Bullied No More: Learn How to Counter Intimidating Negotiation Techniques
“My way or the highway” negotiation techniques have intimidated the repair industry long enough. Learn how to counter them.
The Old Blame Game
There’s been a lot of talk lately about a law firm representing Progressive Insurance Company asking an Illinois shop to reimburse the insurer $141.45 for a rental car — due to the shop causing unnecessary repair delays.
What’s the Goal of any Business? To Make Money
I’ll add a couple of caveats to that.
Perplexed by Paint
Turns out this topic is much like the famous Bill Clinton quote: “It depends on what the meaning of is, is.” Paint brand popularity and exact market share are touchy subjects among the refinish paint companies. No one wants to be quoted in print as having less market share than the next guy, and there’s
You’re Not an Order Taker
I’ve always said to ‘write our own estimate.’ But recently, something came to my attention from an insurance rep and then I checked with my attorney: If the check has the shop’s name on it, my attorney said that makes the adjuster’s estimate a contract and all the methods, procedures and parts choices are to
Show Me the Savings!
Insurers are writing for partial paint times on repaired panels, claiming it doesn’t take as long to apply color to part of a panel as it does to the whole panel. We all know this is bogus.
Going Head to Head
Collision repair consolidators seem focused on customer service as opposed to offering insurance companies even lower repair costs. They’re also concentrated on honing their operations to a razor sharp state of efficiency (which, incidentally, will lower repair costs).
State Farm Ups Ante: State Farm to Replace Its DRP with New “Performance Driven” Program
The headline read: State Farm to Replace Its DRP with New “Performance Driven” Program. The news spread across the industry faster than Ebola and was about as well-received. State Farm’s Service First and Select Service — which have been touted by repairers as the best direct-repair programs out there (for whatever that’s worth) — are
A ‘How-To’ Guide for Increasing Labor Rates, BodyShop Business, February 2006
Rather than belabor the exhaustive list of reasons labor rates need to rise, let’s focus on what type of market conditions act to create higher – or more frequently increasing – prevailing rates in individual markets. By Tigger (from his view in the Thousland Acre Wood) No one in the collision repair industry would argue
(Bed)Line up for Profits: Spraying Bedliners Is a Way to Boost Your Bottom Line
Spraying bedliners is a way to boost your bottom line — and is strictly a customer-pay upgrade (read: no insurer involvement). It’s not easy owning a collision repair shop these days. Business is down, costs are up (and continue going up), customers are pickier than ever, insurers are cheaper than ever … Bet you could
