natsurgeon

Remember, not everyone is a customer you desire. Be prepared to send problem customers down the road. When a rare customer brings parts for me to install, I explain that it might seem like a good deal for them but it's really not. I try to convert them, but failing that, I charge time and a half for the job and NO WARRANTY for part or labor. Your'e not required to provide a warranty for anything you do anyway. The warranty you do provide only helps make you competitive in the market place. So tread carefully with warranties on any job. And lifetime warranties (marketing gimmick)...even the guy who built the car wasn't that stupid. Make sure the warranty or lack thereof is on the invoice and they sign it. Remember you must honor what you put in writing to be an honest shop. Anything you do beyond what you put in writing is goodwill for which you have no obligation. "This is how I make my living. It's not my hobby."

This is an attempt to scrutinize your price. The insurance company will try to make you appear to be the bad guy. The collision repair industry has mostly succumbed to to this treatment by the insurance companies in order to secure a flow of future jobs. You can charge what ever you want in this FREE market. The wonderful thing about capitalism is you are free to operate and position yourself in the market place however you choose. The market will either see value in what ever you charge or shut you out. You're the guy taking all the risks! Anything else is socialism/communism The way Joe handles it is exactly right. I've doing the same for years.

I live in a state (Florida) where if I decided tomorrow to be a barber, I would not be allowed until I went through and training and licensing process. After all there's sharp tools involved and the customer might get cut. Our credentials and certifications will not start to mean anything to consumers until it is necessary to have credentials (under state law) in order to take money for putting brakes on someones family sedan. And if your caught taking money for repairs without a license, you're busted. The technology is too advanced, the cost of failure too high, and the risk and danger to consumers too great to allow a novice to do what we do for less money without the consequence of liability. It's true certifications are no a substitute for experience, knowledge of theory of operation and down right grit and grime under the fingernails. But I believe credentials are a key component in delivering us from the status of grease monkey to automotive service professional. We need to shut the doors to those who either don't or won't qualify themselves. I'll give an example of a mechanic named Frank. Frank started out as a mechanic in the Army and after four years went to work for a local Chrysler dealership. Frank was what you call an A list producer. He was put to task at the dealer rebuilding engines in the Florida Highway Patrol cars. (Yeah baby 440ci Chrysler) He would pull the engine, tear down, renew bearing and gaskets, valve job the heads and reassemble and back in the car...in one day. Frank went to plenty of classes provided by Chrysler and the dealer receiving his certificates of attendance. Later he decided to leave the dealership and open his own shop. You might notice this is a story not uncommon to many in the industry. By the time I met Frank he was burned out with fixing the cars and running the business. I bought his business and Frank went off to another career in landscaping for a while. We stayed in touch and a few years before Frank turned 60, he asked me to hire him. That turned out to be my first encounter with an A lister technician. It was breath taking to watch him. No longer doubting his engine overhaul in a day, I watch Frank run circles around three 20 year old technician somethings. But what I learned also was He had learned some bad habits, though he wasn't aware. I watch Frank one day doing front brake pads and asked why he didn't open the bleed valve when compressing the caliper piston. You can guess his answer, "well, I just always done it this way". I pointed out to him that the right answer on the test is to open the bleeder valve. Now some 40 years and Frank didn't know. He had never taken a test that gave him a broad view of industry standards. It's not that Frank didn't want to do the right procedure, He didn't know because he was never taught that an ABS control module could come back and bite you if you squeeze nasty brake fluid back up in to it. Frank was always nervous about taking tests. Had he more years ahead of himself in the career, I would have personally tutored him to make sure he passed his test to become master certified and have a title worthy of his experience and ability. At any time, in any shop, as you know a simple misstep, and suddenly you've ruined some expensive part. Mix the wrong fluids together and you've got a serious science project going on. I believe the time has come to move our industry into the realm of professional services. No more hacks. You're either a pro, or your working towards becoming one.

This is the result of industry self inflicted wounds from decades of self abuse. Shops competing on the basis of lowest price or free diagnosis while carrying on like a bunch of prostitutes. Doctors have never and would never compete on the basis of lowest price. And lawyers...don't get me started. The formula forward is simple: act like a pro, look like a pro, get credentialed like a pro and demand to get paid like a pro. We know and do everything plumbers, electricians and carpenters do. Yet we accept lower pay? Knuckle Heads! We need a national association of automotive professionals to serve as the filtering body for those who want to work in this profession in any state. I would accept a professional tier system of apprentice, journeymen and masters. And states would do well to require it. Yes by law! The technology is too complex, the investment too high and the risk too great to allow the "hole in the wall gang" to continue to operate. In my state (Florida) you have to have a license to cut hair or do manicures. Ooooh!, dangerous cutting instruments involved. But if you want rent a hole and put brakes on someones family car for money, all you need is a business license, but no credentials or evidence of training needed. And, at least in Florida, that's just OK. We have potential customers going to dealerships and despising the experience. They go there because they think it's their only reliable option. It's like a wild dog returning to his own vomit for a meal. At least it's a reliable food source. Either we as independent shop owners take hold of our collective futures as professionals or we will be over run by dealerships who have much more capital. So like wise, if you want to be a part of this fraternity of automotive service professionals, you'll have to pay to play. Who is going to fix the 360 degree radar, collision controlled, auto braking, gps guided, antiskid, stability controlled, fully networked auto pilot system car of the future? It better be you and me. And get ready for the Jetsons, because next they're going to leave to ground.