At Their Mercy: Progressive Has Been Opening a Lot of New “Concierge Centers”
You may have noticed that Progressive has been opening a lot of new “Concierge Centers” lately, where customers deliver their damaged vehicles and, within 15 minutes, are out the door and assured that a claims rep will handle the repair process from start to finish. The insurer has opened 11 of these centers since April
Technical Feature, Ignorance Is More Expensive
Sure, training costs money and trained techs sometimes leave, but the fact remains: Most of the welds I inspect would fail a destructive test, making them dangerous to the consumer — and to your shop
Examining DRP Contracts
State Farm’s decision to move to a single Select Service direct-repair program has the collision world abuzz – so this is exactly the right time to talk about all DRPs and what a shop truly receives and incurs by joining an insurer’s repair network.
Is There Still Money in Glass Repair?
A variety of factors have made in-house glass work less profitable, but some shop owners still make it work. Is it right for you?
DRPs, Here We Come? If We Want Our DRPs, Insurers Need to Respect Us
After a short period of kowtowing to insurers, we came to our senses and realized that if we want our DRPs, insurers need to respect us. Enter: our “house rules.” Part 2 of a year-long series.
Quality Is Not Subjective
So what if the guy down the road will do the repair the wrong
way for less money? Don’t fall into the “locally acceptable quality” trap.
Will Insurers Eventually Purchase All Parts Directly from OEMs, Eliminating Shop Profits on Parts?
I’m going to play the devil’s advocate and say, ‘Yes, but only if we continue in our present path of doing nothing to stop them.’ We wouldn’t even be discussing this problem if all shops realized that the repair contract is between you (the shop) and the vehicle owner. Contrary to common, but misinformed belief,
A 10-Letter Word for Pain in the Butt
How can repair shops go on fighting for D-E-D-U-C-T-I-B-L-E payment when insurance agents keep selling customers on deductibles they can’t afford? I’ve got an idea that just might work.
CYA with A/M Parts
How can I cover my @*! when installing A/M parts? When the Illinois Supreme Court overturned Avery vs. State Farm, repairers immediately began asking the CYA question. And not since “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” has one little question fueled such debate. If only the answer were as straightforward as the question.
Strategies for Preparing – and Presenting – Your Estimate
The insurance industry’s reluctance to pay what I consider to be fair and proper damage appraisals concerns me greatly. It also concerns me greatly that many shops aren’t doing anything about it.