of that tech that really comes with any ramifications. If you go to a surgeon and he does a bad surgery, his license is in jeopardy and he is accountable for his shoddy work,” he said. By using technology, the job of vetting every tech is easier than you might think, Nixon said. “In today’s age, we should be able to use things like predictive modeling, artificial intelligence and machine learning in conjunction with all of the data that we’re already extracting to find those shops that need frequent monitoring and more than just a few random inspections every year,” he said. Once the data tells them what to do, they need to inspect the work of a particular painter or tech and determine if they should still be fixing cars, he said. “Just because a shop has the right equipment and training, how do we really know if a tech knows how to use it?” he said. “We don’t have an accountability program in this industry right now, but we need one. If we can provide a new level of transparency and show the consumers that the per-
son fixing their car is truly skilled and experienced to do the job, that’s the goal. Could we have predicted that John Eagle Collision would have encountered the problems that they did, which eventually led to their demise? Who knows, but if we can develop a program where an under-trained or inept tech isn’t allowed to work on vehicles until they’re back up to speed, that could prevent a lot of these mistakes before people get hurt and everyone ends up in court again.” Industry veteran and former OEcertified shop program administrator Gary Ledoux also has some definite ideas about the topic. “The car manufacturers, especially those that make non-luxury, mainstream brands have spent a lot of time and effort to get their networks built and have done a great job doing that,” Ledoux said. “And if the collision repair landscape was the same today as it was when they started building their networks, they might be able to ride that business model a while longer. But things changed dramatically on October 2, 2017 in the wake of the John Eagle decision. The stakes are higher today for everyone.
It’s time to kick things up a notch, and hold certified shops accountable. “Most shops joined OE-certified programs for the right reason,” Ledoux said. “Their hearts are in it, and they want to do a proper and safe repair for their sake, the sake of the OE and most importantly, for the sake of the customer. Others joined only because they thought an OE certification was just another DRP, but with a different flavor. They may have taken the training and bought the requisite welder, but it did not change the improper way they repair cars. These shops need to be identified and removed from the certified rosters, and there are several ways to do that. It’s just a matter of finding the right way.” Michael Anderson from Collision Advice believes that the OEs are going to step up and assume more of the responsibility and accountability after the John Eagle case and tap into a lot of new technology to help them achieve their goals. “I can tell you that through my interactions with the OEMs, I have learned that their two main concerns are first safe repairs, and [second] pro-
tecting their brand,” Anderson said. “They recognize a need for oversight and absolutely feel as though there needs to be some meat on their programs, including an auditing process. So, they’re all cognizant of that and some OEs will lead the way, but they all know that it’s a necessary progression to make this industry better as a whole.” Anderson believes that you will see a time in the very near future where if a shop is certified, the manufacturers will start to monitor how often the shop researches their repair procedures. “For example, if you’re repairing Hugos, they are going to monitor how often you pulled the OE procedures on a Hugo—What did you pull, what did you review and how long [did] you review,” Anderson said. “I also believe that the OEs will demand that all of their certified shops be required to show proof that [they] scanned the vehicle with an OE scan tool so that [they] can verify that all of the car’s safety and comfort features were working before that vehicle gets released back to the consumer.” See OE Certifications, Page 51
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