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I-CAR Wants to Get OEM Info to Techs and to Educate Consumers about Tech Training
VOL. 5 ISSUE 7 SEPTEMBER 2014
Louisiana AG Buddy Caldwell Files Suit Against State Farm Alleging Unsafe Business Practices
by John Yoswick
A glimpse at future vehicle technology and what it may mean for collision repairers and insurers filled much of the agenda at I-CAR’s annual conference in Detroit in late July, but the organization saved perhaps its most significant news for a presentaJason Bartanen presents the Repairability Technical tion at NACE the following Support Portal on the NACE Show Floor day. There, Jason Bartanen unveiled mation into technician’s hands,” said Bartanen, director of industry technical the new “Repairability Technical Support Portal,” I-CAR’s effort to put repair relations for I-CAR. “They may not walk up to the front of the shop to ask procedures and vehicle information as a technical question. But if they have close to technician’s as the nearest comthe answer in their pocket, maybe they puter, tablet or smartphone screen. “We really want to put this inforSee I-CAR Wants, Page 30
Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell has filed a lawsuit against State Farm Insurance alleging the nationwide insurer has engaged in a pattern of unfair and fraudulent business practices aimed at controlling the auto repair industry and forcing unsafe repairs on vehicles without the knowledge or consent of Louisiana consumers. Attorney General Caldwell said, “State Farm has created a culture of unsafe business practices in which consumer vehicle repairs are performed with cost-savings as the primary goal rather than safety and reliability.” The suit, filed in Louisiana’s 19th Judicial District Court, alleges State Farm violated Louisiana’s Un-
fair Trade Practices Act and Monopolies Law by using scare tactics to steer Louisiana consumers to State Farm’s preferred repair shops and forcing shops to perform vehicle repairs cheaply and quickly, rather than in accordance with consumer safety and vehicle manufacturer performance standards. See LA AG Files Suit, Page 34
NACE Coverage Online at autobodynews.com
Technology & Telematics Expo Hole in One Winner at CREF Expo Overview and Sessions NABC and Recycled Rides Media Debriefing After Show Show Photos on our Facebook
Assured Performance Network Makes the Case and Details Growing OEM Insistence on Being Part of Repair and Certification in the Future, NACE Attendees Clearly Impressed
Ronald Doerr, new Senior V.P. of Strategic Initiatives (l) and Scott Biggs point out the features of the new Chrysler app.
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
NACE is known for new product releases, fast breaking technology and fancy classic cars, but it’s also a place to get the latest news in the collision industry. Scott Biggs, the charismatic CEO, President and Founder of Assured Performance Network in Irvine, CA, delivered the goods when he spoke to a full room at this year’s NACE show. The message Biggs conveyed concerned the present and
growing importance of manufacturer certifications and the associated referral programs that will soon become prevalent in the collision industry. His speech was both timely and relevant to any body shop, whether it’s a small independent all the way to a large MSO. The times are a-changing and you don’t need to be Bob Dylan to See see ???, it, accordPage ??
Change Service Requested
by Ed Attanasio
ing to Biggs. “You need to know that this isn’t your grandfather’s or even your father’s certification program. The biggest difference is that now the automakers are rewarding the shops that invest in compliance with customer referrals. OEM’s have already begun to refer their vehicle owners to these forward-thinking shops for their collision repair needs, and this will only increase over the coming months. The
playing field has changed and business as usual is over. The biggest automakers with mass-produced and mass-market brands are using a very aggressive referral approach and that will place the certified shops at a whole different level.” That Ford is leading the pack with this body shop certification program is a clear indication of where things are headed, Biggs explained. “Ford has made a new truck (the best selling vehicle in the country for 30 years) that cannot be fixed in the old-fashioned way—period. Following suit are other OEM’s. If you want to repair any of these vehicles, and there will be millions of them soon, you’re going to have to do it the right way—which requires new tools, equipment, training and facilities. Shops who do not embrace these changes put themselves and their customers in a very tenuous and unsafe position. So, certification really isn’t even elective in this See Assured Performance, Page 42
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