May 9, 2018—BMW launched an addition to its certified collision repair program last week in order to create more dealer-owned body shops across the U.S.
The announcement came at the 2018 BMW National Aftersales Conference in Las Vegas, Nev.
The BMW certified collision repair program has been around since the early 2000s, said David Williams, collision repair center manager for Classic BMW. Williams has been a BMW certified body shop since 2013.
Now, a dealer will be able to sponsor up to two independent shops in its primary market to apply to be a BMW certified collision repair center, he said.
Kenn Sparks, head of U.S. Corporate Communications for BMW confirmed the addition to the program.
"I have watched the program go from just a handful of shops to over 160 across the country," Williams said. "With over 300 dealers, BMW needed to do something to help fill those spots where there were no dealer owned shops."
They will have to comply with the tooling, training and facility mandates of the program, he says. Previously the shop had to be 51 percent owned by the dealer before it could become a certified collision repair center.
The program will give dealers the chance to sponsor a local shop to fill the need for repair facilities in areas where dealers do not own their own body shop, Williams said.
