Price Fixing or Price Negotiating
“Why do insurance companies control a shop’s labor rates? Isn’t this price fixing?” –– Ron Humphress, former parts manager, Good News Auto Body Shop, Salisbury, Md. Black Law Dictionary, 7th Edition, defines price fixing as an “artificial setting or maintenance of prices at a certain level contrary to the workings of the free market.” Price
Class Action Re-Action: Snider vs. State Farm Verdict
The Snider vs. State Farm verdict got the attention of repairers, insurers, consumers … and many, many lawyers — who didn’t waste any time filing copycat lawsuits. But with the spotlight now on insurance companies, should shops also be concerned?
Party Hardy! 2000 – The New Millennium
What are repairers doing to ring in the new millennium? Some are celebrating at home. Others are jetting off to exotic locales. None, that we know of, have barricaded themselves in a bomb shelter.
The Court of Diminished Value
As consumers across the country file diminished value (DV) claims against insurers and hire lawyers to file DV class-action suits, repairers need to learn what the law says about DV — and if and when the scales of justice will be tipped against them.
Office Procedures to Prevent Chaos
Don’t run your business reacting to problems as they occur and lose time trying to solve them. Taking certain precautions on the front end of a job help to cover your back end — and to ensure your operation runs smoothly and professionally.
Addressing Antitrust
When it comes to violating antitrust laws, insurance companies aren’t always the villains. Learn when it’s OK to speak out and join forces with industry members — and when it’s better to just zip your lips.
Are You Guilty Of Fraud?
Before shop owners condemn the practices of insurers, they need to take a long, hard look at themselves. Committing fraud is dishonest, immoral and illegal – yet many continue to do it.
Insurers: Cowboys At Heart?
Some insurers are rounding up consumers and steering them out of shops like herds of cattle – leaving many shop owners to ask: “Where’s the beef?”
Reducing Hazardous Waste
Managing waste should be done with the same care and attention to detail as any other integral part of your business because, after all, it affects your bottom line.
Aftermarket Crash Parts vs. OE
Some people view the aftermarket crash parts vs. OE parts debate as a war, with the sides being the collision repair industry (wearing the armor of the OEMs) battling the insurance
industry (sporting aftermarket armor).