Getting in Shape

INSIGHT’s annual Who Pays for What? survey may just be demonstrating the same sort of adjustment that anyone but an economist would call, well, a big deal when the stock market goes down. At first glance, the hefty drop we are reporting for "always pay" P-page line items seems serious. However, after last year’s unusually high number of "always pays" this year’s decrease may really be a small adjustment.

What is really a bit surprising, considering the general feeling throughout 2002 that insurers were determined to tighten some belts (And collision repair facility owners say that they know exactly whose belts insurers were talking about!), is the relatively slight drop in satisfaction levels overall reported by shops responding to our survey.

I attribute this to a general willingness in our industry to engage in open dialogue, to work toward sensible programs that make sense for the mutual customers of both insurance and repair services - the consumers.

Of course, striving toward quality operations, negotiating fair costs, and satisfying 2003’s sophisticated and often demanding customers - while improving the bottom line and growing the business - are the goals of both insurers and repair facilities. Can they work together for the betterment of both? Well, yes, but not without some conflict and a little change.

State Farm has made an impressive case along these lines over the past few years. This insurer has demonstrated that the insurer-repair facility relationship does not have to be adversarial.

Our TrendLine results this month indicate that very little has changed for shop benchmarks over the past few years. Numbers from shops that responded to our fax survey questions are about the same since 2000.

Overall, small changes seem to reflect a "lean and trim" attitude - cutting costs and improving quality control. Our average shop is using less space more efficiently, with one or two fewer technicians working smarter.

February is a good month to think about getting in shape, isn’t it?