent focused on the collision facilities and delivering best-in-class types of products for them. Not only do we want to stay true to the industry and their needs, but we are trying to find ways to incorporate that ever-changing customer mindset.” For more information about Phoenix Solutions Group, contact Nick Schoolcraft at 847-764-8079 or visit www.phoenixsolutionsgroup.net
Bill Garoutte to Take Helm at National Auto Body Council
The National Auto Body Council (NABC) is pleased to announce that Bill Garoutte, a veteran business development, marketing and collision industry executive, has been selected to take the helm at the organization. “We are thrilled to have Bill take the lead to continue Bill Garoutte the tremendous legacy and positive impact that Chuck Sulkala and many of our colleagues have made in our collision industry through the National Auto Body Council,” said Darren Huggins, NABC Board Chairman. Through its signature Recycled Rides™ program, NABC members teamed up to repair and donate a record 300 vehicles in 2017, adding to a total of nearly 2,000 over the past 10 years, to individuals and service organizations in need of reliable transportation.
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ingness to step away from the revenue the Secure Share fees would have generated, which some have estimated as hundreds of millions of dollars. CCC’s Mark Fincher said the “This has never been about the changes were a result of ongoing dis- revenue for us,” Fincher said. “I think cussions throughout last year with the some of the estimates around the revtask force, industry associations and enue opportunity were a bit overincustomers. He said it became clear flated. This was never a revenue play that the announced fees were going to for us. This was truly about securing be a barrier to entry for companies the data. The fee structure was put in adopting Secure Share, and place for us to be able to rethat those costs were going coup, with some level of to be passed on to CCC cusprofit as we stated, the costs tomers. that we put into Secure Share. “Both of those things It was a significant investwere not intended outcomes ment to put the infrastructure that we expected or wanted in place to process thousands from Secure Share,” Fincher of transactions a minute, and Mark Fincher said. “So we made the deciprocess those in sub-second sion to eliminate those fees.” response times. We decided it was best He said it also became clear as to just take on those costs ourselves, 2017 was drawing to a close that with not pass that along to our customers or the announced April implementation the [third-party] app providers. We of Secure Share, “it was inevitable think it’s the best thing for the industhat there was going to be a potential try.” disruption to our customers,” someRisley told Fincher that some may thing CCC “absolutely did not want to view this as CCC backing off for now be the outcome of Secure Share.” on fees after facing a year of public criticism, but that in a year or so it may re-implement some of the changes it is What about the money? Fincher was asked about CCC’s will- halting for now. Continued from Cover
CCC’s Changes
“We don’t have that kind of fortisaid most repairers in the industry tude,” Fincher said, drawing laughter “didn’t and still don’t understand the from CIC attendees. “We’re not going implications” that CCC’s plans for Sethrough this again. We made it very cure Share could have had on their public that there will not be a charge businesses nor “how significant CCC’s for Secure Share, now or in the fu- decision to reverse their approach is on ture.” the future of [shops’] businesses as He said the reversal is not entirely well.” altruistic on CCC’s part. The platform CCC’s announced changes, he benefits from expanding the number said, “are exactly why every collision of industry trading partners it con- repairer should be part of a national nects, he said, and eliminating the fees association.” He said whether that’s and other changes will likely SCRS or another group, the increase participation in Sechanges by CCC are a case cure Share. study for why every shop He also said CCC has should be part of some “orga“absolutely no plans” to disnization that can be your continue users’ ability to transvoice, when you’re busy getfer estimate data in the EMS ting your customer’s car out format. at 5 p.m. on a Friday, an orJake Rodenroth “We think obviously at ganization that has your back some point in the very distant future and understands the concerns and unthat our customers will decide there’s derstands who to communicate with not a need for EMS,” he said. “But and how to communicate in a way that we’re not going to make that decision can be effective.” to sunset EMS.” Risley also said that although the CIC task force was originally formed to address issues raised by CCC’s anMore observations Speaking at a Society of Collision Renounced plans for Secure Share, the pair Specialists (SCRS) board meeting topic of “data security” doesn’t go in Palm Springs, Aaron Schulenburg, away now that CCC made changes to the association’s executive director, its plans.
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“It’s not about somebody hacking into a shop’s data and grabbing it,” Risley said. “That’s a concern, but the bigger concern is something that happened a few months ago: The John Eagle Collision lawsuit. That shook the dust off the rafters for a lot of folks.” He said that lawsuit over how decisions were made and how repairs were documented is now at the forefront of discussion within the industry, and will be the topic of a presentation at CIC in Atlanta in April. “There’s a tremendous amount of exposure for this industry, and you need to be aware of it,” Risley said. “We as an industry need to figure out a way to address it.”
Example of consequences Also at CIC last month, Jake Rodenroth of asTech (which offers a remote vehicle scanning system) shared an example of potential consequences when a shop “deviates from the [OEM] repair procedures, ignores the [OEM] position statements and [doesn’t] do the scans.” Rodenroth said he recently rented a 2017 Nissan Maxima with 3,000
miles on it, and though there wasn’t a clearly recognizable dash warning light for someone not familiar with Nissan’s systems, he said he realized the blind spot detection system was not warning him about traffic on the freeway. He did some research and found that if the blind spot system on the vehicle is working, the indicators’ lights on both doors are supposed to come on with a key cycle. On the rental vehicle, he said, only one of those lights came on. He then found “questionable” color match, peeling paint and “reassembly issues” on the rear of the vehicle that clearly indicated the vehicle had gone through previous damage and repairs. He scanned the vehicle and found multiple fault codes indicating the blind spot and cross-traffic alerts were not active. “If I had changed lanes, expecting the blind spot system to warn me, what would have happened?” Rodenroth said. “This stuff is happening today, and as an industry, we have to act upon it.”
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NY Auto Body Shop Releases Humorous Video to Ease the Stress of Collision Repair
Barry’s Auto Body announced the release of the third video in its “I Gotta Guy” series, created to make car repair less intimidating. “The Stain” is a satirical script in which Vito, played by George Passiarello, is being chastised by his father, played by Barry Crupi Sr., for being careless and allowing the white interior of his luxury car to become stained with an unidentifiable red substance. Vito’s father takes one look at the stain and smacks Vito in the head declaring, “...that will never come out!” Vito seems unfazed by his father’s anger as he assures him, “I gotta guy...” to get the stain out. As in the other videos, the camera cuts away to Barry Crupi Jr. standing in the showroom of Barry’s Auto Body as he describes how the shop will use environmentally friendly products to remove the stain and return the vehicle to good-as-new con-
dition. Later in the video, Donna, played by local comedian Jen Remauro, calls out to Vito and his father, revealing what the red substance is. Previous videos in the “I Gotta Guy” series included education about auto collision repair and how to file an insurance claim. Barry Crupi Jr. said, “We created the ‘I Gotta Guy’ series to relieve the stress that people feel about visiting an auto body shop. Life is stressful enough—We want people to know that automotive and collision repair doesn’t have to be scary.” The videos can be seen on Barry’s Auto Body website and YouTube channel. In addition to the “I Gotta Guy” series, Barry’s Auto Body provides more than a dozen “How to...” videos, covering everything from how to wash a car to how to remove surface scratches from the car’s finish.
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Pittston, PA, Man Faces Fraud Charges Over Auto Insurance Claim by James Halpin, The Citizens’ Voice
A Pittston, PA, man is facing felony fraud charges alleging he lied about the timing of an accident so that his auto insurance would pick up the tab. Bruce Joshua Carey, 30, was charged Feb. 12 with trying to claim more than $4,500 in damages that his 2015 Jeep Compass sustained in a collision with a deer—a crash that prosecutors say took place after his Progressive Advanced Insurance Co. coverage lapsed. According to the charges, Carey’s insurance policy lapsed on Dec. 24, 2015, and he reinstated coverage with a reduced deductible on Jan. 14, 2016. The next day, Carey called Progressive to report he had hit a deer along state Route 309 in Drums, according to charges filed by the state Attorney General’s Office. Carey claimed he called his mother minutes after the crash, and sent Progressive photos of the damage, the charges allege. But a Progressive investigator checked the phone records and found that Carey had not called his mother around the time he claimed the accident occurred, and the photos Carey pro-
vided had metadata showing they had actually been taken on Jan. 1 in Northumberland County, according to the complaint. Carey subsequently admitted he did not call his mother at the time he claimed he did, and that he had taken the pictures on Jan. 1 at his girlfriend’s house in Northumberland County, the charges say. Carey told investigators he had the lapse in coverage because of a banking issue and that when he got a letter about the lapse he went online to renew the policy, prosecutors said. His girlfriend told investigators a deer had hit the passenger side of the Jeep on Jan. 1, 2016, as she and Carey were coming from a New Year’s Day party, according to the charges.Authorities charged Carey with felony counts of filing a false insurance claim, criminal use of a communication facility and attempted theft. Magisterial District Judge Rick Cronauer arraigned him on the charges and released Carey on $10,000 unsecured bail. A preliminary hearing was set for Feb. 27.
We thank The Citizens’ Voice for reprint permission.
Continued from Page 42
John Loftus
Rights.” One of the things that insurance companies had customers do was get three estimates from three different body shops, then make them choose the lowest estimate. Customers found that irritating. Legitimate shops found it counterproductive and less-then-ethical shops used it to low-ball customers to get the work. SCRS worked hard to eliminate that practice. Loftus explained, “For the first time, we had a ‘tool’ that shops could use to fight the ‘three estimate’ practice.” Loftus then went state-by-state, working with the local state-level affiliated associations, getting them to speak with their respective state insurance commissioner to make sure they could distribute their “Motorists’ Rights” brochures. In Illinois, the state insurance commissioner was very difficult to meet with. Finally, the commissioner was due to be at the Chicago airport for a morning flight and told Loftus he would meet him at the airport at a designated time if he wanted to talk then. Loftus hopped on a red-eye flight and made his appointment with the commissioner. The “Motorists’ Rights”
brochure was approved 10 days later. When asked if there was any work he had left undone at SCRS—anything he wanted to do but never had the time or resources to accomplish—Loftus replied, “We did as much as we could every chance we got. We never worried about the resources—We would find some way to get things done. It was a rewarding time for me, and people appreciated what we did. I have no regrets or work left undone.” Loftus was the SCRS Director for 19 years, retiring in 2000, when the reins were turned over to industry icon Dan Risley. In 2003, Loftus and his friend, Larry Martin, began Loftus and Martin Long Range deep-sea fishing excursions out of San Diego, each trip escorting 23 anglers on a two-week cruise. And that thing about the “Dragon Slayer”… when Loftus retired he was presented with a huge sword in a wood and glass case by the Kansas City and Topeka Chapter of SCRS, where he was deemed to be the “Dragon Slayer Extraordinaire”… the “dragon” being all the issues and problems Loftus tried to address and resolve during his time as SCRS Director. John Loftus was truly a champion of the industry—a Dragon Slayer Extraordinaire.
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Continued from Page 46
Enterprise Shares
do you ensure your company hires the right individual for the job?
Everything we do starts with A: hiring the right people and making sure we are committed to the long-
term when we make a selection. Sometimes, it’s hard to think this way when you have an immediate need in your business, but we’ve always focused on the long-term. We don’t want to just hire somebody and fill a seat on the bus. Instead, we want to ensure we are hiring the right people because it really does impact the culture if you have constant turnover. We’ve found that it will impact morale and engagement of the other employees. When our business started to grow in the 1980s, we built a formal talent strategy that focused on the entire lifecycle of an employee: selection, onboarding, training and development, performance management and career progression. We knew that if we dropped the ball on any one of these stages, it would impact the business and the bottom line. Because our phi-
losophy is to promote from within, we have a commitment to grow our talent. We asked employees about why they work here, what they like/don’t like, what they are looking for in a company that we don’t offer, as well as what our competitors are offering. Then we defined our employee value proposition. That is what makes us unique as an employer. We built that into our brand and incorporated it into all of our communication, including recruitment marketing and messaging. Once somebody is hired, we focus on their learning path, regardless of the job position. We look at their skills and how we measure them, ensure there is a clear understanding of expectations and what they should deliver each day, build in mentoring and coaching, and have a rewards/recognition program in place. The bottom line is employee performance. If we hire the right people, engage them, and offer training and development, we’ll have better sales, service and growth. 10 best practices for hiring and retaining employees based on the Enterprise model: • Build consistent interview guide-
lines and questions • Set clear expectations and be transparent about your company • Know what your competitors are doing and what they are offering to their employees • Create a recognition program for workers where they can be recognized by leadership • Foster a team-building culture, whether that’s internally with work-related contests or a friendly competition outside of the workplace, such as forming a sports team • Empower employees, regardless of their role, and give them autonomy to make decisions • Look at the core competencies for all jobs, such as empathy, resilience, good communication, work ethic and flexibility • Devise a consistent process across the company • Set up a mentoring program and teach managers how to manage and motivate employees • Continually measure the effectiveness of your hiring process, as well as training and development programs For more information, message Pam Webster at www.linkedin.com /in/pamwebsterrecruit4eh.
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42 Apprentices Join Service King’s Training Program
Service King Collision Repair Centers announced it has officially accepted and welcomed 42 new auto body repair technicians to its growing Apprentice Development Program at locations in five different states across the U.S. “The entire Service King family is thrilled to welcome the latest class of apprentice technicians,” said Tyra Bremer, Service King Vice President of Talent Development. “It is exciting to witness our apprenticeship program continue to grow and provide immersive training opportunities to aspiring technicians from across the country. We look forward to equipping and training each of the 42 technicians who joined our family this week to prosper in the next chapter of their careers.” The immersive approach to Service King’s Apprentice Development Program features a proprietary curriculum developed with insight from master auto body technicians, management and leading experts from across the industry. The Apprentice Development Program officially launched in 2015, placing more than 125 certified auto body technicians into its workforce.
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OE Shop Certification
Gary Ledoux is an industry veteran with 48 years’ experience in the automotive and OEM collision parts industry. His column appears exclusively in Autobody News. He can be reached at YesterWreck@yahoo.com
Audi’s Mark Allen Interviewed on Shop Certification with Gary Ledoux
For this month’s OE certification profile, we spoke with industry icon Mark Allen, Manager of Collision Programs/Collision Training and EV After Sales for Audi.
ABN: Does your program have a specific name?
about customer retention, and making sure the car is fixed properly.
ABN: What are the program requirements?
Audi: We focus on three areas: tools, equipment and training. For training, we don’t now require that the shop be Audi: It’s called the Audi Authorized I-CAR Gold Class, but many are simCollision Repair Program. It was first ply because they are the better shops and are Gold Class by destarted back in 2003, refault. However, in the near ceived a major overhaul in future we will be requiring all 2006 and another one most shops to be Gold Class. Then recently in 2015. we also have our own classes; some on structural ABN: What is the main purpose of the program? repair, others are model-specific. We also have a 10-day Mark Allen aluminum class and classes Audi: Audi is big on controlling the total customer experience. on carbon fiber. Also, we have two Despite the bad situation an accident levels of training for two levels of brings, we don’t want to make it shops. The hybrid training is the more worse for our clients with a bad shop basic with limited classes. The ultraand a bad repair. So for us, it’s all advanced training includes all classes
VANDEVERE KIA
and is meant for the ultra-advanced shops. One other thing about Audi training: most of it is hands-on training. The technicians like it because this is
Authorized shop. Audi Authorized shops are also the first shops of choice to repair any of our transportation-damaged cars, show-damaged cars or any cars that are corporately owned that suf-
what they do all day. They can relate better and learn better rather than watching a video or reading a book.
fer an accident. And of course they can promote themselves as an Audi Authorized shop.
ABN: What are the program benefits?
Audi: All shops receive a plaque. Technicians that complete our welding course get a special jacket. All certified shops are on the towing program, so any Audi owner using their Roadside Assistance program due to an accident can have their car towed free to an Audi
ABN: What shops are eligible?
Audi: We welcome dealer-owned shops, independent shops and MSOs, but the standards and requirements remain the same. We don’t cut anyone any slack. Right now we have a 60/40 split—60 percent are independent and 40 percent are dealer
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shops. The dealer percentage is perhaps higher than other OEs, but that is because of our focus on customer retention.
ABN: Must an independent shop be sponsored by a dealer? If so, has that caused any problems?
Audi: Yes, a dealer must sponsor an independent shop and the shop must be in its own market area. If our focus is on the customer experience and retaining customers, it makes no sense for a dealer to sponsor a shop that is 50 miles away. A customer will never drive 50 miles to a body shop. ABN: Can a dealer sponsor more than one shop?
Audi: Yes, but that rarely happens. The units in operation must warrant more than one shop in any given dealer’s area of influence.
ABN: Are any shops specifically ineligible?
Audi: Our program is limited to dealers and shops in the U.S. A few years ago we used to handle what
few participating shops and dealers we had in Canada. Now that there is more participation, Audi Canada handles it themselves, although we still provide a good part of the training materials. ABN: Do you have any program partners, such as Axalta, VeriFacts, Summit, Assured Performance or others? If so, what role do they play? Audi: We have VeriFacts handle the information technology for us.
ABN: What is the fee for the program? Does the program run on an annual basis?
Audi: Independent shops pay $7,500 for the first year and $4,000 for each succeeding year. Our dealer charge is proprietary information. ABN: Do you inspect every shop and if so, who does the inspections?
Audi: Yes, Axalta conducts the annual inspections for us. We also look at feedback from Audi employees and other Audi corporate people who have cars repaired at these shops. They should
have the same good experience and the same proper repair as any Audi customer. On top of that, I travel quite a bit and when I do, I make a point to make a few unannounced visits to Audi Authorized shops.
ABN: Is there an optimum number of shops you want to have and if so, how close are you to reaching that number?
Audi: The optimum number is about 250. Right now we are at about 192 with about 100 being the ultra-advanced shops that work on all models, and the rest are hybrid shops that only work on certain models. Of course, that number fluctuates as shops come and go. We will put on more shops, but we want to do it strategically, placing the shops only where they are needed based on units in operation. ABN: Have you had any shops drop out and if so, why?
Audi: We are big on training because we want the cars fixed properly and our customers to drive a safe automobile. I want to be able to stand up in front of a group of people at an industry meeting or show, talk about
training and know all of our shops are properly trained. So if a shop can’t or won’t meet our requirements and complete the proper training, we have to part ways. Of course, we give the shop plenty of opportunity to take the training. We call and let them know when the training will take place and ask if we can sign them up at that time.
ABN: If the shop is removed from the program due to a training lapse, and they later take the training, are they allowed back into the program?
Audi: We address that on a case by case basis. It is a lot less work to allow that shop back into the program than to go out and find another shop and start from scratch. ABN: Do you have a field force?
Audi: We have Area After-Sale Managers who work with both dealers and shops, but they are not collision-dedicated. ABN: What has been the biggest challenge in establishing the network? See Shop Certification, Page 62
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Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications, and is co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.” She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
Shop Strategies
Indiana MSO Discusses How to Create Process for Duplicable Business with Stacey Phillips
Tom & Ed’s Autobody dates back to 1983 when Tom Tylka and his partner, Ed, moved their garage operation into a 2,000-square-foot facility in Schererville, Indiana, after quitting their jobs at an engineering company. Tom spent time marketing the business during the day and repairing vehicles at night. The business arrangement soon became very stressful for the partners, and a few years later, Ed left the company. “My dad decided to keep the name Tom & Ed’s because he had recently purchased signage and stationary,” said Tom’s son, Andy, who joined the company in 2009. “He felt the business was more about the products and services offered, rather than the name, so he put his finances into running the shop and keeping the lights on.” Tom eventually purchased the building he was leasing, and over the next decade grew his business to include three locations. Tom & Ed’s
opened three additional facilities, including a boat and RV division, during the last 18 months, bringing the total number of locations to six—all within a 15-mile radius of one another.
(l to r) Andy Tylka and his father, Tom
Andy has worked as CEO of the company since 2009. Along with Tom, the majority owner and chairman, the business’s leadership team includes Eric Newell, who joined the company five years ago. Eric had taken a break from the
collision repair industry and had become a full-time firefighter when he re-connected with Andy. The two had attended high school together and soon found out that they both had a background in the collision repair industry. Andy asked Eric to help out part-time at Tom and Ed’s working as a compliance manager. Recently, Eric was promoted to COO. “We’re opposite but similar, so we are constantly looking at different sides of the business,” said Andy. Autobody News talked to Andy and Eric about some of the strategies the company has put into place during the MSO’s recent growth.
Can you tell us about the Q: processes the company has implemented to help create a duplicable
business?
Andy: Our goal has always been to take as much human error out of the comMINNESOTA
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pany as possible. We do this by clearly defining our business process and sticking to it. We try very hard not to veer away from what we’re good at— collision repair and paint. When companies concentrate on restoration or special jobs, I feel like there are too many variables in the business. That can often lead to errors. When we know that there is just one outcome that needs to happen—the car needs to be repaired perfectly—we’ve found that it’s a lot easier to manage the business. Eric: When I initially joined the company, it was the first time there was a compliance person who visited all of the locations. We noticed that each store was running a little differently than the others. This included how estimates were written, where parts were ordered, and who they sublet work to. As a result, we put our efforts into making sure everyone was on the same page. Each store now writes the estimate the same way and the process is consistent from
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check-in to delivery. Parts are ordered from the same vendors, which allows us to negotiate better deals. We are also able to move staff from location to location because they all understand the process and know what is expected. Not only has this change made it a lot easier to manage from a corporate standpoint, but it ultimately enables Tom and Andy to expand to new shops.
What advice can you offer busiQ: ness owners who want to open multiple locations?
Andy: When we decided that we wanted to grow our business, we knew we had to build a corporate structure around that growth. That’s where Eric coming on board full-time has really helped. About a year ago, we had our paint company come in and spent two full days mapping out each of the corporate employees’ responsibilities. That has been extremely helpful. One of the reasons I believe we have been so successful is that we’ve aligned ourselves with good partners. Eric: It’s very important to have a corporate business plan as well as a clear idea about what your business is going
to be. Whether you are building a new structure from the ground up or acquiring another business, you want to ensure the decision is in line with your strategy. As we have added locations, we always make sure it is a good fit with Tom & Ed’s business plan.
Andy: I think a huge factor with multiple locations is being transparent with employees. I believe what sets us apart from other collision repair businesses is the education and own-
The business has opened three facilities over the last 18 months
ership our staff welcomes into the business. I am very lucky to have employees who want to continue to learn self-improvement. Every quarter, we focus on four KPI goals for each facility to work on. Then we teach employees how they can influence those KPIs. As they grow in these fields, we
tend to move on to other KPI goals for the next quarter. By being transparent with the staff and teaching them how to understand what their numbers are and how they are doing, it creates constant education and improvement.
one from a habit that they had been doing for 10 years was very difficult. It was nice that Eric was constantly there as a reminder to educate them and ensure the changes were implemented, rather than following up a month and a half later and realizing they are still doing things the same way.
In what ways are KPI goals deQ: termined? has training been helpful Q: toHowemployees?
Andy: We look at historical data and then spreadsheet all of our KPIs every month. This gives employees the opportunity to look at the spreadsheet and see what other locations are doing. If a facility starts to fall off on a certain KPI, such as gross profit, we’ll bring that to their attention, so that they can focus on it. The thing we do very well is notice our deficiencies immediately. Then we can fine-tune them and ensure our locations are as consistent as possible.
did your staff respond to Q: theHowchanges?
Andy: It was definitely a culture change for the staff. It’s not that the locations were doing anything wrong; they were just doing it differently. Breaking some-
Eric: First, we take a look at the changes we are going to make moving forward and then I generally go to each location and determine their strengths and weaknesses. Next, we develop specific training material to give employees a roadmap so they all get to the same destination.
Can you explain how regular Q: meetings have been beneficial to your growth?
Eric: We have quarterly meetings that primarily focus on the various job roles, for example managers or estimators. Twice a year, we hold a meeting with all of our 50 employees. Andy: What I like about the meetings is
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they become mini-roundtable groups. The staff is very close across all the locations and often text and talk to each other to problem-solve an issue. They are constantly communicating with one another because we do load level quite a bit from location to location. We’ve noticed that everyone wants each other to succeed. That’s how our meetings are as well. We’ll bring up an issue that one location is having, and another location manager or CSR will help come up with a solution. I look at it as peers managing peers. It works out well because there is a lot of ownership that comes into play when we have those meetings.
How have you fostered a supQ: portive working environment among staff?
Eric: At Tom & Ed’s, we stress the importance of quality of life. We want our people to be happy. If they have a stressful situation they might need help with, we have an open-door policy. We’re always willing to listen and talk and we make sure to take time to focus on the individual as a person rather than just an employee. Andy: All the locations take care of one
another. I’m ridiculously lucky with that. I’ll find out after the fact that locations have been communicating for the past two days to solve a small issue and they don’t even involve me. Although I want to feel needed, the awesome thing is they are taking care of themselves.
adjusters?
Eric: The number one thing you have to remember is that your customer is the customer, and not the insurance company. We don’t work for the insurance company. We work with the insurance company to provide great service and a proper repair for the customer. Tom has always run the business with the motto: The customer always comes first. Number two, it’s important to underTom & Ed’s operates six locations within a 15-mile radius stand that you are going to of one another have to work with adjusters. That is the culture my father has always They have a job to do. instilled at Tom and Ed’s Autobody One thing we have been good at throughout the 35 years of ownership. is educating ourselves. I work with my managers and estimators, so they Are all of your locations part of are able to present the facts and supa DRP? porting data to build value in their position as a repair professional. That’s really important. We need to be able Andy: Different locations have different DRPs. Some locations work well to communicate fact-based knowlwith a DRP business model and some edge in a confident and educated don’t. We don’t put every location on manner. The way to do that is follow every DRP possible because we want the OE repair manufacturers’ guideour locations to succeed in their DRPs. lines. At Tom & Ed’s, we research these guidelines and become very edWhat advice can you offer ucated so when we are talking to adshops in terms of working with justers, our information is based on
Q: Q:
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Eric: The other thing that we do at Tom & Ed’s that a lot of other shops don’t and probably should, is include customers in the conversations that we have with the adjusters. It’s very simple to include them if you agree with a specific provider, but if for some reason you don’t, you need to remember that we are the repair professionals, not the insurers. What we do is let customers know we’re not going to repair the car any other way than the way it’s supposed to be repaired. Many times, when customers get involved, a lot of things can get done in a very efficient fashion.
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Andy: What Eric does really well is teach the staff how to take the emotion out of working with adjusters and deal with the facts and how to be extremely consistent. We are dealing with the same adjusters every single day—the same personalities. If you are consistent in the business model you have and what you believe in and the facts you deliver, the pendulum shifts over to what our culture is, and we start managing our business rather than let someone else manage and direct us.
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 61
Mike Anderson to Host Free Webinars on Locating OEM Procedures
Trainer and consultant Mike Anderson of Collision Advice will host a new series of free monthly webinars, titled “Learn to Research, Research to Learn,” throughout 2018. The webinars are designed to help shops more easily research and find OEM collision repair procedures. Most will include an automaker representative, and attendees will have an opportunity to text in questions during the live webinar, to be answered by Anderson or the OEM representative. “I’ll be focusing on a different automaker each month, and I will walk shop owners, estimators and technicians through the process of using that OEM’s specific website to locate the repair procedures, information and position statements they need,” Anderson said. Anderson has long been a proponent of shops checking OEM repair procedures for every job, and believes far too few shops are doing that. “Once you understand the automakers’ websites and begin using them, it becomes a much faster and
easier process, and these webinars will help shops do that,” he said. “Repetition is key.” The first of the free monthly webinars will focus on Toyota’s Technical Information System (TIS), and will be held at 2 p.m. (Eastern) / 11 a.m. (Pacific) on Wednesday, Feb. 21. Visit the following URL to register: http://bit.ly/2EQiDk7 Collision Advice is a full-service training and consulting firm offering collision repairers’ businesses of all sizes assistance with virtually every aspect of business management and production, including estimating, SOP development, lean principles, accounting, sales and marketing, customer service, negotiating, workforce development, websites and social marketing. Anderson and his Collision Advice team offer dozens of workshops and seminars throughout the country each year, and provide business and shop operational consulting services for individual collision repair businesses. Collision Advice also conducts quarterly “Who Pays for What?” surveys in conjunction with CRASH Network.
Continued from Page 56
Shop Certification
Audi: Today in 2018, most people in the industry know about high-strength steel, aluminum and such, and know that vehicles with these substrates require different tools, equipment and procedures. When we started back in 2003, this was a foreign concept to most people—even those in the industry. First, I had to convince our own corporate team at Audi that changes were necessary. Then we had to convince our dealers. They wanted to continue fixing cars the same way they learned 25 years ago. It was a challenge in 2003, but we eventually started changing minds. ABN: What is you biggest challenge in maintaining the network?
Audi: Our biggest challenge is maintaining communication with our shops. It seems the technician base in our shops is pretty solid—few people come and go. The “curn” is with management people in the shops. It’s a real challenge to get them to keep their profile current so we know who we are talking to
when we call. It’s also a challenge to keep everyone’s training current.
ABN: What do you see for the future of OE certification programs?
Audi: I think it is inevitable that all OEs will have some sort of certification program. Those that don’t have a program now will start one. Those that have an existing program will put more teeth into it. In the future, I think OEs will make their customers more aware of their programs and find ways to drive more vehicles to their shops. Also in the future, I think insurance companies will pay more attention to certified shops and give them more credence due to liability concerns. ABN: Any final thoughts?
Audi: We have a lot of other ideas to enhance the program. Some are under development, some are still just ideas. But we will continue to move forward with the industry.
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Industry Invited To Sponsor Uniforms for Collision Education Students The Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) is facilitating a uniform donation program between collision repair businesses and high school and college collision repair programs for the 2018–2019 school year. Uniforms will create a more professional learning environment for students, preparing them for potential careers in the collision industry. Each local student can be sponsored for $50, which provides the student with a Cintas work shirt and pants. Businesses that sponsor more than 20 uniforms can have their corporate logo featured on a patch on the front of the uniform shirts. Students of Barry Roopnarine, a teacher in the collision program at Edison Technical High School, received donations from The Collision Centers of New York Inc. for the 2017–2018 school year. Roopnarine said, “The sponsorship… allows the students to maintain a professional look. It also makes them aware that the collision industry is taking their education seriously, as they are the future of the industry.” Participating businesses can
sponsor schools of their choice, or they can choose to be paired with a school in need by the Education Foundation. The donation program can lead to long-term relationships between professionals and school programs that are preparing the next generation of collision industry employees. Madison Larson, Human Resources Representative from The Collision Centers of New York Inc., said, “As we move into 2018, it’s important to invest and encourage our next generation of technicians. These uniforms for the Thomas E. Edison auto body program allow the students to feel like they are a part of something special. It creates confidence and excitement for the program. The program is very dedicated to its students, and we are thrilled to be a part of that.” Sponsorship and donations are facilitated through the Collision Repair Education Foundation, but sponsoring businesses are invited to visit the school to meet the students and distribute the new uniforms. Roopnarine said, “Having members from the Collision Centers visit the classroom allowed students the opportunity to explore career op-
tions and gain a deeper understanding of the importance of their education.” Zachary Concepcion, a 12th grade collision student at Edison Technical High School and recipient of uniform donations in 2017, said the donation shows him and his classmates where they can find opportunities in the industry. “It gives us a reason to never be unprepared… and makes us look really professional as a class,” he said. Companies interested in sponsoring the uniform donation program through the Collision Repair Education Foundation for the 2018—2019 school year should contact Collision Repair Education Foundation Director of Development Brandon Eckenrode at Brandon.Eckenrode@ed -foundation.org or 847-463-5244. Roopnarine said, “Through partnership between collision education programs and collision industry associates, it can lead to opportunities to help fill the technician shortage. Without the efforts of the Collision Repair Education Foundation, this opportunity would not have been possible as they help form a link between collision repair schools and the collision industry.”
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1Collision Announces New Call Center, Phone App
MICHIGAN
The 1Collision Network announced the release of a phone app and call center integrated technology solution designed to assist the motorist—from handling the scene of an accident, to finding the nearest 1Collision repair center, to initializing the repair process. The Network Call Center, a function button on the app, will direct consumers through a toll free number, utilizing an advanced zip code locator as well as an option to connect the caller to the network corporate office directly for support. The 1Collision phone app also assists the motorist in the collision repair process, with features such as “What to Do After an Accident,” “Find a Location,” and “Request an Estimate.” Network President Jim Keller commented, “We are excited to launch these tools aimed at assisting consumers with solutions when the unfortunate happens, and also naturally creating opportunities to increase the traffic at our network locations.”
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www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 63
GCIA Kicks Off 2018 with Presentation by Attorney Erica Eversman by Chasidy Rae Sisk
On Jan.18, the Georgia Collision Industry Association (GCIA) held its 2018 kickoff meeting—the group’s first meeting since the passing of Executive Director Howard Batchelor last fall. Despite a highly unusual dusting of snow that caused business closings for several days, around 40 collision repair industry professionals braved the inclement roads to learn how to protect themselves from litigation and be properly compensated for completed repair operations during a presentation from industry attorney Erica Eversman. The meeting was held at Wyndham Atlanta Galleria in Atlanta, GA. Association Secretary Gregg Goff feels association meetings like this one are important in order to “provide information to shop owners and managers that help them promote a more professional and complete repair process. Many do not have time during their day to catch up with recent events or news from the collision repair industry.” Goff opened the meeting by discussing several upcoming events for the association: the 2018 Southern Au-
OEM Parts You Need and Trust. Genuine Mitsubishi Replacement Crash Parts are close at hand from the following quality dealerships:
tomotive Repair Conference (SARC) in Biloxi, NACE/Automechanika in Atlanta later this year and GCIA’s 2018 golf tournament, scheduled to take place this fall. After reminding association members to update the VRS
Labor Rate Survey, he introduced three candidates for the office of Insurance Commissioner in the 2018 election: Tracy Jordan, Jim Beck and Shane Mobley. Goff then introduced Erica Eversman, Chief Legal Counsel for Vehicle Information Services, who presented “Providing Customers Safe, Proper Repairs and Recent Lawsuits Exposing Insurer Interference with that Goal.” Eversman stressed the importance of following OEM procedures and documentation during the repair process. “Erica discussed the difference between a cost estimate (insurer estimate) and the damage analysis,” Goff shared. “Cost estimates are done by insurers to verify and document the loss while allocating funds internally
to be available for the payment of the claim, and the damage analysis should be completed by the shop as the blueprint for the repair. She discussed how DRP arrangements are seen by legal means as ‘electing to repair’ by insurance companies and puts liability on them for the repair completed, along with the shop. As such, the insurance estimate should not even be considered for the repair process; this keeps the authority in the hands of the shop where it belongs.” Further exploring the implications of shop liability, Eversman cited the following court cases as evidence of the importance of shops following the correct procedures and standing up for themselves and their customers: Cook v. State Farm (KY, 2004), Smith v. American Family S. W. (MO, 2009), Progressive v. North State Autobahn Greg Coccaro (NY, 2011), Seebachan v. John Eagle Collision Center (TX, 2017), and Nick’s
Garage v. Progressive/Nationwide (NY, ongoing). Goff recalled, “As vehicles evolve with ADAS options, they are becoming more and more complicated to repair. Shops must invest in training, equipment, scan tools, OEM procedure information and an internal documentation and auditing program to indemnify themselves in case of legal ramifications relating to repair. Shops must follow OEM repair procedures to protect themselves and their customers.” After her presentation, Eversman engaged in a question-and-answer session, which elicited insightful feedback from attendees. She concluded with, “The real question is whether you, as the repairer, would be willing to repair your child’s vehicle in the same way and feel safe with them on the road.” For more information, visit www .gcia.org.
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MINNESOTA
OHIO
Brookdale Volkswagen Brooklyn Center
Brunswick Volkswagen Brunswick
763-331-6480
OHIO
Brunswick Mazda Brunswick Toll Free
888-460-7080
Direct 330-460-7080 Fax 330-460-7082 M-F 8-6; Sat 8-4 www.brunswickautomart.com
64 MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Fax: 763-331-6481 M-F 7am-6pm; Sat 8am-4:30pm
parts@brookdalevw.com
Toll Free: 330-460-7080 Direct: 330-460-7080 Fax: 330-460-7082 M-F 8am-6pm; Sat 8am-4pm
www.brunswickautomart.com
SOUTH DAKOTA Graham Automotive Sioux Falls
888-540-6399
Fax: 605-221-0550
parts@grahamauto.com
INSIST ON GENUINE GM PARTS ONLY ORIGINAL PARTS PROTECT THE VEHICLE’S VALUE.
Call Call Any Any of of These These Wholesale Wholesale Parts Parts Dealers Dealers Below Below Kentucky
Michigan
Missouri
Ohio
Don Franklin Buick GMC
Alma Chevrolet Buick GMC
Bob McCosh GM
Sweeney Chevy Buick GMC
800-880-5020
888-229-2336
573-449-4103 573-441-5632 Fax
LEXINGTON
859-263-5022 859-263-8527 Fax M-F 7:30 am - 5:30 pm Sat 8 am - 5 pm
aworkman@wgautogroup.com
Bob Hook Chevrolet LOUISVILLE
800-274-4665
502-499-0917 Fax
M-F 8 am - 5:30 pm bmaberry@bobhook.net
ALMA
989-463-0456 Fax
M-F 7:30 am - 6 pm parts@almabuickgmc.com
LaFontaine Buick GMC Cadillac HIGHLAND
877-552-2580
734-793-6000 734-793-1101 Fax 734-793-1102 Fax Minnesota
Indiana
Schepel Buick GMC MERRILLVILLE
800-588-7757
219-769-7757 219-755-0339 Fax M-F 7:30 am - 5 pm parts@schepel.com
Iowa
Shottenkirk Automotive FORT MADISON
877-310-0513
888-945-3729 Fax
M-F 7:30 am - 5 pm gmparts@shottenkirk.com
Mills Parts Center
COLUMBIA
800-800-8071
M-F 7 am - 6 pm Sat 7 am - 3 pm gmparts@bmcmail.com
North Dakota
Gateway Chevrolet Cadillac FARGO
YOUNGSTOWN
800-476-0760
330-726-2297 330-726-0709 Fax
M-F 7 am - 5 pm mattf@sweeneycars.com
VanDevere Chevy AKRON
800-362-9650
330-836-4064 330-836-4074 Fax
800-342-4260
M-F 7:30 am - 5:30 pm chevyparts@vandevere.com
M-F 8 am - 7 pm Sat 8 am - 4 pm
Wisconsin
701-282-8880 701-277-4565 Fax
800-247-1158
Ohio
Ivan Gandrud Chevrolet
M-F 8am - 5:30pm
Classic Chevrolet
800-242-2844
WILLMAR
866-235-6700 Fax
Rosedale Chevrolet ROSEVILLE
800-247-0585
651-639-2120 651-639-2192 Fax
M-Th 7 am - 8 pm F 7am - 6pm Sat 8 am - 4:30 pm parts@rosedalechev.com
MENTOR
800-951-7282
800-352-7275 24-HR Fax M-F 8 am - 6 pm Sat 8 am - 1 pm
GREEN BAY
920-468-3658 920-468-3673 Fax M-F 7 am - 7 pm Sat 7 am - 2 pm parts@gandrud.com
Jake Sweeney Chevrolet CINCINNATI
513-782-2829
513-782-2846 Fax
M-F 7:30 am - 6 pm Sat 8 am - Noon jakesweeneychevy.com
www.autobodynews.com | MARCH 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 65
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