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Accidents Will Happen: Are You Prepared (Sixth in a six part series)

by Stephen G. Regan

Being involved in an automobile accident is bad enough. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for

consumers to find out that the worse is yet to come (barring serious injury or worse). That's when

consumers have to try and sort out the terms of their insurance policy, how the car will be repaired and

by who, and what all these new words they never heard before actually mean.

Most consumers could use some help when it comes to choosing a collision repair shop after they have

had an accident. After all the most recent statistics show that drivers average one accident for every

seven years of driving. But how one gets that help is a hot topic of debate among those in the industry,

as well as at the State House.

Behind closed doors at the Massachusetts state house representatives of the collision repair and

insurance industry have been meeting with a group of legislators appointed by the Chairman of the

Financial Services Committee, Ron Mariano (D-Quincy), for over two years now. The "Auto Body

Working Group" consist of representatives from Massachusetts based auto insurers, the Massachusetts

Auto Body Association (MABA), Central Mass Auto Rebuilders Association (CMARA), Association of Auto

Service Providers (AASP-MA/RI), and three legislators from the Financial Services Committee, which has

jurisdiction on insurance matters. State representative Bob Spellane (D-Worcester) is the Chairman.

The legislation they are working on would make dramatic changes to the current process in place that

Imagine if you were going to buy a new car and the bank that was lending you the money pressured you

to buy from a specific list of car dealers. Now add to that a statement by the banks loan officer that while

you can legally buy your car from any dealer you choose, if you choose someone other than on their

preferred list they may not pay for the tires, or radio, or some other part of the vehicle.

It is no great secret that consumers know little about the small print in their insurance policies. When

there is disagreement, consumers often feel at a disadvantage, and believe they will get less than they

are entitled to. But are consumers as diligent when the collision repairer they chose to repair the car is

disputing the amount they are owed?

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