The Automotive Service Association (ASA) and the Society of
Collision Repair Specialists joined a coalition of automotive
associations to oppose the National Conference of Insurance
Legislators’ (NCOIL) Model Act for Motor Vehicle Crash Parts
and Repair.
NCOIL’s Property and Casualty Committee will vote on whether
to approve the Model Act at its spring meeting March 4-6 in
Washington, D.C. A letter sent by the coalition to NCOIL
clarifies that although the Model Act has been brought before
the committee before, it has more opposition than ever, far
beyond the letter’s signatories alone.
The letter said that the signatories oppose the amendment
introduced by Rep. Brian Kennedy, D-R.I., because of its
similarity to the amendment offered by Rep. George Keiser, R-
N.D., that had been voted on and defeated in the NCOIL annual
meeting in Austin, Texas, last fall: “This amendment falsely
presumes that a certified part will restore a vehicle to its
pre-loss condition and falsely equates that part to an
original equipment manufacturer (OEM) part, since the pre-loss
vehicle in almost all instances would have OEM parts.”
The reason for this combined opposition is the same today as
it was when discussion began on this model at the July 2009
NCOIL meeting. This model is a solution in search of a
problem, the letter said. More than 40 states already have
addressed the use of aftermarket parts by passing notice and
disclosure legislation. Many of these states have statutes
with language similar to the proposed model act or that
actually go further in protecting the rights of consumers,
some of which include consent clauses that give consumers the
right to choose which parts are used by repairers to fix
vehicles after a crash.
The proposed model act rehashes old issues that have already
been resolved and passed into law in the vast majority of
states, the letter said. The signatories have consistently
opposed this model, and want the committee to reject the model
in its entirety. However, if NCOIL does not oppose the act,
the letter urges it to support the amendments offered by
Representative Barb Byrum, which would more appropriately hold
each party liable for their roles in the separate claims
settlement and repair processes.
To read the entire letter, including all the organizations
that signed it, click here.
