SCRS Conversations Center on Combatting Concerns, Solidifying Solutions

by Alana Quartuccio

Communication is key in helping to better the industry.

That is why the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) brings the industry together at their Open Board Meeting multiple times per year to facilitate the right conversations geared toward the right solutions for the benefit of the entire collision repair industry.

Executive Director Aaron Schulenburg referenced the sense of community felt in the room filled with members from different facets of the industry during the Open Board Meeting held in Palm Springs, CA this past January.

“SCRS really is about the society, the community, the people it holds together,” expressed Schulenburg. 

Reflecting on his his 18-year old son’s tendency to share quotes of stoicism on his social media platforms, Schulenburg noted the four virtues of wisdom, courage, justice and temperance and spoke of how they can apply to the work of the association, posing the following questions: “How do we embrace similar virtues? How do we do things that make a difference?”

It’s quite common to hear people speak about having a seat at the table in this industry, although Schulenburg pointed out it may really be more about surrounding oneself with others who share the same perspectives and, if they do not, to let that be known. It all comes down to “the opportunity to have a seat around the table and influence what our association does, how we do it and why we do the work we do.” But also to use the seat at the table to uphold the aforementioned virtues, rather than compromise them to gain the seat. 

Having the right conversations has led to the development of great resources for SCRS members, such as the organization’s healthcare and retirement plans, which allows small businesses the opportunity to offer affordable benefits to their employees. Currently, 93 groups – a total employee count of about 2,500 – are participating in the SCRS healthcare program, which has an above average 58.9 percent participation rate. 

“On average, most employers who come on the plan see 20-25 percent increase in participation in what they had noted with other plans,” shared Schulenburg. The program, developed via Decisely and Gravie, features zero dollar co-pays and other cost-saving benefits. 

The retirement plan currently has $28.9 million in assets, and more growth is anticipated with new business in the onboarding process now. The plan allows employees to pay less in fees and therefore be able to save more for their future. SCRS meets quarterly to make sure the funds in the plan and the investments made match what employees are looking for in order to ensure it’s meeting the needs of the industry as best as possible, Schulenburg relayed.

Keeping tabs on what is happening in the many states that make up the SCRS community is important to the work of the association. SCRS Board member Tony Adams (AkzoNobel) shared the Affiliate and Engagement Committee currently has 34 affiliates representing 40 states and a few areas of Canada who meet virtually several times a year to discuss common issues and other activities. 

In relation to affiliate member California Auto Body Association, SCRS invited representatives from the California Bureau of Automotive Reports’ (BAR) Patrick Dorais (BAR chief) and Mathew Gibson (BAR program manager) to share the latest regulatory developments regarding tear down disclosure requirements and storage fees which are under public review, prompting an interactive discussion with members of the SCRS body. 

BAR is a huge proponent of the tear down and disassembly process, according to Dorais. Consumer complaints have led to the reexamination of these regulations and a quest to clarify information to offer a more “descriptive description of that area to be repaired.” 

“The new regulations, which are going through their process of public comment right now, will require an auto repair dealer to record and provide additional information when adopting a third party payer estimate as the method of repair. Third-party payer is actually defined in this [proposed] package,” Dorais stated. Amended changes also will “require a clarification of the areas of the vehicle that are to be disassembled as part of a tear down.”

In addition to more accurately defining the areas of teardown in ways that “a person without professional or specialized knowledge in a particular subject would understand,” Dorais said, “These tear down regulations or disclosure regulations will also require that the auto repair dealer inform the consumer of the amount approved to be paid.”

The need to amend storage fee regulations stemmed from “disputes between insurers and automotive repair dealers or repair facilities [which] are harming consumers,” according to Dorais.

Gibson outlined some of the specific storage fee regulations, such as requiring “auto repair dealers that charge storage fees resulting from an accident or a theft recovery to report their maximum daily storage rate to BAR on the initial registration and on the renewal when they renew the registration.”

Repair shops that charge storage fees must post their maximum daily fees as they are reported to BAR. Reported maximum daily storage rates can only be changed by shops or auto repair dealers once per registration cycle. BAR’s website will host a search tool showing average daily storage rates per locale given by the rates reported to the Bureau. 

Proposed regulations would clarify that storage fees cannot be assessed while a vehicle is undergoing repairs, including a tear down. “It will establish that an auto repair dealer must have obtained the customer’s authorization, generated an invoice after completion of the contract of repairs and notified the customer the repairs are completed prior to charging storage fees. It will require an itemized invoice of storage fees when they are charged,” Gibson outlined. 

Dorais pointed to another aspect of the regulations intended to discourage “bandit tow operations” by putting in a “stop, do-not-pass-go kind of provision” toward businesses posing as auto repair dealers, preventing them from “charging exorbitant storage fees from the moment they think that the vehicle dropped is off in an unbeknownst location to a consumer potentially.”

Kye Yeung (European Motor Works; CA) questioned when storage charge time begins pointing to how the proposed regulation states that one can’t charge while doing repairs on the vehicle. All too often, shops deal with vehicles sitting on their lot for two to three weeks at a time with no answer. “I don’t see anything there that holds that third party accountable,” stated Yeung.

Gibson said it’s up to the customer regarding whether or not repairs should continue, citing, “Once it’s a total loss, you can start charging storage because they have essentially severed your contract with the customer.” He also pointed to the reason for tear down estimates. “If you have authorization to perform a tear-down estimate on the car and you have disassembled the vehicle to a condition where you can generate an unadministered estimate to restore it to a pre-loss condition and you notify your customer of that, they then have to either say they’re going to proceed with the repairs or they’re not going to proceed with the repairs. If they are not, then you have completed the contracted repairs, and you can start charging storage.”

On behalf of the Media Development Committee, Erin Solis (Certified Collision Group) reported the SCRS YouTube channel (available at youtube.com/scrscollision) has received more than 32,000 views and 1,200 hours of watch time since the last Open Board meeting held in July 2024. 

Previously released videos have longevity as Solis reported that several continue to get views. For example, a quick tip video on EV isolation, released in August 2022, has been viewed just shy of 5,000 times with 749 views coming in just over the last 90 days. 

Discussion included the work of the Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) which received 2,300 inquiries last year with roughly 50 percent of those inquiries resulting in a time change. 

Schulenburg commended the recently dissolved AASP National for contributing five years worth of funding to the DEG, continuing their commitment to the resource they helped build alongside SCRS. 

He called it “a generous level of support from the organization to stand behind the programs that mean a lot to their members.” 

SCRS will hold its Board elections at its April Open Board Meeting, which will take place in Richmond, VA. Three seats will be open for election as Solis, Robert Grieve (Nylund’s Collision Center; CO) and Dave Gruskos (Reliable Automotive Equipment) will not seek re-election.

Want more? Check out the March 2025 issue of Hammer & Dolly!