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14 Fort Wayne, IN, Shops Opt Out of State Farm’s Select Service Citing PartsTrader by Chasidy Rae Sisk
In December 2013, State Farm experienced a dramatic reduction in the number of shops participating in Select Service (their direct repair program) in the Fort Wayne, IN, area due to the implementation of PartsTrader. Of the 22 local shops particiTodd Bonecutter pating in the DRP, 14 (over 60%) opted out of the program, though some of these shops had
been on the program for decades. Several shop owners and managers were willing to discuss their reasons for being removed from the Select Service. Todd Bonecutter, General Manager at Glenbrook Collision at 100 W. Coliseum Blvd in Ft. Wayne, said he opposes PartsTrader as a mandated tool. “We don’t like being told where we can buy our parts or being prevented from buying parts from our usual vendors. This is just a stepping stone for the insurers to dictate other things in the collision industry. They See Shops Opt Out, Page 48
A NYC Select Service Shop Decides to “Just Say No” to PartsTrader as a Mandate
See Just Say No, Page 10
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
As State Farm rolls out PartsTrader in various metropolitan areas across the country, a growing number of shops appear to be withdrawing from their Select Service DRP. Recently, shops in several states have withdrawn from the program, and this trend is now spreading to NY where Angelo and Gus Palakis, owners of Dale-Way Auto Body Center in the Bronx, refused to sign up for PartsTrader and were subsequently removed from State Farm’s Select Service Program. In January 2014, Angelo posted on LinkedIn: “State Farm is in the
process of rolling out PartsTrader in NY. We declined to sign on so we were immediately removed from the service first program. Hopefully, most shops in NY will do the same!” Palakis graciously agreed to discuss his reasons for refusing to use PartsTrader. Angelo was “very upset about the implementation of PartsTrader because it’s extortion! By State Farm making the use of PartsTrader mandatory, it’s dictating to body shops where to buy parts from, with potential savings for State Farm at the body shops’ expense. You are not given a
Change Service Requested
by Chasidy Rae Sisk
VOL. 3 ISSUE 11 FEBRUARY 2014
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Industry Observations from Collision Attorney
ERICA EVERSMAN If you’ve been paying the least bit of attention to legal issues in the collision repair industry over the past decade, you probably know of Erica Eversman, an OH-based attorney and consumer advocate who specializes in understanding collision repairers’ issues and their impact on consumer safety. A noted authority and frequent speaker on the topics of diminished value, DRP networks and the influence insurers attempt to exert over repairers, Eversman serves as a consultant to the industry, assisting repairers to analyze proposed regulations and laws affecting collision repair. In addition to creating “AutoMuse”, an award-winning blog, she is chief counsel for Vehicle Information Services, Inc. and the founder of the Automotive Education and Policy Institute, a non-profit organization geared towards educating consumers. Though Eversman is obviously busy playing so many roles, she took time from her hectic schedule to talk to Autobody News readers about some of the major concerns plaguing the collision repair industry today. As a consumer advocate, Eversman stresses that consumer education is vital; “first and foremost, consumers are the people in charge of their vehicles, but if they don’t have the proper information, they can’t stand up for themselves. They are the only ones who can effect meaningful change because it is their vehicles and their contract with the insurance company.” Furthermore, collision repairers must comply with consumer protection laws, so they are the ones at risk of noncompliance when insurer interference promotes a situation where repairers are asked to do as the insurer requests, which is always focused on cost and saving money rather than on providing a quality repair. The shop can only do so much, and if the consumer doesn’t help, they are essentially saying that the repair is good enough, even if it’s not actually safe.
INTERVIEW by Chasidy Rae Sisk
continued on page 18
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