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State Farm & PartsTrader Meet with Industry As Program Rolls Out in the Southwest by John Yoswick
Shop and vendor concern and unhappiness about State Farm’s mandated use of PartsTrader was evident at a packed Automotive Service Association (ASA) of Arizona meeting in Phoenix in August, the same week the program was being rolled David Priest out in that market. We feel you’re using your size and intruding into our business through the shops with PartsTrader,”
David Priest, parts director for Brown & Brown Chevrolet in Mesa, AZ, told State Farm’s George Avery at the meeting. “You’re asking me to pay a fee for a program that will probably decrease OEM part usage. How do you perceive that PartsTrader for an OEM dealer is an effective tool?” Dale Sailer of Dale Sailer PartsTrader, who also spoke at the meeting, pointed out that dealers can now see and quote See PartsTrader Rollout, Page 20
‘Fax-Only’ Parts Ordering Option will End by September For Shops Using PartsTrader 2.2
change was made in preparation for the full state rollout of PartsTrader in Arizona beginning on August 12, according to her statement. The fax option will remain in the other pilot cities of Grand Rapids, Chicago, Birmingham, and Charlotte until the end of August or September 1, Smith said. The fax-only option was originally added to the PartsTrader system so that Select Service facilities could still place orders with their preferred vendors, even if those vendors refused to participate in the PartsTrader program. If a See Fax-Only Ending, Page 4
Change Service Requested
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
PartsTrader held a webinar on Aug. 1 to discuss several changes to the parts ordering application, including the end of the “fax-only” ordering option. In the new 2.2 release, which went live on August 1, PartsTrader has made several changes that will affect users of the electronic parts marketplace developed for State Farm’s Select Service DRP. (See previous cover story.) Lucy Smith, Product Manager at PartsTrader, said that—with this release—the option to place orders through PartsTrader by fax will no longer be available in the Tucson, AZ, market effective immediately. The
VOL. 31 ISSUE 9 SEPTEMBER 2013
Texas Passes Two Bills That Could Impact Insurance for Shops, Other Small Business Two pieces of insurance legislation, passed during the 83rd Texas Legislative Session, could be of great significance to businesses in Texas. SB 1332 relates to classifying business as small and large employers for health insurance purposes, and SB 734 relates to the creation of captive insurance companies in Texas. A captive insurance company is essentially a private insurer that is a wholly owned subsidiary of another company.
Senate Bill 1332 Senate Bill 1332, sponsored by Sen. Robert Duncan (R-Lubbock) and Rep. John Smithee (R-Amarillo), amends Texas law to allow the inclusion of part‐time employees to classify businesses as large or small employers. The bill allows the definitions to be based on total number of employees
instead of the previous “eligible” employees, which were those who worked at least 30 hours per week. This will bring the state in line with federal definitions regarding how businesses are sized for the Affordable Care Act. The change in law applies only to health benefit plans delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed on or after January 1, 2014. It is important to note that under federal law, as of January 2014, small employers will be classified as one to 100 employees, but according to TDI, because Texas specified that small employers would be kept to 50 and under, small employers will remain up to 50 employees in Texas, with large employers at 51 employees and above. The ACA’s “pay or play” provision requiring employers with more See Two Texas Bills, Page 13
See Correction to July 2013 Article on Felder’s Collision Parts v General Motors et al. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .p. 3
Texas Court Orders Settlement Conference in Fair Labor Standards Case v. Safelite A judge for the U.S. Northern District of Texas, Dallas division, has ordered that a face-to-face conference between plaintiff David Trent and Safelite be held this month to discuss a possible settlement to allegations that Safelite Fulfilment Inc. violated Fair Labor Standards (FLSA) by not compensating for overtime. “Individual parties and their counsel shall participate in person, not by telephone or other remote means,” orders U.S. District Judge Reed O’Conner in court documents. “All other parties shall participate by a representative or representatives, in addition to counsel, who shall have unlimited settlement authority and who shall participate in person, not by telephone or other remote means. “If a party has liability insurance
coverage as to any claim made against that party in this case, a representative of each insurance company providing such coverage, who shall have full authority to offer policy limits in settlement, shall be present at and participate in the meeting in person,” he continues. Within seven days of the conference the parties must “jointly prepare and file a written report, who was present and whether “meaningful progress toward settlement was made, and a statement regarding the prospects of a settlement,” the judge writes. Trent filed a class action complaint against Safelite earlier this year, specifically listing times when he alleges he worked through his lunch break but was not compensated. See Settlement Ordered, Page 17
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