Busy But Broke
Repairing cars is only a part of what we do. Ultimately, we run a collision repair buisness – which means we need to make a profit on the cars wedo fix.
Are You Throwing Away Money?
Every day, shops across the country donate their labor and product free of charge. Are you one of them? If you’re relying on a computer and the P-pages to do all your thinking for you, you’re losing revenue – and lots of it.
“I Can’t Make Money On Paint!” (a.k.a Why Johnny Kicked The Dog)
At first, this shop owner thought his problem was paint, but after working with his jobber and accountant, he realized it was actually a sales problem. Now he’s making good money on paint and focusing on improving other areas of his business as well.
“I Can’t Make Money on Paint!” (a.k.a. Why Johnny Kicked the Dog.)
Too many shops post their entire jobber bill to materials – even though much
of it isn’t paint. Shops then sell these items as miscellaneous parts, with the sale going to parts and the cost to paint. To make matters worse, shops are working off adjuster estimates – which can easily cost them hundreds of dollars per RO.
“I Can’t Make Money on Paint!” (a.k.a. Why Johnny Kicked the dog.)
Many shop owners think their problems would be solved if they could just get their paint cheaper. But paint materials profitability problems are often just a symptom of larger troubles – paint labor profitability issues, lack of standard operating procedures, sales shortcomings, etc.
Do Database Times Really Matter?
Point CounterPoint
The Return of Competitive Bidding
The time has come to examine the basis on which shops compete. To do this, you must first ask yourself: With whom am I competing? An insurer and its “phantom” shops or other actual shops in my local market?
‘Good Customers’: More Harm Than Good?
When the boss refers to someone as a good customer, it usually means doing extra work for free. So, from a commission tech standpoint, a “bad customer” is actually more profitable.
6% Net – 15% = Bad…Getting the Repair Plan Right
Our industry has a tough time getting the repair plan right when we have the car. Now some genius thinks that we’re going to get it right by looking at photos and that we can give back 15%? Still, I’m sure shops will be bidding like crazy — underutilization being the motivator,” says DCR Systems
Charge for Paint and Materials
Our suppliers don’t hesitate to raise prices or add “fuel surcharges” to compensate for increasing expenses. It’s time we shop owners do the same. Insurance companies pay $22 to $25 per hour for paint and materials in our area, and these rates have been basically the same for the past seven years. We all know
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.
How to Get Paid, “What’s The Most Effective Approach to Get Insurers to Pay My Labor Rate?”
Labor rates have always been an area of contention between shop owners and insurance companies. From time immemorial, the two camps have been divided on the issue, and monumental arguments have arisen any time this subject is broached. So before we can arrive at any real answer to the labor rate question, we must first
