Illinois – Wade’s new legislative approach

by Anne Koppel Conway

Major consumers’ advocate Wade Ebert, who is president of the Alliance of Automotive Service Professionals of Illinois (AASPI), doesn’t mince words. He and his organization are out to clearly define the appropriate roles for collision repair shops and insurers when working with vehicle owners after accidents.

He believes that many repairers around the country go to their legislative bodies as proponents of anti-steering legislation, etc., with “frickin’ albatrosses around their necks,” Ebert said. They try to deal with pro-insurance, insurance commissioners in their states and insurance companies. That approach does not work well, he said.

The insurers do everything they can to keep “pseudo regulations in force that [for the most part] don’t get enforced” by their state’s insurance commissioners. “When the regulations are enforced, the penalties are so [small] the insurers have no incentive” to obey the law.

Is he concerned that the Illinois legislature might define the roles of repairers and insurers in such a way that might not benefit consumers?

“No,” Ebert said . . . and then he gave a big laugh. He sees the repairers’ relationship with consumers as basic, “universal commercial code or common law. A guy selling stuff is working for a guy buying stuff.” Or, “I repair a car. I bill. Pay me.” Repairers “should have the cojones to do it.”

Simple, yes? . . . well, not quite.

“If I do entertain to let someone else [say – an insurer] make repair or cost decisions for me, I would be participating in a civil conspiracy to violate the Consumer Protection Act,” Ebert said.

Illinois’ Dept. of Insurance regulates insurers “by patterns and practices – never on a case by case basis. So the consumer suffers.”

Ebert and the AASPI have a new way of looking at legislation. The proposed legislation, Amendment to House Bill 2751 of the Illinois Auto Collision Repair Act “polishes and focuses standard consumer fraud law into something very specific to the needs of our consumers – the vehicle owners.” This amendment is beneficial because the current legislation “lacks teeth,” he said.

The amendment is aimed at repairers. If it becomes law and repairers do not following the letter of the law, they will be committing consumer fraud, he said.

The Illinois Automotive Collision Repair Act, created several years ago and then subsequently linked to the consumer fraud and deceptive practices act, provides the consumer with a private right of action and the possibility of treble damages.

The AASPI is taking this approach because many AGs are worried that “they might piss off the insurance industry.” This amendment would take the burden of enforcement away from the state’s attorney general.

“You just never know when the AG will get around to enforcing the law.”

If the law is aimed against insurers, “It will likely never be enforced in a way that will change the market.” But if it is aimed at repairers, it will in effect, limit insurers.

“If we can change repairers' behavior – to bind them more openly to the vehicle owner – we can break up the relationships that repairers have with insurers. It is like taking the flying monkeys away from the Witch. She can fly around all she wants – without her henchmen – she is nothing.

“You have to give constitutional officers and regulators an absolute excuse to do the right thing. Attorneys general “all too often have been lulled to sleep by insurers and need to be shaken awake.”

Basically the proposed amendment would prevent repairers from having agreements with insurance companies. Also repairers would be prevented from allowing insurers to mandate how repairs would be done or write repair estimates.

Ebert has had these ideas in his head for a long time and is ready to “exercise my demons” and testify at legislative hearings. His shop is only minutes away from the state capitol.

Regarding this amendment, a DRP shop owner said, “I won’t be able to honor my DRP agreement if I were to follow this law,” Ebert recalled.

His response to her, “You think?”

Given what’s happening with AIG and in the insurance industry, “even the most pedestrian of people” realize it’s time for a change.

Ebert, who grew up in the business, asked his father, “Was there ever as many people as there are now in the [auto collision repair] industry working for consumers to make the industry right?”

His father’s response was “no.”

Then, Ebert, who has been the full owner of American Auto Body in Springfield, told his father that he plans to stay in the industry. “If there’s ever a time to take up the mantle, it’s now! We’ve had our asses handed to us along the way, but we’ve learned from it.”

He has been the full owner of American Auto Body since 2000.