Chief has announced that technician and appraiser students who pass any Chief University course of six or more hours will automatically be registered to receive I-CAR ProLevel Platinum recognition program credits at no charge. The credits will post to the students’ I-CAR accounts in as few as two working days after completing approved Chief University classes. This new I-CAR partnership program is retroactive to all eligible Chief University students from Jan. 1, 2017.

Chief worked with I-CAR to develop a seamless system to allow Chief University students to get the credits they deserve quickly, painlessly and at no additional cost. Students simply provide their I-CAR numbers at the beginning of a course, and Chief University takes care of the rest.

“As a member of the I-CAR Industry Training Alliance, Chief can offer I-CAR credits to professionals who complete Chief University classes that run for six or more hours,” said Richard Perry, Chief OEM and strategic accounts sales manager. “We learned that too many of our students weren’t spending the extra time and cost to get the ProLevel Platinum credit they earned, which in turn affected their shops’ ability to earn or maintain the coveted I-CAR Gold Class status. Now their credits are applied for automatically, and Chief is covering the cost of any additional administrative fees.”

The I-CAR Platinum designation is industry-recognized to signify collision repair and insurance industry professionals have met the high levels of training required to stay current on the vehicle technology needed to complete safe, quality repairs. Repair shops that continue to develop the knowledge and skills of their staff to these high levels can achieve the I-CAR Gold Class designation. Insurance companies regularly recommend Gold Class shops to their customers.

“This will be a tremendous benefit to multiple shop organizations (MSOs),” said Perry. “They invest heavily in training and utilize the Gold Class designation to bolster the professional reputation of their shops. Now, all the techs they send to Chief University will automatically receive I-CAR credits, saving MSOs time and money.”

Eligible Chief University are organized under the following three categories:

• Training for the Technician, Estimator, or Appraiser
• Aluminum Damage Analysis and Repair Technology
• Design Based Repair
• Training for the Technician
• Full Frame Analysis & Repair Planning
• Unitized Body Analysis & Repair Planning
• Computerized Measuring Training
• Training for the Appraiser and Estimator
• Structural Damage Analysis
• Advanced Frame Analysis
• Advanced Steering & Suspension Analysis
• Joining Technologies

Chief University training is also certified by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) for compliance with the Continuing Automotive Service Education (CASE) Standards. For the most up-to-date schedule, course descriptions and to register, click here.