This ain't your daddy's collision repair industry. In years past, vehicles could actually be repaired with the old tongue-in-cheek adage "Heat it 'til it drips, pull it 'til it rips, set the toe, and let it go". It's almost cliché by now to point it out, but vehicles are more complex than they've ever been. [1] [2] [3]

Nowadays, it's commonplace for entry-level vehicles to have ultra high-strength steel bodies-in-white and standard active driver assistance systems. If you are attempting to repair these vehicles without continuous training, without consulting repair information every time, or without the proper equipment, you may be leaving your customers with eggshell cars. [4] [5]

Here's a tragic example: in 2013, Matthew and Marcia Seebachan hit a hydroplaning pickup truck in their Honda Fit. The Seebachans became trapped in their burning vehicle. It turned out that a previous hail repair had been botched - the shop decided to glue the roof skin on, rather than weld it according to Honda's workshop manual. In a deposition, the dealership's collision director attempted to argue that shops are not obligated to follow OEM repair procedures. He admitted that the technician performing the repair did not read the relevant repair procedures. He attempted to argue that the shop was qualified to countermand Honda's procedures. He claimed that glue is categorically better than welds, and that glue could be used for this vehicle's roof because it is specified in the repair of some other vehicles' roofs. In short, he regurgitated many of the fallacies that have given the collision industry a bad name and compromised the safety of our highways for years. This hail repair ended up costing his company $31.5 million dollars and, more significantly, ruining two people's lives. You can read more about the case here and read the full text of the deposition here.

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