Pam
02-26-2009, 10:09 AM
Thursday 02/26/09
CAPA Applauds Senator Leland Yee on Introduction of Parts Certification Measure in California
The Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA) applauded Senator Leland Yee for initiating an effort to promote quality and choice for California consumers trying to fix their vehicles after an accident. *
“We applaud Senator Yee for introducing SB350, a bill designed to protect consumers from poor quality aftermarket crash parts and overpriced repair costs,” said Jack Gillis, executive director of CAPA, a non-profit, independent part quality certification program. Each year thousands and thousands of competitive crash repair parts are used with no idea of the quality of those parts. *
While competitive crash repair parts help reduce the skyrocketing cost of crash repairs for consumers, quality can be compromised if there is no uniform standard of quality upon which to measure the quality of these parts. Certification of the quality of a particular part is the only way the market can differentiate between parts. It is vital that consumers know they are getting a quality aftermarket part that has met or exceeded standards established by an independent internationally recognized entity. Collision repair shops and insurance companies should support this effort which will protect consumers from both over priced repair parts and poor quality parts.
Gillis added that the bill is not a prohibition on the use of non-certified aftermarket crash parts. SB350 only impacts insurance claims. The ‘do-it-yourselfer’ or those consumers who choose not to file an insurance claim are free to use any part they want. On the other hand, it strongly encourages the entire collision repair industry to call for, and use, high quality, fairly priced alternatives to expensive car company brand parts. Using quality aftermarket crash parts reduces costs to the consumer while increasing body shop business since insurers are less likely to “total” cars if they can be repaired with competitively priced, quality parts. Cars “totaled” due to high repair costs hurts the consumer, takes away collision repair jobs, and is bad for the environment.
CAPA Applauds Senator Leland Yee on Introduction of Parts Certification Measure in California
The Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA) applauded Senator Leland Yee for initiating an effort to promote quality and choice for California consumers trying to fix their vehicles after an accident. *
“We applaud Senator Yee for introducing SB350, a bill designed to protect consumers from poor quality aftermarket crash parts and overpriced repair costs,” said Jack Gillis, executive director of CAPA, a non-profit, independent part quality certification program. Each year thousands and thousands of competitive crash repair parts are used with no idea of the quality of those parts. *
While competitive crash repair parts help reduce the skyrocketing cost of crash repairs for consumers, quality can be compromised if there is no uniform standard of quality upon which to measure the quality of these parts. Certification of the quality of a particular part is the only way the market can differentiate between parts. It is vital that consumers know they are getting a quality aftermarket part that has met or exceeded standards established by an independent internationally recognized entity. Collision repair shops and insurance companies should support this effort which will protect consumers from both over priced repair parts and poor quality parts.
Gillis added that the bill is not a prohibition on the use of non-certified aftermarket crash parts. SB350 only impacts insurance claims. The ‘do-it-yourselfer’ or those consumers who choose not to file an insurance claim are free to use any part they want. On the other hand, it strongly encourages the entire collision repair industry to call for, and use, high quality, fairly priced alternatives to expensive car company brand parts. Using quality aftermarket crash parts reduces costs to the consumer while increasing body shop business since insurers are less likely to “total” cars if they can be repaired with competitively priced, quality parts. Cars “totaled” due to high repair costs hurts the consumer, takes away collision repair jobs, and is bad for the environment.