Southwest Edition Texas Oklahoma Louisiana New Mexico
31
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VOL. 31 ISSUE 3 MARCH 2013
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GEICO Joins State Farm in Seeking Gag Order Against Ray Gunder, Tactic to Block Information GEICO has joined State Farm in seeking a gag order against Ray Gunder of Gunder’s Auto Center in Lakeland, FL. Gunder is suing the insurers on behalf of his customers for intentional short pays and a variety of other alleged misdoings. According to Gunder’s spokespeople, GEICO brought in legal cocounsel last week from Arizona, who immediately sent notice to Gunder’s attorney, Brent Geohagan, that they would be seeking a delay/continuance for several scheduled depositions and request the court to issue a gag order to stop Gunder from sharing his legal findings. Last month, State Farm filed a similar motion with the local court to
stop Gunder from sharing information relative to the numerous lawsuits he has filed on behalf of his customers, including deposition transcripts and results of hearings and discovery. “Because no ‘trade secrets’ (i.e. policy premiums, methodology to set or determine pricing, demographics, etc.) will be part or parcel of the discovery in these cases, and because the terms of the insurers’ policy/contracts are readily available to all, as are their marketing efforts, I can see no viable or ‘legitimate trade secret’ concerns that would warrant the courts to issue such an order to silence Ray,” said Barrett Smith of Auto Damage Experts (ADE). “Based upon what has
by Eladio Jaimez, TSTC Staff
in Mexico. The 20-year-old Texas State Technical College student spent most of her life dressing up, applying makeup, learning to pose for photos and attending recitals. Her daily routine is different these days, and some say an unconventional choice for a typical 20-year old woman. Cuevas graduated from Los Fresnos High School, in Cameron County, TX, in 2011. She was a dual enrollment student while at LFHS and continued her education at the Harlingen campus of the college after graduation. When she arrived on campus,
See Gagging Gunder, Page 18
One-Time Dance Student Learns Estimating
See Dance to Body Shop, Page 6
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
Cristhian Cuevas plans on graduating from TSTC this summer and hopes to find a job as an estimator shortly afterward.
Change Service Requested
Cristhian Cuevas has come a long way from her folkloric dance recitals
Oklahoma Commissioner Backs Temporary Insurance Plan for Uninsured Drivers A pair of legislative proposals would allow Oklahoma law enforcement officers to remove the tags of uninsured vehicles and create a temporary insurance plan for them. Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak announced the bills on Feb. 5 at the State Capitol. “We simply cannot afford uninsured driving in our state any longer,” said Doak. “Not only does it raise auto insurance rates for all Oklahomans, but if an uninsured driver hits your car, the costs could cripple you finanJohn Doak cially. We must put an end to this serious problem.” The legislative proposals include Senate Bill 701, authored by Sen. David Holt, R–Oklahoma City and House Bill 1792, authored by Rep. Mike Christian, R–Oklahoma City. The similar bills allow law enforcement officers to remove the tag
from the uninsured vehicle. It would be replaced with a temporary sticker. The proposal also includes an administrative fee that provides temporary insurance coverage for the stickered vehicles. Once the offender pays the required fees and fines and purchases insurance, his or her tag will be returned. “Unfortunately, right now, the fine for driving uninsured is less than the cost of insurance,” said Doak. He also announced the formation of the Coalition Against Uninsured Drivers (CAUD). Its members include AAA, Independent Insurance Agents of Oklahoma, Oklahoma Safety Council and Oklahoma Trucking Association. Around 25% of Oklahoma motorists are uninsured, according to Chuck Mai, Oklahoma AAA Vice President. An evaluation by the Oklahoma Insurance Department found that approximately 563,692 vehicles in Oklahoma are uninsured, resulting in an $8.8 million dollar loss for the state’s General Revenue Fund and Police and Firefighter Pension Funds.
Oklahoma Reintroduces Aftermarket Parts Disclosure Law; AAIA Urges Opposition
Aftermarket parts disclosure legislation (Senate Bill 1051) has been reintroduced in the state of Oklahoma. S.B. 1051 would require an insurer to disclose to the consumer in writing if an aftermarket emission, safety or crash part is to be used in a repair. Insurers would then be required to obtain written consent from car owners regarding the use of an aftermarket part in the repair. A similar bill was introduced last year but was pulled from consideration due to strong opposition expressed by AAIA members in the state. According to the bill, an ‘emission part’ is defined as: an oxygen sensor, catalytic converter, exhaust pipe, exhaust manifold, fuel distributor, electronic emission control unit, onboard diagnostic unit or any related parts or components. A ‘safety part’ refers to a replacement of parts or systems essential to vehicle operation, suspension, elec-
tronic control units, brake parts, safety systems and air bags. An ‘aftermarket part’ is defined as any part not made for or by the manufacturer of the motor vehicle. The disclosure statement to the consumer would state, “This estimate has been prepared based on the use of crash parts supplied by a source other than the manufacturer of your motor vehicle. Warranties applicable to these replacement parts are provided by the manufacturer or distributor of these parts rather than the manufacturer of your vehicle.” AAIA is urging all members with locations in Oklahoma to write to senators stating their opposition to this bill. AAIA says that requiring these disclosures will leave motorists with the incorrect impression that aftermarket parts are of an inferior quality to OE parts.
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