Autobody News April 2014 Northeastern Edition

On March 18, 2014, three auto bodybills were heard by the House Com-mittee on Corporations that the Prop-erty Casualty Insurers Association ofAmerica (PCI) says should be defeatedin Rhode Island to protect inherentrights as consumers, according to re-ports by Randal Edgar in the Provi-dence Journal.

There were accusations of lies andcounteraccusations of self-interest.There were numbers that suggest costshave risen dramatically and other num-bers that suggest they’ve been stable.

This year’s clash mostly revolvesaround two bills, both supported by theAuto Body Association of Rhode Is-land and opposed by the Property Ca-

sualty Insurers Association of America.House Bill 7404, sponsored by

Rep. Stephen Ucci, D-Johnston, ex-pands a law that requires owner ap-proval when aftermarket parts are usedon vehicles that are less than 30months old. Under current law, the ruleapplies to body parts, but Ucci’s billwould make it apply to all parts.

Supporters said the bill wouldprotect owners and ensure that dam-aged parts on newer cars are replacedwith parts from the car’s manufacturer.

But opponents said the changewould affect even minor parts andcould drive up repair costs.

House Bill 7796, sponsored by

Collision Experts, a New York-basedMSO with two locations, said it willno longer be included in State Farm’sSelect Service Program because thecollision repair shop wants to have theright to decide where to purchase itsparts.

State Farm’s customers can stillchoose to have their vehicles repairedat Collision Experts’ shops in Sch-enectady or Clifton Park, but the na-tional office may no longer refercustomers to Collision Experts.

Collision Experts CEO andowner Maryann Bowman said it was

more important for Collision Expertsto have the freedom to buy parts fromtrusted vendors that the company hasbuilt relationships with over the yearsrather than be included in StateFarm’s Select Service Program, whichrequires collision repair shops to pur-chase parts from PartsTrader.

Richard Bowman said “Manyof my parts vendors signed up withPartsTrader so we couldn’t use them.”

“Sometimes you have to partways in a partnership,” said MaryannBowman. “In this case, I believe that

See Collision Experts, Page 9

On March 8, 2014, a group of fourvandals wearing masks resemblingthose of the band Kiss did an esti-mated $40,000 worth of damage toabout two dozen vehicles parked theMaaco Auto Body Shop in SaddleBrook, NJ.

The group can be seen on surveil-lance video jumping on hoods, spray-ing graffiti, and smashing in windows.Police said that the suspects appear tobe men in their teens or early 20s. Asurveillance camera sitting above aMercedes caught the men as they set towork, destroying it using metal pipes,shovels, spray paint, and a fire extin-guisher. The Mercedes is now in policecustody as they process it for prints.

Shop owner, Walter Karol, saidthat he had to tell many of his cus-tomers that their vehicles were now in

worse shape than when they droppedthem off for repairs. Karol said that hehas filed an insurance claim and is re-pairing the cars that were damaged.

So far, there is no motive in thecase and police are asking for help inidentifying the masked men, hopingto make this performance their last.Call the Saddle Brook Police Detec-tive Bureau at 1-201-587-2940 withany information.NY-based MSO Collision Experts Drops State Farm’s

Select Service Due to Parts Procurement Requirement

Auto Body Bills in Rhode Island Draw HeavyFire from Both Sides, Accusations of Lies

‘Kiss Bandits’ Vandalize Cars at Body Shop inSaddle Brook, NJ, Doing $40K in Damage

See Rhode Island Bills, Page 8

In a vote in the MD House EconomicMatters committee on March 14,Maryland House Bill 574 (HB574),sponsored by Delegate John A. Ol-szewski, Jr., received an unfavorablereport out of the committee. Intro-duced in January, HB574 and its com-panion, Senate Bill 487, sponsored bySenator John C. Astle, sought to pro-hibit insurance company personnelfrom specifying a specific vendor forparts or materials or part procurementprocess, and would have requiredOEM crash parts for a period of threeyears after the date of manufacture ofa vehicle.

In a 16 to 7 vote on March 14, theMD House Economic Matters com-mittee voted for an unfavorable reporton HB574. In Maryland, committeesreport to the legislature on the billsthat are assigned to them as favorable,with or without amendment, unfavor-able, or without recommendation.Having been voted out of committee,the bill now returns to the floor of itschamber of origin accompanied by a

report of committee action for consid-eration.

No action has yet been taken onSB487. The bills provided commonground for insurers and non-OEMparts suppliers in opposition. Severalinsurance and aftermarket partsgroups testified in opposition to thebill. Repair facility operators that sup-port the legislation believe it protectsconsumers and preserves a repair fa-cilities ability to manage its opera-tions. The Washington MetropolitanAuto Body Association, WMABA,supports the proposed legislation be-lieving it necessary to protect therights of repair facilities to operatetheir business independently and pro-tect consumers.

The Automotive Body Parts As-sociation (ABPA) publicly denouncedthe legislation prohibiting insurersfrom requiring the use of alternativecollision parts on vehicles less thanfive years old.

“Senate Bill 487 will severely

Maryland Parts Bill Receives Unfavorable Vote in Cmte

See Maryland Parts Bill, Page 28

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VOL. 4 ISSUE 1APRIL 2014

2 APRIL 2014 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Acura of Westchester . . . . . . . . . . 14Amato Agency. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36Audi Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . 52Axalta Coating Systems . . . . . . . . . 5B & R Associates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Baystate Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram. 16BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 45CCC Information Services. . . . . . . 11Central Avenue Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Certified Automotive PartsAssociation (CAPA) . . . . . . . . . . 19

Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Clay Auto Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Colours, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Continental Auto Parts . . . . . . . . . 29Creative Metal Manufacturing . . . . 10Ditschman/Flemington Auto Group. 27Empire Auto Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Equalizer Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . 26Fairfield Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram. 24Fitzgerald’s Lakeforest Hyundai-Subaru. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . 51Fred Beans Parts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Future Cure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Glanzmann Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . . 20GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 50Goyette’s Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Hackettstown Honda. . . . . . . . . . . . 6Honda-Acura Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34-35

Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers. 49Jaguar Wholesale Parts Dealers. . 61Kia Motors Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Koeppel VW-Mazda. . . . . . . . . . . . 33Lexus Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . 58Malco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Maxon Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41Maxon Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 55MINI Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . 44MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . 39Nissan/Infiniti Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . 56Providence Lacquer & SupplyCentre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Reliable Automotive Equipment,Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Security Dodge-Chrysler-Jeep . . . . 7Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . 47Sussman Auto Group . . . . . . . . . . 25TechZone Airbag Service . . . . . . . 32Thompson Organization . . . . . . . . 63Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 59Valspar Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Volkswagen Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Volvo Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 54Wagner Auto Group . . . . . . . . . . . 31Yonkers Kia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40York Kia of Medford. . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Inde

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Contents

Publisher & Editor: Jeremy HayhurstGeneral Manager: Barbara DaviesOnline Editor: Alicia BasteriContributing Writers: Tom Franklin, David Brown,John Yoswick, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess,Ed Attanasio, Chasidy SiskAdvertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman,Bill Doyle, David Petro (800) 699-8251Sales Assistant: Louise TedescoArt Director: Rodolfo Garcia

Serving New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware,Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusettsand adjacent metro areas, Autobody News is a monthlypublication for the autobody industry. Permission toreproduce in any form the material published in AutobodyNews must be obtained in writing from the publisher.©2014 Adamantine Media LLC.

Autobody NewsP.O. Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018(800) 699-8251 (760) 603-3229 Faxwww.autobodynews.comEmail: [email protected] N

ortheast

REGIONAL‘Kiss Bandits’ Vandalize Cars at Body Shop inSaddle Brook, NJ, Doing $40K in Damage . . . 1

Afgan War Veteran Wins ‘Metal of Honor’ fromCollisionMax in Pennsauken, NJ. . . . . . . . . . . 4

Auto Body Bills in Rhode Island Draw HeavyFire from Both Sides, Accusations of Lies . . . 1

Baltimore Cop Shot While Waiting at Body Shop . 26Bridgeport, CT, Shop Car Fire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Carbon Fiber Supplier Closes Vermont Plant. . . 10Collision Experts Raises $7100 toBenefit Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

CollisionMax Showing 2 Classics at NE Rodand Custom Car Show. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Connecticut Dealership’s Onsite Auto Insurance . 8Crews Battle Fire At Body Shop in White Oak, PA . 26Eugene Dacy, Staten Island Shop Owner,Passes at 86 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Ex-Rep Peter Petrarca Set to Lobby forAuto Body Association of RI . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Fire at Vacant Nashua NH Body Shop . . . . . . . . 6First Intern Graduates from Pennsylvania AutoShop Career Development Program, C.R.O.P. . 9

Italian-American NY Shop Owner Received Award . 4Keenan Auto Body’s 16th Charity Golf Outingis June 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Maryland Parts Bill Receives UnfavorableVote in Cmte . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Multiple Vehicles Damaged at NJ Shop Fire . . . . 9New York Collision Center Donates $22K inPaint to BOCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

NY-based MSO Collision Experts DropsState Farm’s Select Service Due toParts Procurement Requirement . . . . . . . . . . 1

NYC Potholes Take Toll on Tires but not Crashes . 12PA Body Shop Owner Wants More Gov. Oversight . 4Pennsylvania Drivers Look in Vain forCompensation from Pothole Damage . . . . . . 12

Preston Group Now Gold Class . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Shop Owners Sign Lease on Hunts PointWarehouse in the Bronx. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Tesla Says New Jersey Will Not Pull the Plug . . . 6Testimony on Maryland Parts Bill InvolvesRepresentatives from WMABA, PCI, LKQ,CAPA and Shops, Some Repairers ‘CannotAfford to Refuse’ PartsTrader. . . . . . . . . . . . 32

WMABA Responds to Unfavorable Vote . . . . . . 29Zoning Dispute Causes PA Shop Owner to be Cited . 6

COLUMNISTSAttanasio - Louisiana Shop Owner Uses Twitterto Survey Other Shops in Real Time. . . . . . . 46

Franklin - A Missing Hat In Most Shops . . . . . . 44Sisk - ASA-AZ Meets to Discuss Survival Skillsfor Service Advisors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Sisk - LaCIA Meets to Talk Progressand Future Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Sisk - MSCRA Conducts Outreach to Industry . 58Sisk - Six Southeast Associations Planfor Southern Auto Conference . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Yoswick - 20 Years Ago In The Collision RepairIndustry (April 1994) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Yoswick - Helpful Documents, Tools, Information Only a Click Away For Shops . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

NATIONAL3D-Printed Concept Car at Geneva Auto Show . 62A Modern Body Shop is a Lean Body ShopSays Phoenix’s Capitol Collision . . . . . . . . . 12

AAAS Busy Strengthening Industry in 2014 . . . 45ABRA Acquires 13 Repair Centers in Charlotte, NC . 55AkzoNobel Celebrates Milestone during Conference. 57Andy’s Auto Body’s New Location in Wood River,IL, Looks Like a New Car Dealership . . . . . . 24

Applications for Five $1,000 AMI Scholarshipsto Attend 2014 NACE and CARS . . . . . . . . . 56

AR Body Shops Profit from Winter Weather . . . 44Arizona Body Shop Launches Free OnlineEstimating Tool for Consumers . . . . . . . . . . 21

ASA Announces Incentives for Select I-CARQualified Shops to Attend NACE/CARS. . . . . 49

ASA’s Annual Business Meeting Held in KC . . . 56Auto Industry Champion, John Dingell (D),to Retire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Autorama World of Wheels’ Student Career Day . 18Car-O-Liner Offers New Ford 2015F-150 Equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

CARSTAR Extends Partnership toOffer AutoWatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Check Fraud Victimizes FL and GA Body Shops . 51CIF is Now the Charitable Conscienceof the Industry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Clairton, PA, Body Shop Owner Killed in Accident . 10

Collision Repair Education FoundationGolf Fundraiser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Colors Edge Named PPG Platinum Distributorof the Year. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Detroit Body Shop Raided in Suspected Theftand Fraud Ring, Numerous Cars Impounded . 21

Disabled Math Teacher Found Body Shop toMake Wheelchair Accessible Golf Carts . . . . 16

Education Foundation Doubled Down onIts Future in 2013 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Elvis is Back in his Body Shop and RunningFor Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

FIX Auto Adds Five New West Coast Locations . 38FL Man Charged in Felony CounterfeitGoods Trafficking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Ford Recommends LORD Fusor in F-150 Repairs . 40Ford Sued Over Patented Turn Signal Technology . 57Freak Tire Accident Kills Gainesville Body ShopEmployee, Injures Shop Owner, DriverAlso Shop Worker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Get Ready for Earth Day with LKQ GetGreen Promotion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

GM Readying Aluminum Body Trucksfor Late 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

GM’s Handling of Fatal Switch RecallBeing Investigated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

IAA’s Bill Mayer Re-Elected To NABC BoardOf Directors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

I-CAR Has Implemented a New Initiativeto Close OEM Informational Gaps . . . . . . . . 52

I-CAR Introduces Training Solution forFull-frame Partial Replacement Repairs . . . . 53

IL Shops Also See Parts Delays Due toStorm Repairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Is My Gas Can Safe?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48Latest Edition of CIECA-TV: E-CommerceDone Right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Michigan’s HB 5339 Seeks to Address Steering, Non-OEM Parts, and Parts Procurement . . . 17

Minnesota Bill Proposes More ComprehensiveRestrictions on Insurer Vendor Requirements . 37

Mitchell Acquiring FAIRPAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41Mitchell Announces Liability Adjusters’Software Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Montana Shop Open to Airmen Working on their Own, Offers Training in Paint and Body Repair . 38

N. Ohio Shops See Parts Delays Due to Demand . 24NABC Accepting Nominations for Industry Awards . 56NACE/CARS and Industry Week 2014 Update:Show Expected to Double in Size . . . . . . . . . 20

NAPA Collision Conference in Orlando, FL,April 15–17 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

NC Shop Wins Nationwide Short-PayArbitration Case. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

North Texas Student Says Two Mobile DentRepair Businesses Took Him for a Ride . . . . 26

Ohio Repairer Three-C Body Shops PursuesMultiple Lawsuits Against State Farmfor Short-Pays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Paice Sues Ford for Patent Infringement on Hybrids . 51Power Up at the 2014 WIN Educational Conferencein San Diego, CA, May 5–7, 2014 . . . . . . . . 38

PPG Announces Distributor Training Schedule . 53Premiere Services Partners with LKQon Electronics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Pro Spot Donates Over $115K in Weldersto Schools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Property and Casualty Insurers Hit With Antitrust Suit by Florida Auto Body Shops . . . . . . . . . 36

Record $9.4M Donated to Collision SchoolPrograms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Safelite Dropped From Rollover Suit by NV Court . 20SCRS and CIC are April 8–9, 2014,in Portland, OR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

SEMA Data Co-op Grows 300%. . . . . . . . . . . . 41SEMA Product Development Expo onApril 10 in CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

SEMA Seeks Nominations for Hall of Fameby March 21, 2014 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Sherwin-Williams Vendor of the YearAward Winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Shop Owner in Helena Arkansas CreatesShelwes Automatic Contour Sander . . . . . . . 61

Sustainability Challenge Grant Winners Announced. 53Transtar Acquires ETX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41Universal Technical Institute andmikeroweWORKS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

UT Companies Gift Car to Single Momwith Autistic Son . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Utah Offers Grants to Body Shops to Convert toWaterborne, Not Many Applicants So Far . . . 14

Zurich Insurance Cuts Jobs to Boost Profitabiltiy . 57

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DDDDDDDDDDDD lllllllllllllllliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiivvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiivvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiicccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ DDD

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QQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDeeelllliiiiveeerrrryyyyyyDDDDDDDDDDDDDeeQQQQuuuiiiccc DDDeeeliveryckk Deeelcccccccccccccccccccccckkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDeeeellliiiivvvveeeerrrrQuick Deliverycccckkk DeliverDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDeeelliiQuick DeliveryDDeliJoseph Carubba, president of CarubbaCollision Corp., received the 2014Anthony M. Castiglia AchievementAward at the annual Italian-AmericanLeadership Council St. Joseph’s DayTable celebration on March 19, 2014,at Salvatore’s Italian Gardens inDepew, NY. Salvatore’s prepared atraditional St. Joseph’s Day Tablefeast.

The council was organized bysuccessful Italian Americans in busi-ness and public service whose pri-mary goal is to recognize and promotethe best that the Italian-American eth-nic pride brings to western New York.

Over the years, Mr. Carubba hasgenerously supported several non-profit organizations. “Joe Carubba isa great Italian-American leader in ourcommunity and more than deservingto receive this award,” stated Italian-American Leadership Council chair-man, Charles M. Castiglia.

“I am very grateful to havebeen selected for this recognition,”said Carubba. “This is a day thatmy family and I will never forgetand this honor is special because itis symbolic of my Italian heritage,which I am very proud of,” addedCarubba.

Italian-American NY ShopOwner Receives Award

In February 2014, Carubba Colli-sion Corp., based in Buffalo,NY,donated US$22,000-worth of auto-motive paint to the Erie 1 BOCESAutomotive Collision Program.

The Erie 1 BOCES Automo-tive Collision Program is a techni-cal education initiative for highschool and adult students that is of-fered through 19 local school dis-tricts in western New York andcovers the complete process ofauto body restoration, includingmetal straightening, glass andpanel replacement, fiberglass re-pair, painting preparation, and fin-ishing techniques.

Joe Carubba, president andCEO of Carubba Collision, cur-rently serves on the Erie 1 BOCESadvisory board. Randy Pinkowski,corporate trainer and safety officerfor Carubba Collision, is also an ac-tive member on an Erie 1 BOCESadvisory committee.

Carubba Collision said roughly100 high school and adult studentswill gain additional hands-on learn-ing opportunities as a result of thepaint donation.

New York Collision CenterDonates $22K in Paint toBOCES Education Program

South Philly body shop owner,Domenico Nigro, wants more over-sight and regulation by the city or state.He says it’s because he cares about thesafety of customers and other citizens.

“People who do heavy repairwork on your car are not required tobe certified to guarantee their compe-tence,” says Nigro. “Auto body shopsneed business and other licenses tooperate, but ‘there is no true certifica-tion” to test competence of repairs,”Nigro says. Competence should betested because “I’m in an industrywhere people can die” if a job is donewrong, he says.

Another Nigro complaint con-cerns insurance companies. “Theydon’t look at it as what you should bedoing, to do it well,” he says. “Theyabsolutely want the lowest price theycan get.”

Nigro has spoken with a few citycouncil members and state senators.Councilman Bill Greenlee said that hehasn’t had time to delve into it yet andwonders whether it should be done onthe city or state level. State SenatorLarry Farnese’s office believes itshould be at the state level “for a more-level playing field for Philadelphiabusiness.”

PA Body Shop Owner WantsMore Government Oversight

Afgan War Veteran Wins ‘Metal of Honor’ from CollisionMax in Pennsauken, NJEvan Graham, a 31-year-old Armyveteran who came back fromAfghanistan with six Purple Heartsfor combat wounds, has been se-lected as the latest winner of Colli-sionMax’s ‘Metal of Honor’ Award.CollisionMax of Pennsauken, NJ,will repair his 2012 Chevrolet Sil-verado pickup truck free of charge.

Graham, who lives inSomerdale, NJ, served two tours ofcombat duty in Afghanistan with the82nd Airborne Division from 2007to 2010. After his discharge fromthe Army in 2010, he served in theArmy National Guard until he re-tired from the military as a sergeantin 2011.

Seeing action in Afghanistanin both cities and the rural coun-tryside, he was shot twice, hit by ahand grenade once and injured bymultiple roadside improvised ex-plosive devices. He now suffersfrom traumatic brain injury thatimpairs his short-term memory,and is being treated for post-trau-matic stress disorder, which makesit difficult for him to talk about his

combat experience.“I lost a lot of friends,” he says

while visibly trying to control hisemotions. Despite his multiplewounds, he returned to combat eachtime because “I wanted to get backto help my buddies. They were likefamily to me.”

Graham was nominated by hiswife, Genna, and his brother-in-law, John Cajio, who was at thewheel of the truck last year whenit hit a lamppost, damaging the leftrear quarter panel. Mr. Cajio feltobliged to pay for the damage, butwas unprepared when the esti-mates came in at thousands of dol-lars. “I heard about the Metal ofHonor Project on WMMR-FM,and thought I’d take a chance,” hesaid. “I owed Evan, and this is agreat way to pay him back.”

Through its Metal of Honorproject, CollisionMax is givingaway auto body repairs to 11 USmilitary veterans, one per monthfor each of its locations in theDelaware Valley. The companychooses the winner from nomina-

tions it receives from the public onthe project’s web site,www.met-alofhonorproject.com. The com-pany is now accepting nominationsfor a veteran from the NortheastPhiladelphia, PA area.

“The Metal of Honor Project isour way of saying thank you andhonoring the men and women of ourarmed forces who put their lives onthe line for all of us,” said Jim Tor-netta, CollisionMax president andCEO.

In New Jersey, CollisionMax op-erates shops in Blackwood, Cinnamin-son, Glassboro, Marlton, Pennsauken,Sicklerville and Westmont. In Penn-sylvania, it has repair centers in OxfordValley, Warminster and two in North-east Philadelphia (both on West GrantAvenue.)

For information visit:www.collisionmax.com.

Contact Information:Mark BoadaCollisionMaxhttp://www.ceinetwork.com1-215-485-4241


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CollisionMax, an auto body andglass repair company with 11 shopsin the Delaware Valley, will bringtwo classic cars to the Northeast Rodand Custom Car Show at the GreaterPhiladelphia Expo Center in Oaks,PA, March 21 through 23, 2014.

Richard Brigidi, a CollisionMaxfounding partner, will be showing hisrare 1966 Oldsmobile 442 convertible,one of only 240 manufactured. Redwith a white top, the car was namedthe Hemmings Muscle Machine Mag-azine 2009 Muscle Machine of theyear. Pat Beavers, CollisionMax COO,will be showing his “resto-mod” red1957 Chevy Bel Air coupe.

For more information about theshow, visit http://www.northeastcus-tomcarshow.com/information.html.

CollisionMax Showing 2Classics at NE Rod andCustom Car Show Nashua, NH, firefighters responded

to a 2-alarm fire in a vacant autobody shop on the night of March 8.

The fire was reported just be-fore 7 p.m. on Bridge Street, accord-ing to emergency radio broadcasts.Heavy fire and smoke was showingfrom the building on arrival.

The building reportedly houseda vacant auto body shop, with apart-ments above.

The fire was knocked downaround 7:40 p.m., but crews wereexpected to be at the scene for an ex-tended period of time for overhaul.

Bridge Street was shut down totraffic in the area of Armory Street,and motorists were urged to seek al-ternate routes.

Fire at Vacant NashuaNH Body Shop

The fire scene on Bridge Street

Rich Brigidi’s rare 1966 Oldsmobile 442Convertible

Zoning Dispute Causes PAShop Owner to be Cited

Eugene Dacy, Staten IslandShop Owner, Passes at 86

The owner of John’s Auto Body Re-pair Shop says he’s in compliancewith zoning rules, but the township’szoning officer and local residentsdisagree.

Wilkes-Barre Township citedJohn Kocher, the owner of the shop,251 Augusta St., in December 2013for storing junk too close to neigh-boring property lines and the streetand for not screening his lot with afence. Kocher is appealing the find-ings before the zoning hearing board.He said the township already said in2012 that his business is in compli-ance with local zoning laws.

“I have a small business I’mtrying to keep going and I’m beingtotally harassed,” he said. “Just likeneighbors have rights, so do I.”

Despite Kocher’s challenge ofthe findings, a letter from his attor-ney, Andrew J. Katsock III, to thetownship zoning department ex-plains the steps he plans to take thatwill address the violations. He agreesthat no junk will be stored near hisneighboring property lines. Onlycars being dropped off or picked upthat day will be stored near the prop-erty line. He also agreed to completea fence before May 31.

Eugene Dacey Sr., a business ownerwith deep Staten Island roots and aman �who is remembered for hiswork ethic, his creativity and his“old-school” commitment to rightand wrong, has died at 86. Eugeneand his brothers all went into theauto body business—Alfonse at OKAuto Body on Barker Street in WestBrighton, James (Dukie) withMackauer Body Shop on BroadStreet in Stapleton, and Eugeneopened Dacey Auto Body on BalticStreet, also Stapleton, which he op-erated until retiring in 1979. Bornin Bristol, CN, he was 2 years oldwhen he moved with his parents toWest Brighton, where his grandpar-ents had long settled. He also livedin Dongan Hills and Willowbrookand Toms River, NJ, for a time. Helater returned to the Island, movingto Mariners Harbor. Eugene was af-fectionately known as “Big D,” anickname that accurately reflectedhis dynamic personality and his de-termination, said his son, Eugene Jr,who added that his father’s creativ-ity ranged wide, from the manydrawings he made to the violin hepainstakingly crafted, and he lovedmusic and enjoyed singing.

A rules change on dealership licens-ing by the New Jersey motor vehiclecommission will block two factory-owned Tesla Motors stores from sell-ing vehicles as of April 1, 2014, whentheir existing licenses expire.

Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, saysthe electric-vehicle maker will ex-plore “judicial remedies” to restoreits ability to sell directly from the twoNew Jersey stores.

The locations will stay open asgalleries, displaying Tesla cars andanswering consumers’ questions, butstore staffers won’t be able to discussprice or complete a sale. New Jerseybuyers will still be able to purchaseTesla vehicles on their website, Musksaid.

Tesla called the move “an affrontto the very concept of a free market.”

Dealers say the commission wasmerely bringing its regulations in linewith long-standing state law that re-quires franchised dealerships. Theysaid Tesla never should have beengranted licenses.

Tesla says its licenses wereproperly granted and shouldn’t betaken away.

“The statute in New Jerseyplainly allows Tesla to be licensed tosell cars there,” Diarmuid O’Connell,

a Tesla vice president, wrote in anemail.

The rules change sparked afirestorm in New Jersey. Tesla accusedGovernor Chris Christie’s administra-tion of going back on its word to delaythe regulation. A Christie spokesmandenied any such deal, saying it wasmade clear to Tesla from the outset thatthe company would need to lobby thelegislature for a bill to establish direct-sales operations. O’Connell called thatassertion from the governor’s officefalse.

The controversy drew nationalheadlines. Tesla supporters blastedthe New Jersey Coalition of Automo-tive Retailers and its president, JimAppleton, on Facebook and Twitter,calling them horrible, greedy, andeconomic terrorists.

“I don’t want to see Tesla closetheir doors,” he said. “I want to find away to keep Tesla in New Jersey. I justwant them to operate in a manner con-sistent with the law.”

Tesla Says New Jersey Will Not Pull the Plug

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Rep. Arthur Corvese, D-North Provi-dence, establishes two tiers of auto-body repair shops—“Class A” shopsthat would be capable of repairing newcars with the latest technologies andmaterials, and “Class B” shops thatwould work on older cars.

Supporters said the bill reflectschanges that are coming with the useof new materials in the latest cars, andopponents did not dispute that idea.But they did oppose language in thebill that calls for different labor ratesurveys for the two types of shops.

Stephen Zubiago, a lobbyist forthe Property and Casualty Insurers As-sociation of Rhode Island, said the mo-tivation is money.

“What this bill is aimed at is alabor rate,” he told the House Corpo-rations Committee.

But James Moy, a senior consult-ant with Precision Auto Group, in NewYork, disagreed.

“It’s not about charging more,” hesaid. “It’s about getting the car fixed.”

While the bills were the reasonpeople came to testify, the recent his-

tory of auto body shop owners clash-ing with insurers made the 2½-hourmeeting seem like the latest installmentin a feud.

The Property Casualty InsurersAssociation came into the meetingwith a “Special Report” titled “It’sTime to End the ABARI Campaign.”The report was subtitled: “Stop Exces-sive Cost Hikes Causedby a Decade of BodyShop Legislation.”

The report sayscollision repair costs,body shop labor costs,collision claim costs,collision insurancepremiums and vehi-cle insurance pre-miums have allrisen during thepast decade— onein which the AutoBody Association of RhodeIsland has supported 17 bills that havebecome law. The report also saysRhode Island had the 13th-highest av-erage body shop collision repair cost inthe nation 10 years ago and now has thesecond-highest.

PCI and other insurers are sup-porting a website campaign focused on

legislation in Rhode Island and Mary-land called Auto Body Choice in an at-tempt to sway consumers. See websitesat http://www.autobodychoice.com/ri/.

Jina Petrarca-Karampetsos, at-torney spokeswoman for ABARI, re-sponded with her own report that saysaverage repair costs rose just 2 percentfrom 2004 to 2010. She also said thatin 2011, the average premium for auto

insurance in Rhode Islandwas $1,148—“ex-actly 19 dollarsmore than your pre-mium was in 1996.”

“I am so tired ofcoming up here withfacts and figures andhaving to defendagainst lies,” she said.

Francis O’Brien,vice president of stategovernment relations forthe Property Casualty In-

surers Association ofAmerica, said he stood by the associa-tion’s report and “would be happy toprovide the committee” with a rebuttal.

The committee held the bills forfurther study.

See related story aboutPeter Petrarca on p. 10.


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Rhode Island BillsAs of March 1, 2014, Schaller AutoWorld offers something every Con-necticut motorist needs—car insur-ance. An Allstate office is set up onsite at his dealerships’ two locations.

Art Schaller, Jr. of SchallerAuto World has dealerships in NewBritain and Hartford. They currentlyrepresent Honda, Mitsubishi, Sub-aru, and Acura and operate SchallerAuto Body, a full-service collisionrepair facility, servicing all makesand models of vehicles. Having anAllstate insurance agency at thedealer’s Veterans Drive Honda/Mit-subishi location is one more step inanticipating and satisfying customerneeds.

Schaller says Allstate has a lineof service contracts for the car in-dustry, such as tire and wheel insur-ance, products his dealerships arealready selling. So, tying in theseproducts with an onsite insuranceagency made sense.

In fact, the next time someonebuys a car from Schaller, the buyerwill have the option to insure the carbefore driving off the lot.

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the national changes don’t work formy business model. We do not wantto sever the relationships we’ve builtwith our vendors over the years.”

State Farm has been rolling out thechanges incrementally and just recentlyimplemented the mandate in New York.Collision Experts is the only local bodyshop to publicly opt out of the programas a result of the changes.

“Although we value the businessthat State Farm has referred to us overthe years, the new Select Service Pro-gram does not fit our business model,”said Bowman. “This is strictly a busi-ness decision based on changes to theSelect Service Program that would re-quire us to change parts vendors. Wehave great relationships with our partsvendors, and we feel that this helps usprovide an exceptional product. If atany time State Farm decides to changeor adjust their Select Service Program,we will be more than happy to revisitthis in the future.”

However, State Farm customersare still free to choose Collision Ex-perts for their body repairs.

“We still welcome all State Farmcustomers and look forward to con-tinuing to work with local State Farmagents to provide the best repair forour mutual clients,” said Bowman.

Collision Experts’ parting withState Farm is amicable, Bowman said.However, some body shops have filedlawsuits or traveled across the coun-try to heighten awareness of StateFarm’s changes.

“We will continue to have a goodworking relationship with State Farm,”said Bowman. “It’s disappointing thatthey may refer customers to differentshops despite our high rating becauseof a difference of opinion. We are will-ing to work together so we can give ourcustomers the best service at a timewhen they need it most.”

On Thursday, February 20, 2014,Keenan Auto Body of PA and DEheld a graduation ceremony for Oscar

Cantoran-Corona, the first graduateof their Collision Repair OpportunityProgram (C.R.O.P.), at their KeenanWest facility in Edgemont, PA.Keenan staff presented Oscar with adiploma, a plaque, a full set of tools,and an offer for a full-time job withKeenan. C.R.O.P. was started by MaxSorenson, Keenan West manager,and Craig Camacho, Keenan mar-keting director. It is nine-month, un-paid internship program with 20hours per week of on-site, hands-ontraining designed for recent highschool graduates who received in-structional and/or training in the au-tomotive repair field.



Collision ExpertsFirst Intern Graduates from Pennsylvania Auto ShopCareer Development Program, C.R.O.P.

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A car in an outside lot at a Bridgeportauto body shop was destroyed by fireand a second vehicle was damagedlate on Feb 20. Firefighters respondedto Family Auto Body Inc. on ColonialAvenue at 11:07 p.m. and found theburning cars, public safety spokesmanBill Kaempffer said. The fire wasquickly extinguished and the cause re-mains under investigation.

Bridgeport Shop Car Fire

Collision Experts, a collision repairbusiness with shops in Schenectadyand Clifton Park, raised more than$7,100 during its holiday appeal,which ran from Nov. 25 through Jan.1. The money will be used to fullyfund the City Mission of Schenec-tady’s expansion of its Child En-richment Program.

On March 14 at least five cars andtwo trucks were damaged after a firestarted in a commuter van at Ameri-can Autobody and Paint in NorthBergen, NJ. Tonnelle Avenue wasclosed between 51st and 61st streetsand traffic diverted to West Side Av-enue. The cause of the fire is underinvestigation.

Multiple Vehicles Damaged atNJ Auto Body Shop Fire

Collision Experts Raises$7100 to Benefit Children

(left to right): Max Sorenson (Keenan West lo-cation manager); Oscar Cantoran-Corona (grad-uate); Michael LeVasseur (Keenan presidentand COO); Nate Tarr (Keenan West lead painterand program mentor)


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Clairton, PA, Body Shop Owner Killed in AccidentAn Elizabeth body shop owner waskilled when he was struck by a vehi-cle driven by a volunteer firefighter inClairton.

Phillip Maffeo, 66, of Elizabethwas hit by the Jeep Patriot about 9:14a.m. as he was attempting to cross St.Clair Avenue in the 600 block. Inves-tigators said it is unclear whetherMaffeo looked for traffic before heentered the street.

Maffeo owned the auto bodycenter Central Auto Center at the in-tersection of St. Clair Avenue andRoute 837. His body shop served as agathering place for friends of PhillipMaffeo’s.

“It was like a little hangout,” alocal man said of the body shop. “Weall loved him.”

Allegheny County police Lt.Andrew Schurman identified thedriver as a Clairton volunteer fire-fighter. Schurman said the driver hadjust responded to a fire alarm thatwas canceled and was heading backto the station when the accident oc-curred.

“We have to determine how fasthe was going,” said Schurman, addingit didn’t appear excessive speed was afactor.

A man who went to the sceneand would only identify himself as afriend of the victim said he thinksMaffeo may have been en route to ahardware store across the street fromhis parked car when he was hit.

Maffeo was taken to JeffersonHospital where he was pronounceddead at 10:04 A.M., according to theAllegheny County Medical Exam-iner’s office.

Clairton VFD Chief John Lat-tanzi said he could not comment onthe accident.

“After the county is done investi-gating, we’ll have some remarks,” hesaid.

An autopsy is planned and nocharges had been filed.

County police say the accidentremains under investigation.

Former five-term state representativePeter Petrarca, whose ties to the autobody industry emerged as issue duringhis 2012 re-election campaign, hasregistered to lobby at the General As-sembly this session for the Auto BodyAssociation of Rhode Island, accord-ing to reports in the Providence Jour-nal.

Although Petrarca doesn’t yetshow up on the state’s lobbyist regis-tration system, the Secretary of State’soffice and Petrarca confirm he has reg-istered to lobby for ABARI through hisfirm, Orion Consulting.

Petrarca says his top legislativepriority for ABARI is a bill set to beheard by the House CorporationsCommittee. The bill would create twodistinct classifications for auto bodyshops, with different reimbursementfor each. A handful of other bills re-lated to insurance and auto body shopsare also expected in this session.

The General Assembly has passeda series of bills related to auto bodyshops in the last decade. The insuranceindustry blames the bills for driving upthe cost of car insurance in Rhode Is-land; Petrarca rejects that argumentand says he believes the cost of insur-ance has declined in recent years.

Petrarca says the bill with two

classifications for auto body shops is“not going to raise the cost for con-sumers when there’s so much compe-tition going on. That is a red herring.”Petrarca says the two classificationsystem is a matter of fairness for shopsthat invest more money in their busi-nesses.

In a statement provided to RIPR,Frank O’Brien, vice president of stategovernment relations for the PropertyCasualty Insurers Association ofAmerica, says, “Rhode Island now hasthe second-highest average body shopcollision repair cost in the US, andRhode Islander drivers are now payingthe fifth-highest average collision in-surance premium in the nation. PCI be-lieves these increased costs are directlyrelated to 17 pieces of legislation pro-moted by the Auto Body Associationof Rhode Island (ABARI) that havebecome law over the past 10 years. Weare concerned that ABARI’s 2014 bills(H-7404, H-7405, and H-7796) willcontinue this trend of increased costsfor Rhode Island drivers.”

Last year, the Providence Journalreported on the auto insurance indus-try’s deep disappointment about howGovernor Lincoln Chafee signed intolaw legislation limiting when they candeclare a car “a total loss.” O’Brien

also decried what he described as theoutsized influence of the auto bodylobby. Petrarca says the auto insuranceindustry is motivated by a desire tomaxmize its profits while paying “thebare minimum” to consumers.

Petrarca’s father, John, ownsProvidence Auto Body. Petrarca prac-tices law with his sister, Jina Pe-trarca-Karampetsos, who haslobbied in the past for the Auto BodyAssociation of RI.

Auto body legislation emerged asan issue in the Democratic primary2012, when Gregory Costantino oustedPetrarca as a rep from Lincoln.

During a debate that year onWPRI-TV’s Newsmakers, Costantinosaid Petrarca voted on auto body billsin 2003 and 2010, and Costantinocalled that a conflict of interest. A sub-sequent Providence Journal PolitiFactreport found that Petrarca did vote onthe two bills, although he denied theaction posed a conflict of interest “be-cause it doesn’t affect body shops,” Pe-trarca told the Journal. “He[Costantino] should get his facts right.”

Petrara was a member of theHouse leadership as a senior deputymajority leader before he lost his seat.He says he has no intention of seekinga political comeback.

Ex-Rep Peter Petrarca Set to Lobby for Auto Body Association of RI

Authorities prepare to tow the Jeep Patriotthat struck shop owner Phillip Maffeo.

High-end auto parts maker, PlasanCarbon Composites, is shuttingdown its Bennington, VT, factoryin May 2014 and consolidating op-erations in a new tax incentive-sup-ported plant in Walker, MI, to becloser to its main customers in theauto industry.

The Bennington plant em-ploys 143 full-time workers whomanufacture carbon composite autoparts including hoods, roofs, andfenders, mostly for luxury vehicles.Some employees may be offeredjobs in Michigan. All others will beprovided severance packages.

The Walker plant works withcarbon fiber, a lightweight materialbeing used to replace heavier metalsin luxury cars, military vehicles, air-crafts, and high-end bicycles. Plasanclaims to have found a way to bringproduction costs down to a levelwhere the material can be used forhigher-end, mass-produced vehicles.

Carbon Fiber SupplierCloses Vermont Plant

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Wayne Szalanczy is an auto bodytechnician at Bob McLain’s Auto Bodyand Towing at 6025 Kennedy Ave inExport, PA. Szalanczy has beenspending his days explaining the nec-essary repairs to angry motorists whocouldn’t avoid crater-like potholes,and are looking for somebody toblame.

“I haven’t seen it this bad in quitea while,” Szalanczy told Daveen RaeKurutz, who reported it to Trib TotalMedia.

“Flat tires, suspension problems… Nobody is happy when their cargets broken over the road. It’s quiteupsetting.”

The recent winter weather haspotholes appearing out of thin air dueto the cycle of freezing and thawing.Drivers are trying to dodge damagedsections of Route 66 in Delmont, Lin-coln Avenue in Export and Sardis andSchool roads in Murrysville.

“Our weather conditions — thefreeze-thaw that we have experiencedover the last few weeks — damagesthe road surface,” said Valerie Peter-son, spokeswoman for the local officeof the Pennsylvania Department ofTransportation. “Water leaks downunder the asphalt and when it freezes,it cracks the pavement.”

After a couple freeze-thaw cy-cles, those cracks erode into craters.But whether the holes in the road arethe responsibility of the state, countyor municipalities, drivers will mostlikely be on the hook for any damagecaused to their vehicles, officials said.

The Pennsylvania Department ofTransportation has a message postedon its website informing motorists thatwhile they can submit a claim fordamage caused “as a result of the neg-ligence of the Commonwealth” it isunlikely to be result in payment.

“The law … prohibits the pay-ment of property damage (tires, rims,etc.) as a result of a pothole. Becauseof this, no reimbursement has everbeen made for a claim of this type,”according to the posting.

Although municipalities don’tenjoy the same carte blanche immu-nity that PennDOT has, drivers wouldhave to show that the municipality didnot respond in a reasonable amount oftime after becoming aware of suchroad hazards.

Most insurance companies do notcover pothole-related damage becauseit isn’t a collision, per se, Szalanczysaid.

When they’ve had a break fromsalting or scraping roads, Murrysville

public works director Bob Bell andhis crew have been busy bandagingthem.

“This is the worst year we’veever seen,” Bell said. “The roads arefalling apart.”

Bell estimates that his workershave gone through at least 30 tons ofcold patch—a temporary seal for pot-holes—and pick up new loads four orfive times each week.

The cold patch Murrysville usesdoesn’t require follow-up, hesaid—once it’s laid and dried, it’sgood for the season. The biggest prob-lem is letting the roads get dry enoughfor crews to go to work.

Bell hasn’t heard a ton of com-plaints—most people aren’t surprisedat road conditions, he said. There wasa sizable crater along Pleasant ValleyRoad that his workers have paid a lotof attention to, but otherwise, he hastwo crews who spend dry days can-vassing the municipality in search ofpotholes.

Szalanczy said there isn’t reallyanywhere in the region that has beenspared from potholes. “It’s prettymuch so everywhere,” Szalanczy said.

“In Export, in Murrysville, head-ing to Mamont, it’s hard to avoidwherever you go.”

Pennsylvania Drivers Look in Vain for Compensation from Pothole DamageFrom Nov. 1 to March 1, the NewYork State Thruway Authority re-ceived 57 damage claim formsfrom motorists. In the same periodlast year, the agency received just18. AAA New York handled an as-tounding 80,023 roadside assis-tance calls in January, of which13,068 were for flat tires—30%more than last year. Joseph Wein-berger said two tires on his carwere flattened when he hit potholesin separate incidents on the FDRDrive in Manhattan. His front andrear bumpers have taken a beatingfrom hitting piles of snow and icemaneuvering in parking spaces.But, alhough potholes are causingmore flat tires, they don't appear tobe causing more car crashes,Westchester police spokesmanKieran O’Leary said. “We hadfewer accidents (in February) thanin the same month a year ago,”O’Leary said. Local shops are re-porting plenty of suspension dam-age. “They are coming in with a lotof cracked plastic bumpers,” shopmanager Matt Zippelli said, “a lotof damage from potholes... We’reat least 20 to 30 percent busier thanlast year.”

NYC Potholes Take Tollon Tires but not Crashes

Founded in 1988, Capitol CollisionRepair is one of the largest independ-ent auto body shops in Phoenix, AZ.After 26 years in business one mightthink that this Phoenix body shopcould go into cruise control as far aschange and growth in the business, butthat is the furthest thing from the mindof Capitol Collision Repair owner DanDeary.

Recently, Deary and the team atCapitol Collision Repair went 100%headfirst into the lean process after acomplete buy in from the entire Capi-tol team.

“Transforming into lean process-ing was something that needed to bedone to not only maintain our growth,but to be a leader in the Phoenix bodyshop market,” Deary stated. He wenton to say “that the entire organizationbuy in was necessary before the deci-sion was made. We have many longterm, quality people in our organiza-tion and the very last thing I was goingto do was force change upon them,without a 100% buy in.”

The team at Capitol Collision re-searched and chose a lean processused by one of the more successfulshops that they visited and spent timewith. The shop underwent many

changes to accommodate the leanprocess change. A new managementsystem was added, giving the Capitolteam the ability to track their produc-tivity in real time via monitorsthroughout the auto body repair shopproduction and paint areas. The man-ner in which vehicles are processedwas updated to enhance tracking andcompletion times. Signs were postedthroughout the shop, detailing updatedprocedures and labeling key areas.Most importantly was team building,the shop came together as a team andcreated the common goal to be thebest body shop in Phoenix.

Capitol Collision Repair ownerDan Deary had heard all the horrorstories of other auto body shops fail-ures after the implementation of alean process, which in some in-stances resulted in the majority ofcompany personnel quitting. Dearyvowed not to make the same mistake.“We want to make improvements andmove forward, not end up goingbackwards. We have long term teammembers and losing them was not anoption.”

When adopting the lean processthe biggest question was “how do wecut down the amount of time it takes

to complete repairs, while still main-taining a quality product?” The solu-tion was as old as auto manufacturingitself, the concept of the assembly linewas the answer. Making full use of the18,000 square foot Phoenix body shop,Capitol Collision Repair was recon-figured to make the repair process aone direction assembly line, startingfrom damage discovery and ending ata complete wash and detail.

Using an assembly line processwasn't the only answer though. Therest was in the damage discoveryprocess. The first, and most importantstep, is to completely discover all ofthe damage upfront and to devise a re-pair plan to ensure timely completionof all repairs without the need to dragout due dates from undiscovered dam-age. This not only makes repair timesfaster, but it also allows technicians tocomplete more work, with no stress,and zero defects.

In the collision repair industrythere is an overabundance of bodyshops, and as the automotive industrychanges, it’s the shops that lean outtheir process that will stand out in theindustry. Using a lean process, CapitolCollision Repair is now able to getcustomers out of a rental and back into

their own car sooner than the competi-tion, giving them an edge in the highlycompetitive Phoenix body shop mar-ket.

Although leaning out the repairprocess and shortening repair timeshas made Capitol Collision Repair abetter shop, they aren't done makingchanges. With the automotive industrycontinuing to evolve, Capitol CollisionRepair will continue searching for newways to make the shop better as theymove forward.

An A+ rated BBB Company,Capitol Collision Repair provideshigh quality, guaranteed repairs and isone the highest rated and reviewedPhoenix body shops. They offer I-CAR trained technicians are ASE cer-tified and state of the art equipmentand are approved by all the major in-surance companies. Rental vehiclesand free loaner cars are offered byCapitol Collision Repair.

Capitol Collision Repair5154 N 27th AvePhoenix, AZ 85017Phone: (602) 253-1630Fax: (602) 253-6158http://www.capitolcollision.netEmail: [email protected]

A Modern Body Shop is a Lean Body Shop Says Phoenix’s Capitol Collision


Between 40–60 auto body and repairshops have signed a lease to relocatefrom Willets Point in Queens to HuntsPoint in the Bronx. The move furthersthe city’s $3 billion Willets Point Rede-velopment plan, which includes 2,500units of housing (35 percent designatedaffordable) and a giant mall. About twothirds of its roughly 130 businesses havealready received benefits to relocate.

The businesses call themselvesthe Sunrise Cooperative, will be head-ing to a Leggett Avenue warehouse inthe Bronx. They are the largest suchgroup to agree to vacate Willets Pointand will be eligible for $2 million ofthe $3 million that the city has set asideto help with relocation.

The city hopes to have the areamostly vacated by spring, but the bodyshops worry that they will struggle innew locations, unable to bring theirclient base with them, and also com-plain that the city has not been doing agood enough job of helping them tofind suitable new places to move to.Meanwhile, many of the auto bodyshop owners are unhappy about the$43 million in tax breaks that develop-ers are getting to transform the area anda group is still suing the city claimingthat the development is being built il-legally on parkland.

The deal, first reported by the WallStreet Journal, will relocate between47 and 60 businesses to the 150,000-square-foot warehouse at 1080 LeggettAve., near the Bruckner Expressway,according to Marco Neira, an organ-izer for the Sunrise Cooperative.

“We already have the place in TheBronx,” he said.

The cooperative first eyed the lo-cation in December, and another or-ganizer, Sergio Aguirre, said at thetime that the light-filled warehouse was“the perfect place for shops.”

Construction managers will headto the warehouse to give an estimate onthe scope and cost to renovate thespace, Neira said.

The city is footing the bill for thesecurity deposit and moving costs, andwill pay for the first two years of the

lease, Neira said.A spokeswoman for the Economic

Development Corporation, Kate Blumm,said the co-op is eligible for up to $2 mil-lion to put towards relocation, and each in-dividual business is also eligible foradditional funds.

The move is also pivotal in keep-ing hundreds of jobs in New York City,she said.

“The Sunrise Cooperative’s moveto the Hunts Point neighborhood in theBronx ensures that hundreds of jobswill be retained and that dozens of busi-nesses will continue to operate and suc-ceed in New York City,” Blumm said.

“We congratulate the Sunrise Co-operative on its diligence to successfullysecure space at a new location that willhelp it thrive for years to come.”

The plan to turn the heavily pol-luted Iron Triangle from a stretch ofauto body repair shops into a retail andresidential destination, which drewwaves of protest from business owners,was first proposed in 2008.

The latest version of the plan,which requires the shops to vacate theneighborhood, will redevelop the areain phases, and was approved by theCity Council in October.

Many of the businesses pushedgroup relocation, saying that their suc-

cess was contingent on sticking to-gether and recreating an environmentsimilar to that of Willets Point, wheredrivers could pick from a variety of re-pair options.

Neira said he’s excited for themove, and expects to get things goingin the next few months.

“Everybody feels happy, becauseat least we got some place to move up,”he said.

The city, which made a deal withthe developers to build on the parkland,says it is legal under an agreementsigned with the Mets in 1961. Citi Fieldsits within the park, as did its predeces-sor, Shea Stadium.

The Willets Point redevelopmentplan was hatched by the Bloombergadministration and, after being modi-fied in several respects, was approvedby the last Queens borough president,Helen Marshall, and the City Councillast year. It involves removing thebusinesses that operate in the Iron Tri-angle, cleaning the area of contami-nants, and building the mall, whichwill be 1.4 million square feet in size,along with a hotel, restaurants, otherretail space, offices and new rampsonto and off of the Van Wyck Ex-pressway, over a period of severalyears.

Shop Owners Sign Lease on Hunts Point Warehouse in the Bronx, 40–60 Auto Shops to Relocate

by Ed Attanasio

As the collision industry in Utah un-dergoes the transition to waterbornepaint and everything that comes alongwith it, many are embracing the newproducts, techniques and equipmentwhile others are not as enthusiastic.

The state deadline for waterborneis looming (July 1, 2014) and as wasthe case in other states with similarmandates, some shops arewaiting until the last mo-ment. But some valuablenews involving grants mightjust speed up the conversionprocess for body shops thatwere previously lagging.Any body shop that wantsthe state grant money willhave to match the grant dol-lar for dollar, so it’s more ofa hand up than a handout,according to the state’s Divi-sion of Air Quality and theUtah Clean Air Partnership(UCAIR), a statewide alliance thatwas created to make it easier for indi-viduals, businesses and communitiesto add equipment or processes thatwill improve the cleanliness andbreathability of Utah’s air.

The Utah’s Department of Work-force Services has earmarked $300,000now to help small businesses to im-prove the state’s air quality and an ad-ditional $1 million after June 30, 2014through the state Department of Work-force Services. The goal of the programis to help small businesses reduceemissions through improved equip-ment and the maximum amount is$15,000 and must be matched dollarfor dollar. In addition to auto bodyshops, dry cleaners, restaurants, printshops and other small businesses withfewer than 100 employees can apply.

The first collision repairer to takeadvantage of the grant money offeredby the state was ACS Precision Finishin Salt Lake City, a shop owned byCandido Gallegos and his son An-thony. Both father and son were a lit-tle reluctant to try something new afterhaving spent so much time masteringthe solvent-based paint techniques,but their paint jobber, Superior PaintSupply, made the transition easier forthem, while the grant money alsomade the decision a little more palat-able, Anthony Gallegos said.

“We’re getting $15,000 to changeover, and for us it was a no-brainer,

because all of the shops in Utah aregoing to have to switch to waterborneanyway,” Gallegos said. “We lookedat Superior Paint Supply’s water-based paint system (De Beer’s Water-base 90 by Valspar) because we heardvery good things about it. So, we ap-plied for the grant and then we werepretty shocked when the state con-tacted us and told us we were the firstshop to apply.

“I read an article about the grantsin the paper and told my son,” Can-dido Gallegos said. “We figured let’sget some financial help if it’s being of-fered. From what we’re hearing, bodyshops aren’t applying for these funds,which I find surprising. The money isright there on the table. They want togive us money! How often does thathappen?”

The local media flocked to ACSPrecision recently to cover the shop’sconversion to waterborne while lettingsmall businesses know that the grantmoney is available for them, as longas they’re willing to improve their airquality. “We were surprised when thelocal newspapers and news stationscalled us and wanted to interview usabout the grant money,” Gallegossaid. “It’s a big deal for Utah and a bigdeal for this industry and an eyeopener for everybody.”

According to the Division of AirQuality, if every paint tech in the stateused waterborne instead of solvent,daily emissions would drop by 572pounds per year. In fact, the industrywill be required to make this changeby June 1, 2014 to comply with newair quality regulations. The big chal-lenge for small businesses is, ofcourse, the cost to make the upgrades.

Gwen Springmeyer is the Assis-tant Executive Director for UCAIRwhich is administering the state grants.She wants body shop owners to know

that the grant application process iseasier than they might imagine andthat her organization is willing to helpshops with the application process.

“The grant application is easy forseveral reasons,” Springmeyer ex-plained. “There is no competition forthe grant, so if you qualify and there isstill money in the budget, you’ll get it.Secondly, we don’t ask for your finan-cials. The application is seven pagesand we’re more than willing to helpyou with it. The money is there, so wewant to encourage body shops andother small businesses to apply and getthese dollar for dollar grants. Andmaybe most importantly, the deadlineis June 30, 2014, but then we’re alsogoing to make another $1 million avail-able as part of the same program. So,essentially, the state is offering $1.3million in air quality matching grants.”

Jeff Brasier is a paint trainer forSuperior Paint Supply in Salt LakeCity. He has been working literallynon-stop for the last five months asshops rush into the waterborne gamebefore the deadline of July 1. “I’ve gotshops lining up and it’s been crazy,”Brasier said. “I’m training 2-3 shops

all the time, back to back and oncewe’ve got them covered, here come 3-4 more.”

While many shops in his regionare embracing the new paint andquickly learning how to apply it cor-rectly, some smaller shops are draggingtheir feet, Brasier explained. “If some-one is onboard, I can train them in threedays without issue. But, if they’re re-luctant for whatever reason, it can takemonths, because they have to unlearnso many old habits. The waterbornepaint goes on wetter and it stays wetlonger and you have to use it in a cleanenvironment without dust and dirt allaround. It’s not rocket science, so if agood painter is motivated, he or she canbe adept at using it rather quickly.”

For more information about get-ting a clean air grant, you can findmore information and the grant appli-cation at www.ucair.org.


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Utah Offers Grants to Body Shops to Convert to Waterborne, Not Many Applicants So Far

Waterborne Paint Trainer Jeff Brasier (right) from Supe-rior Paint Supply demonstrates waterborne applicationtechniques for Corey Kaggie, a painter at ACS PrecisionFinish in Salt Lake City Follow us on Twitter:

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Disabled Math Teacher Found Body Shop to Make Wheelchair Accessible Golf CartsIn January 2000, Cory Trenkamp wasin a car accident in which his neck wasbroken. After months of recovery, reha-bilitation and confinement to a wheel-chair, he entered college at Wright StateUniversity, where he earned his bache-lor’s degree in math. He now teachesmath online through the West CentralOhio Learning Academy, according toAnne Coburn-Griffis, writing in thePutnam Centinel.

“My parents take my siblings andnephews for rides around our farm. Lastsummer, my 3-year-old nephew wantedme to ride with them,” said Trenkamp.“Since my wheelchair wouldn’t fit onit, I looked into some options.”

Trenkamp located a body shop inColumbus that makes wheelchair-acces-sible golf carts but the cost for such a ve-hicle was high. “My dad asked a buddyof his if he knew anyone that could con-vert ours. He said he’d like to try.”

That friend was Mark Ricker, theowner of Mark’s Auto Body just west ofOttoville on U.S. 224. He and a crewthat consisted of Vernon Etzler and TonyButler worked on the cart renovation inhis rural shop over the recent cold win-ter months. On Friday, Trenkamp andhis father Carl joined them all there fora final fitting. With the press of a button,Ricker lowered the passenger-side door

into a ramp. Trenkamp drove his wheel-chair up the ramp and locked the chair inplace, just as he does in his van, for aperfect fit. Under windy but blue skies,Trenkamp and Ricker took the finished

cart out for its inaugural spin. Accord-ing to Ricker, Etzler was the brains be-hind much of the cart retrofit.

“We cut it in two and put steel in tolengthen it out,” said Etzler. “There’s alot to doing it, stretching everything out— throttle cables, brake lines, puttinganother seat in.”

When asked how long it took tocomplete the project, Etzler belly-laughed. Ricker smiled and explained.

“It took a month and a half but the firstone always takes longer.”

Trenkamp himself located themechanism that locks his wheelchairsafely into the floor of the cart. Rickerexplained that the original front seat isnow located near the back of the cart. Itsits just behind the area where Trenkampcan now drive in and park his wheel-chair. A new seat was installed in front. Anew steel roof had to be made and in-stalled as well.

“Just for Cory,” said Ricker. “Justfor his safety.”

Cincinnati Reds decals personal-ize the red vehicle, which is street-legal with tail lights, turn signal and adistinctive horn. The cart will run upto 30 mph. It seats seven.

“We can load up with the grand-kids and go to Jennings Park,” saidTrenkamp’s dad.

Now his son Cory can join them, al-though he has other destinations in mind.“We don’t have sidewalks near ourhouse, which there should be. Now I canget up to town if I want to. Take it to thegame; maybe use it as a bull pen car. Youget tired of riding around in minivans.”

Ricker suggested mounting adrop-down television in the ceiling ofthe golf cart. “Maybe next year,”grinned Trenkamp.

Carl Trenkamp, left, watches from the door ofMark’s Auto Body, Ottoville, as his son Coryand shop owner Mark Ricker takes thewheelchair-accessible golf cart for its firstspin on Friday. (Putnam Sentinel/AnneCoburn-Griffis)

Elizabeth Melde walked in to Mar-tins Collision Repair with no ideashe would leave in a new set ofwheels. The body shop, and severalother local companies, teamed up tofix a car donated by Bear River Mu-tual Insurance that was legally to-taled, bring it back to tip-top shapeand donate it to a family in need.Melde and her two children fit thedescription perfectly. Her son, Jack-son, 5, is autistic and suffers from se-vere hemophilia, and needs to get tothe doctor quickly when in need. Hernew sedan will help alleviate thepressure, and danger of not havingher own vehicle. Melde’s old carwas running on a leaking head gas-ket for six months before it finallygave out.

“I’ve just been being optimistic,”Melde said. “Hoping I’ll get to mynext destination.” She had pulled overmore and more frequently to let thecar cool down after it overheated,making her kids later and later toschool. All those worries are gonenow. “I’m just in shock,” she said.“This is a miracle right now. I’venever heard of anything like this hap-pening to anyone.” It happens to be inher favorite color, turquoise.

UT Companies Gift Car toSingle Mom with Autistic Son

Michigan House Bill 5339, introducedon February 19, seeks to amend theMichigan Insurance Code of 1956 torestrict insurance companies from nu-merous actions that irk collision repairfacility operators. The broadly wordedbill has not yet been scheduled forhearings.

The bill, as sponsored by Repre-sentatives Dale W. Zorn ,Greg Mac-Master, Anthony G. Forlini, PeterPettalia, Michael D. McCready, wouldban insurance companies from com-pelling the use of specific collision re-pair or claim centers, restrict non-OEMparts usage, and prohibit an insurerfrom specifying specific vendors forparts or other materials.

Specifically the bill would pro-hibit insurance personnel from the fol-lowing:● Compel or coerce the insured orclaimant to choose a particular repairfacility, claim center, or other similarfacility regardless of whether the re-pair facility, claim center, or othersimilar facility is under the insurer’sdirect control.

This subdivision would not pro-hibit an insurer from requesting the in-

sured or claimant to take the a partic-ular repair facility, claim center, orother similar facility after informingthe insured or claimant that the in-sured or claimant is not under an obli-gation to do so.● Must not fail to inform the insuredor claimant that the insured or claimanthas the freedom to use a repair facilityof the insured’s or claimant’s choos-ing, or fail to inform the insured orclaimant of the insurer’s ownership in-terest in, or agreement with, a repairfacility, claim center, or other similarfacility

Communicate the need to delaythe commencement of repair to allowthe insurer to inspect the automobilefor more than 1 full business day fromwhen the insured or claimant pre-sented the claim or automobile forloss adjustment or inspection.

Dispute coverage of the losswithout performing a physical inspec-tion of the automobile.

Specify a non-original equipmentmanufacturer aftermarket crash part toreplace a structural component of anautomobile, including, but not limitedto, a bumper reinforcement, radiator

or core support, or any other part thataffects the structural integrity orairbag timing of the automobile.

Specify a non-original equipmentmanufacturer aftermarket crash part inthe repair of the damaged automobileif the part is not certified by a nationaltesting board to guarantee quality, fit,and crashability.

Specify the use of a particular ven-dor to procure a part or other materialnecessary for the satisfactory repair ofthe automobile. This subdivision doesnot require an insurer to pay more thana reasonable market price for parts.

Unilaterally or arbitrarily disre-gard a repair operation or cost identi-fied by an estimating system that theinsurer and repair facility have agreedto use in determining the cost of re-pair.

Place a limit on the maximumcost of paint or other materials re-quired to repair the damaged automo-bile. This subdivision does not requirean insurer to pay more than a reason-able market price for paint and mate-rials.

Disregard a repair facility’sposted labor rate without proof of the

range of posted door rates available tothe public in the market.

The bill also would provide an in-sured, claimant, repair facility owner,potential repair facility owner, or per-son aggrieved by this act the ability tobring a civil action against an insurerfor a violation of this section. A plain-tiff who prevails could receive Dam-ages in the amount of 3 times theactual loss or $500.00, whichever isgreater as well as attorney fees andcosts.

Ray Fisher, executive director ofthe Automotive Service Association(ASA) of Michigan, explained “ASAMichigan did not author or introducethis bill but we are glad that Repre-sentative Zorn along with the otherco-authors, has taken a key role in try-ing to resolve some of the issues thathave plagued our collision shops herein Michigan. I have passed this on toour leadership for their review and weare looking forward to working withRepresentative Zorn as this movesforward. Obviously he is trying tocure many of the burdens that our col-lision repairers have faced for quitesome time.”


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Universal Technical Institute (UTI)launched the mikeroweWORKSFoundation (MRW)/UTI ScholarshipProgram on March 3, 2014, for indi-viduals pursuing technical educationat UTI campuses. The program willmake available approximately US$1million in tuition scholarships for fu-ture students who are passionate abouta career in the transportation industry.

Mike Rowe, creator, executiveproducer, and host of the DiscoveryChannel “Dirty Jobs with MikeRowe” show, is challenging the ideathat an expensive four-year degree isthe best and only path for most peo-ple, while calling attention to thou-sands of career opportunities withcompanies who are struggling to filltechnical jobs.

“We are thrilled to partner withthe mikeroweWORKS Foundationand join Mike's mission to spread theword about the importance of techni-cal education and filling jobs in theskilled trades,” said Kimberly McWa-ters, chairman and CEO of UTI. “Thisnew scholarship program provideshard-working men and women acrossthe country with the opportunity to

follow their passion and obtain careersin the transportation industry, wherethe demand for technicians continuesto rise.”

UTI develops programs thatmeet the evolving needs of the indus-try, preparing students who are highlyskilled and ready to work. The pro-gram will help more qualified indi-viduals obtain a skilled tradeeducation and bring the country onestep closer to closing the skills gap.

“As a country, we continue to puttraditional higher education on apedestal and accept the fact that stu-dents are graduating with tons ofdebt—and no job opportunity insight,” said Mike Rowe, CEO ofmikeroweWORKS. “What we reallyneed to be doing is supporting peoplewho have a solid work ethic and de-sire to learn a useful skill. Thesescholarships are designed to providepeople with the training needed to filljobs that actually exist. We need moreskilled workers in the U.S. And weneed them now.”

Submit your scholarship applica-tion by 5:00 p.m. PDT on July 12,2014 at www.uti.edu/mrw.

Universal Technical Institute and mikeroweWORKSFoundation Launch $1 Million Scholarship Program

Colors Edge Named PPG Platinum Distributor of the YearPPG Automotive Refinish has rec-ognized Colors Edge, Inc., as its2014 Platinum Distributor of the

Year. Bob Wenzinger, director of thePPG Platinum Distributor program,announced the honor at the annualPPG Platinum Distributor Confer-ence held February 20-23, 2014, atthe Westin Kierland Resort and Spa

in Scottsdale, AZ. Colors Edge pres-ident Darren DeWitt accepted theaward on behalf of the Colors Edge

team.The PPG Platinum Dis-

tributor program began in1995 as a loyalty and supportinitiative for PPG single-linedistributors with the ultimategoal of providing exceptionalservice and benefits for PPGRefinish customers. The pro-gram delivers competitiveadvantages to its participantsby aligning the technology,training, and customer sup-port of PPG with the entre-

preneurship, customer awareness,local market knowledge, and servicecapability of the independent dis-tributor.

For more information, visit:www.ppgrefinish.com.

Pro Spot International, Inc. donatedthe Pro Spot PR-2000 Inverter Re-sistance Spot Welder and the i4 In-verter Resistance Spot Welder toeight collision repair programs thatapplied for the Collision Repair Ed-ucation Foundation 2013 UltimateCollision Education Makeoverschool grant:• Herndon Career Center (Ray-town, MO)• Maxwell High School of Tech-nology (Lawrenceville, GA)• West Side Career and Technol-ogy Center (Kingston, PA)• Assabet Valley Tech High(Marlboro, MA)• South Central Technical Col-lege-Mankato (North Mankato,MN)• Washtenaw Community Col-lege (Ann Arbor, MI)• Linn State Technical College(Linn, MO)• Ranken Technical College (St.Louis, MO)

The welders will aid in the stu-dents’ technical education.

Learn more about the grant athttp://collisioneducationfounda-tion.org/ultimate-collision-educa-tion-makeover-grant.

Pro Spot Donates Over$115K in Welders to Schools

Collex Collision Experts was at theCobo Center in Detroit, MI, on March7, 2014, talking to students about theirservices and career opportunitiesthrough Collex.

The annual Autorama World ofWheels Student Career Day is an ini-tiative put together to support the au-tomotive educational programs atvarious schools. Career day exposesstudents to all the opportunities theyhave in the automotive industry. Stu-dents learn about automotive design,engineering, manufacturing, andmore.

“We are excited to participate inthe 62nd Annual Autorama in Detroit.This show helps illustrate the incred-ible craftsmanship and skill set it takesto create terrific automobiles”, saidNick Booras, vice president of salesand marketing at Collex Collision Ex-perts.

Collex Collision Experts encour-ages any high school and college stu-dents interested in the automotiveindustry to attend an Autorama Worldof Wheels Student Career Day.

View upcoming career days athttps://autorama.com/student-day.

Autorama World of Wheels’Student Career Day

All three of the Preston AutomotiveGroups Maryland auto body shops—Preston Auto Body, Cambridge AutoBody and Snow Hill Auto Body—havebeen designated I-Car Gold Classshops. Only ten percent of collision re-pair shops currently complete the re-quirements to meet the I-Car GoldClass standard.

Preston Group Now Gold Class

Keenan Auto Body is hosting its 16thannual charity golf outing on June 5,2014, at Penn Oaks Golf Club in WestChester, PA. Registration starts at noon,shotgun start at 1:00 p.m., and a dinnerfollowing. There will be a helicopter balldrop, raffles, and a silent auction. Learnmore at www.keenanautobody.com.

Keenan Auto Body’s 16thCharity Golf Outing is June 5 [email protected]

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NACE/CARS and Industry Week 2014 Update:Show Expected to Double in SizeThe first round of exhibit space drawfor the International Autobody Con-gress and Exposition (NACE) andthe Congress of Automotive Repairand Service (CARS) 2014 show iscomplete, and more than half the ex-hibit floor is sold out. “This repre-sents a significant change in eventsand a strong commitment on behalfof the automotive market to supportthe only national show solely dedi-cated to both the collision and serv-ice repair industries,” said DanRisley, ASA President. “Last year,we sold approximately 24,000square feet. We’ve already surpassedthat by 20 percent in the initial spacedraw and are on pace to sell out. Theshow will feature more than 50,000square feet of exhibit space and an-other 30,000 dedicated to livedemonstrations and show cars.”

Companies that booked spacecome from all segments of the colli-sion and mechanical repair markets,including OEMs, parts suppliers, es-timating system and informationproviders, insurance companies, andtraining companies.

NACE/CARS will take placeMonday-Saturday, July 28-August 2,2014, at the Cobo Center in Detroit,

MI, and will be held in conjunctionwith Industry Week 2014, a series ofautomotive repair industry eventsand co-located meetings, includingboard and other private meetings,Collision Repair Education Founda-tion annual golf fundraiser, CollisionIndustry Conference (CIC) quarterlymeeting, Inter-Industry Conferenceon Auto Collision Repair (I-CAR),gala 35th anniversary networking re-ception, Canadian Collision IndustryForum (CCIF) meeting,NACE/CARS expo, business andtechnical sessions, MSO Sympo-sium, Mechanical Symposium, on-site I-CAR training, and technicalpresentations.

In addition, the ASA and Al-liance of Automobile Manufacturers(AAM) jointly announced on March7, 2014, that the inaugral OEMTechnology and Innovation Expowill be held on August 1, 2014, aspart of Industry Week.

The OEM Expo will includepanel discussions with OEM experts,product and application demonstra-tions, and connected vehicles to giveattendees a hands-on experience.

For additional information, visitnaceexpo.com.

Safelite Dropped From Rollover Suit by Nevada CourtSafelite Group has been dismissedfrom the lawsuit by a woman whosays she lost both her husband andyoung daughter in a rollover crash,according to documents filed in theU.S. District Court in Clark County,NV. Iwona Patnaude initially al-leged that the windshield separatedfrom the vehicle in a North Dakotacrash and listed Safelite as a defen-dant in her suit, claiming the com-pany had replaced the windshield.

The U.S. District Court for ClarkCounty, NV, issued an “order to dis-miss Safelite Group” from the lawsuit“with prejudice,” meaning the com-pany cannot be sued again in the mat-ter.

“After a thorough inspection ofthe vehicle and the windshield by anexpert accident reconstructionist, weare extremely confident in the qual-ity of the windshield installation, andcontrary to the allegations in the law-suit, the roof did not collapse,” saysMelina Metzger, PR manager forSafelite.

Brian DiMasi, senior corporatecounsel for Safelite, adds, “We continueto extend our sympathies to the Pat-naude family for their loss. Tragedieslike this serve as an important remindin our industry that we all must hold

ourselves to the highest possible stan-dards for the safety of our customers.”

The company entered no settle-ment agreement with Patnaude, Met-zger noted.

In late 2011, Jason Patnaude,Iwona Patnaude’s spouse, was driv-ing a Toyota Tundra Westbound on I-94 in North Dakota when he began to“slide upon contacting a patch ofsnow and ice on the roadway.” BothIwona and Victoria Patnaude, herdaughter, were passengers in the ve-hicle at the time of the accident.

“Directional control of the sub-ject Tundra was lost and could not beregained,” attorneys wrote in courtdocuments. “The subject Tundracrossed the highway’s median androlled over across the Eastbound lanesand off the roadway. … Jason R. Pat-naude and Victoria Patnaude sustainedfatal head injuries in the crash. JasonR. Patnaude and Victoria Patnaudedied at the scene.”

Safelite PR manager MelinaMetzger had confirmed the companyperformed a windshield replacementon the vehicle six years prior to theaccident.



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A multi-jurisdictional task force con-ducted raids in Wayne and Oaklandcounties on the morning of Feb. 28 onsuspicion of a theft and fraud ring in-volving automobiles.

The investigation reportedlystemmed from a stolen automobilethat lead investigators to raid the Som-erset Collision Shop on John R. nearEightmile, according to reports in theDetroit News.

“The raids were conducted withauto theft teams from Highland Parkand Hazel Park in conjunction withthe Action Auto Theft squad and anumber of other assisting agencies,”said the Hamtramck Police Depart-ment in a press release.

“The raids were successful withmultiple arrests and the recovery of

stolen property. Somerset Collision inDetroit was the primar focus of theraids.”

This isn’t the first time Somersethas been raided by authorities, ac-cording to the Detroit News writer,Tom Greenwood. In March 2007 theoffice of the Michigan Attorney Gen-eral announced the arrests of three in-dividuals in connection with a Detroitbased organized crime operation thatallegedly stole millions of dollars ininsurance fraud.

The arrests came after authoritiesraided three Detroit area body shopsthat were all owned by the same fam-ily. Among the body shops raided in2007 were the Somerset Auto BodyShop, 20461 John R in Detroit. Otherbusinesses owned by the family were:Bojax Auto Collision, Dynamic Col-lision, the Collision Connection, Ul-timate Collision and Foreign andDomestic Collision.

According to the AG in 2007 thebusinesses were owned/operated/managed by an Orchard Lake man aswell as his mother and brother, bothof whom lived in West Bloomfield.

The defendents all received proba-tion.

The AG office was unable to con-firm or deny that the same family stillowned the Somerset Collision Shop orwere involved in the recent raid.


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Detroit Body Shop Raided in Suspected Theftand Fraud Ring, Numerous Cars Impounded

Arizona Body Shop Launches Free Online EstimatingTool for Consumers, Aims to Demystify Customer-PayA new tool aims to help consumersquickly and easily estimate the costto repair minor vehicle damage fromtheir own computers or mobile de-vices.

Nexus Collision Repair Center,located in Tempe, AZ, has released afree, 100-percent Web-based bodyshop estimating tool designed to helpconsumers quickly and easily esti-mate the cost to repair minor vehicledamage from their own computers ormobile devices.

The tool aims to demystify thecustomer-pay decision consumersface when their damage may beunder or close to their deductible, buthave no way of knowing withoutconsulting an insurer or body shop.

The tool’s simple design allowsestimates to be created in less than 60seconds while educating the con-sumer about their vehicle and itsdamage. Since the tool is designedfor customer-pay repairs, it optimizes

cost for the consumer by including“paintless dent repair” and “spot re-pair” options when available to re-duce repair costs.

“This tool generates tremendoustraffic to our site from consumerswho are searching the Web for an al-ternative to the ‘carbon-copy’ bodyshop websites or ‘confess and sub-mit’ damage photo apps offered byinsurers,” said a Nexus spokesper-son. “Consumers today want infor-mation online, free andinstantaneously, so they can make in-formed decisions. We want con-sumers who will walk in the door fora $65 PDR repair because we willearn their trust and they will comeback again when they file their insur-ance claim.”

The next release of the tool willinclude actual year/make/model/color images so consumers can selecttheir vehicle image in their color androtate it for an enhanced experience.


The newly-formed Louisiana Colli-sion Industry Association (LaCIA) hasbeen busy setting up their organizationand is working toward their goals.They held a meeting on January 21 todiscuss their progress thus far as wellas their future plans. Over 180 peopleattended this meeting, which DerekStubbs, Vice Chairman of LaCIA, at-tributes to the fact that “we are all herebecause we care about this business,and we care about what happens to it.”

Chairman Lynn Lejeune calledthe meeting to order, welcomed atten-dees and led a prayer before the asso-ciation’s general counsel LanceKinchen, of Breazeale, Sachse andWilson LLP, read the anti-trust state-

ment. Next, Executive Director AlysiaHanks touched base on a few thingslike the upcoming Southern Automo-tive Repair Conference in Biloxi andtold the group what she hopes to ac-complish with the association.

Each member of the association’sBoard of Directors then provided somebackground on their experiences andspoke about their plans for LaCIA.Lejeune stressed that it is about “com-ing together and agreeing to make adifference.”

Stubbs emphasized the impor-tance of focusing on the present andthe future instead of the past. “Lastyear is over, and we still have battlesto fight everyday this year, but weneed to face these problems togetherto make a difference. We have nationalissues that we have to handle first on astate level.”

Chris Medine from Medine’sCollision said he believes LaCIA haspotential to be and do many goodthings through having so many indus-try professionals working together.

His son is the third generation of hisfamily to enter this industry, and Me-dine wants to effect change so that hisson can have the same long and suc-cessful career.

Randy Mclachan of Perform-ance Finish & Collision feels thatLaCIA is taking the correct profes-sional approach to their development,and he believes the association can beuseful in providing training and edu-cation to its member. He said he hopesthat they will be “an association of ed-ucation.” He is confident that by work-ing together LaCIA members canmake meaningful change that will ben-efit LA’s collision repair industry.

Reid Heiser of Mitchell Interna-tional spoke about three things that as-sociations such as LaCIA can do, suchas providing a sense of community,offering training and changing per-spectives. In regards to these benefits,Hanks said, “it’s a great thing to walkinto a room of neighbors and not aroom of competitors. Mitchell has alot of training they can send in to helpour group. They benefit when our in-dustry benefits. The industry is rapidlychanging, and if you don’t keep upwith it, you will not succeed. We needto embrace those changes and plan forwhat is coming down the line. [In re-gards to perspective], unless you getout and see what others are doing,nothing will ever change—‘you can’twork on your business if you’re work-ing in your business.’”

The day after the meeting, Hanksemailed notes to participants, alongwith some additional information aboutthe association’s progress. Their web-site is now finally operational, though itis still being improved, and can befound at www.la-cia.com.

In response to questions at themeeting about social networking,Hanks provided the address of the as-sociation’s Facebook page, agreeingthat social networking is “an avenuewe will explore.” Since the meeting,Hanks has established a Twitter ac-count @LouisianaCIA and a Facebookpage (www.facebook.com/SeLaCRA).

Hanks has drafted a formal re-quest to the LA’s commissioner’s of-fice, requesting that they look into thelegality of PartsTrader in their state,

similar to what ASA has initiated, andshe is currently awaiting commentfrom the association’s attorneys. Ad-ditionally, the email provided a link to

the website for the Southern Automo-tive Repair Conference and a link toMike Watson’s article on partial refin-ish.

Also attached were LaCIA’s gen-eral membership application and an ap-plication to a GM training course thatwas held on February 25th at the Holi-

day Inn in Baton Rouge. Many mem-bers for LaCIA attended the eventwhere topics included aluminum in newvehicles and price matching as it per-tains to CollisionLink and GM’s Bumpthe Competition Program which allowsprice matching on select parts when aninsurer estimate calls for aftermarketparts to be used. GM’s course also dis-cussed 2013/2014 cores on fascias andheadlights, how to recognize counter-feit airbags and warranty information.More information on technology andtheir service bulletins can be found atwww.genuinegmparts.com.

LaCIA supports and will be at-tending the Southern Automotive Re-pair Conference in Biloxi, MS, onApril 11–12, 2014 where they have re-served a booth. LaCIA’s next meetingis scheduled for Tuesday, May 20th inMonroe, LA. As LaCIA continues todevelop and becomes increasingly in-volved with industry issues, stay tunedfor updates.


LaCIA Meets to Talk Progress and Future Plans

LaCIA Chairman Lynn Lejeune speaks tothe group

Lance Kinchen, General Counsel for LaCIA,addresses the meeting

with David BrownShop Showcase

with Attorney Martin ZuradaBody Shop Law

with Domenico Nigro

The Community-Focused Body Shop

with Janet CheneyShop Showcase

with Frank SheroskyIndustry Business Beat

with Chasidy Rae SiskAssociations Assembling

with Chasidy Rae SiskWestern Associations

with Chasidy Rae SiskOld School Know How


with Chasidy Rae SiskSoutheast News

with Chasidy Rae SiskGreat Lakes Associations

with Chasidy Rae SiskNational Associations

with Chasidy Rae SiskSouthwest Associations

with Chasidy Rae SiskSoutheast Associations

with Chasidy Rae SiskNortheast Associations

with John YoswickHistorical Snapshot

with Ed AttanasioShop Showcase

with Ed AttanasioMedia Matters

with Ed AttanasioOld School Know How

with Ed AttanasioAdvertising Advantages

with Ed AttanasioAssociations Assembling

Association Meetingswith Thomas Franklin

Western Associationswith Thomas Franklin

Chasidy Rae Sisk is a freelance technical writer from Wilmington, Delaware,who writes on a variety of fields and subjects, and grew up in a family ofNASCAR fans. She can be contacted at [email protected].


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Andy’s Auto Body’s New Location in Wood River, IL, LooksLike a New Car DealershipAndy’s Auto Body’s newest locationis going to be like a “new car dealer-ship without new cars,” as managerChuck Tucker told writer NathanGrimm. The shop is located at 1533E. Edwardsville Road in Wood River,IL, will have all the trimmings of anew car dealership, including a fullauto body shop and a full mechanicaldepartment. The location will alsofeature between 30 and 50 used carsfor sale, according to owner MarkAnderson. Anderson said the13,000-square-foot building, just ablock from three existing new cardealerships with another on the way,was prime real estate for his business.“There’s a lot of dealerships rightthere, which will help us developcustomers,” Anderson said, noting,“Four dealerships, but none have abody shop.”

Customers of the body shop’sAlton Square Mall location will no-tice a similar, if not new and im-proved, showroom, Tucker said. Thewaiting area will still have the leatherchairs and 70-inch television thatcustomers are accustomed to, but theWood River location will also haveWiFi technology, a gourmet coffeebar, fireplace and a computer for

guests who may need to get workdone while they’re waiting.

Although it’s a new location,Tucker said the staff will be seasonedveterans in the automotive field,some with more than 30 years of ex-perience.

It’s an exciting new venture forthe body shop, but it’s also a nicenew start for the building, which hassat empty for years. Wood Rivermayor Fred Ufert said the buildinghasn’t been occupied for around eightyears, since Federico Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep moved to its new loca-tion. Ufert said the city is “glad to seethat building used.”

“It’s a good deal for them and agood deal for the city,” Ufert said.“We’re thrilled that they’re here.”

It will be a quick turnaround forthe building, too, as Tucker said theyhope to open the doors on March 14.The business will have a grand open-ing March 22 and McKay Auto Partswill have a barbecue at both theWood River and Alton Square Malllocations. Despite all the newness,Tucker said one thing won’t change—Andy’s Auto Body’s commitmentto running a “reputable, locallyowned business.”

Auto shops’ businesses in IL arebooming due to the large number ofcars damaged in storm-related acci-dents.

Zara’s Auto Body Shop in Spring-field, IL, said they have had an averageof 100 cars in their lot to fix since theregion started getting hit with winterstorms in January.

That’s good for business. Butthe shops are seeing a shortage ofnew OEM parts from manufacturers.

“If the new parts aren’t avail-able, not only are we in the sameposition lacking parts, but so isevery other body shop in the coun-try trying to find those same parts,so they aren’t even available a lotof times in the salvage yards any-more,” said Kim Woolard, a Cus-tomer Service Representative atZara’s.

Todd Liston says he’s fixingdouble the usual number of cars thisyear at Auto Body Specialists inRockford, IL. The surge in businessstarted last year but has acceleratedfrom the January storms. State FarmInsurance reported a 20% jump intheir car insurance claims from De-cember 2012 to the same time lastyear.

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Auto body shops in the Clevelandarea of Northeast Ohio are said tobe facing overwhelming demandsthis winter. A Touch of Class AutoBody Inc. off Brookpark Road has afive week wait list for new cus-tomers, and several other bodyshops around the Cleveland area areexperiencing the same overwhelm-ing demand.

“Any shop that’s doing thisright now… I know no body likes tohear this but any shop that’s doingany type of quality work we’re allso far behind it isn’t funny,” saidKevin Harrison, the owner of ATouch of Class. “It’s been so busywe actually put on a second shift ofemployees due to the fact that theoverload has been just five weeksout all the time.”

Harrison said another factor isthe demand for parts. “They’re hav-ing trouble getting parts fromColumbus to Cleveland, Pittsburghto Cleveland, so that delays us evenmore,” he explained.

“So sometimes you tell a cus-tomer a car will be done in two orthree days but the next thing youknow it’s four or five days becausewe’re still waiting for parts.”

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Ohio Repairer Three-C Body Shops Pursues Multiple Lawsuits Against State Farm for Short-PaysThree-C Body Shops is seeking re-covery of short-pays, fees and courtcosts from State Farm Insurance forthe insurer’s repeated underpaymentsfor services generally rendered andcharged to their customers when theirvehicles have been deemed to be totallosses.

Currently there are approximately89 active lawsuits between Three-C’sand State Farm which began in No-vember, 2012. Generally the suits stemfrom total-loss billings whereas Three-C Body Shop is seeking an estimated$296,807.93, of which State Farm hasagreed to pay only $31,565.03, leav-ing an unpaid and contested amount todate of $265,242.90. Similar lawsuitswill likely be filed.

Bob Juniper, second generationowner and President of the 58 year-old family owned company is nostranger to controversy or to takingon the challenges the collision indus-try presents. He was one of the firstshop owners in the nation to ‘put hismoney where his mouth is’ by hishard-charging and often controversiallocal television and radio consumerawareness ads and commercials re-garding Direct Repair Programs.

Bob Juniper said, “When a vehi-cle becomes a total loss we cease nor-

mal repair related activities andchange to another mode of operation,and as such, charges for such activi-ties are assessed that may or may notbe consistent with a repair.

Such charges may be processesincluding but not limited to clean-upfrom fluid leaks, relocating a disabledvehicle, storage, protection, research,documentation, administrative activi-ties, parts handling and others. We haveclosely studied the high cost of han-dling and processing total loss vehicles.

In the Columbus area insurersunderstand and pay for such charges,all but one that is. State Farm contin-ues to be ‘the odd-man-out’ in set-tling such claims fairly.

We must be paid for our effortsand liabilities associated with thehandling involved in total losses assuch activities are not "the cost ofdoing business”. We have decided tolet the courts decide who is right andwho is wrong. Our efforts to workthings out with State Farm directlywere unsuccessful. I believe the factswill show that the money is owed.We look forward to sharing the re-sults of these cases with the collisionrepair industry.”

Todd A. Fichtenberg, one ofThree-C’s attorneys of the law firm

Skinner & Associates, LLC ofColumbus, Ohio stated: “Ohio lacksthe statutory provisions that havemade those like Ray Gunder inFlorida so successful in the recoveryof fees and costs. Without that statu-tory framework, we are using Ohio’sexisting laws and good faith argu-ments for the extension of those lawsin an effort to recover Three-C’s feesand costs”.

Three-C Body shops was foundedin 1956 and currently has six (6) loca-tions including two satellite locations(inspection-estimating, drop-off anddelivery) which help feed their four (4)repair production locations in andaround the Columbus market area. Thecompany does $10 million-plus in an-nual sales.

More information on Three-CBody Shop may be found at theirwebsite at www.threecbodyshop.comor one can reach Bob Juniper at 614-403-1408.

Follow us on Twitter:@autobodynews

Accept no Substitutes!

The Refinish Distributors Alliance(RDA) held its February Board meet-ing in Mesa, AZ. While there, Dr.Sally Downey, Superintendent ofEast Valley Institute of Technology(EVIT) gave them a tour of theircampus. RDA Member, LeadingEdge, has a partnership with EVITthat provides state-of-the-art trainingto collision industry technicians aswell as to those preparing to enter theindustry.

The EVIT is a state-of-the-arttraining facility for collision indus-try technicians, preparing them toenter the industry. It is consideredone of the top collision repair edu-cational programs in the country,RDA said in a release.

RDA/IMPACT is the largestnational group of refinish jobbersdedicated to providing quality serv-ices and products to their collisionshops. RDA has 16 members, rep-resenting 185 locations. Membersservice over 3,600 collision centersthroughout the United States. Werepresent a cross-section of all majorrefinish brands and do over $455million in sales as a group, compris-ing around 17% of the refinish busi-ness nationwide.

RDA Board Tours East ValleyInstitute of Technology

Driver claims mobile dent repairbusinesses did $3,700 in damage

When cameras from the NBC 5 Investi-gates Consumer Unit started rolling,two so-called repairmen went running,according to Deanna Dewberry, of theNBC 5 Investigates Consumer Unit.

A North Texas student told thenews team that after his bad experi-ences with two different mobile dentrepair businesses he wanted to warnothers to steer clear of drive-up, fix-itauto repairmen whose promises andprices seem too good to be true.

Joshua Bissonette is a cash-strapped college student trying to fin-ish up school after serving in the U.S.Army. With his car in need of repair,Bissonette turned to Craigslist andfound an ad for “mobile auto body”repair men who fix dents and damageat a person’s “work or home” for “lessthan a traditional” body shop. He de-cided to give them a try.

“They got to work right away,”said Bissonette. “They started pryingthe dent out. It seemed like they knewwhat they were doing.” But he soonlearned otherwise.

“The dents look gone, but it does-n’t look good,” he said. Bissonette saidthey didn’t finish the job either.

“They said due to the coldweather they couldn’t apply paint,”Bissonette said. They left with the re-pairs incomplete and his wallet $250lighter.

“I just wanted them to go away,so I paid them their money,” he said.

But with the work unfinished,Bissonette went back to Craigslistagain where he found another adfor a different mobile auto body re-pair business. This ad had picturesand promises. So he called and setup a meeting in an Arlington park-ing lot.

“They said it was going to looklike new,” Bissonette said. He paidthem $250 cash for the job.

Bissonette said these guys cov-ered their shoddy work with greengoop saying it would protect the paint.When he got home and washed it offhe was horrified. He saw a scratchedsandpaper surface and spray paintspattered on his windshield, mirror,and tire.

“It looks horrible,” he explained.Bissonette then called NBC 5 In-

vestigates Consumer Unit and theycalled the numbers from both ads toset up meetings. We showed up at thefirst location in our station ChevroletTahoe, which had a dent. Their cam-eras were in tow.

We told a guy, who said his namewas Tony, that some of his past cus-tomers were unhappy with his work.

“No comment at this point. I haveto get in touch with my lawyer,” hesaid. When Investigates pressed fur-ther he got in his car and sped away.Investigates then called the number inthe second ad and set up a time andplace to meet.

When they identified themselves,the repairman immediately coveredhis face, never got out of his car andleft faster than the first guy.

“The Worst I’ve Ever Seen”Brian Johnson, a certified collisionrepairman for Service King in Irving,evaluated Bissonette’s car.

“It is the worst I’ve ever seen forsomeone to call that a finished prod-uct,” he said. “It looks like they usedspray paint out of a can.”

Johnson said he sees fly-by-nightauto dent repairmen come out of thewoodwork in the DFW area, espe-cially after weather events like storms,hail and ice.

“Just since the beginning of this

year, I have seen three cars personallywith the same situation,” said Johnson.Johnson said the looks of Bissonette’scar are the least of his worries.

“There is probably no structuralintegrity left in that panel,” Johnsonsaid. In his opinion, because of howthe work was done, the panel mightnot perform as it should in a wreck,potentially putting Bissonette’s safetyat risk. He recommended replacingthat panel. In total, the repairs wouldnow cost $3,700.

Texas has no state agency thatregulates collision repair, so it’s upconsumers to do their homework.

The News Team reported thatconsumers should ask repairers if theyhave certification from an organiza-tion like I-CAR, or ASE, the NationalInstitute for Automotive Service Ex-cellence. They should also ask aboutwarranties. If a repairman doesn’toffer one, experts suggest findingsomeone else.

“You want to make sure the com-pany is standing behind their work,”said Steve Sikes, Service King’s as-sociate vice president of business de-velopment.

Experts also said any paint workneeds to be done in a controlled envi-ronment, so if someone offers to paintoutside, that’s likely a red flag too.

In the end, Bissonette’s plightstruck a chord with Richardson-basedService King.

“It’s certainly unfortunate whatyou’ve had to deal with, with the sub-par repairs,” Sikes said to Bissonette.

In a gesture of goodwill, thecompany, a supporter of U.S. service-men and servicewomen, said it wouldfix his car for free, leaving Bissonetteastounded and smiling from ear toear.

The Enterprise Rent-A-Car loca-tion attached to this particular ServiceKing location said it would also pickup the tab for his rental car while therepairs are done.

Bisonette said he learned his les-son and he’ll be less trusting next timeand that he hopes his story helps oth-ers avoid being taken by rogue mobiledent repair businesses.

“I decided to call NBC 5 Investi-gates because I don’t want this to hap-pen, you know, to anybody else,” hesaid.


North Texas Student Says Two Mobile Dent Repair Businesses Took Him for a Ride

Emergency crews had more thanflames to worry about while bat-tling a fire at a trucking company inWhite Oak, PA, early the morningof Mar. 2, At the scene, police saidthey were concerned that fuel tankswere in the building while it wasburning.

The fire happened at Jim Fos-sett Trucking at 1115 Long RunRoad, according to dispatchers.

No one was hurt.

Crews Battle Fire At BodyShop in White Oak, PA

The Baltimore cop shot on March14, 2014, remained in critical, butstable, condition on March 17. Ser-geant McNeill was sitting in histruck at Bel Air Auto Body Shopwhen police say that Gregg Thomasshot him several times. Shortly after,the suspect turned himself in. Policestill have no motive for the shooting.Police say Thomas served time inprison for a 2000 murder conviction,but was released in 2013.

Baltimore Cop Shot WhileWaiting at Body Shop


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limit the choices that the consumerhas in getting their vehicle repaired,”said ABPA Executive Director Ed-ward Salamy. “These types of anti-consumer bills not only eliminatecompetition, a foundation of theAmerican free enterprise system, theyalso increase the potential for higherinsurance costs.”

ABPA claims that a representa-tive of the Washington MetropolitanAuto Body Association (WMABA)made a series of false claims, includ-ing:

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● Consumers will be required topay additional rental car fees causedby delays due to alternative parts.

“The ABPA is not only monitor-ing the legislation in Maryland, but ithas also come to our attention there issimilar anti-consumer legislationbeing introduced in Rhode Island andMichigan,” said Salamy.

“Having your vehicle involved ina collision is already a very stressful

experience for the consumer. Havinga repair association such as WMABAusing scare tactics to achieve theirown agenda is not in the best interestof the consumer.”

Maryland Senate Bill 487 wouldprohibit “…a specified adjuster, ap-praiser, insurance producer, or em-ployee of an insurer from requiring amotor vehicle repair facility to use a

specific vendor or process for the pro-curement of parts or other materialsnecessary for the repair of a motor ve-hicle; requiring an insurer that issuesor delivers in the State a policy ofmotor vehicle liability insurance thatprovides coverage for the repair ofphysical damage to the insured motorvehicle to authorize specified repairsto be made using genuine crash parts;etc.”

The Property Casualty InsurersAssociation of America (PCI) testi-fied in opposition to the legislation.

Oyango Snell, State Government Re-lations Counsel said, “PCI and ourmembers encourage lawmakers toclosely examine the possible negativeramifications for consumers thatcould result if Senate Bill 487 passes.This legislation not only imposes se-vere restrictions on how insurersmanage the auto body repair processand deliver a quality repair experi-

ence, but it also could hurt consumersby increasing the costs associatedwith getting vehicles repaired and in-creasing the cost of insurance premi-ums. Currently Maryland’s averagecollision premium ranks 13th highestin the nation and that ranking couldrise by forcing more repairs to alwaysbe made with original equipmentparts, which can be as much as 60percent more than aftermarket parts.”

Snell continued, “We believelawmakers will see that this bill limitsconsumer choice and stands in the

way of insurers providing high qual-ity repairs at reasonable costs for theirconstituents. We are urging lawmak-ers to table this legislation and con-tinue to fight against higher costs forconsumers.”

The Coalition for Auto RepairEquality (CARE) that represents com-panies in the automotive aftermarketincluding NAPA, AutoZone, AdvanceAuto Parts, O’Reilly Auto Parts andBridgestone-Firestone Retail Opera-tions, raised concerns about the pro-posed legislation’s impact uponlow-income consumers and that it stig-matizes non-OEM parts by requiringthe consumer to consent to their use.

“If passed, House Bill 574 andSenate Bill 487 would require mo-torists who need vehicle replacementparts to specifically sign for the use ofaftermarket parts in their vehicles be-fore accepting them. This is unfair be-cause these same vehicle owners do nothave to sign for the more expensive carcompany-labeled parts. In addition,this plants a seed of doubt in a con-sumer’s mind that the aftermarket partsare somehow of inferior quality, fright-ening them into spending extra moneythat they may not have,” said the exec-utive director of CARE.


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Maryland Parts Bill

“[This legislation] imposes severe restrictions onhow insurers manage the auto repair process anddeliver a quality repair experience...”

—Oyango Snell, PCI Govt. Relations Counsel

Addressing the issue of the threeyear requirement for OEM parts, ananalysis prepared on the bills by theMaryland Department of Legislativeservices noted that the Maryland Auto-mobile Insurance Fund (MAIF), an in-dependent state agency created by theMaryland State Legislature in 1972 toprovide insurance to residents whocould not secure it on the private mar-ket, already has a policy to pay forOEM parts for two years after the dateof manufacture. While adding a year tothe current policy would raise costs,the analysis states, “However, despitethe prevalence of motor vehicle acci-dents and collisions in society at large,any expenditure increase due to cover-ing an additional year is likely to beminimal.”

The MAIF reported that in 2013it wrote a total of 460 estimates on2011 model vehicles (three year oldvehicles that would be covered by theexpanded OEM-only waiting period)and that the average difference be-tween estimates using OEM parts ver-sus aftermarket parts was $117.32, fora total estimated increased cost of$53,967. If that cost was passed on toconsumers in premium, the two per-cent tax on insurance premiums paid

to the state would result in $1079 taxcollected.

The Washington MetropolitanAuto Body Association, (WMABA)supported the proposed legislation be-lieving it necessary to protect therights of repair facilities to operatetheir business independently and pro-tect consumers.

WMABA also believes that theimpact on costs from the OEM-partsonly requirement would be minimaland that there is no correlation be-tween this type of provision and thecost of insurance. According toWMABA, while Rhode Island witha 30-month prohibition, and WestVirginia, with a 3-year prohibition,have historically higher premiumsthan Maryland, Indiana, with a 5-yrprohibition, and Minnesota with acomplete aftermarket prohibitionhave lower premiums than Mary-land.

WMABA also drew attention tothe fact that consumer choice is pre-served in the legislation because con-sumers would still have the ability toconsent to the use of aftermarket partsif they choose to do so.

For more detailed discussion ofthe testimony see p. 32.


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WMABA Responds to Unfavorable VoteThe Washington Metropolitan AutoBody Association (WMABA) isdisappointed with the outcome ofthe unfavorable decision by theMaryland House Economic MattersCommittee on March 13 for whatthey believe to be a very importantpiece of consumer protection legis-lation. Despite the vote, WMABAlegislative liaisons remain encour-aged by MD legislators’ reaction tounderstanding collision consumerissues, as the process and pursuantdiscussion amply highlighted theworkings of the collision industryand how certain claims settlementpractices can disadvantage the con-sumer.

Hearing video shows that theassociation’s representatives didwell to outline the issues, advocatefor both the WMABA membershipand the consumers they serve, aswell as to debunk the myths andcontradictions put forth by the op-position. WMABA encourages allrepairers to view the video in addi-tion to the voting record and furtherunderstand what the opposition saidabout the collision industry, and the

repairers who work in the business.The collision repairers were

represented well by all those whoparticipated in the hearing and workgroup processes for both the Houseand Senate committees. WMABA’sExecutive Director Jordan Hendlerand Hannah Garagiola, WMABA’slobbyist and government relationsconsultant with Alexander &Cleaver combined efforts withMaryland collision repair businessowners to create an effective teamin Annapolis, both prior to and dur-ing the legislative session. Repairerbusiness owners participated inthese same meetings, and evenmore throughout the state commu-nicated with their representativesjust how important this law couldhave been in protecting Marylandpolicyholders.

“While this consumer legisla-tion is straight-forward in our opin-ion, it turned out to be morecontroversial as medical marijuanaand the minimum wage bills,”opined Garagiola. “Legislators typ-ically do a good job of putting

See WMABA Responds, Page 33


The second annual Southern Automo-tive Repair Conference (SARC) isquickly approaching, creating plentyof work for the six associations thatwill be taking part in the event onApril 11 and 12, 2014 at the Beau Ri-vage Resort and Casino in Biloxi, MS.If this 300% increase in conferencecollaborators is any indication, thisyear’s SARC will be quite successfulwith an influx of attendees!

Steve Plier, Executive Director ofthe Alabama Automotive Repair Soci-ety of Excellence (ALARISE) came upwith the idea for the first conferencewhich was held in February 2012 withover 95% of attendees coming fromAL, and this conference actually led tothe founding of ALARISE. Plier states“the intent of the 2012 conference, justlike the focus of this year’s conference,was on education, business principles,consumer focus, and the fact that a col-lision repairer must be compensated forall labor procedures and materials usedin properly repairing a vehicle to thelevel of quality required to meet man-ufacturers’ standards so reinvestmentscan be continually made to purchasenew equipment and to provide the con-tinual training required to keep up withthe ever-changing technologies oftoday’s vehicles and vehicles of the fu-ture. Moving forward on each of thesesubjects is of the utmost importance foreach and every vehicle owner and forall consumers (you, me, our familiesand friends, children and grandchil-dren) because improperly repaired ve-hicles can result in severe injuries evento the most innocent and unknowingparties.”

The next year, Plier’s groupjoined with John Mosley, Presidentof the Mississippi Collision RepairAssociation (MSCRA), and acting ascoordinators of the 2013 event, Plierand Mosley collaborated to organizethe SARC; their efforts proved effec-tive with 28 exhibitors/sponsors par-ticipating in the conference as well asover 220 attendees representing fivesoutheastern states. Anticipated atten-dance for the 2014 SARC has in-creased to over 500 participants.

SARC 2014 has expanded to in-clude the collaboration of four moreassociations; in addition to MSCRA

and ALARISE, associations partici-pating in the conference will includethe Florida Autobody Collision Asso-ciation (FACA), the Georgia CollisionIndustry Association (GCIA), theLouisiana Collision Industry Associa-tion (LaCIA), and the Tennessee Col-lision Repairers Association (TCRA).

Howard Batchelor, ExecutiveDirector of GCIA, believes that in-volvement with the SARC is importantbecause “the more information we canprovide to collision centers, the betterthey will be prepared for the changingindustry. There are several issues cur-rently affecting shops, and we want tobe able to provide information theycan use to better run their shop andmake better business decisions.” Hehopes that attendees will acquire use-ful information that can be used to im-prove their businesses, and he ispersonally looking forward to talkingwith the various shops about how theydo business and what challenges theyface so that GCIA can create an agendato address these issues in the future.

The conference will begin the af-ternoon of Friday, April 11, and con-tinue on Saturday from 8 AM untilaround 5:30 PM. The event’s agenda in-cludes a reception, trade show, re-freshments, and “breakout sessions”which include training, I-CAR classes,sponsor demos and association sym-posiums. Additionally, the conferenceboasts an array of speakers represent-ing various segments of the industry.

The presentations given by thespeakers will be moderated by Masterof Ceremonies Patrick Porter, radiopersonality and owner of Porter’sBody Shop in Brookhaven, MS.Scheduled speakers include the fol-lowing industry professionals: Con-gressional Medal of Honor recipientMike Thornton; Aaron Schulen-burg, Executive Director of SCRS;Aaron Clark of Assured Performance;Richard Perry, Chief’s Ford F-150Project Manager; Dave Poston, Colli-sion Marketing Manager for AmericanHonda; Richard Valenzuela of Vari-able Rates Systems; John Mosley,President of MSCRA and owner ofClinton Body Shop; and Ray Gunderof Gunder’s Auto Center.

On Saturday, the main speakers

will each be allotted approximately 45minutes to present, beginning withSchulenburg who will provide a na-tional industry update. Noting that thisis the third time he will be attendingSARC, Schulenburg shares his feel-ings on the conference and his plansfor his presentation: “conferencessuch as these present a terrific oppor-tunity for shops to open their thoughtsto alternative solutions and mindsetsthat can help drive their business for-ward. My talk is going to be focusedon discussing new market trends anddevelopments in the collision repairindustry that are going to impact col-lision repair professionals, and a quickdive into some unique out-of-the-boxperspectives that depart from themasses, and instead rely on develop-ing strategy based on results, ratherthan on the expected.”

Schulenburg looks forward to at-tending SARC again since it gets big-ger and better with more content eachyear, and he believes “Steve and hisgroup have done a tremendous job ofpulling together this southern marketand giving them an exciting forum tolook forward to, and I have no doubtthis year will continue to surpass thoseprevious events.”

The presentations will concludewith Mosley and Gunder, joined by at-torney John Eaves, discussing the de-tails and status of lawsuits filed againstinsurers, ending with a Q&A session.Though the order of the other speakershas not yet been finalized, the topicsthey will speak on are as follows:Thornton will deliver a motivationalspeech, Poston is presenting on Hondarepair technologies, Perry plans to dis-cuss the new repair requirements foraluminum F-150 vehicles, and Valen-zuela is scheduled to cover the Vari-able Rate System which promises tomake a difference in establishing equi-table labor rates through a body shopsurvey system.

Clark’s presentation will focus onthe explaining Ford National BodyShop Program as Assured Perform-ance is facilitating Ford dealershipcertification and recognition for inde-pendent body shops. Noting this is hisfirst opportunity to attend such anevent in the southeast, Clark is “look-

ing forward to meeting some new peo-ple and being able to answer any ques-tions that they may have.”

Excitement and anticipation sur-rounding the SARC 2014 can befound in abundance amongst those in-volved with planning and speaking atthe event. Plier is eager to hear Thorn-ton speak: “I hope attendees will thinkabout all the sacrifices that Mike andall the men and women in our militaryservices for this country have madefor each of us to enjoy the freedomsthat we do. I hope this will lead atten-dees to be determined to stand forwhat is right and understand thatstanding for what is right usually isnot the easy path, but it is the onlypath that will bring about change thatis right, needed and focused on qualityand service for each and every vehicleowner and their families.”

Schulenburg is “most looking for-ward to the exchange of ideas that fos-ters unique, independent thought forattendees. It is refreshing for repairbusiness owners to step out of their fourwalls for a moment and take in otherperspectives and information. I get ex-cited about the idea of these repairersbreaking the mold and really findingunique ways to bolster their businessesas they tackle the ever-changing land-scape of collision repair.”

For Georgia Thorson, Adminis-trative Coordinator of the SARC, it’sall about “seeing all of the planningcome to fruition. Having so many col-lision industry professionals join acommon cause to improve problemareas for their industry, their businessand their customers promises to be ex-citing. The conference lineup and thevenue are spectacular, so I know Iwon’t be disappointed in the results!”

Attendees can register for theSARC at a cost of $30 per person, butfor individual business that want tohave more than five employees attendat the same time, the registration fee iscapped at $150. Businesses interestedin exhibiting can reserve space for$1000, $3000 or $5000, dependent ontheir booth requirements and presenta-tion time slots. Though limited spaceis still available, the deadline for ex-hibitors to register if March 25, so

Six SE Associations Prepare for Southern Automotive Repair Conf.



with Domenico Nigro























See Six SE Associations, Page 59


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The MD House Economic Matterscommittee, on March 14, voted 16 to 7for an unfavorable report on HB574.No action has yet been taken on SB487.See cover story this issue.

This article provides some back-ground on the testimony pro and conin front of the committee.

On February 21, the WashingtonMetropolitan Auto Body Association(WMABA) testified at the MD HouseHearing on Economic Matters in sup-port of House Bill 574 (companion toSenate Bill 487), entitled Motor Vehi-cle Liability Insurance – ReplacementParts for Damaged Motor Vehicles.

During the hour-and-a-half thatthis bill was discussed in committee,House delegates heard from severalpanels representing various segmentsof the collision repair industry.

The first panel consisted of Jor-dan Hendler, Executive Director ofWMABA, Mark Schaech of Mark’sBody Shop, and Joe Tucker of JQRestorations. Hendler began by ex-pressing her belief that HB574 wouldprovide collision repair shops with theability to service vehicles with whatthey deem to be the highest qualityparts, stressing the need to trust thecollision repair professionals to knowwhat’s best for their customers. “As anindustry, collision repairers are thefirst line of defense and considered theprofessional when it comes to fixingyour car and doing what’s right foryou,” she said. Support of this bill isimportant, Hendler continued, be-cause use of aftermarket parts can im-pair warranties on newer vehicles,especially those that are less than threeyears old. Before a collision, a con-sumer’s warranty is 100% intact, butif their vehicle is repaired with after-market parts, the warranty is no longer100% intact; portions of the warrantywill not be valid because OEM partswere replaced with parts not recom-mended by the factory warranty.

Additionally, even when the partsvendor or insurer offers a warranty onaftermarket parts, it is non-transfer-able should the car be sold to anotherconsumer. “Aftermarket parts, in ourindustry’s perspective, are inferior togenuine parts. We have fit, finish andfunctionality issues, even just for cos-metic purposes,” Hendler reiterated.

Another problem Hendler cited withthe use of aftermarket parts is that theyaren’t full vehicle crash-tested, andaccording to IIHS 2010 Chief Re-search Officer, there is a lot of engi-neering that goes into making a crashprotection system, so changing partsmay result in the system being unableto function as intended by the manu-facturer.

MD code requires shops to in-form the consumer when aftermarketparts are used, and most insurers per-mit customers to opt for using OEMparts instead; however, the customermust pay the difference in price be-tween the parts options.

Speaking to claims that HB574will lead to higher insurance premi-ums, Hendler pointed out thatthough RI and WV have a three-year prohibition on aftermarketparts and historically higher rates,IN has a five-year prohibition andMN has a complete prohibition onaftermarket parts, and both of thesestates enjoy lower premiums thanMD. Furthermore, insurers admitthat premiums are mostly predi-cated on the individual driver, theirdriving record and where the live, inaddition to state bodily injury laws.A report by the Property CasualtyInsurers Association (PCI) indicatesthat a complete ban on aftermarketparts would affect premiums by2.6%, or $24 per year on average.Thus, Hendler concluded, there isno evidence of a correlation be-tween using OEM parts and in-creased insurance premiums.

Schaech provided an example ofinstalling an aftermarket radiatorwhich fails and ruins the vehicle’s en-gine. The engine will not be coveredunder the manufacturer’s warranty be-cause the failure was caused by the af-termarket part.

Tucker addressed the parts pro-curement portion of the bill, explain-ing how DRPs work and comparinginsurer-mandated parts procurementto steering, an activity prohibited byMD law.

When asked who is responsiblefor faulty parts, Schaech noted theshop is liable, and though a shop canask the consumer to sign a “HoldHarmless” letter if they know they aregoing against OEM recommenda-tions, he believes it’s not right for

shops to be put in this position at all.While MD law requires shops to dis-close use of aftermarket parts, givingthe consumer the option of spendingmore money to repair their vehiclewith OEM parts, many DRP shops arerated on how often they use aftermar-ket parts in their repairs.

The next panel called to testifyconsisted of insurer representatives.Noel Patterson began by arguing thathalf the cost of insurance premiums isdictated by the cost of coverage; if thecost of repairs increases, so will theprice of the premiums. She also be-lieves that the use of aftermarket partspromoted competition in the market-place while allowing insurers to con-trol costs even as they strive to restorethe vehicle to its pre-accident condi-tion.

On behalf of USAA and the MDInsurers Alliance trade association,Kimberly Robinson said she op-posed HB574 because many insurersoffer consumers the choice to pay forOEM parts in their repair, allowing forcompetition between insurance com-

panies in MD, but this law would shiftthe cost of parts, increasing insurers’expenses and translating into higherpremiums “despite other states’ expe-riences.”

A representative from LibertyMutual also objected, arguing that cus-tomers can get an extended warrantyon aftermarket parts by going to DRPshops. This led to a delegate question-ing how the insurers can claim thatthey are restoring a vehicle to its pre-loss condition when they’ve alreadyacknowledged that using aftermarketparts may lead to diminished value, towhich the insurer replied that theirgoal is to restore the vehicle to its pre-vious condition, not its pre-accidentvalue.

Several representatives fromLKQ-Keystone were called to testifynext, and Bruce Barriano argued thataftermarket parts are the same asOEM parts essentially; the term “af-termarket” simply means the part wasmade after the vehicle was manufac-tured. He insisted that the term is nota connotation of inferior quality as af-


Testimony on Maryland Parts Bill Involves Representatives from WMABA, PCI,LKQ, CAPA and Shops, Some Repairers ‘Cannot Afford to Refuse’ PartsTrader

termarket parts are built brand newand to specifications. Barriano saidthat aftermarket parts are only cheaperin price, not in quality or safety, andusing these parts benefits consumersby keeping insurance costs down.

In contrast, HB574 creates a three-year monopoly which is anti-competi-tive, allows OEMs to charge whateverthey want for these parts, and willclearly lead to increasing rates—“thisbill is not without financial implica-tions,” Barriano insisted. Additionally,consumers receive a warranty on thelife of LKQ aftermarket parts, plus theshop that repairs the vehicle receives in-demnification from LKQ who will de-fend the collision repair facility if alawsuit is filed.

Two General Managers of LKQ-Keystone facilities in MD, Jim Lohanand Marcel Hoover, spoke about howthe businesses they run contribute tothe state’s economy, and they claimedthat many customers call them seekingan alternative to high-priced OEMparts.

Jack Gillis, Executive Directorof CAPA and on behalf of the Centerfor Auto Safety, opposes the bill be-cause it limits consumer choice, pro-tects an unfair monopoly, restricts

competition, and will increase crashrepair costs for MD consumers.

In addition to arguing that compe-tition lowers prices, Gillis points outthat using OEM parts doesn’t neces-sarily mean restoring the vehicle to itspre-loss condition, and because OEMparts are frequently recalled, he doesn’tthink they should be the only option.Arguing that “there’s nothing wrongwith generic products,” he asked whyaftermarket parts aren’t banned alto-gether if they’re substandard and sug-gests a middle-ground option ofrequiring aftermarket parts to be func-tionally equivalent to OEM parts.

The final portion of testimonybegan with Laura Marta Harding ofState Farm who focused on the partsprocurement portion of HB574, not-ing that PartsTrader has only been ineffect in MD for two weeks. She ar-gued that the collision repair shopscontrol the inputs in PartsTrader, spec-ifying the type of parts they use, andindicated that shops who object to in-terference in this business are wel-come to opt out of State Farm’s SelectService Program.

Testifying on behalf of the oppo-sition was Laura Gay, owner of FortWashington Auto Body and Sullivan’s

Auto Body. Gay discussed the de-crease in the collision repair businessdue to advancing technology, admit-ting she cannot afford to refuse Part-sTrader because she needs thebusiness generated by being on StateFarm’s DRP.

Lawrence Christiansen of Na-tionwide estimated that HB574 wouldincrease Nationwide’s premiums by$12 million over the next six months,and as this insurer only writes around10% of MD’s insurance, the bill wouldseriously impact MD’s economy.

Oyango Snell, Counsel for PCI,concluded the testimony by pointingout that the bill’s advocates haven’tprovided proof of consumer com-plaints, thus aftermarket parts usageposes no threat to the consumer in hisopinion. Aftermarket parts only repre-sent 10% of the parts market, so hefeels the goal of HB574 seems to becreating even more of a monopoly. Hefinishes his testimony with the dou-ble-edged reminder that “insurancecompanies don’t sell parts.”

If you’re interested in viewingthe hearing, you can access it from thelink on the www.autobodynews.comwebsite. Search for the online storywith the same title as this article.


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themselves in the place of theconsumer, but opposition tacticsto promulgate lies and kick updirt can be hard to overcome.Given how close this year’s ef-forts came to fruition, I think thegroundwork has been laid, andthere are good opportunities tosucceed with the same lan-guage—and some added ammu-nition—in future sessions.”

During the entire process,only MAIF had supplied anydocumentation for actual cost tothe insurance market, whereas allothers just threw out generalizedstatements of inevitable premiumraises.

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Continued from Page 29

WMABA Responds



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800-893-3030856-692-4449

Dept. Hours: M-F 6:30-5; Sat 7:[email protected]

Route 22 HondaHi l ls ide

973-705-9100Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7:30; Sat 8-5

[email protected]

VIP HondaNorth P la inf ie ld908-753-1680


Babylon HondaWest Baby lon

631-669-5800Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-3:30

[email protected]

Brewster HondaBrewster

845-278-4177Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4

[email protected]

Dick Ide HondaRochester

800-462-0056 (N.Y.)585-586-4919

Dept. Hours: M-Thur 8-8; Fri 8-5:30;Sat 8-5

[email protected]

Lamacchia HondaSyracuse

315-471-7278Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 9-1

[email protected]

Lia Honda of AlbanyAlbany

800-272-6741518-482-2598

Dept. Hours: M, T, W, F 7:30-5:30;Thur 7:30-8; Sat [email protected]

Lia Honda of WilliamsvilleWil l iamsvi l le /Buf fa lo877-659-2672716-632-3800

Dept. Hours: M-Thu 7:30-8;Fri 7:30-5; Sat 8-5:[email protected]

Ray Laks HondaWest Seneca

716-824-7852Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-8; Sat 7:30-5:30

[email protected]

Apple HondaYork

800-960-9041717-848-2600

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 7-4; Sun [email protected]

Baierl HondaWexford

724-940-2006Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4

[email protected]

J.L. Freed HondaMontgomeryv i l le215-855-3587

Dept. Hours: M-Thur 8-6; Fri 8-5; Sat [email protected]

Shadyside HondaPi t tsburgh

800-468-2090412-390-2908

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:[email protected]

Sussman HondaRoslyn

800-682-2914215-657-3301


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Acura of WestchesterWestchester

914-834-8887Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-8; Sat 8-4; Sun 9-4

[email protected]

Curry AcuraScarsdale

800-725-2877914-472-7406


Paragon AcuraWoodside

718-507-3990Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 8-5; Sun 9-4

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Smithtown AcuraSt . James

888-832-8220631-366-4114


Apple AcuraYork

877-5APPLE5717-849-6639

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5:30; Sat [email protected]

Baierl AcuraWexford

800-246-7457724-935-0800


Davis AcuraLanghorne

866-50-ACURA215-943-7000


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On Saturday, February 22nd, the Au-tomotive Service Association of Ari-zona (ASA-AZ) hosted a courseentitled Survival Skills for Service Ad-visors at the Phoenix Airport Hilton.Luz A. Rubio, Executive Director of

ASA-AZ, says it was a “great class!We had 30 Service Advisors in atten-dance, representing shops around Ari-

zona. Most attended to learn betterways on how to communicate withcustomers, others [came for] a re-fresher course.”

The focus of the event was on theimportance of developing good commu-

nication skills, andthe group discussedvarious scenariosand examples, ex-amining the bestway to handle eachunique situation.

“Being able to lis-ten to the customerand addressing thereason they cameinto the shop shouldbe the primaryfocus. Being able toeducate and informthe customer on the

importance of maintaining their vehiclein order to prevent costly repairs wasalso an area of focus,” Rubio told us.

Attendees’ expectations were ex-ceeded, Rubio believes. “Several ex-perienced service advisorswho have been in their posi-tion for more than ten yearsenjoyed the class and walkedaway with at least one ideathat they can implement toimprove how they have beendoing their job.”

In 2014, the ASA-AZ’sgoal is to provide their mem-bers with education andtraining by attracting indus-

try speakers who will share fresh con-tent that members can relate to andlearn from. “The benefit of being amember is the opportunity to ex-change ideas with peers and learnfrom each other. We promote that weare not an association of competitors,but an association of peers where weidentify challenges and come up withideas that will maximize the successand longevity their businesses.”

ASA-AZ is very excited to offer afull calendar of meetings, events and


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On February 24, 2014, a group ofFlorida auto body shops filed an an-titrust action against over forty prop-erty and casualty insurers in the U.S.District Court for the Middle Districtof Florida.

In the case, A&E Auto Body ver-sus 21st Century Centennial Insur-ance Co., d/b/a Farmers InsuranceGroup et al., the plaintiffs allege thatthe State Farm vendor agreement re-quires shops desiring to participate inthis preferred provider program to ac-cept the market rate for such services,and that State Farm calculates thoserates in an improper manner thatkeeps them artificially low and notrepresentative of the true market forsuch services.

The plaintiffs also allege that theremaining insurer defendants in thestate have advised plaintiffs that theywill pay no more than State Farmpays for labor at their shops, thus re-sulting in a stabilizing of rates at theseallegedly low levels.

In addition to a number of com-mon law counts, plaintiffs assert thatdefendants’ conduct constitutes price

fixing under Section 1 of the ShermanAct. In search of evidence of agree-ment amongst the defendants (a nec-essary element of a Section 1 claim),plaintiffs allege that the insurersagreed to control and suppress auto-mobile damage repair costs at meet-ings amongst themselves that theyrefused to allow members of the autocollision repair industry to attend.

Plaintiffs also contend that de-fendants’ alleged conduct constitutesunlawful boycott activity. In supportof that assertion, plaintiffs maintainthat the defendants’ alleged acts ofsteering customers away from plain-tiffs, through allegations and intimi-dations of poor work quality placesdefendants’ conduct beyond the lim-ited antitrust exemption that the in-surance industry enjoys under theMcCarran Ferguson Act.

The action is only in its very ear-liest stages, and the insurers have notyet responded to plaintiffs’ allega-tions. However, given the number ofinsurer defendants, and the nature ofthe issues, the case will be a majorcollision industry event in 2014.

Property and Casualty Insurers Hit With AntitrustSuit by Florida Auto Body Shops

A proposed bill in Minnesota, HouseFile 2690 (HF 2690), seeks to amendMinnesota Statutes 2012, section72B.092, subdivision 1 to include morestringent prohibitions against insurancecompany requirements placed upon re-pair facilities. Introduced by Represen-tatives Joe Atkins, Greg Davids, JoeHoppe, Debra Hilstrom, Jim Davnieand Melissa Hortman on Monday,March 3, HF 2690 changes two sub-sections of the existing law, includingprovisions the repair industry sup-ported and were added into the law in2007.

The first amends adds a prohibi-tion against insurance companies andtheir representatives from requiringthat a vehicle be presented “… at aparticular motor vehicle repair shopdesignated by the insurer” in additionto the existing ban against drive-inclaim centers.

According to Judell Anderson,executive director of AASP-MN,whose organization supports the bill,this amend seeks to expand the exist-ing prohibition on requiring vehicleowners present their cars at a drive-inbecause insurers have adapted to the

existing prohibition by requiring ve-hicle owners to take their vehicles toa specific repair facility for inspec-tion.

“We’ve heard from our membersthat insurance companies now tellpeople to go to a specific repair facil-ity to get their vehicle inspected,” saidAnderson. “In many cases the insurerwill actually have staff on site at thebody shop one or two days a week, es-sentially running a drive in claim cen-ter in the repair facility. This sectionis really about combating insurancecompany steering.”

The second amendment adds asection to the existing law that ex-pands upon the types of requirementsthat insurance companies may notplace upon repair facilities. The addedsection states that insurance companyrepresentatives shall not:● specify or require any motor vehiclerepair shop to utilize specific vendors,distributors, manufacturers, suppliers,business platforms, or internal processesin order to carry out vehicle repairs foran insured or claimant.

This expands upon another sub-section that was added into the ex-

isting law in 2007 that says insur-ance company representative shallnot:● specify the use of a particular ven-dor for the procurement of parts orother materials necessary for the sat-isfactory repair of the vehicle. Thisclause does not require the insurer topay more than a reasonable marketprice for parts of like kind and qualityin adjusting a claim

In October 2013, AASP-MNfiled a formal complaint with the Min-nesota Department of Commerce re-questing administrative and/or legalaction to prevent State Farm from re-quiring that collision repair shops thatparticipate in the insurer's direct repairprogram use the PartsTrader parts pro-curement system based upon the ex-isting section of the law.

According to Anderson, the ad-dition of the new section shouldhelp address numerous concernsAASP-MN members have with in-creasing insurance company re-quirements for specific vendors andbusiness processes beyond the exist-ing law that prohibits that activityfor parts and materials.

roundtables this year as they continueto strive to provide a forum for mem-bers to share valuable information thatwill help elevate the standard in the in-

dustry. Rubio poses a question: “Whereelse can you go to exchange informa-tion with your peers, people that havefound what works or what does not?We urge shop owners to attend theseevents and network with their fellowpeers; the return on their membershipinvestment will be more than just fi-nancial.”

ASA-AZPO Box 81517Phoenix, AZ 85069602-544-2600www.asaaz.org


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The Specialty Equipment MarketAssociation (SEMA) Product De-velopment Expo on April 10, 2014,in Diamond Bar, CA, will helpSEMA members learn about newtools and resources available to in-crease efficiencies and decreasecosts.

Co-sponsored by the SEMAData Co-op (SDC) and the Emerg-ing Trends and Technology Network(ETTN), the conference includeslive demonstrations of 3D scanningand printing machines; discussionson connected vehicles and the futureof transportation; and updates aboutautomotive apps, including Ford’sOpenXC platform. Participants willalso learn about and tour the SEMAGarage.

Conference participants willdiscover how to avoid reverse engi-neering, what products requireemissions certifications and how toobtain the proper certifications, andwhy data standards can help or hin-der distribution.The registration fee, which includeslunch and a networking reception, is$47 for SEMA members and $97for non-SEMA members.

Register at www.sema.org/pde.

SEMA Product DevelopmentExpo on April 10 in CA

The Society of Collision Repair Spe-cialists (SCRS) Industry Awards andCorporate Member Recognition Lunch-eon will be held on Wednesday, April 9,2014, from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., justprior to the Collision Industry Confer-ence (CIC) at the Red Lion Hotel on theRiver Jantzen Beach in Portland, OR.

In additon, the SCRS Open BoardMeeting will be on Tuesday, April 8,2014, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Follow-ing the board meeting at 5:15 p.m., cur-rent SCRS members can vote for fourboard members.

Collision repair shop owners andmanagers are further invited to attenda special Collision Repairer Round-table meeting on Wednesday, April 9,2014, from 8:30 to 11:00 a.m.

RSVP by March 26, 2014, [email protected] or 1-877-841-0660.

Contact the Red Lion Hotel onthe River Jantzen Beach at 1-800-733-5466 to make hotel reservations andmention CIC to get the group rate.

SCRS and CIC are April 8–9,2014, in Portland, OR

Follow us on Twitter:@autobodynews

Accept no Substitutes!

FIX Auto Adds Five New West Coast LocationsThe rapid growth of the Fix AutoUSA franchise network across theWestern United States shows no signof slowing as the organization an-nounced new locations in Springfield,Oregon and Watsonville, Salinas, SanClemente, and Sun Valley, California.

Fix Auto Springfield, formerly AStreet Automotive & Collision, is theeighth Fix Auto center in the state ofOregon and the 17th in the Northwestfranchise group. Owners Cris Kuhn-hausen and John Kimpton, attuned tomarket trends, noted changes in the in-dustry which they believed they couldbenefit from if they aligned with alarger group. In the Fix Auto franchisemodel they found the best of bothworlds, — the opportunity to reposi-tion their business into the MSO seg-ment while maintaining control of thebusiness they had spent over 25 yearsbuilding.

WAB Collision Center, locallyowned and operated by Mike Gar-land and family, opened for businessin Watsonville in 1981, adding a sec-ond location in Salinas in 2012. Re-cently aligned with Fix Auto as FixAuto Watsonville and Fix Auto Sali-nas, the two shops are the fourth andfifth centers to open in Northern Cal-ifornia under the Fix Auto brand,

making it an exciting new frontier forthe organization.

Fix Auto Sun Valley, formerlyknown as J&L Body & Paint Shop,was recently added in the Los Ange-les metropolitan area. Siblings Danieland Sandy Panduro, who own the fa-cility, grew up in the business learn-ing the ropes from their father, John,who opened the business in 1983.

Fix Auto San Clemente is thesecond franchise operation ownedby partners Richard Fish and BillLawrence (and the fourth centerowned by Fish). Fish’s rapid expan-sion with Fix Auto testifies to howexisting standards and operationsencourage rapid, organic marketgrowth. “Fix Auto’s methodologyprovides a template for how a suc-cessful franchise should operate,which removes much of the guess-work that goes into getting a newoperation up-and-running,” Fish ex-plained. “Each of our franchises hasits own flavor and its own set ofunique challenges, but having aclearly defined, proven methodol-ogy in place for operational excel-lence certainly makes things easier.”

The addition of these five newfacilities brings the total Fix AutoUSA count to 54 locations.

Montana Shop Open to Airmen Working on their Own,Offers Training in Paint and Body Repairby Airman 1st Class Joshua Smoot

Airmen who enjoy working on theirown car or don’t want to drive intotown to have their car repaired have aplace to go. The Malmstrom AutoHobby Shop on the Malmstrom basehas many services to offer for mili-tary members of any rank, depend-ents and retirees.

Some of the services the shopoffers are engine diagnostic checks,brake checks, welding and paintbooths and classes on each. There arealso three mechanics available at theshop to help Airmen with any proj-ects they may have.

“The single Airmen programmakes it so people can take the weld-ing and auto body paint classes for alow charge,” said Clint Mallory, theauto hobby shop chief.

The welding class is the firstWednesday of the month and thepainting class is the second Wednes-day of the month.

“The classes normally start at5:30 p.m. and end around 8:30 p.m.,”Mallory said. “It all depends on howmany questions the class membershave. Participants must go to the classfor one session before they receive a

certification to use the paint andwelding booths.”

For those who are interested in amore thorough learning experienceon painting, the shop also offers a sixto eight-week auto body paint class.

“We have a lot of Airmen whocome here,” Mallory said. “Once theycome in once, they keep coming back.Even though we have a lot of peoplecoming in, I have heard a lot of peoplesay they have never been here beforeor that they didn’t even know therewas an auto shop on base.”

In the shop, people have com-pleted an array of projects for theircar.

“We have Airmen who havepulled and rebuilt their motors, in-stalled suspension lifts on their trucksand removed and replaced their trans-missions,” Mallory said. “There havealso been quite a few little jobs suchas putting in freeze plug heaters fortheir car because it was winter time.In the warmer months people come into put on new tires for their car.”

“They supply you with any toolyou need,” said Airman 1st Class Je-remy McNeal, 341st Logistics Readi-ness Squadron vehicle maintenanceapprentice.

Attendees will “Power Up” to be thebest they can be at the annualWomen’s Industry Network (WIN)Educational Conference May 5–7,2014, at the Paradise Point Resort andSpa in San Diego, CA. The confer-ence will feature keynote speakersColette Carlson and Dr. Verna Cor-nelia Price, and cover everythingfrom sustainability, a trending issuein the collision industry, to honingyour negotiation and interpersonalskills.

“We are thrilled to have the op-portunity for Dr. Price and Ms. Carl-son to address the WIN members atthis year’s Educational Conference,”said Jessica Rob, co-chair of the con-ference planning committee. “Theirmessages are in alignment withWIN’s mission; their presentationsfocus on personal power, masterfulcommunication, change and positiv-ity in the workplace.”

In the inaugural year of WIN’spresentation of the Most InfluentialWomen awards, the gala dinner willfocus on recognizing women whohave been nominated by their peersas outstanding business and civicleaders. 2014 will also usher in a newera of scholarships for WIN. For the

first time, WIN will award tuitionscholarships to applicants from bothsecondary and post-secondaryschools as the winners pursue theireducation in technical colleges acrossthe country. Some of those winnerswill be in attendance at the confer-ence.

Additional special events willinclude welcome luau dinner on thebeach and the annual scholarshipwalk.

In addition, WIN is focusing onreducing their carbon footprint for theconference to foster a more sustain-able future by reducing printed mate-rials (invitations, brochures, andprogram materials), shifting in-ses-sion practices to reduce waste, andshifting resources from purchasinggiveaways” to the scholarship fund.

Registration opens in March2014. Learn more about the confer-ence at http://thewomensindustrynet-work.ning.com/page/2014-conference

Power Up at the 2014 WIN Educational Conference inSan Diego, CA, May 5–7, 2014



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GM Readying Aluminum Body Trucks for Late 2018General Motors Co. is working to-wards a largely aluminum-bodiedpickup truck by late 2018, underpressure from federal fuel efficiencystandards, The Wall Street Journalreported, citing people familiar withthe matter.

GM recently locked in supplycontracts with Alcoa, Inc. and Nov-elis, Inc., and both suppliers are nowworking to increase their aluminumsheet production to supply the next-generation GM pickup, according tothe Wall Street Journal.

Aluminum sheet for automo-tive bodies is in such high demandthat companies need to order it yearsin advance, the newspaper said.

GM has been working to put itsfull-size pickup trucks on a severediet to meet future U.S. fuel econ-omy standards and stay competitivewith rival, Ford Motor Co.

“We are going to continue toimprove the fuel efficiency of all ofour products,” a GM spokesmansaid today in an email. “For compet-itive reasons, we are not talkingabout technical details of futureproducts at this point.”

Mark Reuss, GM productchief, made no secret of his interestin aluminum when he saw Ford’s

aluminum F-150 pickup at the De-troit, MI, auto show last month.

“I want to get my hands on it,”Reuss told reporters. “I’m going tobe looking at how much aluminumis in it. ‘What are the panels? …How are they constructed?’ I’mgoing to look at what they advertiseas the weight savings from it. ThenI’m going to go back and do somemath.”

Reuters reported in July 2013that GM will start using more light-weight materials such as aluminumand composites in place of conven-tional steel.

Ford has already made theswitch. The new F-150’s latest up-grade’s body is 95 percent military-grade aluminum alloy, used inHumvees, and will weigh up to 700pounds less than the current model.

Alcoa and Novelis, a privatecompany, could not immediately bereached for comment by Reuters.

Ford Recommends LORD Fusor in F-150 RepairsLORD Fusor 108B, a metal bondingadhesive designed for body shop isnow recommended by Ford MotorCompany for the repair of their new2015 Ford F-150 aluminum cab.

Unveiled at the 2014 NorthAmerican International Auto Show inDetroit, Mich., Jan. 13, Ford MotorCompany approved LORD Fusor108B metal bonding adhesive for re-pairs on the 2015 F-150 military-gradealuminum alloy cab by their dealersand independent body shops. This newdesign will require adhesive in nearlyall joints in the cab. Ford will be listingspecific repair procedures in the colli-sion repair manual along with instruc-tions that will be provided with serviceparts.

“Over the years, Fusor has ledthe industry with innovative metalbonding applications such as quarterpanel bonding, rivet bonding on lam-inate steel and weld bonding withSTRSW by working with the OEMrepair teams before the vehicleslaunch. LORD Fusor has been a spon-sor of the Ford Paint and Body Tech-nology Center and continues to workwith them to develop important vehi-cle repair procedures,” says JulieMiller, market manager at LORDCorporation. “We recommend follow-

ing the OEM procedure when usingFusor 108B for vehicle specific pro-cedures. LORD Fusor 108B metalbonding adhesive is one of three ap-proved repair adhesives by FordMotor Company, including Motor-craft TA-1B.”

Gerry Bonanni at Ford MotorCompany’s Paint and Body Technol-ogy Center stated that the developedprocedures are easy to follow and canbe performed by any body shop thatperforms collision repairs on F-150trucks today.

“The approved adhesives arewidely available and training will beavailable by I-CAR to assist technicianswith this mainstream repair process,”says Bonnani.

Ford will present information onthe 2015 F-150 and aluminum repair atthe AASP/NJ Northeast Show March21-23 in Secaucus, N.J. Additional de-tails will be presented at the CollisionIndustry Conference (CIC) April 9-10in Portland, Ore., NACE CARS 2014July 31-Aug. 2 in Detroit, Mich., andat the SEMA Show Nov. 4-7 in LasVegas, Nev.

LORD Fusor 108B is currentlyavailable to all dealers and body shops.For more information please visitLORD.com, or call at 1-877-275-5673.

GM’s Handling of Fatal Switch Recall Being InvestigatedThe U.S. Justice Department hasstarted a preliminary investigationinto how General Motors (GM) han-dled the recall of 1.6 million vehicleswith faulty ignition switches linked toat least 13 deaths.

The inquiry is focusing onwhether GM might have violatedcriminal or civil laws by failing to no-tify regulators in a timely fashionabout the switch failures, said a per-son familiar with the probe who askednot to be named and isn’t authorizedto discuss investigations.

Lawyers in the U.S. Attorney’soffice in the southern district of NewYork are leading the investigation.

The inquiry comes as House andSenate committees and the NationalHighway Traffic Safety Administra-tion (NHTSA) are also investigatingGM’s actions leading up to the recall.The initial recall on February 13,2014, covered 778,562 ChevroletCobalts and Pontiac G5s. It waswidened less than two weeks later tomore than 800,000 additional vehi-cles. Those include 2003–2007 SaturnIons, 2006–2007 Chevrolet HHRs,2006–2007 Pontiac Solstices, and2006–2007 Saturn Skys. Other mod-els affected are the 2005–2006 Pon-tiac Pursuit sold in Canada and the

2007 Opel GT sold in Europe.NHTSA, whose decision not to

investigate the switch failures yearsago is also under scrutiny by Con-gress, is focusing on what steps theautomaker took to investigate and rec-tify engineering concerns and con-sumer complaints dating back to atleast 2004.

GM has until April 3, 2014, toanswer questions posed by the regu-lator in a 27-page order issued in earlyMarch 2014.

GM has said that heavy key ringsor jarring can cause the ignitionswitches to slip out of position, cut-ting off power and deactivating airbags. The automaker has linked thedefect to at least 23 crashes, including13 deaths.

NHTSA could fine GM as muchas US$35 million, which would be themost ever by the U.S. government, ifit finds the automaker didn’t pursue arecall when it knew the cars were de-fective.

GM’s stock has slid 9.2 percentin 2014 through March 10, 2014, andthe recall is emerging as the firstmajor test for new CEO, Mary Barra,who was promoted two weeks beforethe company decided to implementthe recall on January 31, 2014.

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Leading up to Earth Day on April17, 2014, the 2014 LKQ GetGreen promotion is encourages allLKQ customers in environmen-tally-friendly practices, while of-fering a chance to win valuableprizes, including solar backpacks,LKQ gift cards, Raleigh ALYSAFT0 bicycles, and a 2014 HondaAccord.

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The Specialty Equipment MarketAssociation (SEMA) is acceptingnominations for its Hall of Fame.

Created in 1969, the SEMAHall of Fame is designed to honoroutstanding people in the indus-try who have enhanced the statureof, or significantly contributed to,the industry and/or association’sgrowth.

Submit a nomination beforeMarch 21, 2014, at http://fs17.form-site.com/ginalsemaorg/form2/index.html.

The Collision Industry Electronic Com-merce Association (CIECA) announcedthe newest edition of CIECA-TV:CIECA, E-Commerce Done Right.

To meet the needs for safe and se-cure e-commerce, the industry neededstandards that enable us to exchangethe right data with the right player atthe right time. To accomplish that,CIECA created the Business MessageSpecification (BMS). View a videoabout the CIECA BMS at:h t t p : / / w w w . y o u t u b e . c o m /watch?v=bxvxtesVx7I.

Mitchell announced on February 25,2014, that the commercial release ofDecision Point 8, a completely auto-mated medical bill review and work-flow solution for first- and third-partyliability adjusters.

Decision Point 8 is an end-to-end medical bill review platform en-abling adjusters in the auto casualtyindustry to make informed decisionsaround medical bills related to liabil-ity claims.

For more information, visit:www.mitchell.com.

Mitchell Acquiring FAIRPAY Mitchell has agreed to acquireFAIRPAY Solutions, a workers’compensation, liability, and autocost containment and payment in-tegrity services provider. Mitchellplans to offer FAIRPAY Solutionsspecialty bill review to auto andworkers’ compensation marketsand out-of-network negotiationservices. Mitchell will maintainrelationships with other bill re-view and negotiation serviceproviders.

For more information, visitwww.mitchell.com.

Collision Repair EducationFoundation Golf Fundraiser

Transtar Acquires ETXTranstar Industries, Inc., owner ofautomotive aftermarket brands in-cluding Transtar, Transtar AutobodyTechnologies, King-O-Matic, Axiom,and Nickels Performance, has ac-quired ETX, Inc. from Chicago-based, privately-held JordanIndustries and private equity firmThe Edgewater Funds. ETX ownsDACCO, Inc., Alma Products, andATCO Products, Inc.

With this acquisition, TranstarIndustries expands to approximately2,300 employees and over 130 loca-tions throughout North America.

SEMA Data Co-op Grows 300%The Specialty Equipment Manufac-turers Association (SEMA) Data Co-op (SDC) is now helping more than600 automotive specialty equipmentSuppliers and re-sellers around theworld standardize and manage theirparts data to improve efficiency andincrease sales, a 300 percent increasefrom August 2013. The SDC has seenunprecedented growth following avery strong formal launch of its Prod-uct Information Management System(PIMS) in May 2013 and the an-nouncement of free product data ex-ports to SEMA members.

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SEMA Seeks Nominations forHall of Fame by March 21, 2014

Latest Edition of CIECA-TV: E-Commerce Done Right

Mitchell Announces LiabilityAdjusters’ Software Release

The Collision Repair Education Foun-dation annual summer golf fundraiserwill be on Thursday, July 31, 2014, atthe Arnold Palmer-designed NorthvilleHills Golf Club in Detroit, MI, in con-junction with CIC, I-CAR, NACE, andother Industry Week meetings beingheld. that week. Funds raised assist theCollision Repair Education Founda-tion in providing support to collisionrepair students and school collisionprograms. Contact [email protected] or at 847-463-5244.


Looking for tips, tools and resourcesto help your business, defend your po-sitions or do your part for the indus-try? Here’s a collection of links tosites, documents and information youmay find interesting and useful.

— More and more state legisla-tures are considering bills that wouldplace new limits on insurer mandates,such as State Farm’s mandated use ofPartsTrader. Meanwhile the Automo-tive Service Association (ASA) is ex-pected to issue a preliminary reportsoon on the response it has receivedfrom state attorneys general and insur-ance regulations regarding the legalityof State Farm’s PartsTrader mandate.

“ASA has had discussions with anumber of these states that have sub-mitted inquiries for additional sup-porting information,” the associationstates in its press release. “It’s impor-tant to note that subsequent to our an-nouncement relative to sending lettersto each state, State Farm sent states aletter arguing the legitimacy of suchmandates.”

Want to see what State Farm istelling some state regulators? Clickhere (http://tinyurl.com/StateFarm-Letter) to see one such letter.

“Our goal was to resolve this issuewithout government oversight, inter-ference or legislation,” Dan Risley, ex-ecutive director of ASA, said. “Assuch, we have persisted in our effortsto work with State Farm to change thecurrent PartsTrader mandate policy.This has included multiple meetingsand other discussions that continuedthroughout 2013. ASA believes thatthere are potential solutions (if) StateFarm is willing to work toward an am-icable resolution that benefits StateFarm, collision repairers and the con-sumer.”

— Looking for another way to re-cruit new technicians? Shops shouldnote that use of the TopTechFinder.com(www.toptechfinder.com) recruitingsite is still free for both shops and thoselooking for work.

Since launching in early 2012,TopTechFinder.com has connected withover 1,350 candidates and 350 repair-ers in the collision repair business. Ithas since expanded to help mechanicalrepair shops find qualified employees.

“It’s hard to find qualified techni-cians on general job boards,” Jeff Her-man, CEO of TopTech Finder, said.“They aren’t designed for the mechan-ical repair industry and don’t drawmany technicians. In contrast, TopTechFinder allows candidates to show offindustry-specific qualifications, mak-ing it a natural place for techs to findjobs.”

TopTech Finder is free for job-seekers and will remain free for em-ployers for a limited time.

— It’s a common belief in the in-dustry that in markets with lowerlabor rates, estimates have more lineitems to make the bottom line aboutthe same as it would be in a marketwith a higher labor rate. Some analy-sis from Mitchell International indi-cates that may not be the case.

Download Mitchell’s most re-cent “Industry Trends Report,”(http://tinyurl.com/cpbt9ks) to readhow the company analyzed estimatesin states with the highest labor ratesto compare them to those with thelowest labor rates. The states with thelowest average body labor rates –Massachusetts ($37.07), Tennessee($41.14), Florida ($41.29), Georgia($42.04) and Maryland ($42.12) – didnot tend to have more repair (versusreplace) operations, more refinishhours or more overall estimate linesthan the states with the highest aver-age body labor rates – Montana($63.05), Alaska ($61.35), California($60.46), North Dakota (59.52) andWyoming ($57.45).

“Only 1.2 hours of total laborseparates the average of the bottomfive labor rate states from the top fivelabor rate states,” the report found, forexample.

— Which states are doing themost to improve highway safety? The11th annual report card from Advo-cates for Highway and Auto Safetymeasuring state progress in passinghighway safety laws gives Illinois,Oregon and the District of Columbiathe top grades for having enacted 12of 15 laws the organization supports.Another six states, including Indiana,have passed 11 of the laws.

States receiving the lowest grades,having enacted five or fewer of the

laws, are South Dakota, Mississippi,Arizona, Iowa, Montana and Nebraska.

Download the report at:http://tinyurl.com/lctnvv9

— Here’s a link that has nothingto do with collision repair directly, butcould save a life. Joe Arnold, vicepresident of Arnold’s Body Shop inDavenport, Iowa, is urging people tolearn the symptoms of a stroke afterhis wife suffered a stroke on the dayafter Christmas.

“She is only 39 years old andhealthy,” Arnold posted on Facebook.“It can happen to anyone at any age.At the start we thought it was just a mi-graine. As it progressed, it becameclear that it was a stroke. I only knewbecause of my past training as an EMT(14 years ago) what it really could be.She will make a full recovery becausewe recognized the signs and symptomsand took immediate action based uponthem.”

The three key symptoms are out-lined at: http://tinyurl.com/ltg3q63

“The more you know, the saferyou and your loved ones will be,”Arnold wrote.

— Another anti-DRP website,StopDRP.com, has launched; its con-tent includes an animated video cau-tioning consumers about the use ofnon-OEM parts (comparing them tohaving a diamond replaced with cubiczirconium) and one fictionalizing aconversation between a shop and aninsurer about what the shop must doto become part of the insurer’s DRP.

The site includes a link to anothersuch site, StopSteering.com, whichlaunched in 2008.

— Looking for help explainingtheir automaker’s position on non-OEM parts or reconditioned wheels?The OEM Roundtable this yearlaunched a new consumer website,www.CrashRepairInfo.com. The siteincludes: information for vehicle-owners on how to choose a body shop;definitions of common terms used incollision repair and auto insuranceclaims; automaker position statementson vehicle safety systems, counterfeitor salvage airbags, etc.; and videossuch as Honda’s demonstration of amistimed airbag’s impact on a water-melon.

— Ten insurers (including Farm-ers, USAA, Chubb and MetLife)are offering a branded app(http://tinyurl.com/Snapsheet) throughSnapsheet (www.Snapsheet.com) thatenable “self-service” claims for cus-tomers. Snapsheet CEO Brad Weis-berg said when an insured calls toreport a loss, the insurer can offer themthe option of using the app to uploadsix to 15 photos of the damage. Esti-mators at Snapsheet’s offices then pre-pare an estimate based on the photosand sends it back to the customerwithin three business hours.

The customer has the option of adirect-deposit cash-out, or can use theapp to schedule an appointment withone of the insurer’s DRP shops. Sup-plements are handled through Snap-sheet. Insurers pay a flat fee perestimate for the service, Weisbergsaid. He emphasizes that his companyproduces “visual estimates” only.

How do Snapsheet estimators en-sure their estimates comply with vari-ous state laws regarding use ofnon-OEM parts, etc.?

“There are some states where weabsolutely cannot write in,” Weisbergsaid. “But what we pride ourselves onis writing accurate estimates. Notonly accurate to fix the car but alsoaccording to a carrier’s guidelines. Sowe spend a lot of time with the carri-ers calibrating with their claims or-ganization how they want us to writethe estimates. They review a lot of ourestimates to make sure we’re writingaccording to plan.”

Prior to Snapsheet, Weisberg wasthe founder in 2011 of BodyShopBids,which enabled consumers to uploadphotos of their damaged vehicle andreceive quotes from nearby bodyshops within 24 hours.

“BodyShopBids was a great ideaand a great way to start, but it wasn’t areal business,” Weisberg said. “This isneeded in the industry and this is wantedby consumers, so it’s a perfect fit.”

Helpful Documents, Tools, Information Only a Click Away For Shops

with Ed Attanasio

Shop and Product Showcase

with Ed Attanasio

Shop Showcase

with Ed Attanasio

Social Media for Shops

with Ed Attanasio

SEMA Show Goes On

with Erica SchroederShop Showcase

The Right Causewith Mike Causey

Industry Insightwith John Yoswick

—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in thefamily and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He is the editor of theweekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com).Contact him by email at [email protected].



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By now most shop owners know thecollision repair world is changing rap-idly. Last month I wrote about the Sci-Fi Shop of the Future. New materialsand new smart cars require new skillsand new technology. But what ischanging even faster is the way peo-ple communicate with one another.Facebook’s recent purchase of What-sApp for 19 billion dollars to enhancethe mobile segment of its 1.2 billionusers says that mobile communicationbetween users may become the pre-dominant way people communicate inthe future. But how many shops em-ploy someone solely for the purposeof connecting with this segment of thepopulation? And is there any goodreason to do so at this time?

My answer would be that it alldepends on how much a shop’s busi-ness depends on connecting with rela-tively young vehicle owners anddrivers. Older customers are usuallymore affluent and drive higher end ve-hicles. If a shop maintains a databaseof at least ten years of past customers,the odds are good that more than halfof those customers is older and possi-bly less tech-savvy. More importantly,these prior customers and theirfriends, families and contacts maymake up the biggest part of your fu-ture customer base outside of insur-ance and dealership referrals. As thenew market becomes more and moretied to websites, Facebook, Twitterand other media, the general game de-pends on who can come up with themost captivating message and imageson the new media. But you have an

advantage most new media peoplelack. Your ten years or more of accu-mulated customer contacts are a solid,experienced crowd. Now the time hascome to maximize that resource.

It’s time to take a new look atyour professional image. Unlike serv-ice stations and mechanical shops,your customers don’t come in for reg-ular maintenance or simple batteryand tire purchases. In a sense they’resomewhat like the family doctorwhose patients come in for annualcheckups and exams. But the collisionshop owner is more like a surgeonwho only sees a patient when a majoroperation is needed. And so much ofyour marketing must be similar to thatof the surgeon or other professionalswho only see clients in extreme timesof need. How do they build a reliableclient base?

Many professionals must relyheavily on client referrals and con-tacts. To build on these, most seek tojoin clubs, associations and charita-ble organizations that their clientsfrequent or belong to. If they belongto a particular religion or philosoph-ical group, they will participate inthat group to have an opportunity tomeet with various members and be-come known as a specialist in theirspecific field. High-priced profes-sionals like CPAs, lawyers and sur-geons can afford to invest serioustime in developing a deeply personalrelationship with a potential client. Atypical body shop owner can’t affordto dedicate substantial time to anyone potential collision repair cus-

tomer. So how can a shop owner dothe kind of depth marketing that willgain the loyalty of this kind of reli-able referral source?

One shop owner in the CaliforniaSan Fernando Valley had a wall full ofcontacts. He belonged to the Knightsof Columbus, the Sheriff’s SupportersLeague, and the American Legion. Hesponsored a Boy Scout Troop, aLadies Auxiliary and several schoolsports teams. It sounded like this guywas everywhere and his volume ofbusiness attested to the effectivenessof his efforts. How did he do it? Ob-viously not alone. Later I learned thathis sister had started a woman’s busi-ness referral service. His son was ac-tive in the business at a young age. Ingeneral I don’t think he had paid P.R.people doing any of this work, but it’snot much of a stretch to consider thatpossibility. Family is great if you haveit, but if not can it be cost-effective toemploy a real public relations person

to handle this in-depth membershipand schmoozing activity?

Many businesses calculate thelifetime value of a customer. Figuringone collision repair every 3-to-5 yearsgenerates an approximate number. Butthis ignores the people in that cus-tomer’s surrounding universe. The op-portunity to specifically refer a repairfacility just when an accident happensis quite rare. That’s why the P.R. per-son is needed to amplify the praise ofa satisfied customer in a group. Thismarketing person must have the abil-ity to speak for the shop at groups,community events, company meetingsand more. He or she should be of acomparable age to the prospectivecustomers, with a background in salesand public speaking but with enoughfamiliarity of the collision repair shopto present a credible story and reasonto patronize the shop. As the crowdturns to social media, personal contactstill has the advantage.


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A Missing Hat In Most Shops

Custom Cornerwith Rich Evans

On Creative Marketingwith Thomas Franklin

Action Countswith Lee Amaradio Jr.

with Sheila LoftusYour Turn

Opinions Countwith Dick Strom

Shop Showcasewith Janet Chaney

Industry Overviewwith Janet Chaney

Industry Interviewwith Janet Chaney


Tom Franklin has been a sales and marketing consultant for fifty years. He has writtennumerous books and provides marketing solutions and services for many businesses.He can be reached at (323) 871-6862 or at [email protected]. See Tom’s columns at www.autobodynews.com under Columnists > Franklin

Elvis D. Presley of Star City filedpaperwork to run as a Libertarian forcommissioner of state lands. Presleywas selected as the party’s nomineeduring its convention last weekendin Little Rock. Presley, who works atan auto body shop and performsElvis-themed shows in his free time,ran as a write-in candidate forArkansas governor. Born Joey DaneAshmore, he legally changed hisname to Elvis D. Presley in 2006.Presley said he didn’t expect his fa-mous name to help him in the race.

Elvis is Back in his BodyShop and Running For Office

At West Auto Body, Owner LarryWest said his phone has been ringingoff the hook. The damages rangefrom all types of dents on bumpersand doors and cracked windshields.West said he took off this past week-end because he knew what to expecttoday.

“I love the business but I’drather folks to be safe than tearingtheir cars up than making money,”said West. He’s looking at theweather forecast and is urging every-one to stay home.

AR Body Shops Profit fromUnexpected Winter Weather

by Chasidy Rae Sisk

Despite the harsh and unusual weatherin the southeast portion of the country,the Automotive Aftermarket Associa-tion Southeast (AAAS) has been hardat work in their efforts to strengthenthe industry—they aren’t going to leta little snow and ice slow them down!Currently, their main focus is on twoupcoming lobbying events, but theyare also preparing to award scholar-ships as their scholarship deadlinedraws near and planning for their an-nual conference in June.

AAAS held their second AnnualCapitol Day at the GA State Capitol inAtlanta on Wednesday, February 19th.GA members of AAAS were invitedto join the association for a full day oflegislative sessions and visits withelected officials as AAAS seeks topersonally advocate for the industry’spriorities.

On March 18th and 19th, AAASmembers from the Sunshine State areencouraged to attend their AnnualCapitol Day event in Tallahassee, FL,again attending legislative sessionsand visiting with legislators as they at-

tempt to strengthen the industry. Re-garding these two events, President ofAAAS Randal Ward explains, “mem-bers join us for a day or two of walk-ing the halls of the legislature andvisiting representatives.” Ward be-lieves this is a proactive networkingopportunity that allows them to gainadvocates for future legislative con-cerns they may encounter.

AAAS is also preparing to awardscholarships in the near future. Thedeadline for the AAAS EducationalFoundation Scholarship is March 31,2014. The AAASEF Scholarship Fundwas established in 2005 to encourageand financially support individualswishing to continue their education ina technical training school or college.Applicants must be sponsored by anAAAS member to be eligible, but alleligible candidates will be considered,regardless of their chosen field ofstudy. Applications can be submittedat:www.automotivescholarships.com/AAAS.

Additionally, AAAS is makingarrangements for their upcoming An-nual Conference and Trade Show, to

be held at the Baytowne Warf ofSandestin on June 5-8, 2014. They areexcited to present keynote speakerJohn Washbish, President and CEO ofthe Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance,Inc.

With over four decades of expe-rience in the automotive industry,Washbash’s leadership skills havebeen recognized with numerousawards, including the AutomotiveWarehouse Distributors AssociationLeader of the Year Award and North-wood’s Automotive Aftermarket Man-agement Education Award. AAASChairman Mike Morgan feels “veryfortunate to have John joining us forour annual conference. We look for-ward to his visit and him sharing hisviews and insight on the industry andthe economy… We are honored towelcome an impressive list of guestspeakers who will deliver very timelyeducational and informative presenta-tions on some of the most importanttopics facing the aftermarket industrytoday.”

On Saturday morning, the con-ference will begin with Washbish dis-cussing changes and trends that

impact aftermarket businesses. Next,Scott Luckett, Chief Information Of-ficer of the Automotive AftermarketIndustry Association (AAIA) willpresent “The Connected Car: The Im-pact of Vehicles Telematics in theAuto Care Industry,” and this will befollowed by a presentation on “Af-termarket Access to OEM VehicleRepair Information,” given by SkipPotter, Executive Director of the Na-tional Automotive Service TaskForce (NASTF). The program willconclude with Wayne Bowling, Sen-ior Vice President of Employee Ben-efits at Willis Group, who willdiscuss Obamacare’s effects on at-tendees, their businesses and theiremployees.

In addition to the educational as-pect of the event, AAAS promises net-working opportunities and plenty offun with a full schedule that includesa deep fishing charter, a reception atBaytowne Marina, a Saturday nightdinner cruise on the Solaris, and theBell/Hines Memorial ScholarshipFundraiser Golf Tournament. AAASwill continue providing updates onthis event at www.aaas.us.


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A Louisiana body shop owner saw hisdaughter using Twitter to survey herfriends on an important social matter,and a light bulb went off in his head.He was fuming about repeatedly hav-ing to wrestle with insurance compa-nies over what they will and won’tpay for. But, rather than getting mad,he’s now using the social media site toquery other shops about what is andisn’t being paid for elsewhere.

Abel Cantrelle, 49, is the owner ofAdvantage Collision Center in Houma,LA. He recently purchased a 40-inchsmart television and hung it on the wallit in his reception area in his shop whereboth customers and insurance adjusters

can see it. But, they’re not watching TheView or Dr. Phil. What they’re seeing isa real-time feed of Cantrelle’s Twitteraccount, so that when insurers deny any-thing for any reason, he can tweet thedetails to shop owners and companieslike CCC and Mitchell to get their im-mediate feedback.

The story begins late last year,when Cantrelle got wind of a new tradeassociation that was in its infancy, heexplained. “Back in December, mypaint rep walked into our shop andasked me if I was going to be attendinga meeting of the new Louisiana Colli-sion Industry Association (LaCIA) andI told him I hadn’t heard about it. So,on December 5, I walked into theirmeeting in Baton Rouge and I was sur-prised to see over 200 people there. Inmy experience, people in this industrytend to work against each other, but

when I walked into that room and lis-tened to what everyone said, a lightbulb went on in my head. Hey, a lot ofus are in the same boat, I thought!”

After the LaCIA’s January meet-ing, there was a question and answersession and that’s when Cantrelleshared his brilliant idea with themembership in attendance. “Afterseeing my 14-year-old daughter (Ash-ley) on her cell phone texting herfriends, I realized that we can use thissocial media to help the organizationand each other,” he said. “All thesekids now are on Facebook, Instagramand Twitter every day communicatingwith [their peer group], so why can’t

body shops do the samething?”

Cantrelle is not a techieand surely not a socialmedia expert, but he knowsthat communication andnetworking can be powerfulif used properly, he said.“It’s all about communicat-ing with the tools we’vegot. I remember way backwhen they started telling usabout personal computersand programs like CCC andMitchell. Lots of us didn’tknow anything about com-puters and now they’re infront of us every day. Wecan go to Twitter and com-

municate back and forth and get an-swers right away—at our fingertips.”

Cantrelle is using Twitter to callout insurance adjusters that want todeny when it comes to repair processesthey don’t want to reimburse. “If an in-surance company comes in here nowand says we don’t pay for this or that,all I have to do is say let’s stop righthere and ask these shops in Americaabout whether they ask for this sup-plement or not,” Cantrelle said.

“It freaks them out, to be honest.Mitchell and CCC are also on Twitter,so they can answer the question too, ifthey want to. I want them on there, be-cause that way they’re accountable aswell. The repair procedures are rightthere listed on CCC and Mitchell, so ifit’s there, it should be paid for.”

Cantrelle used to have severalDRPs, but no more, he explained. “I’m

done with it and now they’re steeringus away to other shops,” he said. “Idon’t think they’re happy with theTwitter thing and I’m certain that theydo not love the idea of it all being dis-played on a TV in my front office. It’salso gaining momentum, because wenow have more than 100 followers onTwitter and body shops are joiningevery day. There are now folks fromthe United Kingdom and allover the country that havejoined us and I’m astonishedby all the people that aregoing through the same thingand really care.”

Alysia Hanks is the ex-ecutive director at LaCIA andan administrator at LakewayCollision Center in Mandev-ille, LA. She strongly be-lieves that Cantrelle’s use ofTwitter is an ingenious and perfectlytimed idea, for many reasons. “I’m allfor using social media, because it’s agreat way to keep connected to ourmembers, other body shops through-out the country and other state associ-ations,” she said. “We always want tobe networking, so that we knowwhat’s out there and be ready for thenext thing. We talked to other state as-sociations and one of the main prob-lems they encountered was a lack ofcommunication, so things like Face-book and Twitter can keep us in theloop.”

Hanks appreciates the trans-parency and accountability of the wayCantrelle is using Twitter. “We’re tak-ing to it the insurance companies, be-cause it’s been too long,” she said.“We’re not doing this to start a fightand we’re not intending to start a law-suit. We just want the body shops inthis state to know that we’re here, towork together and make a better busi-ness environment for all of us.”

A man on a mission, Cantrellewants body shops at a national levelto get involved in what he calls, “thisTwitter thing.”

“If we could get, say, 800 to 1,000shops on this thing,” Cantrelle said,“Well, now, we would have somethingreally special. Since I don’t have anyDRPs, I’m not afraid of telling thetruth. One of my first tweets was

‘Enough is enough—I’m tired ofworking for free,’ and everybodyloved it.”

“Last week, we did a car and theypaid me for the seam sealer and everysingle process I had to do. I tell any in-surer if there is a process I’m not doingon a vehicle, I will pay you back. I willprove everything I’m doing. We’re tak-ing pictures of every single thing now.”

“One big insurer told me some ofthese shops in the backyard willcharge for this and this, and I say doyour job and go catch them and findthem not doing those things and makethem pay you back. I recently wrote acar for $5,040 and State Farm wrotean estimate for $2,800, threw it on mydesk and ran. I made them come backout, rewrite it and go over it with meand they ended up writing the sameestimate as me.”

By telling the collision worldabout his new communication tool andprocess, Cantrelle hopes other shopswill join Twitter and realize it’s a greatway to know what other shops in otherparts of the country are dealing with.

“If everyone [joined Twitter], thescreen would be popping and jumping,”Cantrelle says. But when you’re in Mis-sissippi and I can tweet, ‘I have a Pro-gressive guy [for example] here and he’stelling me shops aren’t charging for thisor that,’ and then ask, ‘Are you chargingfor this?’ and they say, ‘Yes,’ I can lookat the Progressive guy and say, ‘Well,there’s your answer.’

“United we stand, divided we fall.If people don’t start joining hands, it’sgoing to get bad,” said Cantrelle.

To join Cantrelle’s Twitter feedgo to #advantageccinc. “Hop onboardand ask me a question,” he said. “If Ican’t answer it, somebody will be ableto and that’s the beauty of it!”

Louisiana Shop Owner Uses Twitter to Survey Other Shops in Real Time

Abel Cantrelle saw his 14-year-old daughter Ashleytweeting one day and came up with the idea of usingTwitter to survey other shops on repair compensationin real time

with Ed Attanasio

Shop and Product Showcase

with Ed Attanasio

Shop Showcase

with Ed Attanasio

Social Media for Shops

with Ed Attanasio

SEMA Show Goes On

with Erica SchroederShop Showcase

The Right Causewith Mike Causey


Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based inSan Francisco, California. He can be reached [email protected].

The whole shop is on Twitter


Liberty SubaruEmerson

(888) 782-9493(201) 261-3261 Fax

Mon.-Fri. 7:[email protected]

www.libertysubaru.com

Miller SubaruLumberton

(609) 261-7844(609) 261-7843 Fax


Colonial SubaruFeasterville

(888) 736-7799(215) 355-1759 Fax

Mon.-Fri. 8-5; Sat. [email protected]

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by Sam Celly, MS JD CSP

The maintenance and operation ofgasoline tanks, both aboveground andunderground, has become expensive,highly regulated, and burdensome. Au-tomobile dealers have resorted to gasdolly equipment where a small amountof gasoline can be added to each newautomobile delivered to the dealership.We note that automobiles delivered todealerships from manufacturers havevery small amounts of gasoline; thisbeing a result of U.S. Department ofTransportation (DOT) regulations,which dictate that minimal amounts ofgasoline be retained in gas tanks of ve-hicles in transport. We write this memoto discuss DOT, OSHA, and CARBregulations applicable to gasoline beingtransported from a public gasoline sta-tion to dealerships for a later fill in au-tomobiles on the lot.

Federal DOT Regulations:Gasoline transport is discussed in Sec-tion 173.6 of the DOT regulationsunder “material of transport excep-tions.” The regulations require that acontainer being used to transportgasoline must be less than 8 gallons

per container and a maximum of 72total gallons (440 pounds). The con-tainers must be secured in the pickuptruck and properly labeled. The drivershould be trained in DOT regulations.We recommend that the containers areUL certified. Beyond that, there aremany other regulatory agencies withenforcement in the hazmat arena.http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2011-title49-vol2/pdf/CFR-2011-title49-vol2-sec173-6.pdf

Safety: Safety concerns for gaso-line containers are as follows:* Properly labeled container withhazard warnings and employee train-ing in Hazard Communication Pro-gram (OSHA Regulation 29 CFR §1910.1200).* 29 CFR § 1926.152(a)(1) states that“Only approved containers and portabletanks shall be used for storage and han-dling of flammable liquids. Approvedsafety cans or DOT approved contain-ers shall be used for the handling anduse of flammable liquids in quantitiesof 5 gallons or less...”* Bonding of containers to eliminatestatic electricity be followed both atthe time of filling up the containers

and when transferring from containerto container. Keep containers on theground when filling and not on the bedof the truck. Use grounding wire whennecessary. Keep nozzle in contact withcan during filling. Do not fill contain-ers over 95% to allow for expansion.Spilled gasoline must evaporate beforecontainers are put on the truck.* Containers must be closed so as tominimize the risk of spill and creatinga fire hazard.* Spill proof spouts also lock in va-pors so as to avoid vapor release whilein storage. Don’t overfill gas tanks onautomobiles. Keep fire extinguisherclose by!* Transport truck must have a spill kitavailable with a trained operator oncontaining, cleaning, and proper dis-posal of spill absorbent.* Studies at Worcester Polytechnic In-stitute’s Department of Fire ProtectionEngineering, as reported by NBCNews in late 2013, have indicated thatunder certain conditions, plastic cansare vulnerable to fires with an explo-sive force. The conditions that pres-ent the higher risk include having avery small amount of gasoline (a few

teaspoons) inside the gas can, cooltemperatures, tilting the can at 42 de-grees (typical pour angle) and ofcourse a spark! The employeesshould be trained to avoid these riskyconditions and maybe even buy metalcans in the future. http://www.nbc-news.com/news/investigations/watch-gas-can-explode-lab-test-v21744014

CA Air Resources Board(CARB): As of July 1, 2007, allPortable Fuel Containers (PFC) soldin California must be certified by theAir Resources Board as meeting low-emission standards and regulatory re-quirements. This regulation isapplicable to manufacturers and re-tailers who place the gas cans in thestream of commerce. Only containersof 10 gallons or less are covered bythis regulation, so the sale of a 25 gal-lon gas caddy for shop use is exemptfrom CARB regulations. The follow-ing table provides a listing of thoseCARB approved containers certifiedfor sale. http://www.arb.ca.gov/con-sprod/fuel-containers/pfc/eo/eo.htm

Summary: CA based businesseshave only CARB approved containersavailable. Other states may use these


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Pack Brothers Collision Center ofBelmont, NC, has won a short-payarbitration case in a Lincoln CountyNorth Carolina court against Nation-wide Mutual Insurance Company.

On February 3, 2014, a judgeawarded a customer of Pack Brothersa little more than $3,000, which wasowed to Pack Brothers for collisionrepairs that Nationwide refused to payupon completion of their insured’s car.

The lawsuit was filed on behalfof the customer with a Power of At-torney assigned by the customer incooperation with Pack Brothers. Thecustomer was insured by Nationwide,which refused to pay for repairs for afirst-party claim. According to PackBrothers, Nationwide did not honortheir policy and refused to pay themfor the repairs. A judge found thatunder the policy language, Nation-wide did owe their policyholder so hecould satisfy his collision repair bill.The judge entered a judgment againstNationwide finding in favor of thecustomer so that he could pay PackBrothers.

“Insurance companies are soused to saying that they will not payfor correct repairs, and they know thatvery few shops will push it into liti-gation,” said Ronnie and Larry Pack.

“Therefore, they continue to denypayment to the shops because theyknow it’s time consuming and expen-sive for the shop owners to pursue.

“What we are seeing is that insur-ance companies are shortcutting re-pairs, and so the repairs to the car arenow compromised because of the in-surance company refusal to pay for thecorrect repairs needed. Therefore, someof the shops are shortcutting the repairsto make up for that loss— which ulti-mately makes the customer the loser.

“Our victory means nothing un-less the whole industry gets involvedand demands to be paid for correctrepairs.”

NC Shop Wins Nationwide Short-Pay Arbitration Case

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CARB approved containers withvapor locks that are spill proof andemit negligible flammable vapors andhence, are safer. Training in hazardousmaterials, including information onrisks associated with plastic cans,should be provided to employees. Fol-lowing safety and operation instruc-tions on the PFC is also mandatory.

Sam Celly has trained auto deal-ers regarding EPA/OSHA compliancein 9 western states since 1987. Cellywas the first staff engineer at KPAafter earning his Bachelor’s of Engi-neering degree and later, his MS de-gree in Chemical Engineering (Schoolof Mines & Technology). In 1997, hereceived his Doctorate of Jurispru-dence from Southwestern Universityin Los Angeles with emphasis onLabor & Environmental Law. Sam isa Certified Safety Professional andhas served as the Chair of the LawCommittee and Environmental IssuesCommittee of the American IndustrialHygiene Association (AIHA). Addi-tionally, he is a member of AmericanInstitute of Chemical Engineers(1985) and the AIHA, where he is thePresident of the Southern CaliforniaSection. Send your comments [email protected].


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The Automotive Service Association(ASA) is preparing for NACE/CARS2014 which will be held at the CoboCenter in Detroit, MI, during the lastweek of July. It will be held in con-junction with other core industryevents, including I-CAR, CIC, andCREF’s annual golf outing. ASA Ex-ecutive Director Dan Risley stressesthe importance of NACE and CARS as“the only events solely dedicated tothose who service and repair cars.”

One of ASA’s goals in 2014 is toattract the “best of the best industryleaders,” so they are offering a specialincentive for shops or repairers that areI-CAR Gold or Platinum certified orwho have received ASE’s Blue Shieldor Master Technician certifications—toreward their investment in training andas an acknowledgement of their com-mitment to the industry, these shops/in-dividuals will be able to purchase thesuper pass (allowing them full accessfor the entirety of Industry Week) at a50% discount.

Risley is excited about the num-ber of changes to this year’s programand the responses received thus far.“The concept is to bring people to-gether and provide a place where peo-ple can get the technical informationthey need to repair today’s cars.”

Industry Week will begin on Tues-day, July 29 with CIC’s meeting, fol-lowed by I-CAR meetings on July 30.On Wednesday afternoon, the CanadianCollision Industry Forum (CCIF) willhold a four to six hour event. The weekwill conclude with NACE/CARS onThursday, July 31, and Friday, August 1.

Other important changes includemoving the date of NACE/CARS 2014from October to July, as well as holdingthe event in Detroit instead of a “desti-nation location,” such as Las Vegas, asthey normally do. Risley explains thatthis choice was intentional for severalreasons– “Detroit isn’t a destinationtrip so attendees will be more inclinedto spend time on the floor and in trainingclasses. There are around 5000 shopswithin a three hours driving radius of thecity who we want to reach. We want togive attendees a new experience cou-pled with class A training and informa-tion; we plan the show to be for andabout people who work on cars.”

Some of these experiences thatASA hopes to provide take the form ofvarious tours. As yet, the tour plans arestill unconfirmed, but Risley hopes tooffer tours to “some pretty unique ven-ues”, including the Henry Ford Mu-seum, the BASF facility (hosted byBASF), the Chrysler plant, the Ford F-

150 plant, and the Dodge Viper plant, iftheir line is running at that point. Alsounconfirmed as yet are ASA’s hopes tohold their annual graduation ceremonyat the GM Heritage Center.

The hype surrounding this year’sNACE/CARS is also reflected in thefact that exhibitors have already con-tracted several thousand square feetmore than the show floor space lastyear. Risley believes that they are inposition to sell out the 50,000 squarefoot floor, and this doesn’t even includethe 30,000 square foot dedicated tospecialty vehicles, show cars and a newdemonstration area. Exhibitors are alsosupporting NACE/CARS by promot-ing the event to local shops.

Of course there is a full schedule oftraining. “We are bolstering the trainingoffered. You will see a distinct differ-ence with a LOT of technical training,”Risley promises, which is in keepingwith this year’s theme of Repairability.

This year’s schedule is heavilyladen with technical training on boththe collision and mechanical sides ofthe business. ASA is also collaboratingwith I-CAR to provide a full slate of I-CAR training for the collision repair-ers in attendance. One of their mosthighly anticipated courses will involvealuminum-specific training sessions.

ASA Announces Incentives for Select I-CAR Qualified Shops to Attend NACE/CARS

by Chasidy Rae Sisk

On January 16th,the Collision In-dustry Foundation(CIF) held theirfourth annual galafundraiser in PalmSprings, CA. Thiswas the first timethe event was not

held in Las Vegas in conjunction withCIC’s fourth quarter planning meeting,but according to CIF PresidentWilliam Shaw, the gala was very suc-cessful and exceeded CIF’s expecta-tions.

Nearly 100 people attended thetwo-hour cocktail reception at Lulu’sBistro, and this year’s event saw an in-crease in the number of underwritingsponsors showcased. CIF began byselling raffle tickets at the door, a ven-ture that raised $820. They also held asilent auction for eight items, includ-ing electronics and even an Indy CarRace Package. The auction generatedover $4000.

CIF’s goal was to raise $25,000,but they exceeded this goal by raising$32,000. The proceeds fromthe event will be added to theorganization’s Disaster ReliefFund which is used to supportindustry participants who areimpacted by natural disasters.This annual event is a vitalpart of their efforts to collectdonations, and Shaw sees it asa “great opportunity to createawareness and let the indus-try know how to participateand that CIF exists to helpwhen disaster strikes… we are reallycreating good momentum moving for-ward.”

On March 12, the Board ofTrustees met in Chicago to discusscurrent disaster needs and fund alloca-tions. In addition, the Trustees estab-lished its goals and plans for the next12 months.

CIF is also pleased to announcethat two new Trustees were just elected.Casey Steffenwith Saint-Gobain Abra-sives and David Henderson with Au-taExplore/Autowatch will join theBoard and work with the Foundation tocarry on its initiatives.

CIF was created in 2001 by theNational Auto Body Counsel (NABC)as a national non-profit organization tocollect and distribute charitable funds.

The first campaign they supported wasMontana’s Camp Mak-A-Dream, aprogram dedicated to helping childrenand teens suffering from cancer, andthey collected over $500,000 for thiscause in their first years of operation.The funds were used towards buildingan on-site health care facility for thecamp, and in 2005, CIF supportedCamp Mak-A-Dream yet again by do-nating funds to help purchase a bus forthe program.

Since beginning, CIF has sup-ported a number of campaigns, plan-ning and implementing variousprojects. They supported a three-yearcampaign called “Crash Hunger” thatfocused on raising funds to feed Amer-icans. Another project, in 2008, was“Blanket the City: Detroit,” a fundrais-ing effort to support the city that wasso disproportionately impacted by eco-nomic turmoil. In their attempt to helpa broad base of organizations provid-ing vital services to the city, CIF madedonations to the Children’s Home ofDetroit, Clean Downtown Detroit Part-nership and Gleaner’s Food Bank.

In addition to providing dona-tions to Recycled Rides, CIF part-

nered with Skills USA and the WorldSkills Competition to sponsor the USCollision Team, sending two competi-tors to the World Skills Competitionin Helsinki, Finland. CIF also partici-pates in “Leave Something Behind”initiatives throughout the year; whileattending CIC meetings around thenation; this program serves as a ges-ture of gratitude to the host city. Overthe years, this effort has yielded bookdonations to a Portland library andmonetary donations to Children’sHospitals in Phoenix, AZ, and Wash-ington DC, as well as Toys for Tots inLas Vegas and the Utah Food Bank inSalt Lake City.

Though these programs are morethan sufficient to illustrate that CIF is“the charitable conscience of the col-

lision repair industry,” when HurricaneKatrina struck LA and MS in 2005,CIF’s Board of Directors created theDisaster Relief Fund to aid victims ofnatural disasters. Their fundraising ef-forts allowed them to aid over 100 col-lision industry professionals impactedby Katrina. This project was so suc-cessful that CIF decided to make it anongoing program and through their ef-forts, they’ve supported victims ofmany natural disasters, including Hur-ricane Irene, the tsunami in Japan and,most recently, Superstorm Sandywhich devastated the entire east coastof the US in the fall of 2012.

All of these programs supportCIF’s mission “to collect funds fromall facets of the collision repair indus-try to be distributed to repair profes-sionals chosen by the Foundation’sselection committee.” CIF’s assistanceis limited to individuals and not pro-vided to businesses or organizations.A committee reviews all requests anddistributes funds based on individualneeds. Those interested in helping areencouraged to make donations, joinCIF’s volunteer committee or aid withVictim Location/Assistance.

Currently, CIF’s short-term goalsinclude creating awareness about whoCIF is, as well as their mission and vi-sion – to bring awareness and emergencyrelief to collision repair professionals.Their primary focus remains helpingthose in need.

Further down the road, Shawhopes CIF will establish a sustainablefund with “enough money in reserveto help those in need and help subsi-dize the costs not covered by insur-ance in the event of a natural disaster.In the meantime, we will continue tosupport various campaigns in our ef-forts to reach out and engage the col-lision repair industry so they can givesomething back.”

Regarding challenges that CIFfaces in order to maintain operations,


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Shaw mentions the number of thosewho need assistance, but he feels thatthe resolution to this dilemma is “toarticulate our message and informcontributors how their donations willbe used to support the industry.”

CIF is run by a Board of Trustees,comprised of 12 leaders from all seg-ments of the industry. This group isstill in the planning stages of their2014 agenda, but Shaw hopes to beable to define this year’s goals by theend of the first quarter.

Shaw succinctly wraps up CIF’smission and goals as follows: “Wewant the collision repair industry tobe aware that there are people in needand to encourage them to get in-volved and give back. We are tryingto create a culture that gives back be-cause the benefits are tremendous forboth sides. The message we want toshare is this—whether you’re directlyinvolved with CIF or not, it’s very im-portant to get involved with local or-ganizations and to support charities.”

Collision Industry Foundation (CIF)PO Box 3007Mechanicsville, VA 23116855-4CIFAID (855-424-3243)http://collisionindustryfoundation.org


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Hybrid technology developer Paicefiled a lawsuit against Ford, accus-ing the automaker of patent in-fringement. The Maryland-basedcompany claims to have met withFord more than 100 times between1999 and 2004, providing modelingand component designs for hybridversions of various Ford vehicles.

Ford reportedly had enteredinto a licensing agreement in 2010for a Paice patent, which has ex-pired. The agreement included anarbitration clause; however Paiceclaims Ford declined to arbitrateand forced a formal lawsuit to re-solve the infringement allegations.

Previously Paice successfullysued Toyota in a case that datesback several years. The Japaneseautomaker was forced to payUS$4.3 million in damages, alongwith US$25 for every Prius, High-lander Hybrid, and Lexus RX400hsold.

A damages estimate for Ford'salleged infringement was not fullydetailed in the initial court filing,though Paice appears to be pushingfor an injunction to halt sales of in-fringing vehicles if a royalty agree-ment is not established.

Paice Sues Ford for PatentInfringement on Hybrids



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A handful of body shops in Floridaand Georgia are falling victim tocheck fraud. Scammers are stealingthousands of dollars and they aretargeting auto body shops across thecountry. Toni Scroggins, the ownerof St. Johns Auto Body Shop inPalatka, says scammers stole$15,000 from the company’s bankaccount. Scroggins suspects thescammers take the routing andchecking account number of theshops’ checks, reprint them on newfake checks with a different name,address and bank name. The scamartists then spend money at Lowe’s,Home Depot and Walmart. Scrog-gins says she’s not as worried aboutbig shops like hers, but she saysmom and pop shops and their cus-tomers are the ones who could paythe ultimate price. Scroggins saysshe got her money back after twomonths with the help of her bank.“This could destroy them, closetheir doors, because you do not getthat money back the next day,” saidScroggins. “You have to wait forthe process of the bank to investi-gate it and that could take over amonth. So, if it’s a small businessthey are out.”

Check Fraud Victimizes FLand GA Body Shops

OEM repair information today is good,but not perfect, says Jason Bartanen,director of industry technical relationsfor I-CAR. It needs to be better andmore readily accessible for shops.

Bartanen says the OEM informa-tion available today still isn’t compre-hensive. Several gaping holes exist, aproblem causing shops and insurers tomake procedural guesses on jobs withno way to verify their judgments. Someshops have a hard time obtaining theinformation at all, Bartanen adds. Ve-hicle manufacturers have strong distri-bution methods for their affiliateddealerships, but don’t have an efficienttactic to deliver that same informationto independent facilities, which repair amajority of collision-damaged vehi-cles.

I-CAR last summer launched anew Repairability Technical Support(RTS) initiative to tackle the prob-lem—a four-member team dedicatedto communicate with auto manufac-turers to fill the informational gaps anddistribute the information to the indus-try at large. The initiative—which willbe a continual, ongoing effort movingforward—is expected to improve workquality and productivity for independ-ent shops by providing centralized ac-cess to more consistent, detailed andstandardized repair information.

A new website has been created,rts.i-car.com, which is designed as a“centralized, comprehensive distribu-tion mechanism” for OEM information,Bartanen says.

All technical-based informationfrom every auto manufacturer—paint,materials, parts and processes—islisted on the website and stored in thedatabase. Rather than linking users toan auto manufacturer’s website, the in-formation is housed directly on theRTS website in an easy-to-read format.

The website also includes all ofI-CAR’s latest technical briefs anddaily articles.

Bartanen says there is significantinconsistency between auto manufac-turers regarding the type and amountof information they distribute. Somemanufacturers have a wealth of infor-mation available, while others don’thave any collision repair informationavailable in the U.S. market.

I-CAR held a series of discussionswith a group of 50 auto manufacturers,shop professionals and insurers to out-line 13 standard pieces of informationthat repairers need access to from everyOEM. The list includes items such asmaterial identification, material re-pairability guidelines, sectioning pro-cedures, seam sealer identification andlocation, and corrosion protection re-quirements.

The broader impact of the matrix,though, is development of more com-prehensive OEM repair manuals, Bar-tanen says. Members of the RTSinitiative have communicated the gapsto every OEM to help release more in-formation, many of which are nowworking on producing those standarditems for the industry.The RTS createdan OEM technical information matrixthat outlines which manufacturers pro-vide which pieces of information. Thatdocument is a major benefit to repair-ers, Bartanen says, because it’s a singleresource to identify whether the infor-mation they need exists, and wherethey can find it. The information ma-trix will be updated and expanded asnew information becomes available,and is viewable for free at rts.i-car.com.

Doug Craig, collision repair man-ager of the Chrysler Group, for exam-ple, says he is working with Chrysler’svehicle design and materials engineersto update and distribute new technicalrepair bulletins to reflect the identifiedinformational gaps. Many other OEMsare doing the same.

Another notable improvementcame from Kia—a company that his-torically hasn’t released collision infor-mation in the U.S. market. Bartanensays the company now has a “highlycomprehensive” collision manual avail-able online for its Soul model.

OEM information sometimesfails to provide specific necessary

steps to perform a recommended re-pair procedure, Bartanen says. OEMinformation provides shops with high-level processes to make a repair, butlacks detailed information to makethem correctly. For example, an OEMprocedure might recommend “makingand dressing a GMA MIG plug weld.”But it may not specify how far togrind the weld, how to dress it, or thegrit of sandpaper to use.

The RTS website includes an on-line informational communication por-tal for shops. It’s a technical inquirysubmission process that provides theindustry with a strategy to communi-cate and resolve repair gaps they en-counter, Bartanen says.

Shops can submit technical in-quiries, and the RTS team initiates com-munication with auto manufacturers toanswer questions and share informa-tion. All technical inquiries and findingsare sorted and searchable by vehiclemanufacturer and subject matter.

OEM StandardizationBartanen says OEMs use different for-mats, phrases and terminologies in theirrepair manuals, which makes them dif-

ficult to read and causes shops to mis-interpret directions. All OEMs havebeen solicited to develop more stan-dardized communication processes.

Craig says auto manufacturersunderstand the confusing—and some-times contradictory—information theyproduce, and most companies are infavor of working together to simplifyand unify their procedures.

The RTS initiative is not necessar-ily meant to address the industry’s repairstandards issue, but it’s one direct im-provement that has resulted from thosediscussions, says Bob Keith, treasurer ofI-CAR’s international board of directorsand multi-store director for CARSTARAuto Body Repair Experts.

And it will prove to be a majorbenefit for shops, he says. Repairerswill have access to more robust infor-mation and a more efficient strategy toclarify technical questions to improveperformance on the shop floor.

In addition, Keith says the RTSinitiative has opened better lines ofcommunication between the industryand auto manufacturers to boost re-sponsiveness surrounding informa-tional needs.


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In 2013, the collision industrynearly doubled the 2012 amount ofsupport it provided to high schooland college collision school pro-grams through the Collision RepairEducation Foundation with nearlyUS$9.4 million in product andmonetary donations.

Ninety percent of this supportwas in-kind donations, and the col-lision industry surpassed the US$20million mark in total giving since2008. Also, working towards beingas lean of a charitable organizationas possible with a full-time staff offour, 90 cents of every dollar do-nated went towards supporting theschool programs, instructors, andstudents in 2013.

“The incredible growth in sup-port that the Collision Repair Edu-cation Foundation has been able toprovide since 2008 is a direct resultof the industry’s generosity, and tonearly double the amount donatedin 2013 compared to 2012 showshow much our supporters believe inthe technical education of indus-try’s future professionals,” saidClark Plucinski, Collision RepairEducation Foundation executive di-rector.

Record $9.4M Donated toCollision School Programs

The Collision Repair EducationFoundation and AkzoNobel Auto-motive and Aerospace Coatings areproud to announce the winners ofthe new Sustainability ChallengeGrant:► Applied Technology Center (Rock Hill, SC)►Cerritos College(Norwalk, CA)►Gaithersburg High School(Gaithersburg, MD)►Manhattan Area Tech College(Manhattan, KS)►Northern Maine Community

College (Presque Isle, ME)Winners were selected based on theirsubmitted proposals for applyingcontinuous improvement and sus-tainability principles that improve theschool body shop process or how theshop interacts and impacts the com-munity. Each winner will receivefunding to introduce their proposedidea into their school and report onthe success of their project.

The program also provided asustainability video series and othertools that served as a way to edu-cate collision students about sus-tainability, its principles, and howto improve and make a positive im-pact on the environment.

Sustainability ChallengeGrant Winners Announced

PPG Automotive Refinish unveiledits 2014 distributor training sched-ule. Consisting of more than 30classes across 12 critical businessareas, the training is for owners,managers, sales staff, and other keypersonnel involved in the operationof a PPG distributor business.

Classes cover general opera-tions, finance, business developmentand management, conflict resolu-tion, selling skills, commercial busi-ness development, and more.

“We’re always enhancing ourdistributor training offerings, mak-ing sure they’re relevant and re-warding,” said Bob Wenzinger, PPGdistributor programs director. “Wesee PPG distributors at all levelslearning and improving from ourcourses.”

Training will be held fromMarch to December in PPG businessdevelopment centers and conferencefacilities throughout the U.S. andCanada. Courses are led by PPGleaders and prominent consultants inthe automotive refinish industry.

View the complete 2014 train-ing schedule at http://us.ppgrefin-ish.com/PPG-Refinish/Training/Training-Courses.

PPG Announces DistributorTraining Schedule

Car-O-Liner® has expanded theirequipment offering included in the2015 F-150 Collision Repair Pro-gram. New equipment includesthree new welders, frame alignmentsolutions, and a mobile aluminumworkstation.

“This equipment will greatlyenhance the technician’s potential tohave the exact tools they need forhigh quality, quick, and accurate re-pairs. With this expanded productoffering, Car-O-Liner is excited toprovide the total repair solution,giving technicians the right equip-ment to complete each repair orderefficiently,” said Peter Richardson,key accounts manager for Car-O-Liner.

Visit www.car-o-liner.com formore information.

Car-O-Liner Offers NewFord 2015 F-150 Equipment

I-CAR Introduces Training Solution for Full-frame PartialReplacement Repairs, Replaces Two Other CoursesI-CAR® has added a new live, in-structor-led course to its catalog: Full-Frame Partial Replacement (FFR01).This course provides information onOEM repair procedures and weldingrequirements for full-frame vehiclesand covers several important collisionrepair topics that are critical to com-plete, safe, and quality repairs for theultimate benefit of the consumer.

“Properly repairing today’s full-frame vehicles requires a commandof an array of considerations. Thecontent in this course can be appliedon the job immediately followingcompletion, resulting in increasedsavings for the shop and the vehicleowner alike,” explained Josh Mc-Farlin, I-CAR director of curriculumand product development.

Technicians will learn how toidentify full-frame designs, partial re-placement options and repair consid-erations for full-frame attachmentsduring the course. They will alsohave access to HD-quality videos onfull-frame partial replacement proce-dures for some of today’s most pop-ular full-frame vehicles, includingFord F-150, General Motors 1500frames, RAM 1500, and Jeep Wran-gler.

This three-credit hour coursemeets training requirements for steelstructural technicians, auto physicaldamage appraisers, and estimators inthe I-CAR Professional Develop-ment Program™ (PDP).

FFR01 will replace Steel Full-Frame Sectioning (SPS03) and SteelFull-Frame Technologies and Repair(SPS08), resulting in three less credithours of training for certain repairprofessionals. Anyone who has pre-viously taken either SPS03 or SPS08will not lose training credit that hasbeen earned.

To register for FFR01, visit theI-CAR website at www.i-car.com orcontact I-CAR customer care at 1-800-I-CAR-USA (422-7872).



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by Chasidy Rae Sisk

The Collision Repair EducationFoundation (CREF) is always busyworking on ways to improve theprospects of the industry, and the firstquarter of 2014 is no exception asthey calculate 2013 donations, collectapplications for their Student Schol-arship and School Makeover pro-grams, and prepare for their 2014

Summer Golf Fundraiser. BrandonEckenrode, Director of Developmentfor CREF, eagerly shares some infor-mation about their recent tallies andfuture plans.

As 2013 drew to a close, dona-tions to CREF for the year totaled $9.4million, nearly double the amount ofdonations as they received in 2012. Ofthose contributions, 10% was receivedin monetary contributions with the re-mainder being received via in-kindproduct donations, such as tools,equipment, supplies, parts and otherdonations to assist instructors in theircollision repair programs.

When questioned about the rea-sons behind this increase in contribu-tions to CREF, Eckenrode states “yearafter year, we are able to reach moreand more industry businesses and helpcommunicate to them about how weare looking to support high school andcollege collision school programs, in-structors and students. Knowing thatthese students are the future profes-sionals of the industry, our supportersunderstand how their technical educa-tion is vital, and with school instructorsworking with limited/reduced budgets,the industry has really stepped up tosupport them through our organiza-tion.”

The monetary donations receivedin 2013 will be used to fund CREF’sprojects, such as their scholarships forstudents and school grants, as well as

to keep the organization running. The2013 tallies help Eckenrode remain op-timistic about CREF’s fundraising ef-forts for 2014: “we anticipate anothergreat year with both monetary and in-kind product donations. I would inviteand challenge repair facilities, espe-cially the independent owners, to con-sider an annual tax-deductible donationof $500, $750 or $1000 to the Founda-tion. Through strength in numbers, if

even a quarter of thetotal number of re-pair facilities wereable to make this do-nation, we would beable to completelytransform collisionschool programsacross the countryand work towardsthe graduating stu-dents being properlytrained and ready forentry-level work.Owners across the

country have expressed their desire forproductive, efficient and ‘ready towork’ entry-level staff, and we canmake this possible by all working to-gether.”

Next up for CREF will be award-ing their student scholarships and an-nual school makeover grants. Thedeadline for scholarship applicationsended in the middle of February, sothe applications are now being re-viewed by the Board of Trustees Se-lection Committee, and CREF plansto announce the winners later thisspring. The scholarships are availableto high school seniors and college-level students who have studied colli-sion repair for at least one semester.CREF has over $200,000 reserved tobe awarded as various scholarshipsand tool grant opportunities for stu-dents looking to enter the collision re-pair industry.

The deadline for CREF’s SchoolMakeover Grant falls on June 6th,but Eckenrode encourages applicantsto begin the process well ahead oftime since a great deal of informa-tion is requested. He enumerates,“the Makeover application requiresmany different pieces of informa-tion; however, it provides our Boardof Trustees Selection Committee agreat overview of the program andthe budget that they are workingwith to provide the best technical ed-ucation possible for the students. Our

Makeover Grant is available to non-profit high school and college colli-sion school programs, and the grantis meant to help those collision pro-grams who are facing a reducedbudget and need additional tools,equipment and supplies for their pro-gram.”

Since 2008, when the CREFbegan its philanthropic focus, the col-lision industry has provided over $20million in various types of donations,and though CREF anticipates that thisnumber will continue to increase overthe years, Eckenrode believes “it’s im-portant for the industry to know that,in addition to the support we are pro-viding to schools, we are also gettingactively involved in helping to bridgethe gap between graduating and em-ployment. We want to ensure that stu-dents graduate with the entry-levelskill sets that employers are lookingfor and make these students aware ofthe various employment opportunitiesthere are in all segments of the indus-try. By CREF providing such tools asa donor ‘entry-level employment jobboard’, we can not only showcasethese opportunities to students but

also to parents, guidance counselorsand school administration to show thatthese collision programs are worth-while to support and invest in.”

As such, Eckenrode is pleasedthat CREF will be presenting and ex-hibiting at the American School (Guid-ance) Counselor Association’s annualconference this summer where guid-ance counselors from around the coun-

try will gather. During the conference,CREF plans to explain the “worth-while career opportunities collision


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Education Foundation Doubled Down on Its Future in 2013

Brandon Eckenrode (l) of CREF and Mark Algieof 3M

students have within this industry andwhy guidance counselors shouldn’tthink badly about a technical educa-tion for students.”

This summer, CREF will also bebusy with their 13th Annual SummerGolf Fundraiser, to be held the after-noon of July 31st inconjunction withIndustry Week inDetroit. The eventwill take place atthe Northville HillsGolf Club outsidethe city, and CREFanticipates “anothersold out crowd withfunds being raisedgoing towards as-sisting us in sup-porting high schooland college colli-sion school programs, students and in-structors. The event has gone fromraising $19,000 in 2009 to averaging$75,000 the past two years. The Edu-cation Foundation has tried raising thequality of the event year after year;however, this increase in funds raisedhas been made possible by our spon-sors and attendees.”

The funds raised at the golfing

event will aid CREF in providingstudent scholarships and SchoolMakeover Grants in the future. Inaddition to offering a nice afternoonof golfing fun and networking,CREF sees the events as a chance to“communicate to industry leaders

about how we are making a differentin collision school programs.”

Eckenrode encourages anyoneinterested in participating in the golffundraiser as a player or sponsor tocontact him as soon as possible as theevent has historically sold out monthsin advance. Those who are unable toattend can still participate by purchas-ing golf balls for CREF’s helicopter

golf ball drop. Up to 1200 numberedballs can be purchased to be droppedonto a course green via helicopter dur-ing the event. Whoever purchases theball that lands in the hole will win23% of the proceeds from the balldrop, an astounding $7000 gift card ifall of the balls are sold! Winners donot have to be present, and this pro-vides yet another creative method forCREF to raise additional funds duringthe event.

Eckenrode is grateful to the col-lision repair industry for makingCREF’s efforts possible: “I wouldlike to thank the collision industry formaking over $20 million in donationspossible in such a short period oftime. I am not aware of any othertechnical trade having a ‘Foundation’type organization that supports theirprograms like ours does. Collisionschool programs are becoming theenvy of other school programs asthey see what type of support theschools are receiving through us, andwe look forward to working togetherto take this organization to anotherlevel.”

www.collisioneducationfoundation.org847-463-5244


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On March 7, 2014, ABRA AutoBody & Glass announced the pur-chase of all 13 Wilburn Auto Bodyrepair centers in the Charlotte, NC,metro area.

ABRA now has 145 com-pany-owned locations and 48 inde-pendently-owned franchises for atotal of 193 collision repair centersin 17 states.

Don Wilburn, founder andCEO of Wilburn Auto Body, em-braces the acquisition. “This is asignificant milestone for me.Wilburn Auto Body has servedCharlotte since 1975. I have com-plete confidence ABRA will con-tinue the legacy of deliveringtop-notch customer service and re-pair solutions to our customers andthe community.”

Building on its increasing suc-cess, ABRA plans to continue ex-panding in the months and yearsahead as part of its aggressive na-tional growth strategy. It is activelyseeking new opportunities to ac-quire repair centers and integratethem into its industry-leading oper-ating system.

ABRA Acquires 13 RepairCenters in Charlotte, NC



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Ivan James Sandquist, age 33, waskilled in a freak accident on the morn-ing of March 3. The Williston PoliceDepartment (WPD) reported that theyreceived a report of two men being in-jured while working at Absolute Autobody, located at 104 NW 10th Ave.Upon investigation, it was discoveredthat Patrick Woodard of Gainesville,who repairs cars at an auto shop in theRaleigh area of Levy County, was driv-ing a 1999 Toyota northbound on US-41. As the vehicle approached AbsoluteAuto Body, the left front tire broke freefrom the vehicle and traveled north onthe west shoulder of the highway. Thetire struck a driveway apron, sending itairborne. The tire jumped over a six-foot chain link fence, where it thenstruck Sandquist, killing him instantly.After striking Sandquist, the tire struckthe friend he was standing and talkingto, James E. Fender, 45, the owner ofthe Absolute Auto Body Shop. Fendersustained serious injuries and was air-lifted to Shands Hospital in Gainesville.

Williston Police Chief DennisStrow said the incident was being in-

vestigated, and that he asked for helpfrom the Florida Highway Patrol(FHP). An FHP homicide investigatorwill be assisting in trying to figure outwhat happened. “We asked for helpfrom FHP because they have so muchexperience in these kinds of things.”They hope to determine if the cause ofthe accident was a speed factor or amechanical problem.

Chief Strow added that the vehi-cle, which Woodard had been drivingat the time of the incident, had beentaken to Woodard (since he works atan auto body shop) to be checked out.He said that Woodard had not doneanything to the car, including thewheel, which came off of the vehicle,prior to taking it for a test drive.

Strow said the tire did not explodeand was intact on the wheel.

A memorial was held for JamesSandquist at Knoff Funeral Home inWilliston at 4 p.m., Thursday, March 6.

His mother requested that in lieuof flowers, donations be made to theAmerican Diabetes or the AmericanHeart Association.

Freak Tire Accident Kills Gainesville Body Shop Em-ployee, Injures Shop Owner, Driver Also Shop Worker


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ASA’s Annual Business Meeting Held in Kansas CityThe Automotive Service Association(ASA) held its annual business meet-ing March 6, 2014, at the SheratonOverland Park near Kansas City, KS.The event included an open meetingof the board of directors, a swearing-in ceremony of the new board, and anASA member reception immediatelyfollowing the meeting.

“The board has worked very hardto move the association forward whilesupporting our membership and the in-dustry. We eagerly begin our 2014 termwith some specific goals in mind, andwe’re prepared to focus on these initia-tives to meet or surpass each one,” saidDarrell Amberson, AAM, ASA chair-man and vice president of operations atLaMettry’s Collision, Minneapolis, MN.

The board shared some of itsgoals for the association in 2014: pur-chase a new headquarters building; en-hance legislative efforts, includingstrengthening the ASA PAC and moreinvolvement in insurance regulation;elevate member involvement and in-spire individuals to consider associa-tion leadership; grow membership andcontinue to work closely with affili-ated associations; and enhance ASAtraining resources.

The new ASA board of directorsbegan their term at the close of the an-

nual business meeting. Darrell Amber-son, AAM, LaMettry’s Collision, Min-neapolis, MN, continues his two-yearterm as chairman. Also continuing two-year terms are Ron Nagy, AAM,Nagy’s Collision Centers, Orville, OH,as immediate past chairman; DonnySeyfer, AAM, Seyfer Automotive, Inc.,Wheat Ridge, CO, as chairman-elect;and Gary Keyes, AAM, E&M Motors,Inc., Stuart, FL, as general director. Inaddition, Dan Stander, AAM, FixAuto Highlands Ranch, Littleton, CO,has extended his role as Collision Divi-sion director for one year.

Roy Schnepper, AAM, Butler’sCollision Inc., Roseville, MI, was re-elected to serve a one-year term as sec-retary/treasurer. Bob Wills, AAM, WillsAuto Service, Battle Creek, MI, beginsa two-year term as Mechanical Divisiondirector; and Bill Moss, AAM, Eu-roService Automotive, Inc., Warrenton,VA, begins a two-year term as generaldirector.

Dan Risley, ASA executive di-rector, also serves on the ASA boardof directors in an ex-officio capacity.

The next ASA national event isthe NACE/CARS 2014 expo and ed-ucational conference in Detroit, MI,July 30–Augusut 2, 2014, held in con-junction with Industry Week.

NABC Accepting Nominations for Industry AwardsThe National Auto Body Council(NABC) is now accepting nomina-tions for its two industry awards thatrecognize shops for making a posi-tive impact on their local communi-ties and the collision repair industry,the Award of Distinction and theBody Shop Image Award.

The Award of Distinction rec-ognizes bravery, philanthropy, char-ity, and selfless acts of kindness byindividuals or groups in the collisionindustry who selflessly give of them-selves for the benefit of others, whilehelping further the NABC mission topromote a positive image of the col-lision industry.

The Body Shop Image Awardcalls attention to the beneficial impactan attractive, well-designed facilityhas on its surrounding community.This award embodies the spirit andmission of the NABC to promote theimage of the collision repair industryand become a vital asset to the neigh-borhood. Any body shop that com-pletes a remodeling project during the2014 calendar year can be nominated.One winner and three runners up willbe recognized.

As part of its 2014 recognitionprogram, the NABC plans to call at-tention throughout the year to out-

standing individuals and body shopswhose extraordinary efforts make apositive impact in their communitiesand the collision industry.

In addition to selecting overallAward of Distinction and Body ShopImage Award winners, the NABCplans to recognize and share nomi-nations throughout the year.

“Any time someone in the in-dustry does something worthy, we’dlike to encourage folks to go theNABC website and fill out a nomi-nation form for either award,” saidKent Seavey, NABC awards pro-gram chair. “The individuals andbody shops that are recognized willbe featured in our member newslet-ter and automatically become nomi-nees for both the Award ofDistinction and the Body Shop ImageAward.”

Winners of both awards will beannounced in November 2014, at theCollision Industry Conference (CIC)during the Specialty EquipmentMarket Association (SEMA) showin Las Vegas, NV. Each finalist willalso be featured and recognized onthe NABC website and in other pub-licity efforts.

Nomination forms are availableat NationalAutoBodyCouncil.org.

Applications for Five $1,000 AMI Scholarships to Attend2014 NACE and CARS Events Due June 20, 2014The Automstive Management Insti-tute (AMI) offers various scholarshipopportunities to assist automotiveservice and collision repair profes-sionals interested in obtaining theAMI Accredited Automotive Man-ager (AAM) designation and broad-ening their overall professionalknowledge of the industry.

Each applicant must be an Auto-motive Service Association (ASA)member who displays a desire to im-prove their business skills throughmanagement education to be eligibleto receive the award.

The scholarship recipients willhave the opportunity to attend the In-ternational Autobody Congress andExposition (NACE) and the Congressof Automotive Repair and Service(CARS), an industry-wide event heldJuly 30 through August 2, 2014, atthe Cobo Center in Detroit, MI, thatincludes both the collision and me-chanical segments of the automotiveservice and repair industry.

Each US$1,000 scholarship isawarded annually and will be appliedtoward expenses to attend either NACEor CARS. Expenses include airfare,hotel, and NACE or CARS registra-tion.

• Tom B. Babcox MemorialScholarship: For an automotive serv-ice professional who works in an ASAMechanical Division member shop toattend CARS• Arrowhead Automotive After-market “High Octane” Scholar-ship: For an automotive serviceprofessional who works in an ASAMechanical Division member shop toattend CARS• Emil Stanley Merit Award: Foran individual who works in an ASACollision Division member shop toattend NACE• Babcox Publication Body ShopBusiness Scholarship: For an autobody repair professional who worksin an ASA Collision Division membershop to attend NACE• Richard Cossette/Gale West-erlund Memorial Scholarship: Foran auto body repair professional whoworks in an ASA Collision Divisionmember shop to attend NACE

The deadline for all scholarshipapplications is June 20, 2014. Applyonline at http://www.amionline.org.



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The first National Automotive PartsAssociation (NAPA) CollisionConference for collision repair fa-cility owners and managers andNAPA and Martin Senour paint cus-tomers will be held April 15–17,2014, at the Gaylord Palms Resortand Convention Center in Orlando,FL.

“This conference will help col-lision repair shop management runtheir business better in so manyways: how to improve cycle time;how to hire and retain the best tech-nicians and staff; how to developeffective business marketing tech-niques; and how to increase pro-ductivity and profitability in allprocesses,” says Chris Nichols,NAPA director of PBE, U.S. Auto-motive Parts Group. The confer-ence will include multipleeducation sessions and speakers,two evening receptions, and a col-lision industry trade show. The reg-istration fee is US$495 for twonights at the Gaylord Palms Resortand all meetings and receptions, orUS$95 for just the conference andreceptions (airfare and travel ex-penses are not included). Registeroline at: www.registernapa.com.

NAPA Collision Conferencein Orlando, FL, April 15–17

Ford Motor Co. is being sued overclaims that it infringed a patent ontechnology for an automatic turnsignal.

Ford’s three-blink lane changetechnology infringes a 2008 patentheld by Richard Ponziani, a for-mer automotive design engineer forcompanies including General Mo-tors and Valeo SA, according to acomplaint made public today in fed-eral court in Wilmington, DE.

Ford pitched the turn signal asthe solution to one of the top 10 driv-ing pet peeves when it announcedthe technology in 2009.

The turn indicator is designed toblink three times and automaticallyshut off.

The technology is used inFord’s F Series truck, Taurus, Edge,and Fusion models, according to thecomplaint, which seeks unspecifieddamages.

Ford spokeswoman, KristinaAdamski, declined to comment onthe complaint.

Ford Sued Over PatentedTurn Signal Technology

Zurich Insurance Group will cutabout 800 jobs globally to savearound $250 million per year by theend of 2015 to help reduce costs andimprove profitability.

The job cuts, which are equiv-alent to 1.4 percent of its total head-count, will remove managementlayers between the group and itsbusiness units. Customer-facing ac-tivities will not be affected.

“We continue to make signifi-cant progress towards our strategicgoal to make Zurich a focused andmore profitable business,” said chiefexecutive, Martin Senn.

Senn said that Zurich would in-vest in global corporate and mid-market business and its high-marginretail insurance lines, while turningaround or exiting non-core, under-performing insurance businesses.

Zurich also pledged to growoperating earnings through 2016 byreducing complexity, as it loweredits target for return on equity from16 to 12–14 percent through 2016.

Senn stressed that Zurich isstriving to be at the upper end of thatgoal and that he would be disap-pointed if the company was still at12 percent in three years.

Zurich Insurance Cuts Jobsto Boost Profitabiltiy

Insurance Auto Auctions, Inc.(IAA), announced that Bill Mayer,IAA director of industry relations,was re-elected to the National AutoBody Council (NABC) board ofbirectors. Mr. Mayer was re-electedfor a second three-year term byNABC members during the 2013SEMA show in Las Vegas, NV.

Mr. Mayer will continue to leadthe NABC efforts to promote thecollision industry and businessesthrough key NABC initiatives andprograms, and will serve as the di-rector of procurement for the NABCRecycled Rides program, which col-laborates with insurers, collision re-pairers, paint suppliers, partsvendors, and other collision indus-try profesinals to repair and donatevehicles to deserving individualsand service organizations.

“Bill has done an exemplaryjob in representing IAA and the col-lision industry through his dedi-cated service to NABC over thepast several years,” said John Kett,president of Insurance Auto Auc-tions. “We congratulate Bill on hisre-appointment and look forward tohis continued contributions to theorganization’s mission.”

IAA’s Bill Mayer Re-ElectedTo NABC Board Of Directors

AkzoNobel Automotive and Aero-space Coatings North America(A&AC) marked the third decade ofoffering business services in the NorthAmerican market through the SikkensAcoat selected program during theWinter North American PerformanceGroup meeting February 12–14,2014, at the Hilton Hawaiian Villagein Honolulu, HI.

The three-day program was de-signed to enhance the performance ofindividuals and businesses repre-sented through a mutually-beneficialexchange of information, success sto-ries, and consultation.

“As one of the world’s largestpaint and coatings companies, weknow our customers find value inthese engagements,” commentedBarry Rinehart, North American com-mercial services leader for AkzoNo-bel A&AC.

“As always, the numbers tell thestory. As we enter our third decade ofproviding cutting edge business de-velopment programs, many of theshops that were with us in the begin-ning remain with us today. We would-n’t have that kind of loyalty if therewasn’t something of value being de-livered and received.”

AkzoNobel Celebrates Mile-stone during Conference



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A Florida man has been chargedwith one count of trafficking incounterfeit goods—an offence thatcarries a maximum penalty of 10years in federal prison. The goods atissue are counterfeit electronic en-gine control devices produced andmarketed by Hondata for use inmodified Honda and Acura vehicles.

In a plea agreement filed with aU.S. District Court, the defendant ad-mitted that, beginning in 2009, hearranged for Hondata’s K-Pro andS300 devices to be reverse-engi-neered. The counterfeit devices boreHondata’s trademarked name, as wellas counterfeit serial numbers. The de-fendant also admitted creating coun-terfeit packaging, labels, instructionsand compact discs for the devices.

Hondata has said “CounterfeitK-Pros and K100s have been sold asnew and used in the US, Canada,Europe and Australia and Asia Thiscounterfeit circuit board is a poorquality copy of the version 2 K-Prowith on-board datalogging.

There are no known counterfeitsof the red circuit board KPro V3.”

The investigation in this matterwas conducted by the FBI. For moresee www.sema.org/ipr.

FL Man Charged in FelonyCounterfeit Goods Trafficking

The Mississippi Collision Repair As-sociation (MSCRA) has a busy sched-ule of meetings and conferencesplanned for the beginning of 2014.Currently, the association’s president,John Mosley, is engaged in a whirl-wind of traveling from state to state“educating and hopefully helping fel-low shop owners find the strength tomake business decisions based onsound business principles rather thanfear.”

Over the last two weeks of Feb-ruary, Mosley will be visiting eightcities, all the way from Seattle, WA toPalm Bay, FL, as part of his commit-ment to deliver information and assis-tance across the country. ThoughMSCRA’s primary service area is thestate of MS, the association is verysupportive of neighboring states, andthey strive to help industry membersin other states form associations forthe bettering of the industry as awhole. With 59 member shops,MSCRA routinely has at least 100people at their association meetings,representing their members’ interests.

MSCRA was established in 1999because a group of MS shop ownerswere concerned that using imitationparts did not serve to restore the vehi-cle to its pre-loss condition. As theyformed a group to educate themselves,the consumers and their legislators,they seemed to be making a lot ofprogress.

State Senator Richard White, amember of the Insurance Committee,agreed to meet with the group, claim-ing to be 100% on-board with theirmission to protect consumers. At Sen-ator White’s suggestion, the grouphired a lobbyist, attended meetingsand testified before the Senate’s In-surance Committee.

After helping the group draft abill to protect consumers, SenatorWhite instructed them to get thephones ringing at the Capitol to gar-ner support for this issue, so the in-volved shop owners called theircustomers who had voiced concernsover the use of imitation parts, askingthem to call their legislators to expresssupport for the proposed bill.

On the morning that the bill wasscheduled to be put to a vote before

the Insurance Committee, Mosley andDoug White, a fellow shop owner, metat the Capitol, prepared to answer anyquestions the committee membersmight ask about the bill; however,their anticipation quickly turned toshock and disappointment when Sen-ator White invited them to his privateoffice where he informed them that hewould not introduce the bill because“we had put him between a rock and ahard place with his fellow committeemembers,” Mosley recalls. “He saidthere had been so many people callingthem, pressing them to support thebill, that he feared they would belooked down on by the people theyrepresented, [but] if the committeevoted for the bill, they could forgetany campaign funding by the insur-ance industry.”

When Mosley questionedwhether the matter really came downto an issue of money instead of doingwhat he knew was right for the pub-lic, he was appalled at Senator White’sresponse: “I will never forget hisreply —‘whether you like it or not, themoney the insurance industry putsinto these campaigns is the grease thatmakes the wheels of this Capitol turn.’You can imagine how betrayed we feltas an association. We gradually quitmeeting regularly. It was back toevery shop for themselves.”

Thus matters with MSCRA stoodfor a decade until May 2012 whenMosley and his comrades learnedabout State Farm’s introduction ofPartsTrader. Many shops in MS begancalling one another as it quickly be-came obvious that they needed to re-unite with the objective of preservingtheir businesses. Mosley was “disap-pointed in the lack of respect this giantcorporation had for the small busi-nesses that make up this industry.”

MSCRA is opposed to Part-sTrader and any other parts procure-ment program forced on the industryinstead of being offered as a possiblesolution to be accepted or rejectedbased on its performance. “I havebeen in many states and talked tothousands of people, and the over-whelming response is that PartsTraderis a failure! State Farm recognizes thisbut pushes forward, destroying rela-

tionships and businesses with no re-gard to anything but the premise that itwill save them money,” Mosleyshares, continuing, “the quality of arepair is directly related to the partsused in the repair, and when the shoploses any part in the decision-makingprocess, quality could be sacrificed.This is not fair to the consumer or theshop who is ultimately responsible forthe repairs.”

Along with their campaignagainst PartsTrader, MSCRA has aplethora of short and long-term goalsthat they strive to achieve. In the pres-ent and immediate future, the associa-tion’s goals “are to promote growth inthe association, educate our members,educate the consumers we serve, andstrengthen our ability to work with theinsurance company on a united front,”Mosley explains.

Looking forward, MSCRA hopesto ensure that every member shop hasthe necessary information to acquire

training specific to the repair beingperformed, and they hope to do this bybecoming a resource for every mem-ber in their attempts to level the play-ing field. The association plans tosupply members with information onequipment and factory resources aswell as by securing I-CAR trainingopportunities in an effort to aid shopsin achieving I-CAR’s Gold Class sta-tus.

MSCRA is also dedicated tobuilding their reputation with MS con-sumers so customers will feel com-fortable putting their trust in any shopthat displays a MSCRA plaque. Inconjunction with this plan, the associ-ation hopes to build a warranty pro-gram among all association membersto ensure the customer is aware thattheir repair is covered by any membershop in MS. Mosley explains the ben-efits of this plan: “This serves to com-bat the steering efforts of someinsurance companies when they tell


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MSCRA Conducts Outreach to Industry



with Domenico Nigro























the consumer ‘we don’t guaranteetheir work.’ We could see the DRPwould not be a viable option for shopsthat were not willing to allow the in-surance industry to run their busi-ness.”

MSCRA also intends to workwith state and national officials to pro-tect consumers by exposing bad legis-lation and promoting safe legislationdesigned to benefit both the repairersand the consumers.

Currently, MSCRA is gatheringsupport for legislation that will protectthe consumer when they have their ve-hicle repaired. In conjunction withfederal officials, the association is as-sessing the 1963 Consent Decree inorder to determine the degree to whichit can be enforced; many agree thatthis federal consent is equally en-forceable as it was half a century ago.

Mosley explains, “the importanceof the 1963 Consent Decree is itplaces the body shop in control of therepair and the insurance company incontrol of the insurance. What couldbe more important or fairer for all?”

Like with other associations,MSCRA faces challenges when at-tempting to support legislation to im-prove the collision repair industry.

“The problem with any legislation isthe amount of money the insurance in-dustry will pour into campaigns vialobbyists and donations to buy deci-sions that tend to prioritize their prof-its over the consumer’s safety,”Mosley laments.

Still, Mosley is optimistic abouthis belief that MSCRA’S actions willpositively impact the future of thisever-changing industry. “The pressurecreated by the ever evolving greed ofthe DRP relationship and the Part-sTrader scheme is having a galvaniz-ing effect on the collision repairindustry. The industry is changing withrepairers realizing they are needednow more than ever. As repairers, weare also realizing there are fewer andfewer who are trained and equipped torepair the cars we are beginning to seeand will continue to see in our shops.The insurance industry is trying toreign in any control they can exert overour industry as it changes. They makedeals with MSOs in areas where therepairers are not bowing down and ac-cepting their cost-cutting measuresthat can lead to poor quality, unsafe re-pairs. They did not expect the resist-ance they are experiencing from therepairers. I ask every shop owner to

start making business decisions basedon good business principles and stopgiving in to fear. I encourage them tomarket their business and their con-viction to serve the consumer over theinsurance industry. When the publicknows what a shop stands for, theywill pick the independent shop out ofthe maze of consolidators… By edu-cating our shops and consumers andmaking repairs that don’t sacrificequality for insurance profit, we willgrow strong businesses with loyal cus-tomer bases.”

MSCRA also faces many chal-lenges similar to those impactingother associations across the country.Mosley acknowledges these difficul-ties, even as he looks forward to abrighter future: “Probably the biggestchallenge is helping a shop ownerovercome the fear that he will be os-tracized by the insurance industry forcoming to the association meetings,much less being a paid member. Be-yond that, we are faced with keepingthe interest of the shop owners by pro-viding a tangible benefit for themoney they spend on their member-ship. This isn’t going to be a problemin the near future. With all the changesour industry is facing relating to vehi-cle construction and repairability, theneed for knowledge will generate theinterest. We are committed to provid-ing the information to ensure ourmembers can succeed.”

At MSCRA’s last meeting, theyaddressed the need to secure servicesfrom a company to inspect membershops and identify any concerns thatcould result in problems with OSHA.MSCRA stresses the importance of asafe, healthy workplace, and identify-ing the cause for concern, Mosley ex-

plains “OSHA is working to identifyisocyanate hazards, and we don’t wantany shops’ employees to suffer fromisocyanate sickness nor do we wantthe shop facing fines that could havebeen avoided with the proper training.

The association also recently fur-nished members with information onnew tool and equipment requirements,provided by Ford, pertaining to the in-troduction of the 2015 F-150 with itsaluminum body and high-strengthsteel frame. MSCRA has alreadybegun setting up I-CAR training forthe aluminum F-150 to have availablewhen the vehicle is released late thissummer.

This year will also see the contin-uation of the association’s activitiesagainst insurer-mandated parts pro-curement programs as Mosley and“many members of our associationfeel the PartsTrader scheme and the di-rect repair programs are illegal and area tortious interference in our businessrelationships which leads to a direct vi-olation of our fiduciary responsibilityto our customers.

“Because of that, we are dedi-cated to taking the fight on for theconsumer and for our right to do busi-ness to the highest courts in the land.We are working tirelessly to expandthis effort from coast to coast, and thereception from our industry has been ahumbling experience for all. Manybrave men and women are paving theway for all who stay in the repair busi-ness and those who come after we aregone.”

Mississippi Collision RepairAssociation(601) 924-2159www.mscra.net


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With the steady increases in at-tendance and the value brought by theSARC, Plier hopes the event will con-tinue to grow in the future as atten-dees tell others of the information andbenefits gained from attending theconference. Furthermore, he wouldlike to “challenge every individual inthe collision repair industry to look inthe mirror and ask ‘do I agree with the

direction of this industry?’ If you donot agree, then do something tochange the direction; complainingwill not bring about change—changewill only occur when we fight for ourprinciples and what is right. Whatprinciples do you stand for? I hopeeveryone will consider this challenge.I do not want to see this industry be-come another medical industry withfew, if any, choices. America was builton the values of freedom and freedomof choice. Where do you stand?”

For additional information aboutthe Southern Automotive Repair Con-ference, visit their website at:www.southernautomotiverepaircon-ference.com or call 731-736-3165.

Continued from Page 30

Six SE Associations


(Retired Automotive Service Associa-tion lobbyist Don) Randall told thegroup that current antitrust laws arestrangling collision repairers by givinginsurers an unfair advantage to meetand to set policy language and contractdefinitions. In essence, he said, insur-ers have the ability to set market priceswhile collision repairers do not.

“Our system is control losses –which sounds like a pretty good idea,”Randall said. “But that system is de-stroying the free enterprise system inthis state.”

Insurance policies, he said, areladen with loopholes that give insur-ers the opportunity to change a $100deductible into one costing muchmore.

“In the event of a loss, ‘We willmake you whole,’ but who decideswhat is whole,” Randall said. “Youhave a variable. If you take the car tothe shop of your choice, and it isn’tone they choose, they may say to you,‘You just pay the difference betweenthe one you picked and the one wepicked.’ They may also say, ‘We don’tpay for…’ or “It is not customary…”or ‘It is not usual and ordinary.’ Theyare now engaging in ‘dancing aroundthe contract.’”

Randall railed against the currentdirect repair programs, saying theybreed corruption and cheating.

“It’s wrong and it ought to bestopped,” he said. “But it will not stopuntil this industry gets organized.”

– from coverage of a forum inPortland, Ore., sponsored by Fairnessin Auto Insurance Regulations (FAIR)

15 years ago in the collision repairindustry (April 1999)Could the computerized estimatingsystems be improved to improve theease and accuracy of estimating?Three Collision Industry Conference(CIC) committees continued explor-ing this issue at the CIC meeting inDenver in April.

Bob Matejzel of the CIC Esti-mating Committee said his group hasidentified an initial list of about adozen procedures that it believes theestimating systems should automati-cally remind users about. As an exam-ple, Matejzel said that if replacement

of a lower control arm or other front-end suspension part is entered on anestimate, the system should in someway prompt the estimator to also in-clude an alignment on the estimate.

Matejzel said the industry infor-mation providers are focusing much oftheir efforts this year on Y2K compli-ance issues. But he said his committee– which includes insurers and shops –will continue to meet with the estimat-ing system providers to discuss thesechanges throughout the year.

“If you’dbeen at one of thiscommittee’s meet-ings, you’d haveactually seen agroup of repairersand insurers standup and face the in-f o r m a t i o n

providers and say with one voice, ‘Thisis what we want,’” said CIC ChairmanDale Delmege of the committee’s meet-ings earlier this year. “That was a magicmoment in this industry.”

Linda Holcomb said the CICWrite It Right Committee’s discus-sions with the estimating systemproviders has also focused on the needto make the systems easier to use.

“Our estimators are really spend-ing a lot of time writing estimates andwe’d like to see that done quicker,”she said.

– as reported in Autobody News

10 years ago in the collision repairindustry (April 2004)A videotape of an interview with onevehicle owner about his experiencewith an auto claim generated somediscussion when shown at the Colli-sion Industry Conference (CIC) inNashville largely because of who thevehicle owner is: Joe Maxwell, thelieutenant governor of Missouri.

“The thing I was most amazed bywas how quickly I was contacted by[the other driver’s] insurance com-pany, which almost immediately calledme and said they already had the checkin the mail to pay for my automobile,”Maxwell said. “I asked ‘How did youeven know how much damage wasdone?’ They said, ‘Well, from the re-port.’ So I was offered a settlement be-

fore anybody even viewed the damageto the vehicle.”

Maxwell said that while the in-surance company representatives werepleasant and that he never felt ha-rassed, they did refer him to a shop inColumbia, Missouri, 45 miles away.When he told the insurer the firstcheck they sent would not cover thecost of repairs, they made an appoint-ment to send someone out to look atthe vehicle at his office. Maxwelldoesn’t know if that happened. Theshop received a revised estimate – stillinsufficient to cover the cost of repairs– but Maxwell said the adjuster nevercontacted him.

“They claim the guy came andviewed the car, but he never came intothe building, never jacked the vehicleup,” Maxwell said. “The car was par-allel parked on the street and the dam-age was on the driver’s door side sothe guy would have had to lay downon the street to look under the car,which wouldn’t have been safe. Andclearly without opening the door,which was locked, they could not haveseen all the damage. So that troubledme some.”

Maxwell said he’s concernedthat many people in his situationwould have accepted that first checkand “in doing so accept settlement onthe claim and then discover it wasn’tenough to have a professional, qual-ity job done.”

He said he’s also concerned aboutinsurers steering work or owning shops.

“The idea of having an insurancecompany that would control where I re-paired my car is kind of like having afox watch the chicken house,” he said.“You may wind up with less chickens.”

– as reported in Autobody News

5 years ago in the collision repairindustry (April 2009)Under a settlement agreement reachedlast week, LKQ Corp. will be the onlycompany allowed to sell certain non-OEM collision parts for Ford vehicles.The non-OEM parts involved are thosedesigned to replace parts for whichFord owns design patents.

As part of the agreement, LKQwill pay Ford a royalty fee for each partsold, and has agreed not to challengethe validity of Ford’s design patentsduring the term of the agreement(which extends until October 2011 butmay be renewed). Other details of theagreement were not disclosed.

Ford said the settlement “does notendorse the quality or use of non-OEMreplacement parts sold by LKQ Corp.”

The agreement ends two legalbattles Ford has waged to protect itsdesign patents on collision parts for itsF-150 pickup and Mustang. It also islikely to split the non-OEM parts in-dustry which has been working as the“Quality Parts Coalition” to limit au-tomakers’ rights to hold design patentson collision parts.

– As reported in CRASH Net-work (www.CrashNetwork.com),April, 2009. LKQ currently faces alawsuit from Chrysler over the sale ofparts that the automaker claims violateits design patents. The Quality PartsCoalition continues to back proposedfederal legislation that would slash(from 14 years to just 30 months) thetime that automakers can use designpatents to prevent other companiesfrom producing replacement crashparts.

20 Years Ago In The Collision Repair Industry (April 1994)



with Domenico Nigro






















—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a bodyshop in the family and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988.He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription,visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at [email protected].

Bob Matejzel

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When Shelley Haynes took her son’struck to a local AR body shop for re-pairs in 2010, she never dreamed thatshe and the body shop owner, WesleyKing, would become good friends andultimately launch a product that couldchange the global auto body industry.

“Wesley showed me several thingshe had made and asked me to help himfind out about patenting,” said Haynes,CEO of Shelwes Tools and Equipment.

At the time, Haynes was a scienceand English teacher at Marvell Acad-emy in Marvell, AR. King’s body shopwas outside of West Helena on High-way 49 on Hayne’s route to school.

As she looked at King’s ideas, shefell back on her science-fair experienceto help pave the way for the invention ofthe Shelwes Automatic Contour Sander.She also began taking classes throughthe Helena Entrepreneur Center forBusiness, a small-business incubator op-erated through a partnership between theUA-Phillips Community College andThrive, a nonprofit community and eco-nomic development design firm.

She and King worked with the cen-ter on testing and development of thetool for more than three years. Shelwescontinues to operate out of the incuba-tor, where its manufacturing facility andbusiness offices are both located.

The product is an attachment for apower sander. It automatically con-

forms to irregular surfaces.“It cuts your work time down, I

would say, to less than half,” said co-founder Haynes.

The auto body sander was launchedat the 2013 SEMA show in Las Vegas inNovember.

“Starting the patent process withWesley, along with developing the Au-

tomatic Contour Sander and enteringthe SEMA trade show was very muchlike a science fair,” she said.

There were more than 2,000 prod-ucts submitted for judging, includingthe Shelwes sander.

“To our pleasant surprise, wefound out at the New Products Break-fast—the kickoff of SEMA—that wewon runner-up in two different cate-gories: Best New Tool and Equipmentand Best New Collision Repair and Re-finish Product,” Haynes said.

The sander was competing againstproducts developed by industry giant3M and other well-known companies.The judges rated the products based onsuperiority of innovation, technicalachievement, quality and workmanship,consumer appeal and marketability.

“We had a great reception at SEMAand lots of interest in our tool,” Haynessaid. “We’ve been filling orders since wereturned, receiving orders from all overthe nation. We’ve had a lot of interestfrom Canada and other countries as well.”

Because there’s no other productlike it on the market, Shelwes has apatent pending on the sander due to itstechnologically innovative design tocut labor time for sanding jobs.

It automatically conforms to thesanding surface, no matter how curvedor irregular. Because of that conform-ing ability, the workflow doesn’t stopto make adjustments or to change tools.

“The body men who help us test it,say they will not go back to the ‘cavemanway’ of sanding again,” Haynes said. “It isour hope that anyone whose work requiressanding technology has this tool. It can beused on military vehicles, planes, boats,automobiles, just about any surface thatneeds to be sanded.”

Mike Greenworked with King forseveral years, and he recently opened hisown body shop in West Helena. Greensaid he admires King’s innovative mind.

“He’s always thinking outside ofthe box… He’d thought about (thesander idea) for years,” Green said. “It’seasy to think about it, but a lot harder toactually do it. It’s a really neat product,and it eliminates a lot of labor time.”

This was the problem that led tothe idea of the sander by King, who hasmore than 30 years of auto body expe-rience. He believed there was a need tofind a way to get the job done more ef-

ficiently because sanding is the mosttime-consuming job in the industry.

Green agrees that the new sandersaves a lot of labor time.

“I’ve always been kind of old-school, but we’ve been using the sandersince we opened. You don’t have to ma-nipulate everything with your hands (aswith other sanding tools). It’s a lot eas-ier—almost like you’re cheating,” Greensaid with a laugh.

Green said many times insurancecompanies don’t want a panel replacedon a car—instead they want it repaired.

“I was doing a job about three weeksback on an Infinity with a damaged quar-ter panel,” Green said. “The sander turnedsideways and wrapped around the area. Iwas thinking, ‘Wow, this is amazing.’”

The sander is 100 percent manu-factured in the United States at ShelwesTools and Body based in Helena.

Winning the SEMA awards gaveHaynes and King recognition worldwide.

“It proved that small-town Amer-ica can still compete,” Haynes said.“Launching not only our product, butalso our company at a worldwide eventand receiving such recognition hashelped with advertising on a globalscale while giving us that SEMA stampof approval that so many in the autobody industry recognize and trust whenlooking for new products and ways toimprove quality and workmanship.”

Although, Haynes said she can’tpredict the future, she knows that eachperson who needs sanding technologywill benefit from using one of the Shel-wes sanders.

“The savings will trickle right back tothe customers who pay less and the insur-ance companies who pay less,” she said.“And everyone knows that a dollar saved isa dollar spent somewhere else, which iswhat makes our economy strong.”


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The Portland Community College(PCC) Auto Collision RepairTechnology program hosted anopen house for faculty, staff, andstudents to check out its revamped17,000-square-foot shop and newstate-of-the-art paint booths, train-ing classroom, and 3D virtualpaint simulator. The open housewas from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.on Wednesday, March 12, 2014, inRoom 131, Building 2, of theRock Creek campus in Portland,OR.

If something broke in Sochi, they justcalled John Teller. The MammothLakes, CA, native was in Sochi to com-pete in ski cross and he financed hisswitch from Alpine skiing to ski crossby working at his family’s auto bodyshop in his hometown. The 30-year-olddiscusses his transition from Alpine toski cross, being a first-time Olympian,working as a mechanic and motocross.For more go to:www.nbcolympics.com/wpxi/news/getting-know-ski-cross-racer-john-teller?ctx=team-usa

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CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Expertsand AudaExplore announced that theyhave extended their agreement to offerAutoWatch to all CARSTAR locationsin the U.S. under the CARSTAR Vi-sion brand.

AutoWatch allows customers tosee the progress of their vehicle repairby clicking on the CARSTAR Visionicon on the store website. Each day,digital photos are uploaded and postedto the repair facility web site alongwith the latest vehicle repair status.

“CARSTAR is always lookingfor ways to improve customer satis-faction and AutoWatch is an excel-lent tool for our collision repairfacilities to keep customers in-formed regarding the progress oftheir vehicle repairs,” said DavidJames, vice president of marketingfor CARSTAR Auto Body RepairExperts. “We are pleased to extendour relationship with AudaExploreand plan on equipping even more ofour facilities with the AutoWatchtool to deliver the industry’s highestcustomer satisfaction scores.”

CARSTAR Extends Partner-ship to Offer AutoWatch

At the Geneva Auto Show, Germanautomotive and aerospace engineer-ing company, EDAG, unveiled theGenesis, a visionary concept for thefuture of automotive design.

Built using 3D printing, theGenesis is a complete auto body thatcould be produced by high-resolu-tion fuse deposition modeling(FDM) machines in a single printrun. According to EDAG, “Unlikeother technologies, FDM makes itpossible for components of almostany size to be produced, as there areno pre-determined space require-ments to pose any restrictions. In-stead, the structures are generated byhaving robots apply thermoplasticmaterials... By introducing endlesscarbon fibers during the productionprocess, it is also possible to achievethe required strength and stiffnessvalues.”

Although the EDAG vision forautomotive design is likely a decadeor more away from realization, its in-troduction at the manufacturer-cen-tric Geneva Motor Show representsanother milestone for additive man-ufacturing and a clear vision for thefuture of safer, more economical au-tomotive production.

3D-Printed Concept Car atGeneva Auto Show

Michigan Democrat, John Dingell,an ardent advocate of the auto in-dustry who has held his seat in Con-gress since 1955—longer than anyother person in history—said thathe will retire from the House ofRepresentatives, a senior HouseDemocratic aide said.

Dingell first entered Congressto finish his late father's term andwent on to serve nearly six decades.

“I'm not going to be carried outfeet first,” Dingell, 87, told The De-troit News. “I don't want people tosay I stayed too long.”

Dingell said that he will notseek re-election in November 2014.

In his heyday, Dingell wieldedpower as chairman of the HouseEnergy and Commerce Committeeand has shaped major laws forcleaner air and water, protecting en-dangered species, and providinghealth care for poor children.

Dingell also expressed disap-pointment with Congress.

“I find serving in the House tobe obnoxious,” he told The DetroitNews. “It's become very hard be-cause of the acrimony and bitter-ness, both in Congress and in thestreets.”

Auto Industry Champion,John Dingell (D), to Retire

Premiere Services, a leadingprovider of audio electronics to theinsurance industry, has announcedthat it has partnered with LKQ Cor-poration to launch a new programthat uses OEM electronics as acost-effective option for mobileelectronics replacement. The Mo-bile Electronics Quality Replace-ment Program (QRP) extends thecompany’s market beyond after-market products to OEM offeringsfor collision and theft.

A key benefit of the programis that the QRP parts can be foundin CCC ONE®, an estimating sys-tem commonly used by insurers fordetermining parts costs and laborrates on claims.

Under the program, PremiereServices will ship the part directlyto the collision repair facility tocomplete the repair or can coordi-nate having its installation teamcomplete the repair. The parts alsoinclude a lifetime warranty. Insur-ers can also emphasize their com-mitment to being environmentallyfriendly by promoting the use of re-cycled parts.

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Autobody News April 2014 Northeastern Edition

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Transcript of Autobody News April 2014 Northeastern Edition