Ask an Expert: Car repair is matter of trust
by John and Theresa Kightlinger
How do I know who to trust when it comes to car repairs?
The definition of trust is the reliance on the integrity, strength and ability of a person or a thing. A confident expectation of something.
It is a simple word with a big meaning in our world right now. Trust is eroding society right now, in relationships, in business, in politics. The lack of trust in the world causes people to act in fear which is evident all around us.
People do business with car repairers because they like them, because they know them, because they trust them. Most customers haven’t the faintest idea of how to repair a car, but they believe and trust that car repairers do have the skills and abilities. And they trust that they will do it right.
Collision repair technicians are extensively trained and are constantly upgrading their knowledge, to repair highly sophisticated, computerized vehicles that hurl down the highway at high speeds. The trust the customers put in is immense. They are trusting that the shop is repairing their vehicles back to manufacturers’ standards so that they can buckle their babies into their seats, hand their keys off to their newly minted teenage driver and trust that should an accident occur, their vehicle will perform just like the commercial on TV says it will.
The manufacturers who, over the years, have seen their vehicles repaired improperly by collision repairers are pulling back the reins on who can fix their vehicles and how they are fixed. They have lost trust in repair shops and have now created accountability with certifications among many other hoops to jump through.
OEM procedures are the first decision maker in how and if a car repairer can fix the vehicle and what kind of tools, products, etc., can be used to fix it. Repair shops are working to gain the trust of the manufacturer again by earning certifications and taking specialized training to work on certain brands of vehicles. Every repair requires the repairer to look up repair procedures, safety calibrations, perform test-drives and more. And each repair is unique.
The insurance companies are looking to save dollars everywhere that they possibly can. We get that. We need to save dollars as well. But trust—or lack of it—is causing breakdowns in communication and in production during the collision repair process. It is causing layers of paperwork and administrative time. It is causing relationships that we think are decent, to erode over small issues. The experts who are highly trained in collision repair and who are continuously upgrading their training are being undermined for a dollar here or there.
Collision repairers today want to build bridges and build trust and want to simply do the right thing, every time. Collision repairers want and need sustainable businesses. Insurance companies need to know that shops are doing the right things to repair vehicles, every time.
If you are wondering what shop to pick, ask the repairers these questions:
1. Who pays you for the repair? If they say you, continue on. If they say your insurance company, that is strike one on them, but continue on.
2. Do you use all OEM original parts? If they say yes, then continue on. If they say the insurer decides or we use whatever the insurer pays for, that is strike two, but continue on.
3. Do you do all the safety inspections required after a collision, such as measuring the steering column and removing interior parts to view the air bag mountings? If they say yes and give an explanation, they may be the right shop. If they say only if the insurer pays for it, say “Thanks, but I am going to another shop.”
John and Theresa Kightlinger own My Body Shop at 401 N. Clinton St., Stockbridge. The couple
have lived in the area and raised their children here over the past 20 years. John has been in the auto body business since 1985, and Theresa began work at General Motors after high school.
Between the two, they have been working on cars for more than 75 years.
