Steve Feltovich said he recalled walking into a large shop for which he was going to be doing some consulting work some years ago. Feltovich, who conducts estimating and other training as the manager of business consulting services for Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes, said the manager of the shop wanted a few minutes to finish up some projects but told Feltovich to feel free to walk around and check out the shop.

Feltovich said he went out into the production area of the shop and looked at the paperwork and work-in-progress on three vehicles.

"In less than 30 minutes, I found $1,740 of actual repair work being done that was not on the original estimate nor being tracked for a supplement," Feltovich said. "This was easy-to-document and easy-to-negotiate stuff, and that was on just three vehicles."

Feltovich said he believes that type of inaccurate or incomplete estimating costs shops thousands of dollars in lost sales every year and brings with it problems with cycle time, added administrative costs, and even a loss of customer satisfaction.

What follows are some of what Feltovich and others said are some of the most common causes of estimating mistakes that can have a big impact on a shop's bottom line.

Being distracted and rushed during estimating. Preparing a proper estimate takes time and concentration, said Bruce Burrow, an Automotive Management Institute (AMI) instructor who specializes in estimating system training. You won't write a complete, accurate estimate if you're trying to answer phones and technicians' questions at the same time, he warned.

Burrow recommended having a desk or area dedicated to estimating work with limited distractions. Keep the tools an estimator may need handy: a flashlight, floor jack, paint mil gauge, etc. Provide magazines or a television to give customers something to do while the estimate is being written.

Not understanding the link between good estimating and cycle time, technician efficiency, effective scheduling, etc.

Feltovich said poor, incomplete estimates lead to delays in completing jobs because of last-minute parts orders and prevent a shop from scheduling work effectively based on accurate assessments of labor hours per job. Poor estimates also increase supplements and the administrative time they require.

Mike Anderson, owner of Wagonwork Collision Centers in Alexandria, Va., also points out that it's rarely fair to compare your technicians' efficiency with that of other shops given that efficiency can be as much driven by the quality of a shop's estimates as it is the technicians' abilities. Anderson, for example, said his shops' estimates have an average of 15 or 16 paint-labor hours, nearly double that of the overall industry average.

"So if your tech works 40 hours and mine works 40 hours, your tech will never be as efficient as mine because the efficiency rate is based on the quality of the estimate you write," Anderson said. "Too many shops track technician efficiency but don't track the average number of body, paint, or mechanical labor hours per ticket."

Not making sure you have read and understand the "P-pages." Even if your shop uses only one estimating system, there's no excuse for not becoming familiar with the estimating guides and procedure pages for all three major estimating systems.

"There's a load of money in becoming a student of the procedure pages and being able to interpret them," Feltovich said.

Those pages can be viewed or downloaded and printed at no charge from the "Support" section of each of the estimate system company's Web sites:

• Audited (

• CCC Information Services (

• Mitchell International (

Not getting estimators adequate and ongoing training. Feltovich said that at one time he was a trainer for insurance adjustors and knows that many of them receive training every few months.

"But only 2 to 3 percent of front-line managers and estimate-writing staff at shops have had any training within the last three to five years," he said. "So if that's the case at your shop, if they're not receiving formal estimating training, guess who has been training them? They're being trained by the insurance companies."

Not detailing frame time. Even if your estimate lists only a lump time for frame or anybody damage, make sure you have notes or a worksheet that breaks that time out: x hours for buckle, x hours for twist, x hours for floor pull, etc. This will make your labor time easier to understand (and for you to defend) when it is reviewed by an insurer.

Not creating or using an "unforgettable list." The industry's best estimators have on their desk lists of nonincluded items that are often needed as line items on estimates but are often overlooked. Items on such a list may include common R&I parts (mirrors, optional moldings, or emblems), materials (seam sealer, panel bonding adhesive, sound-deadening foam), refinish items (masking engine compartment), disassembly items (stripe/decal removal), reassembly items (caulk seams), and job-completion items (glass clean-up, road test).

The Automotive Service Association offers two such lists, one related to new parts and one to used parts. They are available for $10 each (or $15 for both) through the ASA online store (

Not remembering the basis for labor times in the estimating systems. Feltovich quoted from one of the estimating guides that, like the others, points out that its labor times are based on "new, undamaged parts installed on new, undamaged vehicles."

"Those times do not reflect the types of vehicles we work on in our industry," he said.

That's why estimating labor times should be viewed as a guide, not a bible, he said, and why shops shouldn't overlook charging for "access time" and other such necessary operations on damaged rather than undamaged vehicles.

Not considering use of estimate-review software. Insurers use such software to audit estimates to find and tag particular items, such as a charge for a particular operation that is outside an acceptable range. But some estimate-review software is designed to help shops not only comply with direct repair program agreements but also check for items that may have been missed on the estimate. If new headlamps are listed on an estimate, for example, the software will prompt the estimator to consider including aiming the new headlamps as an estimate line item.

Some of the estimate review software options available include:

• Decision Support Services' "EService" (www.emsreview.com)

• Fix Auto's "Estimate Review Program (ERP)" (

• Mitchell International's "Estimate Review" (

• Summit Software's "Estimate Profit System" (www.estimateprofits.com/index.html)

Not understanding what one small missed item per estimate can mean. Feltovich cited an example of a shop that does 150 repair orders a month missing just one operation, worth three-tenths of an hour, on every estimate--a legitimate charge for an operation the shop is actually doing.

"You can multiply that by your door rate and the number of repair orders you have every month," Feltovich said. "For this shop, that three-tenths operation was worth $1,890 a month or $22,680 over the course of a year. And that's without having to add any additional staff, equipment, or brick-and-mortar."

But Feltovich said that writing complete estimates is important not just for the impact it can have on a shop's bottom line. Such thorough documentation, he said, will help protect the shop from liability if there is a question of what was actually done to the vehicle.

"As the professional, you are responsible for the repairs, for the crashworthiness and safety of that vehicle regardless of what the insurance company paid you for," Feltovich said. "I'm not saying it's right, I'm not saying it's fair. But that's the way it is. Some shops seem to think that if an insurance company tells you to write an estimate a certain way that they're assuming responsibility. That's dead wrong. You're ultimately responsible."

Is your quarter-panel replacement estimate complete?

Steven Feltovich, manager of business consulting services for Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes, said that among the training he's conducted is an estimating class for Toyota's collision center certification program. That class includes a section focusing on nonincluded items estimators should consider when writing a quarter-panel replacement on a Camry. Just some of what that list includes:

• Blending the decklid or rear door if necessary, including R&I of trim and spoiler, and masking of jambs and openings.

• R&I of spare tire and other trunk components.

• Refinish fuel door.

• Trial fit of quarter-panel replacement.

• R&I of mud guard.

• Refinish inside of quarter panel.

• Replace gravel guard.

• Cleaning the car for delivery.

"There are shops I deal with all over the country that write and get paid for all of these things because they do all of these things," Feltovich said.