Quite often, they ended up disappointed.
Because of the watered-down language in the laws or the failure of regulatory bodies to enforce them properly, the legislation appeared to do little to stop insurer steering. Disappointed and fatigued, some repairers (and a section of the industry) lost their enthusiasm for politics. Many repairers carried on, supporting other legislation.
Ten years later, the collision repair community faces the same questions regarding legislation about steering or any other industry issue: Does state legislation make a difference? Is that difference worth the investment of shop resources? Unfortunately, there's no easy answer to either. This isn't necessarily because of the mixed or muted results of such legislation.
There's a larger political reality at work. Fundamental changes in any arena – business, society, education, etc. – that can be wrought by legislation often take time and must be revisited continually. If repairers are going to access where they stand with state legislation accurately, they might be better served by analyzing the issues that have bogged them down politically along with solutions being drawn up to remedy their political ills.
Enforcement evaporation
A common legislative refrain in the collision industry has been, "We have enough laws on the books. We just need someone to enforce them."
Stephen Regan, principal at Regan Strategies and co-chairman of the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) Governmental Committee, cites a more pointed metaphor for the lack of regulatory muscle from insurance commissioner offices: "What would you do if your house was broken into and robbed every day and when you called the police, no one came? In our industry, our businesses are robbed every day. When we call the cops, no one comes."
Repairers have many theories why the regulatory bodies empowered to enforce the laws designed to protect them, especially from insurers they regard as predatory, often appear disinterested or powerless. They point to political pressure from insurers and the fact that many employees in insurance commissioners offices come from the insurance community.
The main reasons are probably less conspiratorial, Regan says.
"The longer something is on the books, the less attention it gets," he says. "Over time, the people opposed to these laws tend to find loopholes."
Whatever the reason, the lack of enforcement drains industry interest in the political process. The impact of this drain is significant in an industry that always has found itself ill at ease with politics.
This ill feeling arises, in part, because of the disparate nature of each. The collision repair industry is populated by mom-and-pop shops more interested and practiced in repairing vehicles than working through the intricacies and oddities of a state house, Regan says.Throw in the often self-serving (and morally ambivalent) nature of politics, and there's little wonder repairers and associations can be turned off or have their patience tested by the political process. Case in point – the growing pains being felt by the Iowa Collision Repair Association (ICRA) as it takes its first steps in the political arena.
ICRA was formed five years ago and became involved in the legislative process during the past three years. To date, it has supported one piece of legislation, a bill that would eliminate a state tax on paint and materials.
ICRA pursued the legislation after discovering Iowa was one of only three states with the tax, says Bob Jones, chairman of the ICRA Legislative Committee and owner of R Jones BodyPros in Des Moines.
"We, as the body shop, have to pay tax on our paint and materials," he says. "We're not reimbursed for that. If we could get that passed, it would have a huge impact. It would affect every shop in the state."
Repealing the tax would cost Iowa less than $1 million dollars a year, which would seem to make passage relatively easy, Jones says. Instead, the bill has been stalled by several hurdles.
"We were coming along fine," Jones says. "We had a legislator working with us. He got sideways with our lobbyist on a completely different bill, so he stopped supporting ours."
Next, the political winds in the state changed when a newly elected Republican legislature replaced a Democratic one. The new legislature won't support the bill because insurers complain about the cost and the party in power views it as a tax increase.
Jones has found it difficult sledding on legislative efforts that could impact repairers. Recently, the Iowa legislature began discussing performing a study on direct repair programs but balked at the idea because of costs – including reimbursement of travel costs.
"That was news to me," he says. "I've been in the industry for 40 years and served on a million committees, and no one paid my way."
Jones and the ICRA remain hopeful about the tax bill, and if it can be passed, they plan to move on to other legislative work.
Connecticut takes a new road
While Iowa takes a traditional path, the Auto Body Association of Connecticut (ABAC), one of the industry's most active associations, is adopting an entirely new philosophy.
The association will no longer pay its lobbyists to promote legislation, says Bill Romaniello, owner of All-Pro Collision Repair in Plantsville, Conn., and legislative director for the ABAC. Instead, ABAC has adopted a defensive position and will fight legislation pushed by insurers at the expense of repairers.It will go on the offensive in the courts by filing class action lawsuits against insurers.
"Politics is a business," Romaniello says. "They're in the business to keep you coming back and back and back. After seeing the language in legislation watered down and changed, we've tired of it. Insurers are going to stretch things out to wear us down. Legislators aren't going to stick their necks out for us."
The ABAC plans to save its resources to build up a war chest and focus its efforts where it believes it can best succeed.
"What has worked for us is the courts," he says. "It's better to spend our dollars in class action lawsuits where they've proven to do more for us."
The ABAC will use any restitution from its civil cases (it's working to file a case against Progressive; another against the Hartford is on appeal) and invest it in training and education for association members, Romaniello says.
"We need to be fixing cars not laws," he says. "Government is not going to solve our industry's problems. Only we can."
Remedy one: close relations
Where Romaniello sees politics as another problem for repairers to overcome, some shops and associations see solutions – if solutions are addressed properly. The industry can turn to state legislatures, but it needs to know how to do so effectively first, says Judell Anderson, executive director, Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Minnesota (AASP-Minn.). She says pushing for specific legislation successfully means consistent presence and constant pressure.
"You have to form relationships with legislators," she says.
Repairers also need to be dedicated to political work over the long term. Anderson says the AASP-Minn. has been successful in large part because the association has been working with legislators for almost half a century. The primary duty of the association's first paid staff member was to work as a lobbyist, which was 40 years ago, she says.
The AASP-Minn. also benefits from a Collision Advisory Committee, consisting of 12 veteran shop owners who prioritize what legislation the association will pursue based on a careful political assessment.
"You don't want to waste time pursuing legislation that won't pass," Anderson says. "You need to pick your battles carefully."
Associations also must employ the right lobbyist because a lot of business gets done in the state capital hallways, Anderson says.
"You have to have someone who's at the capital all the time," she says. "They can form relationships with legislative staff members who are instrumental in getting things done."
These relationships and the constant presence also can be a significant part of garnering better regulatory results.
Similarly, repairers can improve regulation by working closely with members of a state's insurance commissioner office to include clearer language in any legislation and to work with them to more clearly interpret laws, says David McClune, executive director of the California Auto Body Association.
Regan strikes a similar tone with his assertion that shops and associations can be successful if they work more closely with legislators by creating personal bonds. He suggests inviting local legislators into shops or holding fundraisers for them – whatever it takes to form a relationship.
"A cup of coffee with a local legislator is probably the best lobby," he says. "A personalized relation on the state level is attainable. A shop with 15 employees is more significant to a legislator than a lobbyist. You'll find legislators care."
Once repairers form these relationships, they need to address legislators in a way in which they can best respond. Specifically, they need to identify issues that can be addressed through legislation (as opposed to those that can be resolved via business changes). It's also important to attempt to work out issues with opponents, such as insurers, first and look for common ground before turning to the legislature.
"No legislator wants to be a referee," Regan says. "You get some respect there."
Remedy two: Work together
Repairers will get more respect if they can attract other stakeholders – motorcycle or consumer associations; any potential stakeholder from within or outside the industry – who would benefit from legislation.
Repairers shouldn't attempt to convince legislators to introduce legislation based on their existence in other states (Regan says it has little bearing). Alliances between associations could give repairers impressive leverage against opposition from the insurance industry, Anderson and McClune say.
"A broad-based effort is going to thin out resources of the opposition, Anderson says. "The biggest challenge is finding that single issue we can rally around and then place our resources there. It would improve the odds. Once that precedent is set in one state it makes it so much easier for others to follow."
Some progress has been made toward associations working together, though much more can be done, McClune says. He and Anderson report steady contact between their associations and others. Anderson welcomes inquiries from other associations looking for advice.
Best available option
Even with the added muscle of cooperation between associations, passing legislation would still be difficult, Anderson says. Not every association could expect success. Enforcement, as always, would remain an issue.
These factors could leave many in the industry continuing to doubt the efficacy of state laws. Janet Chaney, a long-time industry advocate who works on the CIC Governmental Committee, points to two reasons not to abandon these legislative efforts.
First, most industry associations are just learning to act politically. With time and more experience, these associations will learn how to pass substantial legislation and get regulators to act, especially if they continually revisit these laws and educate other repairers on them.
Second, repairers have few opportunities to work together to improve their industry.
"We have nowhere else to go," Chaney says. "Right now, we have few options. Having a voice in our state capital is a significant option that can help promote and create a sustainable collision industry."
