Texas Watch Speaks on Auto Safety at HABA Conference

Texas Watch Speaks on Auto Safety at HABA Conference

(Photo (left to right): John Kopriva, HABA President; Burl Richards, ABAT President; Ware Wendell, Executive Director of Texas Watch; Robert McDorman, Founder of Vehicle Value Experts)

We were honored to speak at the Houston Auto Body Association's conference last week, and we thank them for the invitation. 

The body shops that belong to professional associations care about doing the job the right way the first time. They are the industry leaders who invest in training for their employees, purchase the best equipment and parts, and have the guts to stand up to the insurance companies when they try to force shops to cheap out repairs. There's no such thing as a free lunch, and cheap repairs end up costing the consumer much more when your vehicle's value is diminished and your family's safety is put at risk. Automobiles that are improperly repaired can turn into death traps in the next collision. 

At the conference, Executive Director Ware Wendell joined other experts and shared our experience fighting the insurance industry at the Texas Capitol through the past 20 years. We spoke to the pressing need for the public to be informed about their rights when it comes to selecting a body shop of their choice after a wreck. Too often, the insurance industry tries to illegally steer, pressure, or incentivize consumers to use a body shop that the insurance company regularly does business with. Ask yourself: Are those insurance-friendly body shops looking out for you, or are they looking out for the insurance cartel that regularly butters their bread? 

Texas consumers should be on the lookout if an insurance company tries to steer them to a particular body shop or pushes them into using inferior aftermarket parts. Take the time to KNOW YOUR RIGHTS, and push back if an insurance company tries to bully you.

Those of us who care about safety and protecting consumers are getting organized and will be taking on the insurance cartel during the next legislative session. Insurance companies who care only about padding their profits have rigged the system for too long. The time has come to break their stranglehold on the repair process.