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Fighting for Safer Auto Repairs in Texas, ABAT Hosts Todd Tracy
national safety advocate and attorney Todd Tracy, the Auto Body AssociaThe fight for safety took a major step tion of Texas and leading auto body shop owners from around the state for forward on Oct. 24. Texas Watch was honored to join a wide-ranging conversation on how the insurance industry illegally steers consumers to insurancefriendly “repair” facilities, underestimates damage, refuses to pay for important safety scans and other necessary procedures, and suppresses labor rates all in the name of padding their bottom line. The consumer has a right to Burl Richards (l) discusses safe repairs with members by Staff, Texas Watch
of ABAT and Texas Watch
See Todd Tracy at ABAT, Page 12
Recruiting Firm Says Industry is Low-balling Texas Body & Paint Technicians with Salaries
Auto Body Paint Repair, a recruiting firm in the collision repair industry, says, “Recently, we spoke to over 30 candidates currently employed in the San Antonio and Austin, Texas markets. The average auto body and paint technician salary was only $48,000 per year with little or no benefits.” “San Antonio, Texas companies are willing to pay a minimum of $85,000 per year plus lucrative benefits just to hire that same highly skilled technician. This represents 77 percent more pay. Some even have additional performance bonuses, jumping annual pay up to $125,000 See Lowballing Salaries, Page 12
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The collision repair industry is lowballing many auto body and paint technicians in Texas and other states with salaries 77 percent lower than their same-skilled counterparts at competing collision repair and custom paint shops in the same city. Technicians don’t realize they are giving up tens of thousands of dollars per year in take-home pay, plus extra benefits. Often they have been working for the same small company for many years and don’t even realize how the automotive collision repair market pay structure has changed recently for growing companies. Laura Regan, hiring manager for
VOL. 35 ISSUE 12 DECEMBER 2017
Attorney Who Sued Texas Body Shop Urges Shops to Stand Up to Insurance Companies by John Yoswick
Shortly after gaining notoriety within the industry in 2013 for suing State
Texas attorney Todd Tracy told shops at SEMA in Las Vegas in November what they can do to avoid a suit like the one he brought against a shop for failure to follow OEM repair procedures
Farm over its mandated use of PartsTrader, Mississippi attorney John Eaves was speaking to shops during SEMA week in Las Vegas, recruiting participants for lawsuits against insurers that he said would revolution-
ize the industry. Four years later almost to the day, Texas attorney Todd Tracy told shops in a packed Las Vegas ballroom during this year’s SEMA that his recent $42 million lawsuit against a dealership body shop—and a subsequent related lawsuit against State Farm—also potentially marks the start of a profound shift for collision repairers. “This is a defining moment in your industry,” Tracy said. “You have a verdict that can change the industry.” Tracy was careful to point out that his goal isn’t to sue body shops for failure to follow OEM repair procedures, the basis of his legal victory against John Eagle Collision Center. Instead, like Eaves, Tracy has insurance companies in his legal crosshairs. See Stand Up, Page 22
Where Do OE Certification Programs Go Now, in a Post-John Eagle World? by Gary Ledoux
The John Eagle verdict that occurred back in October, and the $42M judgement for the plaintiffs, Matthew and Marcia Seebachan, who were severely injured in an incorrectly repaired Honda Fit was, no doubt, the biggest collision industry story of the year—if not the decade. Subsequently, shops have become acutely aware of the severe liability they open themselves up to when a repair is not performed according to OE procedures. Shops have a huge stake in this game. After all, when you come right down to it, the choice to follow OE procedures and a correct repair, or not, is solely up to the shop – the technician and shop owner or manager. But the OE’s have a big stake too. An OE’s brand is on the line at a cer-
tified shop. When a consumer sees an OE emblem attached to a shop’s office wall or on their website, they assume it is a quality shop and their car, the second largest investment they have, will be repaired correctly and safely. Consumers trust the OE brand – so the OE must be able to trust the shop. Unfortunately, there are so many other forces that drive the industry and may have an over-riding effect, even on those shops that are OE certified. On October 3, 2017, the day after the $42M verdict was rendered, the industry entered the post-John Eagle era. Times have changed. So where do we go from here? How does the industry make sure this doesn’t happen again? What role will the OE’s play? Will OE certification programs adapt and change with this paradigm shift? See Post John Eagle, Page 20
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