DEG forecasts 1,000 inquiries in first year

"That is an outstanding average turnaround time in view of the level of complexity that often is involved," Schulenburg says. "It is a testament to the information providers (IPs) that get these issues resolved."

"We are not interested in increasing labor times," Schulenburg says. "We want to facilitate information accuracy. Our goal is not to get more pay for shops. Our goal is to make sure that the available information accurately reflects the job that needs to be done to properly repair the vehicle."

Any early reticence on the part of IPs to participate in DEG has been overcome, according to Schulenburg, an independent contractor who handles day-to-day management of DEG.

When the DEG was first proposed there was reluctance on the part of some IPs, which saw the process as duplicative of services they already offered. It also was initially viewed by some IPs as an obstacle between the IP and its customers.

Ironically, most of DEG's heavy lifting is done by the IPs. After repairers submit inquiries, the IPs have to evaluate, research and respond to them. Some inquiries, such as overlap and repair issues, can be quite complex. Responses are posted on the IP's and DEG's Web site.

"We get a lot of inquiries about new model vehicles," Schulenburg says. "Sometimes OE information is carried over from the previous model year, but if the vehicle model changed, repair shops encounter that when they make the repair. There also have been a number of refinish items and overlap issues."

Schulenburg said he is surprised by the number of shops that don't have IP guides and don't realize the guides are available to them free online. Each IP publishes its guides on their own Web sites, and all three guides are available on the DEG Web site under the "Get Educated" tab.

"Repairers need to understand these products and work with them properly," he says. "If the guides were used as intended and the rules applied as intended, we would not have all the questions that we have."

All questions and answers are posted on the DEG Web site, www.degweb.org, so everybody can see how issues are resolved. While 725 inquiries is a good start, the site is not being fully utilized by the entire collision repair industry.

"There are 40,000 shops and if half those shops used it only once, we would have 20,000 inquiries a year," Schulenburg says. "We want to see DEG used by a larger percentage of the market. We also want to make it better, and that will come with time, experience and the feedback that we receive.

"We've tried to remove as many obstacles as possible to make this user-friendly," he says. "Inquiries take only three to five minutes to submit and the Web site walks you through what you need to do. We've had folks with virtually no computer skills tell us that the Web site was easy to use."

Some shops are using DEG as part of their estimating process, Schulenburg said. They do a search in DEG for the vehicle they are estimating. That ensures they get the latest information available. Items resolved through the DEG are incorporated into the IP's databases and updates are sent via CDs. But there could be a four- to six-week lag time between the change being adopted and the CD being updated and distributed, he said.

Several original equipment manufacturers, including Toyota, have been supportive of the DEG and have requested presentations at their group meetings.

"We've had lots of positive feedback from users," Schulenburg says. "Shops tell us that if a procedure was changed through a DEG inquiry and sent to the insurer, the insurance company has accepted it."

He encourages all repair shops to visit the DEG Web site and use it.

"This is not a tool only for the estimator," he says. "If something doesn't seem right to technicians, they can submit an inquiry. We want to get everybody in the industry involved with the Web site to do the right thing. Your input matters and it can make a difference."