02/18/2019

WHAT DOES ADAS MEAN FOR REPAIR SHOPS?

Source: ABRN

The use of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) can potentially reduce the overall number of accidents, but can also make repairs more complex and costly because the cameras and sensors that will be embedded into more panels and parts on the vehicle.

According to auto claims solution provider CCC, repair shops will need to retrain their staff and adopt new technology and processes in order to remain competitive in this evolving environment.

CCC’s most recent Crash Course report found that while ADAS will reduce certain types of collisions, they wont’ eliminate them entirely. In addition, because the current fleet is a mix of vehicles that either don’t have ADAS technology or have a variety of different systems, the effect on each vehicle when it comes to collisions can vary.

“In certain types of accidents, like front-to-rear collisions, the technology works really well,” says Susanna Gotsch, industry analyst at CCC, noting that a number of organizations and OEMS have demonstrated the effectiveness of theses solutions over the past several years. “However, very few cars actually have the technology, and you can’t pick who rear-ends you.”

CCC compared claims data between vehicles with and without ADAS systems. “What the data suggests is that when the vehicle is equipped with ADAS, you can expect to see some reduction of frequency, but you can also expect some reduction in severity depending on who hits who,” Gotsch says.

If you are driving an ADAS-equipped car and can’t avoid a collision, the technology will mitigate the damage because the system will slow the vehicle down before impact. That can reduce repair costs, even with the addition of cameras and sensors in the vehicle.

However, if you are driving an ADAS car and are rear-ended by someone who doesn’t have the technology, then the repair can be much more expensive because of the velocity of impact combined with the expense of the technology systems.  “In those cases, we’re finding that repair costs are starting to trend higher because of all the parts that need replaced and lack of non-OE part alternatives,” Gotsch says.

The technology can also result in additional labor for each repair. If the repair shop isn’t familiar with the particular system, or doesn’t have the right tooling, they may also have to outsource the repair to a dealership. “You not only lose control of your cycle times, but also end up with a hefty sublet bill,” Gotsch says.

According to Mark Fincher, vice president of market solutions at CCC, shops can do a number of things to prepare for the coming influx of ADAS-equipped vehicles

ICAR training and OEM repair procedures are going to be even more important. Shops should stay current on repair procedures, in addition to using vehicle diagnostic tools as part of the assessment process. “Documentation will be more important,” Fincher says. “Doing the diagnostics and checking repair procedures will have to be documented. We’ve seen from litigation in the industry that documentation will be even more important for shops to minimize liability and ensure that all the steps have been completed.”

“Having a tool in place for looking up repair procedures is critical,” Fincher adds. “The same goes for documentation. Many shops use a checklist taped to the windshield. It will be important for shops to look at electronic documentation in the future.”

In addition, Fincher says that repairers should use artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to help them streamline vehicle damage assessment, parts ordering, and other processes in order to put more focus on repairing the vehicle.

Big data solutions can also be used to help analyze crash data, identify common accident types, and better anticipate what future repair needs might be in the market.

Another technology fix: using mobile technology, chatbots, or other digital tech to improve communication with customers and suppliers in order to further improve efficiencies in the repair process.

Fincher expects that more shops will specialize in particular nameplates moving forward, because the training and tooling will simply be too expensive if a shop tries to follow an all makes/models format.

“As vehicles get more complex and unique, there will be an increasing need to use those OEM diagnostic tools and calibration systems to get the vehicle back to pre-accident condition,” Fincher says. “Each tool is different. Trying to train a technician across a dozen tools can be challenging, especially given the frequency with which they may see any one of those vehicles. You may see technicians become experts in specific vehicles within a shop.

Gotsch says that technology is also causing total loss figures to climb, but total losses have also been affected by the increasing age of the fleet (nearly 12 years old on average now) and higher salvage values for older vehicles caused by the dip in sales during the recession a decade ago.

“The values of individual vehicles are flattening, but repair costs are climbing,” Gotsch says. “We’re seeing more of those vehicles on the border of being totaled.”

However, with ADAS technology on more newer vehicles, the severity of the collisions may decline enough to help depress the increase in total losses. “Cars that may have been traveling at 50mph that veer into traffic, they may at least have some better opportunity to slow down or mitigate the accident,” Gotsch says. “That may pull down repair costs enough to counter rising technology costs, but it’s unknown right now.”