The Auto Care Association presented its 2026 industry awards recognizing excellence in education and workforce development during the association’s Auto Care Connect event, held May 11-14 at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta. Three companies received Auto Care Education (ACE) Awards, with I-CAR winning the small company category, Christian Brothers Automotive the mid-size category and FleetPride, Inc. […]
Mercury Insurance Claims Analysis Pinpoints 3 p.m. as Daily Crash Peak, 4 p.m. for Injuries
Mercury Insurance (NYSE: MCY) has released an analysis of five years of proprietary claims data identifying 3 p.m. to 3:10 p.m. as the daily peak for weekday crash volume, with injury severity peaking an hour later between 4 p.m. and 4:10 p.m. as traffic begins moving faster. The Los Angeles-based carrier said the data shows […]
Distracted Driving, Bodily Injury and Policy Shopping Reshape Auto Insurance Risk
LexisNexis annual U.S. auto insurance trend report says insurance cost figuring more prominently in auto purchase decisions. LexisNexis Risk Solutions on May 19 released its 2026 U.S. Auto Insurance Trends Report, which aggregates and analyzes market data from prior years on driving behavior, policy shopping, rate impacts, vehicle mix and claims outcomes. The annual report […]
Plasnomic Completes First Phase of Polypropylene Bumper Repair Testing, Advances to Methodology Comparison
Plasnomic announced May 18 that it has completed the first stage of its global polypropylene bumper repair benchmarking program, evaluating weld materials and fusion repair methodologies from 11 plastic repair solution providers across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. The completion marks an early milestone in the organization’s effort to publish a first set of […]
Crash Champions Activates Sunbit Consumer Financing Program
Crash Champions has activated a nationwide consumer financing program powered by Sunbit, making pay-over-time options available to customers at more than 650 of the multi-shop operator’s collision repair centers across 38 states. The service, marketed as “Fix Now Pay Later,” officially launched May 8 and was announced May 18. The rollout makes Crash Champions the […]
Brandon Wistrom Named President of AASPMN 2026-27 Board of Directors
The Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Minnesota (AASPMN) named Brandon Wistrom of Deano’s Collision & Mechanical in Elk River as president of its 2026-2027 board of directors. Wistrom, who served as secretary/treasurer during the 2025-2026 term, succeeds Randy Notto of Lenfer Automotive & Transmission in Lino Lakes. Notto moves to immediate past president. The […]
Consumer Sentiment Slips Further in Preliminary May Reading, Nears June 2022 Trough
Current conditions fall 9% as gasoline and tariff concerns mount; expectations tick up slightly. Consumer sentiment held near its mid-2022 trough in the preliminary May 2026 reading from the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers, with a 9% drop in current economic conditions offsetting a marginal uptick in the expectations index as households continued to […]
ASE Working on New ADAS Calibration Credential
The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) is developing a new advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) calibration technician credential, the organization announced May 18. ASE said it recently concluded a week-long Job Task Analysis and Content Development Workshop to define the credential’s scope and content, with the goal of establishing a common certification standard […]
ABPA Consumer Study Pairs Total Loss Findings With Industry Push This Week on REPAIR Act
The Automotive Body Parts Association (ABPA) on May 14 released a consumer research report on the financial and mobility consequences of vehicle total loss determinations, then on May 15 followed with an advocacy push urging the industry to contact Congress on the federal REPAIR Act ahead of what ABPA describes as the bill’s next legislative […]
Safelite Reopens Renovated Columbus Headquarters With New Glass Bridge
Safelite officially reopened its renovated Columbus, Ohio, home office May 14 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by city, regional and state leaders. The two-building campus is now joined by a new glass bridge, and Columbus-based associates will return to the office full-time on June 1. Safelite has been headquartered in Columbus since 1989, when the […]