The New York State Auto Collision Technicians Association (NYSACTA) received a response from the New York State Attorney General’s office saying a letter from NYSACTA president Mike Orso was received and turned over to the Auto Insurance Fraud Unit.

“We are anxiously waiting to hear from the attorney general regarding this very serious matter,” Orso says. Since the letter was written in early March comments from shops in blogs have heated up. To see some of the comments sent to ABRN, click on letter calls out practices or on insurers violate state law and go to the end of the articles.

A letter NYSACTA received from an appraiser echoed similar sentiments that there is a serious problem that the attorney general needs to examine.

“After reading the letter from the appraiser where it indicated his independent appraisal business has dropped from a $4.5 million in business, employing some 16 subcontractors to a staff of three or four, down to $300,000 in sales,” Orso says. “This is not to far from the fate most independent shops are experiencing. Ironically the various tying arrangements and steering are having the same effect on both industries.”

Ed Kizenberger, NYSACTA executive director says, “It’s our position that the law is the law. The recent New York Insurance Department findings left us wanting closure from this investigation. The report indicated ‘some companies’ are operating under a host of inappropriate activities.” Allegations included requiring consumers to go to certain shops for inspections and one company attempting a “goal of directing 45 percent to 60 percent of repairable cars to program shops.”

“Under any other circumstance the law would step in,” Kizenberger says. “If a community has 1,000 residents and one of the residents is known to be committing robberies, it doesn’t make robbery any less a crime if one is doing it.”