The North Carolina Assembly is considering a bill that would create licensing requirements for collision repair
technicians and estimators.

H.B. 1285, the North Carolina Motor Vehicle Repair Shops and Collision
Repairs Licensure Act, also would establish a seven-member licensing board
that would issue licenses, administer licensing exams, and receive
and investigate complaints about repairers and estimators from members
of the public.

The bill defines an estimator as “a person who inspects a damaged
vehicle and determines the cost required to restore the vehicle to the
condition it was in before the damage.” A collision repair technician
is defined by the bill as “a person who fixes damaged motor vehicles.”

Licensing requirements would include:

• Completion of a board-approved collision repair technician or estimator course
• At least one year of work experience as a repairer or estimator
• Passing an exam administered by the board
• A high school diploma

Shop owners, technicians or estimators who can prove to the board
within a year of the bill’s effective date that they have worked in the
field full-time for at least five years could be issued licenses without taking the board exam, the bill says.

If passed, the bill will be effective Oct. 1. Fees for a new or renewed license would be $200.