After polling body shop owners all over the country and asking them how they’re adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic, we began hearing the same things.
The topics that kept emerging included safety, reputation and communication, and how they can be used to stay in operation during these confusing and frustrating times.
Many of the owners and managers we talked to are still looking for solutions and learning on the fly, and wondering what will happen during the next few months. Since no one really knows how long this will last, everyone is searching for information they can use to stay afloat for the duration.
General Manager Sam Plumb, 33, at Alpine Auto Renovation in Salt Lake City, UT, is a second-generation body shop guy always looking for innovative ways to run a better shop. During his career, he has worked as an auto insurance consultant, a claims manager and a well-known industry blogger, and has a master's in business administration.
When the pandemic hit, Plumb already had a significant backlog, which gave his crew a golden opportunity to catch up, but what happens after that?
Plumb said almost immediately in early March, he was keeping the insurance companies, his customers and vendors abreast of what he was doing and what his immediate plans were.
“That made things a lot easier because some shops have gone to half-staff while others are doing business as usual," he said. "People are inundated with information right now, so our emails and messages on social media are short and sweet.”
Plumb can already see some major changes will come from these uncertain times, many of which will be good for the industry.
“All of the insurance adjusters are working virtually, which means that they’re a lot easier to work with,” he said. “It enables us to fix these cars without any interference because we don’t have to wrestle with them over things like parts and other items. It is also helping our cycle time without sacrificing quality at all. They are also relying on our estimators and photos more, which is helping us to move along our timeline and get the work done.
“After all this is done, maybe the insurers will realize that they don’t need to send adjusters here all the time,” Plumb said. “We can do the work without being overmanaged, and this period will be a good example of that for us and many other shops, I imagine.”
Another development that will likely become routine post-pandemic will lead to a cleaner and more efficient shop, Plumb said.
“This period of time is allowing us to establish better procedures that we will continue to use permanently. When we’re busy, we can’t stop to alter our processes, but now we can and in the end, it will benefit our business significantly.”
If the pandemic continues through the summer and even into the fall, what will Plumb do?
“At this point, we are taking everything one day a time. We will continue what we’re doing, but are prepared to change and adapt quickly," he said.
"We have been able to keep all of our people employed and safe, and our customers and insurance companies are happy, so we are in a good spot and staying positive without panicking."
Ed Attanasio