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April 2008
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April 30, 2008

April 29, 2008

April 28, 2008

April 25, 2008

April 24, 2008

April 23, 2008

  • New York: Car Repair Shops Can Rebate Deductibles - Allowing car collision repair facilities to pay all or part of a deductible to an insured does not constitute a rebate prohibited under New York law, lawyers for the state's insurance department have said.
  • Higher Level of Satisfaction With Independent Repair Shops Than Dealerships - According to the May 2008 issue of Consumer Reports, more Americans (71 percent) are very satisfied with independent repair shops for vehicle service than new car dealers (53 percent). To ensure that car owners can continue to choose who will repair their vehicles, Congress introduced the Motor Vehicle Owners' Right to Repair Act (H.R. 2694).
  • Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation Donates $2,500 To I-CAR Education Foundation - The Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation has contributed $2,500 to the I-CAR Education Foundation and its new mission to support philanthropic and collision repair education activities that promote and enhance career opportunities in the industry.
  • Female racer up to speed - Lakeisha Moore honed her skills in the body shop and on the drag strip with help from her father and Jack Starkey, owner of Jack’s Body Shop. Starkey recently gave Moore’s Mustang a paint job. -- “I learned a lot from him,” Moore said. “I grew up with him, and he is an excellent driver. He just recently painted my car and it is beautiful.”
  • New paint - Chatham,Ontario,Canada: Tilbury Carstar Collision is in the process of switching to "waterborn'' paints, which is becoming mandatory in the industry. Mary Larente is office administrator.
  • Automotive shop owner approaches 40th anniversary - CA: Gary Liberti, owner of Liberti's Automotive in southern Milpitas, has enjoyed working as a mechanic of foreign and domestic cars for almost 37 years.
  • Diamond Needs 21st-Century Business Model, Anonymous Source Says - glassBYTEs™: An anonymous source, who wished to remain unnamed for fear of reprisal, told glassBYTEs.com™/AGRR magazine that he thinks Diamond Glass' business model is what caused the company to reach the point of filing for Chapter 11.
  • Nordstrom's to open self-service parts center - SD: Nordstrom's Automotive, a longtime Garretson auto parts recycling firm, announced it is opening a self-service auto parts center called Ewe Pullet.
  • Warren Tech to auto parts training - CO: Warren Tech, a career and technical high school for Jeffco Public Schools, has opened a CARQUEST parts jobber store this fall as part of its auto parts specialist tract in the Automotive Technology program.
  • Gas prices can't keep car fans away - PA: Gary Eucker, 58, attends every one of Carlisle's big car shows, and he isn't letting gas prices keep him away this week. -- Attendance now hits about 120,000 a year. The 82-acre fairgrounds and many surrounding properties overflow with cars, trucks, parts and memorabilia.
  • Automotive Consumer Attitude Study Needs Participants, Win Free $25 Visa Check Card - Hedges & Company, in partnership with Aftermarket Business magazine has launched the 12th Annual Consumer Attitude Study to gather information from thousands of consumers who have purchased auto parts and accessories in the past year.
  • BASF Corporation earns Ford World Excellence Award - BASF Corporation today announced that it received a Ford World Excellence Recognition of Achievement Award in the area of Corporate Responsibility.
  • Renewable High Performance Polymers, Lightweighting and Design for Reliability Highlight DuPont Automotive Presentations at SPE Automotive Conference - New, renewable bio-based materials; materials and design ideas to take the weight out of load-bearing components; and materials to help ensure moving parts are designed for maximum performance and reliability are three themes to be delivered by DuPont Automotive technical experts at the Automotive Engineering Plastics Conference (EPCON).
  • PPG Wins 2008 Automotive News PACE Award - PPG Industries , the world's leading manufacturer of transportation coatings, was named a 2008 Automotive News PACE Award winner for Green Logic paint detackifier. This marks the sixth time PPG has received the award, which recognizes automotive suppliers for superior innovation, technological advancement and business performance.
  • Akzo says feels economic chill, shares drop - Rival U.S. paint makers like PPG Industries and Sherwin-Williams have been hit by the sagging U.S. housing market and weakening global economy.
  • Market spotlight: Overseas demand to help auto suppliers 1Q - With U.S. auto sales and production still on the skids, stronger overseas demand for auto parts and benefits from a weak U.S. dollar could add some fuel to what might otherwise be lackluster first-quarter results for U.S. auto suppliers.
  • Magnesium, Aluminum Will Play Big Role in Auto Weight Reduction - Automotive engineers love the new plastics but favor lighter, thinner metals when the rubber meets the road
  • Nippon Steel Seeks 38% Increase in Prices on Costs, Nikkei Says - The company will ask customers such as automakers for an increase of 30,000 yen ($290) a ton, the Japanese newspaper said, citing Shoji Muneoka, president of the Tokyo-based steelmaker. Nippon Steel spokesman Hiroshi Nakashima declined to confirm the increase.
  • Ogihara America sells local auto supply plant - NC: Cosma, a unit of Ontario-based Magna International Inc., said it has signed an agreement to acquire Ogihara's 460,000-square-foot stamping and sub-assembly plant in north Birmingham to expand its footprint in North America.
  • Axle: UAW rejected proposals - Supplier says plans paid more than rivals; GM to restart Hamtramck plant with new parts source.
  • Ford's recovery gaining traction - Against the odds, Mulally pushes cultural change on all fronts to move carmaker to profitability
  • Correction: Area Toyota plant is not closing - A main headline and secondary headline for an April 18 story on the North Long Beach Toyota plant was incorrect. The North Long Beach plant, which contains a Hino assembly line employing more than 50 people and a Toyota parts-making operation employing more than 600 people, is not closing.
  • Sneaky Ways To Get Better Gas Mileage - Motorists looking to save as much as 32 cents on a gallon of gas needn't drive across state lines in search of cheaper prices at the pump.
  • Co-operative Insurance's eco-car show launches new Ford - UK: Co-operative Insurance has announced that Ford will debut its new environmentally-friendly car at its Sexy Green Car Show.
  • No. 1 in auto theft: Modesto, Calif. - Insurance crime group reports that western states still lead the nation in car theft.
  • Celebration Fizzles As Court Says It Erred In Allstate Order - FL: State Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty was one happy man Monday - for a few minutes, at least - after getting word that an appeals court sided with him in barring Allstate companies from conducting new business in Florida.
  • Judge dismisses fraud claim against State Farm - A federal judge on Monday dismissed fraud claims against State Farm and vendor E.A. Renfroe in a key Hurricane Katrina lawsuit that accused State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. of altering an engineering report to minimize the loss.

April 22, 2008

  • Mitchell Announces 2008 "Full Speed Ahead!" Auto Collision Road Show - This Year's Road Show Visits More Cities and Includes More Educational Seminars to Help Collision Repair Technicians and Shop Owners Increase Business Performance
  • Missouri Senate Committee to Review Anti-Steering Bill at Public Hearing - glassBYTEs™: The Missouri Senate's Small Business, Insurance & Industrial Relations Committee will hold a hearing today at 1 p.m. Central Standard Time to review a bill that would require insurers to inform vehicle owners immediately on first contact that they have the right to choose the repair facility of their choice to repair their vehicles.
  • Missouri Collision Industry Day at the Capitol Results in Hearing for SB775 - Missouri Associations AASP of Missouri, ASA MOKAN and SCRS MOKAN hosted a Day at the Capitol in Jefferson City, Missouri for the collision industry.  This was the first time that the collision repair industry had descended on the capitol to express their concerns on issues that impact the consumer and the independent business community. 
  • Unlocking repair information access - ABRN: NASTF discusses Secure Data Release Model with locksmiths, OEMs
  • Bill would force manufacturers to release auto repair information - MA: Local auto mechanics are hoping the Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act, which would grant them access to certain manufacturer information they are not currently allowed to obtain, passes. The bill is currently in committee in the state legislature and is expected to be acted on by late May.
  • Mechanic fights for fix - Automakers hoard info
  • Spreading the word about right to repair - Canada: More than 130 technicians, shop owners, jobbers and affiliates from the Owen Sound area gathered on April 9 to learn how right to repair affects their businesses and their industry. The information session was organized by the Grey Bruce Independent Automotive Repair Association (GBIARA).
  • Collision Repair Registrations Surge At Canada's Largest Autobody School - A skills shortage of new collision repair technicians in Canada?  Not at Canada's largest autobody and collision damage repair technician training school at Toronto's Centennial College.
  • Keeping the Home Furnaces Burning - glassBYTEs™: One of the items that took place over the past week but was little noted was the completed purchase by Zeledyne of the Carlite glass holdings from Ford. Mr. Robert Price, the principal investor of Zeledyne, promised to keep the two U.S. manufacturing plants open and productive. Taking him at his word, I would like to thank him and to offer any and all support to him. —Neil Duffy
  • CAP says technology and rapid depreciation increase motor insurance write-offs - UK: Their growing technological sophistication, coupled with increasingly rapid depreciation, means cars involved in relatively minor collisions are more likely to be written off than ever before, said used car values specialist CAP and motor repair experts at the recent RISC conference focusing on increasing accident repair costs.
  • DuPont Reports First Quarter Earnings Growth of Over 20 Percent - Coatings & Color Technologies: Sales increased 6 percent to $1.6 billion as weakness in North American  motor vehicle and construction markets was more than offset by higher USD selling price outside North America.
  • BASF Coatings trainees acquire expertise with European friends - Trainees in the area of process technology and automotive painting from companies in Denmark, Spain, the Netherlands and Norway met in Elgoibar, gathering theoretical and practical experience in their areas of work that will play a major role in their future careers.
  • Alter Trading Acquires Mississippi Salvage Yard - Alter Trading has acquired Jake’s Auto Parts, a salvage yard based in Mississippi. The facility will now be known as Alter Metal Recycling. Alter’s acquisition enables Alter’s continued growth in the southern United States. -- Alter will continue to accept all types of ferrous and non-ferrous materials including old cars and catalytic converters.
  • American Axle strike hits 2 more General Motors factories - As the strike at American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc. lingers into its eighth week, workers on the picket line and even the president of the United Auto Workers say the longer they're out, the better the settlement they will expect.
  • FordPerformance.com brings Blue Oval enthusiasts together - Ford enthusiasts have a new home on the 'Net today, as Ford has launched its new FordPerformance.com website that focuses on Ford clubs and performance aftermarket parts and accessories.
  • Seeing Double - China's Automotive Copycats
  • What's driving Toyota Canada's success? - CIO reveals all -- For Hao Tien, CIO of Toyota Canada Inc. the two Japanese phrases Genchi Genbutsu (go and see) and Kaizen (continuous improvement) capture it all.
  • VinSolutions.com and Visible Customer Form Strategic Alliance - Dealers are the clear winners when VinSolutions.com's seamlessly meshed CRM, ILM and Inventory systems carry VisibleCustomer's turnkey customer loyalty and retention services into dealerships across the nation.
  • Carl Junction man gets 8 years for wire fraud - A Carl Junction man was sentenced Thursday to eight years in federal prison for a wire fraud and money laundering scheme in which he used bad checks and false documents to buy 21 used cars at an auto auction. -- King pleaded guilty in January 2007 to defrauding Adesa Auto Auction in Tulsa, Okla., by bidding $215,170 for 21 vehicles at an auction in 2005, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri.
  • Police Trying to Unravel Chop Shop Organization - NV: A chop shop operation raided by Metro Police may reach farther than Las Vegas. Detectives now are unraveling how the massive illegal operation worked. Police found not only parts of cars, but construction equipment inside the warehouse.
  • Seven Arrested in Calif. for Automobile Arson, Fraud Scams - Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced the arrests of seven individuals for their alleged involvement in automobile arson and insurance fraud. The arrests are the result of two automobile "give-up" investigations.
  • Senator pushing bill that gets tough on insurers - Some Florida lawmakers cast property-insurance companies as the villain. Others portray them as the hope.
  • Committee nixes auto insurance bill - CO: The House Business Affairs and Labor Committee on Monday killed an auto insurance bill intended to help reimburse hospitals, doctors and ambulance companies that deal with car accident victims.
  • GEICO honors 6 associate teams with Corporate Quality Awards - GEICO honored six teams of associates from around the country with the company’s highest honor, the Corporate Quality Award, during special ceremonies today in Washington, D.C.
  • Financial Service Subcommittee Considers Insurance Reform Proposals - ASA: The U.S. House Financial Service Subcommittee held Part III of its hearing on insurance regulation recently. -- The purpose of the hearing was to consider a variety of state and federal proposals on insurance reform.
  • Rep. Kanjorski: Feds Must Learn About Insurance Before Regulating It - A key Congressman involved in insurance regulation issues says that Washington does not have the knowledge of the insurance industry it needs to regulate the business and he has proposed a new federal insurance information office to remedy the situation.
  • AXA Insurance appoints Audatex UK as its vehicle management technology partner - The partnership between AXA and Audatex takes effect 1st October 2008 and will see the phased implementation of a full range of claims management solutions to AXA’s Vehicle Claims Management teams and Approved Repairer Network.

April 21, 2008

April 18, 2008

April 17, 2008

  • Rhode Island legislature targets discounts on deductibles - The Rhode Island legislature is considering a new bill that would give the state the power to revoke or deny the license of a body shop that offers customers rebates or discounts to offset their insurance policy deductibles.
  • Bill to give choices on auto repair lacks teeth - CA: Key provisions stripped from state proposal to let drivers, not insurance companies, pick shops
  • Collision Repair Association of California Video for SB 1059 - See what you can do.
  • Lubner Says Belron "Has Interest" in Purchasing Diamond - glassBYTEs™: Gary Lubner, chief executive officer of the United Kingdom-based Belron, the largest auto glass company in the world, said his company is exploring the possible purchase of Diamond Glass in the United States. "We do have some interest in looking at it," said Lubner, in an exclusive interview with glassbytes.com™/AGRR magazine last evening. "We haven't gotten any more information than anyone else at this point, but we will see whether or not we can move that forward."
  • ASA Announces Benefit Agreement with NPC to Offer Credit Card Processing - The agreement includes special pricing for eligible ASA member businesses. NPC is exclusively focused on small- and medium-sized merchants with services that include the electronic acceptance of credit, debit, gift and loyalty cards, and electronic checks.
  • CCIF announces partnership with Skills Canada - At various Canadian Collision Industry Forum (CCIF) meetings during the last 18 months Skills/Compétences Canada and concerned industry representatives have discussed the need and the opportunity for involvement in the skills competitions organized by Skills/Competences Canada.
  • Insurers Can Use Web to Speed Auto Repairs, Scene Genesis Writes - Insurers can leverage the power of the Web and online communities by involving customers as an active part of the repair process and letting them select their autobody shop online, Chrisa Hickey, director of product management with Scene Genesis, Inc., writes in the April 14 National Underwriter.
  • 'Green' business plants roots in town - NE: A new auto collision repair center has opened in Papillion.
  • PPG names Single Source, Inc., Platinum Distributor of the Year - PPG Industries’ automotive refinish business honored Single Source, Inc., of Roswell, Ga., with the PPG Platinum Distributor of the Year Award during the annual PPG Platinum Distributor Conference at the Green Valley Ranch Resort in Las Vegas
  • BASF Coatings Earns PACE Honorable Mention - BASF Coatings Solutions today announced that it received an Automotive News PACE (Premier Automotive Suppliers’ Contribution to Excellence) honorable mention at a ceremony held April 14 in Detroit.  The 14th annual PACE Award is jointly presented by Automotive News, Microsoft, SAP and Transportation Research Center Inc.
  • Parts suppliers unite against counterfeiting - A number of international automotive parts supplier associations have come together to issue a statement of cooperation on safeguarding against counterfeiting and intellectual property rights violations (IPR) in the global automotive industry.
  • Doyle bill aims to deter theft, sale of catalytic converters - RI: At an average cost of $300 each, automobile catalytic converters are becoming a hot commodity, with the emphasis on the word hot. -- In news story after news story, from New England to the west coast, indications are that more and more thieves are targeting the converters, reselling them to chop shops or other disreputable parts dealers and making a significant amount of money, if only for the precious metals contained in the converters.
  • General Motors is organizing 8 brands into 4 divisions - General Motors Corp. is organizing its eight brands into four divisions in order to streamline product development and sales and further differentiate the brands, the automaker announced Wednesday.
  • Honda Plans Exports of U.S.-Built Pilot SUV to Russia - Honda Motor Co., aiming to boost North American plant production rates, will ship Pilot sport- utility vehicles built in Alabama to Russia, the first U.S. model the carmaker will export to that growing market.
  • Funding For a Toyota Center Study is Pending - WA: On Tuesday night Kennewick's City Manager Bob Hammond asked the council to consider using $250,000 of this year's budget to start the first stages of a future project.
  • GM moving OnStar call center to Pontiac - General Motors is moving an OnStar call center with a staff of 600 to the south side of Pontiac. 
  • Huge Recall, but Many Cars Unfixed - After six recalls to correct problems with millions of Ford Motor Company cruise-control switches blamed for almost 1,500 fires, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration took an unusual step. In February, it issued a consumer advisory urging owners whose vehicles had not yet been fixed to have the switches disconnected immediately.
  • Honda Recalls 353,000 U.S. Accords to Fix Windshield-Wiper Flaw - Honda Motor Co., Japan's second- largest automaker, is recalling 353,000 Accord sedans in the U.S. to fix a windshield-wiper flaw that may allow water to leak into the wiper motor, eventually disabling it.
  • Hyundai Recalling Cars - Car maker Hyundai is recalling nearly 400,000 Sonata passenger cars. The company says it needs to fix a problem with the air bag system. The recall affects 2006 to 2008 Sonatas with an advanced air bag system.
  • Report: Some auto safety gear's value limited - Some pricey new safety gear that automakers have billed as technological breakthroughs that will save lives may have only limited protective value, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety concludes in a report out Thursday.
  • Risk of buying a rebuilt wreck doesn't go away - Lance Scott shelled out $14,900 plus $1,475 for an extended warranty when he bought a used Ford Explorer in 1994. -- It took nearly a decade of negotiations and lawsuits, but last month a Jackson County jury ordered a dealer to pay Scott $300,000 in punitive damages following testimony that a salesman knew the Explorer was totaled in a rollover, but hid that fact from Scott.
  • ICBC shop problems covered up - Victoria,BC,Canada: Friends and relatives as well as ICBC employees and managers purchased vehicles from ICBC's research and training facility, the corporation's chairman said in a letter to the B.C. government Wednesday.
  • AIA Opposes Prior Approval Bill In Colorado - A bill before the Colorado House of Representatives (HB 1389) would change the insurance rating system from file-and-use to prior approval for auto insurance, thereby reducing competition in the auto insurance market and potentially increasing costs for Colorado consumers, said the American Insurance Association (AIA).
  • Congressional Hearing to Explore Federal Oversight of Insurers - A congressional panel will hear testimony today on a plan endorsed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Allstate Corp. that would simplify industry regulation and eliminate most oversight by the 50 U.S. states.

April 16, 2008