Survey: Majority of Shops Acknowledge Need for Post-Repair Safety Inspections

Oct. 3, 2024
Many said the OEMs don't make clear what is “required” versus what is “recommended.”

About half (49%) of the 476 shops answering a question about post-repair safety inspections said they perform them at least the majority of the time, according to results of the recent “Who Pays for What?” survey conducted by Collision Advice and Crash Network.

But when asked why the inspections aren’t performed in all cases, the largest group (33 percent) said it’s not clear what is “required” versus what is “recommended.” The survey results also reveal that many shops feel the automakers are not doing enough to improve the situation.

“Please make the requirements for inspections very clear,” the owner of a shop in South Carolina pleaded with the OEMs when responding to the survey.

“We need clearer procedures,” said an estimator at a large MSO location in Ohio.

When asked what they want automakers to know when it comes to safety inspection procedures, the most common feedback, perhaps not surprisingly, revolved around two words: “recommended” and “required.”

“Please make safety inspection procedures ‘required’ instead of ‘recommended,’ and specify which are required in which events (i.e. airbag deployment vs. seatbelt deployment vs. location/nature of damage vs. structural and non-structural repair),” said the manager of an independent shop in Illinois.

“OEMs have to be more vocal about the necessity, and the repercussions of not doing them,” said the manager of a high-volume independent shop in Florida.

“More manufacturers need to require, not recommend,” an Idaho shop owner said. “And more definition of a ‘collision’ would be helpful also.”

The latest quarterly “Who Pays for What?” survey is open through the month of October. It focuses on billing and payment practices related to scanning and calibrations, aluminum repair and shop supplies.

Survey participants receive a free report with complete survey findings along with analysis and resources to help shops better understand and use the information presented.

About the Author

FenderBender Staff Reporters

The FenderBender staff reporters have nearly three decades of combined journalism and collision repair experience.

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