This article too much!

[Pam]

http://abrn.search-autoparts.com/abrn/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=578914

“The DRP is here to stay, but there are obvious challenges for repairers within that model,” Silver adds. “We felt it was important to start some dialog, and that this was a unique opportunity to have representatives from the big three insurance companies on stage with the associations.”

Ah, Ms. Silver is still on her self-preservation tour and continues to believe "meeting" with insurers is her salvation.

Good luck with that! :rolleyes:

And kudos to Tony's comments. Glad someone was able to attend to challenge this nonsense.

[Rene]

And Jeannie- what is so "unique"? That's been the format of CIC for at least 20 years... where has it gotten us? It slays me that now- just because you've finally realized that DRP's are not all they're cracked up to be... you finally feel the need to "talk".... Talk all you want sister... perhaps even make them some tea and crumpets... SAME OLD- SAME OLD! And Scott Biggs: SHAME ON YOU! UFFDA!

[Pam]

..when it was in Chicago, and watching her sitting next to Avery on a panel. And didn't Karen Fierst dance around on stage with a radiator or something? It would have been a complete waste of time, if you and other friends hadn't been there too. One could say that nothing has changed, but acutally things have gotten worse. And the same cast of characters keep reapperaring at these same events. Wouldn't you think even they would recognize that nothing they've attemped has worked out?

What an absolute waste of our precious lives. :eek:

[Biggs]

And Jeannie- what is so "unique"? That's been the format of CIC for at least 20 years... where has it gotten us? It slays me that now- just because you've finally realized that DRP's are not all they're cracked up to be... you finally feel the need to "talk".... Talk all you want sister... perhaps even make them some tea and crumpets... SAME OLD- SAME OLD! And Scott Biggs: SHAME ON YOU! UFFDA!

First, I suggest you go read the real article that support this: http://www.scottbiggs.com/blog/?p=39

Secondly, why should shame be on me? Because I have been working overtime to allow all of us to finally talk openly and throughout the industry about the crisis and the serious consequences of DRP?

Why should I be shamed, because CCRE and everyone else can now talk about the fact the emperor is naked and it is not a new fashion statement! Why because I had the balls to put something down on paper and bring it to the various associations and gathers so people can start answering why they are not in compliance with fair trade practices and consumer protection laws?

Not once have I said that DRP is legal, ethical or moral. Not once have I said that a shop should use DRP or that their business practices are good for consumers. What I have said and continue to beat the drum about is that ALL business practices within this industry should be legal, ethical and moral. Every business, insurer, repairer and vendors should conduct business legally, according to unfair trade practice laws and consumer protection guidelines.

No, shame on me for thinking that doing more that bitching about a problem and actually trying to fix it is a better way to get through a day. Shame on me to think that the best way to deal with this is to start talking about it.

Look, every trade publication in America is now or has published and circulated these 14 starting points. Every association has the opportunity to discuss them and demand that every business should operate according to fair trade practices. Isn't that a good thing? In the course of debate, if the audience decides to come out that instead of refor, you outlaw them, fine! At least we had the discussion. The more radical approach has been left out of the room until now, get it?!?!

If we changed the name of the document to "Recommended Requirements for Insurance Company Compliance to Fair Trade Practices," it would have been more accurate, less inflammatory, but it would not have gotten one bit of attention from anyone but a few people. Some times to get the attention to a problem, we might resort to unique strategies and tactics.

Thanks for caring and being nice to only suggest shame on me and not something worse! :) Please say hi to your parents and sister!

[Dave/HI]

"Not once have I said that a shop should use DRP"

Scott

I remember you telling me after one of your seminars years ago, believe it was in Missoula, that I should try and get on every DRP that I could.

Dave

[Advocate]

That plus the fact that most of his Network "members" are DRPs belie his assertions. :D

[Roy Smalley]

Scott, the thing you are missing that continues to bring out irritation is the drp model is not a matter of being ethical or moral but definitely and most assuredly it is a matter of legality. The concept of preferred provider on paper is good. But some insurers have over the decades rather than create a model that allows them and repairers to perform their duty, usurped the thievery practiced by many repairers and replaced it with a well oiled and effective racketeering enterprise designed to set price and distribute market share based on compliance with the preferred provider contract.

Certainly there is no easy answer since there has been no accounting for the behavior, which might yet come, but disjointed attempts to make the existing business model work will never happen, no matter how hard you try.

In a year or two I think it will be more clear that the best thing for businesses that want to survive in collision repair is to remove the term "insurance" from their vocabulary, know their costs, be very selective of their consumer market and charge accordingly. Sure there will be a lot of scaling down, but if one can survive the scale-down, profits will grow. Those that continue this drp business model will either go out or continue to pour money into a sand hole.

[MarkFP]

What incentive is there for the insurer to operate a DRP, if there are no financial gains from limitations and "concessions" inherent in every program?

We've asked the "Big Ones" to thier face and all are very candid...training, quality, appearance mean little.. it all comes down to how cheap and how many services can you give away. With the ultimate fraud scam already is in place, why would anyone think their corporate masters have any desire to change it?

CIC would find its' time better spent telling us how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. :cool:

[mastertech]

The problem is their poison has infected the rest of the true non DRP independant shops with artificial suppression of labor rates, profiled estimating software, limits on labor for necessary operations, aftercrap and junk parts, Non Oem repair procedures, and the list goes on. Hell they are even infecting the towing business with motor club towing for 1/2 the normal towing charges.

I could care less what they do until the Pee on my playground.

Individual business decisions my butt.

Mr. Biggs is still selling sunshine if your buying!

[Biggs]

"Not once have I said that a shop should use DRP"

Scott

I remember you telling me after one of your seminars years ago, believe it was in Missoula, that I should try and get on every DRP that I could.

Dave
DAVE -

Thanks for remembering the place, but I need to set the record straight on all the nuances and warnings that went along with that advise. I have a video from those days in the mid 1990's that support EXACTLY what our position was and has been.

POSITION 1: One should look to all sources of marketing including retail (consumer) and wholesale (fleet, dealer, agents and insurance referrals).

POSITION 2: The meeting you were referencing in Missoula was in 1995 or 1996. DRP as it was used then did not and was not ANYTHING like it is today. Regardless, even then, we warned to NEVER put too many eggs in one baskett or someone might gain too strong of an upper hand.

POSITION 3: Further, we strongly advised to never stop retail consumer marketing so you never lost ownership of the consumer and always had the upper hand in your market area.

POSITION 4: We also illustrated in those meetings how to make sure you knew the cost of doing business so that you never entered into agreements, etc that you could not afford.

POSITION 6: And finally, we had several insurance executives tell our groups openly (at other retreats like tahoe, etc) what their secret strategy was which included ramping DRP up, trimming it down, thinning the herd, hard negotiations, etc while they leveraged their ability to steer the customer. Forewarned is forearmed ...or should be.

The strategy we suggested is still advisable except the DRP's have all evolved into cost containment systems and have obviouosly stepped over the line from a customer service program in the mid 1990 to unfair trade practices and blatant violations of consumer protection laws today.

Thanks for remembering and allowing me to set the record straight ... if people would just pay attention to the whole story and not the easiest part, they would not get into these messes ... like one tells their teenage kids, some situations are far too easy to get into and far too hard to get out of. Think before you act and always have an exit plan!

Say hi to god while you are in god's country!

[MarkFP]

between then and now in DRP programs. In the late 80's and early 90's Allstate was operating PRO pretty much as State Farm envisions Select Service today. ... Allstate told us to purchase CCC and use their "suggested vendors" for aftermarket and used parts, then Allstate informed us who "da guy" in Chicago would be to have radios replaced... then they started counting average rental days and warned that the shops would need to start picking up that bill soon ( 24 years ago) ..

Oh yeah! they did comp us a video every couple of months from some guy who would tour his buddies shops and .... Ahhhhh, you have been around a long time Scott, I'll give ya that. :D

[Fred Kolesar]

I disagree.

"" The strategy we suggested is still advisable except the DRP's have all evolved into cost containment systems and have obviously stepped over the line from a customer service program in the mid 1990 to unfair trade practices and blatant violations of consumer protection laws today.""

From the start in the eighties they have always been "cost containment systems" and have continually and concisthatly been evolving in the direction of unfair(er) trade practices and more blatant violations of consumer protection laws. And I might add that the laws they couldn't circumvent the lobbied ... and had changed into laws they could use & Abuse.

The difference was that early on insurer's shared a little of the Profit they gained with the drp model. And everyone was happy. Then the insurer's converted some the drp gains back to themselves through the use of concessions. But the drp's thought that's OK we are still making money.

And ya know what... they (the drps) would still be happy if the concessions would have stopped. You see... that's what changed. Like a drug dealer, they gave some away Free the see who would come back for more. And like the drug addict they refused to see where they were and still are being led.

If you really want to help these shop owners... set up a twelve step program.

Fred,