Massachusetts repair organizations merger ends division

Decades of division in the Massachusetts collision industry, during which the three groups occasionally worked at cross-purposes, ended when the three leading collision repair organizations in the Bay State formally merged their operations in late May, creating a single statewide association.

The merger, which was finalized during a dinner meeting in Marlborough, Mass., combines the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Massachusetts (AASP/MA), the Massachusetts Auto Body Association (MABA) and the Central Massachusetts Auto Rebuilders Association (CMARA) under the AASP/MA banner.

An interim board of directors will be in place until elections in November, and will be led by former CMARA president Tom Ricci. Former AASP/MA president Rick Starbard and former MABA chairman Paul Hendricks will serve as joint vice presidents.

The merger comes after 18 months of negotiations, and was spurred, in part, by the three groups' competing legislative agendas. While CMARA and AASP/MA had been working closely together for some time, relations with MABA had periodically been strained since the original MABA state organization split apart years ago.

"It's not that we had totally opposite viewpoints," says Starbard. "We all shared the same values and the same goals, but there was a competitiveness there. It only makes sense for us all to be back on the same page. We're one group, with one voice."

"The positions taken by the three associations were so similar, and so many of the activities were similar, as well as the members, it became clear this was the direction to go," says Steve Regan, former executive director and public relations consultant with MABA.

The groups all had essentially the same goals, but in some cases were lobbying the same legislators with multiple proposals. The result: the industry appeared fractured, and resources were spread thin.

"We had filed bills in conjunction with CMARA. We'd been at this so long that we finally had relationships with all of these legislators," Starbard says. "I made the statement that we know all these people in high places, but we're still gonna screw this up because I'm chasing my guys to support our bill, and MABA is chasing their guys for their bills."

For AASP/MA and CMARA, the top priority was the labor rate bill they've been pushing for several years. MABA, on the other hand, was lobbying for an anti-steering measure and several other bills.

"There's a limit to what we can get passed at the state house," Ricci says. "We were trying to pass one bill, and MABA had several bills up. We had to all get on the same page for the sake of the labor rate bill. What we heard from the industry was that if we don't get some relief on the labor rate issue, nothing else was going to matter."

Collision repair labor rates in Massachusetts are approximately 23 percent below the national average. Although a Special Commission on Auto Body Rates was formed in 2008 to study insurer rate setting practices and examine the benefits of a tiered rating system, the group recommended that the state legislature revisit the labor rate issue to determine recent changes in insurance market regulation would result in higher rates. Since that time, there has been little or no movement on the issue in the legislature.

CMARA and AASP reintroduced the original labor rate legislation during the current session. In March, the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Ways and Means.

The new organization will gain strength in numbers, as well as benefit from its affiliation with the national AASP organization. "When you go into the legislature, they're always asking how many member you have," says Regan, who left MABA prior to the merger. "The new group will have more weight as far as the lobbying and government relations aspect."

There will also be financial benefits for the new group and its members, including an elimination of redundant staffers, lobbyists and industry publications. The reconfigured association will retain AASP/MA executive director Peter Abdelmaseh and lobbyist Martin Corry, along with MABA administrator Nancy Russell. James Castleman will provide legal counsel to the new group, while Thomas Greco Publishing will continue to produce AASP/MA's monthly publication, New England Automotive Report.

That's why Starbard, who also serves as president of the national AASP group, says that other states with multiple associations may find themselves considering mergers as well.With much of the collision industry contracting, shops may not be able to support more than one association.

"It would only make sense," Starbard says. "With what it costs for executive directors, for lobbyists and legal help and administrative help, if you've only got 100 members here, and this guy's got 150 here, you're not being good stewards of the money that shops and vendors are giving you if you're redundant in your operations."

"The last several years have not been good to any business," Regan adds. "With the economy going down, most state associations have seen some attrition."

The only major challenge for the group moving forward will be ensuring that the concerns of both collision and mechanical members are met, but Ricci says there is still a lot of work to do to pull the entire group together.

"We have to clear the brush before we can pave the road to see how this is going to shape up," Ricci says. "We've got to create a foundation to how all of this works together."

The labor rate bill, meanwhile, remains a priority. AASP/MA is spearheading a letter writing campaign in support of the bill.