Artificial Intelligence for Smart Shops: Making AI Work for You

by Chasidy Rae Sisk

Artificial intelligence (AI) is often viewed as a future technology, yet AI already plays many important roles in the automotive industry.

Some ADAS, such as crash avoidance systems and lane assist cameras, utilize predictive AI algorithms to enhance safety on the roadways. Vehicle manufacturers have implemented AI in the design, development and assembly of today’s vehicles. Insurers rely on AI for photo estimating and total loss triage. 

And AI technology also offers opportunities for automotive and collision repair shops to improve their businesses. Who doesn’t want to work smarter, rather than harder? Shrewd shop owners around the country have begun embracing AI for everything from damage analysis to improving the customer experience – and you can too!

“AI is currently assisting in many ways across the repair ecosystem,” says James Spears (Tractable). “AI helps identify repairable versus total loss vehicles at first notice of loss. It helps prepare faster and more accurate estimates using computer vision, machine learning and AI, and it helps with coordinating booking the appointment to secure a repair. Presently in development is a way for a customer to call in a request for a repair quote, have a link texted to them and then book the repair without having to involve expensive admin staff from the shop.”

“In the future, AI will permeate all aspects of the automotive and collision repair industries, resulting in dramatic improvements in repair planning, repair procedures, diagnostics, marketing, ADAS, claims processing, administrative processes and more,” Frank Terlep (Opus IVS) suggests. “It is only a matter of time before AI is incorporated into the major repair procedure and service information platforms. When this does happen, it will be a HUGE benefit for repairers and the rest of the industry!”

“AI is going to be the tool that becomes just like a part of us for the future,” Ryan Taylor (Bodyshop Booster) predicts, expressing the belief that this technology will pervade the industry to the point “where we can hardly imagine doing our jobs without some form of AI assisting us. It’s just starting, but we are going to see it coming faster in a big wave that impacts every area of our industry.”

Forward-thinking shops already benefit from AI solutions with tools to help with administrative and customer service tasks and by allowing technology to assist with marketing, sales, HR, virtual assistants, chatbots, language translation, logo, image and video creation and more. 

“AI allows shops to provide customer service 24/7,” Spears notes. “A shop using AI can now assist their customers when their competitors cannot. AI has the ability to text a link to the customer, deliver a high quality repair quote and even book the appointment.”

Providing support on the phone when a shop is busy or after hours is a valuable way that AI can provide shops with some administrative lift, according to Taylor. “In today’s environment, 41 percent of customers want to do business with you after hours, but your staff cannot work 24 hours a day; AI can. We’ve also found that, on average, shops lose nearly half of their customers on first contact – 43 percent of callers never bring their car to the shop – so we created AI that can help improve that metric.”

CSR Sidekick answers calls and acts as a customer service representative’s assistant; the AI expresses empathy and concern for the caller’s situation, asks questions to clarify the situation and can even sell the shop’s certifications [try it yourself by dialing (432) 465-2978]! 

But AI can do much more than simply answer a phone. It also helps shops with increasing sales by “taking a traditional estimate and helping customers fill in the blanks about why you’re the right shop, here’s what will happen next, etc,” Taylor says. “We are seeing a five to 10 percent increase to shops’ estimate capture rate by using AI because it helps customers understand why they’re making the right choice. AI can also upsell a customer. For example, it might notice a vehicle’s headlights are faded and offer to restore them.”

“Shops can now post a link on their website to secure images and customer info, and the AI will prepare the quote and book the appointment,” Spears lists more ways that AI can benefit businesses. “Shops can also use AI to scan their estimate prior to submission to a DRP partner carrier so the submission will be approved in record time, leading to lower cycle times.”

Terlep suggests additional benefits AI can offer shops, including “reduced administrative tasks and expense, improved productivity, customer service, better and faster decision making, faster and more effective digital marketing and much more. AI-driven chatbots can provide 24/7 customer support, answer frequently asked questions and guide customers through the claims process, enhancing customer satisfaction. It can also analyze customer data to offer personalized services and recommendations, such as preferred repair shops or tailored insurance policies.

“AI will be able to predict and document most major parts and components with photos of a damaged vehicle,” he continues. “AI will optimize repair shop workflows by scheduling tasks, managing inventory and ensuring that repairs are completed efficiently. Additionally, AI can analyze data from multiple sources to provide insights into shop and network performance, customer satisfaction and insurance claim trends, helping businesses make data-driven decisions. Another way that AI will help shops is facilitating the calibration and repair of ADAS components, ensuring that vehicles are properly restored to their pre-accident condition.”

All of this sounds great, right? But some repairers still have reservations for a variety of reasons. Although some people have expressed the belief that AI will take jobs away, Spears offers reassurance. “It is quite the opposite – a person using AI will have hireability advantages that people not engaged in the technology will not. The time to start understanding how to leverage AI is now.”

Other common fears include inaccuracy, loss of skills, less human interactions, misinformation, cyber warfare, amplified bias and more, according to Terlep, who stresses, “AI is a tool, just like other technologies, but it has the potential to be much more powerful and impactful than previous technologies.”

“AI has the potential to bring a lot of benefits to body shops,” Taylor agrees, noting that CSR Sidekick can answer 100 calls per minute, work around the clock without taking breaks and has the ability to scale. “It can take on such an extra load that it would be impossible for a single shop to hire people to compete, so if you’re not already figuring out how AI can help you today, it’s going to become really difficult for you to be competitive.”

Taylor recommends shops “learn to use AI to your advantage.”

How can smart repair shops begin embracing AI?

“Jump in and learn as much as you can about how AI works,” Terlep suggests. “Ask suppliers and other industry personnel what they see and think about it and how they are planning to implement AI in their solutions. Also, get started by using the commercially available AI platforms.”

“It’s easy to begin an AI journey,” Spears offers. “I recommend setting a business goal such as faster customer response, lower cycle times, better expense margins or more customer conversions, then select an AI partner like Tractable to begin to learn about the technology and put it into production. Start now because those businesses that use AI outperform those that do not. It’s a leader’s responsibility to provide their team and business with every advantage they can to be successful.”

“AI is only going to move faster, not slower, and right now, it’s the worst that it’ll ever be,” Taylor points out. “It is moving exponentially faster and getting better all the time. Shops that plan to be in business and want to be successful for many years to come need to figure out how to work this strategy in; this technology is only going to become more important to shops and the customers who deal with those shops because AI offers an unparalleled level of convenience.”

Want more? Check out the February 2025 issue of AASP-MN News!