Columbia, Mo. -- Steering, "short-sheeting," and database manipulation were the hot topics at the third annual Midwest Collision Industry Forum. The all-day event was presented by the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Missouri (AASP-MO), the Automotive Service Association of Missouri/Kansas (ASA-MO/KAN) and the Society of Collision Repair Specialist of Missouri/Kansas (SCRS-MO/KAN).
The June 18 event attracted 130 collision repair shop managers and owners, suppliers to the collision repair industry, and insurance company representatives.
Increase your shop's visibility
Mike Anderson, owner of Wagonwork Collision Center in Alexandria, Va., started the session with a lecture on the changing collision industry. Anderson discussed the importance of retaining and increasing sales, offered solutions to the technician shortage, and provided ideas on how shop owners can increase profitability.
First and foremost, Anderson said, shop owners must make sure that customers are aware of their shops before they ever get into a wreck.
"If a customer does not know about your shop before the accident, and they go get an estimate, they are going to end up in a DRP shop."
Public service announcements, press releases, and child safety seat inspections are some of the ideas that Anderson said would help familiarize the public with your shop.
For shops that are struggling to find good technicians, he suggested looking at hiring from overseas, through the military, or at SkillsUSA. Once hired, he said it is important to develop standard operating procedures so that a shop owner can develop, train, test, and audit employees.
Lastly, he said that increasing profitability begins with knowing and understanding gross profits and mark-ups. Getting involved in 20 groups is also a good idea, he said. "Surround yourself with people that know how to run a business," he said.
Opinions voiced during open forum
Jeanne Silver, forum mediator and owner of Butterfield Bodyworks Carstar in Chicago, began the open forum by informing shop owners about this year's statistics on the rising costs of materials and labor. Although the cost of labor went up 14.5 percent and material increased 23 percent, shop labor rate and materials only increased 7 and 8 percent, respectively.
Deceptive referrals or the steering of accident victims to certain shops was another problem expressed by many shop owners. Bob Smith, lobbyist for the Missouri Collision Coalition, said steering occurs when a consumer's choice of service provider is swayed or changed to another service provider based on half-truths, deception, and pressure. Silver said shop owners have to make sure to educate their customers so that they know they have a choice as to where their cars go.
Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG)
Bill Garoutte, SCRS-MO/KAN chairman, spoke on the progress of the Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) project, an industry Web site for collision repairers to file database requests for review with the industry's three main information providers. The database providers read the requests and provide their responses on the site.
Since the Web site launched in December 2007, 500 inquiries have been made, with an average turnaround time of six days, Garoutte said. "Anything that is a question mark on database accuracy needs to be addressed and submitted to the DEG," he said.
Butler calls for better communication
Bret Butler, Missouri Insurance Coalition Government Affairs director, said collision repair shops and insurance companies have to try to work together to identify each other's problems and concerns.
One shop owner said he feels like the two are both heading in different directions. "We (shop owners) are focusing on creating trust, empathy, and direction for our customers, while the insurance companies are worried about better, faster, cheaper. We are heading in two different directions; I think we found our problem," he said.
Short-sheeting and other industry issues
Erica Eversman, an attorney with Vehicle Information Services, talked about short-sheeting, which she said begins when insurance companies start writing estimates only on the damage they can see.
Short-sheeting, or writing estimates for less than the actual repair, is an issue that many shop owners said is common practice among insurance estimators.
Lobbyist Smith said that if shops want to see change, the best way is through getting involved in organizations such as SCRS-MO/KAN, ASA-MO/KAN, and AASP-MO.
Eversman also encouraged collision repair shop owners to create a collision repair specialist code of ethics. Areas she said the code would benefit are consumer confidence, professionalism, self-regulation, and industry coherence. "If you don't govern yourself, you will have these opposed upon you by other entities."
Progressive's Andreoli fields questions and concerns
Chris Andreoli, Corporate Claims process manager for Progressive Insurance, fielded questions from an audience that was less than pleased with the third-largest auto insurance provider's practices.
One shop owner said he had lost work due to Progressive employees telling customers that they should take their car to a shop that is part of the Progressive network. The shop owner said he has lost customers that were already in his shop due to the steering from their Progressive rep.
Andreoli said he took his current position with Progressive because he wants to move forward and make the changes so that shop owners want to work with Progressive again.
When asked why Progressive continually ranks the worst in working with collision repair shops, Andreoli replied that it stems from his company putting on blinders and not listening to the shop owners. "It was that attitude that has led us to being the worst rated, and I want to turn it around and work with the body shops," he said.
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