PROSSER, Wash. — The results of a new, statistically valid, third-party survey of collision repairers are in, and they reinforce what many have suspected: these are challenging times in the collision industry.

Sponsored by the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), the project is entitled "SCRS' Report on Repair Facility and Insurance Company Relationships," which is based on the survey conducted by CSi Complete, a nationally known provider of customer satisfaction indexing, that specializes in the collision repair, claims and other service industries. A representative sample of shops from across the nation, including both DRP and non-DRP facilities, were polled with results ranked at a 95 percent confidence level.

The survey was commissioned by SCRS to confirm what many collision repairers have come to believe — that the business climate has grown increasingly difficult, and the industry is in desperate need of change.

“Conversations between SCRS members, and informal polling on our part, implied that certain key factors were threatening the health of collision repair businesses," explains SCRS Executive Director Dan Risley. "We needed something scientific to confirm these assertions. After some discussion, the Board concluded that a credible, qualified outside party performing statistically valid research was needed, so we contacted CSi Complete."

The compiled survey results contain two main areas of emphasis. The first section provides feedback from participating repairers on what issues impact their businesses most and to what degree. The second part sheds light on how participants perceive their relationships with 13 major insurance companies. This press release summarizes SCRS' findings in relation to industry impacts. A follow-up release will cover findings in regard to repairer-insurer relationships. Survey participants were asked to evaluate the impact of nine pressing issues on their businesses.

"The results were revealing in that they confirmed what SCRS members thought all along," states SCRS Chairman Farzam Afshar. "As an association, you like to think you have your finger on the pulse of your members and the industry as a whole. This survey helps prove it."

Risley agrees that the survey uncovered no real surprises. "For example, we could tell the adequacy of labor rates was a concern from the vast number of bills being introduced around the country to address the issue," he says. "The same is true of steering practices, which many states likewise have tried to address through legislation. Unfortunately, enforcement of such laws traditionally poses a challenge because hard evidence of steering is difficult to obtain, although we are hoping this may change as a number of collision repairers have begun to initiate lawsuits against insurers in an effort to show that steering cannot be tolerated."

For more information visit www.scrs.com or e-mail SCRS at info@scrs.com.