By Gina Kuzmick and Janet Chaney
The second annual Southern Automotive Repair Conference was held April 11-12 in Biloxi, Miss., and more than 500 collision repairers got to listen to attorney John Eaves Jr. and others discuss the nationwide effort to stop PartsTrader and recoup monies for repair procedures.
"In 1776, the American Constitution stood for ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of justice,’ and you have the right to pursue justice," Eaves declared, opening his discussion. "This is a simple case: if you do the work, you should get paid for it. And you have to remain financially strong, not only for yourself but for every consumer."
Ray Gunder of Gunder’s Auto Center, famous for taking on State Farm and other insurers in Florida, talked about the time several years ago when he knew his shop had to change.
"All of a sudden, I was looking at my financial statements and saw I was not making money," he said. "I realized then I was going to have to make a choice – cut corners and deceive the customer or fight to get paid to do the right thing.
"Direct-repair programs force good men to do bad things. I promise you, in the n
ext two to three years, our industry is going to change. I’m going to leave this industry better than I found it."
John Mosley, owner of Clinton Body Shop in Clinton, Miss., who has been traveling the country with Eaves to educate repairers on their fight, discussed how he reached his boiling point several years ago and reached out to Eaves, who was his customer.
Other highlights of the conference included:
• Randy Ishee from the Louisiana Department of Justice discussing his department’s exploration of consumer-related collision repair issues. “We want to hear from shops if there is an issue relating to a consumer being damaged,” he stated. He said he was familiar with the collision industry, having been the fixed operations manager for a Ford dealership before moving to the attorney general’s office. He invited repairers to have their Department of Justice contact him if they had any questions.
• Aaron Schulenburg, executive director of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists, who stated, "Our industry is beginning to have some backbone. We are willing to stand up at greater lengths than before.” He reminded all repairers in the room that "taking care of your
customers should be our only objective," advising all to utilize the
data available and stay connected to the industry and their customer.
• Keynote speaker and Medal of Honor recipient Mike Thornton discussing how his courageous efforts saved the lives of fellow troop members during the Vietnam War. The takeway theme of "unity" resonated with attendees, who gave a standing ovation at the speech’s conclusion.
• American Honda’s Dave Poston, Collision Select marketing manager for the ProFirst Recognition Program, who gave a detailed presentation of Honda’s recognition program for collision repairers. “Honda builds the most top safety-rated models,” he said. He profiled the 2013-2014 Honda Odyssey, demonstrating that it has 10 times the amount of ultra high strength steel as previous models.
• Assured Performance Network Vice President of Network Development Aaron Clark presenting information on manufacturer certification programs and requirements shops may be facing in the future. "Are you willing to invest to stay current in the changing market?” he asked. “It’s not an option anymore.”
• Richard Valenzuela of National Auto Body Research explaining the variable rate system, which has been developed to constantly manage labor rates. Valenzuela, a clinical psychologist, said he recognizes the chronic problem of labor rates in the collision industry. “The need is great to survive, and shops have no control over what is going on in their business – it is creating a ‘learned helplessness.’”
• Ron Perretta, owner of Professionals Auto Body, conducting a social media workshop.
• A cocktail reception on Friday marking the opening of the trade show portion of the event, which featured more than 40 vendors.
• Representation from six trade associations: the Mississippi Collision Repair Association, Alabama Automotive Repair Industry Society of Excellence, Georgia Collision Industry Association, Florida Autobody Collision Alliance, Tennessee Collision Repair Association and the Louisiana Collision Industry Association.
More information:
Southern Automotive Repair Conference
