Sept. 25, 2014—Due to differences in recommendations on application procedures, the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) has compiled clearcoat recommendations from seven top providers and made them available to the industry in PDF form.
Stating the need to collect and disseminate this information to collision repair professionals, the SCRS said: “The collision repair industry benefits from accessibility to clear and concise documentation regarding processes and procedures that are necessary to produce warrantable repairs.”
The SCRS issued its request to automotive refinish coatings manufacturers in July, with the intent to update documentation on the issue of mid-panel clearcoat blending.
Previous correspondence collected 10 years ago demonstrated a consistent requirement for clearcoat application to extend across an entire panel, to the nearest breakpoint, in order for the repairs to be covered under refinish manufacturer warranties.
Due to recent instances where some carriers have limited claim indemnification based on confusion over necessary processes to achieve a warrantable refinish application, SCRS said it saw value in updating the responses and compiling the information for release to the industry.
As part of the update, SCRS posed the following two questions:
1. What is your company’s recommended procedure for applying clearcoat to qualify for a lifetime refinish warranty?
2. Is there an acceptable procedure to tape, melt or blend clearcoat mid-panel, and achieve a warrantable refinish?
The following responses are on the SCRS website in PDF form:
“Having supporting documentation that substantiates the work we bill for is critical to our collision repair members,” said Andy Dingman, vice chairman of SCRS. “Fortunately, the documentation provided is very clear and should allow the repair facilities to help educate their consumers about which repairs and processes are eligible for a lifetime warranty, and what types of repairs would be excluded. We certainly applaud these companies for their interest in helping to provide useful and relevant information as a resource to our membership.”
