Body shop sales and wholesale parts sales both increased last year. According to the latest research from the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), 39 percent of dealerships featured on-site body shops in 2015, flat from 2014, but above the 36 percent in 2013. Based upon the percentages reported by NADA, there were approximately 6452 dealers […]
Impact of Rising Minimum Wages, Auto Body Repairer Wages in 2015 and Beyond
With legislation signed this week in both California and New York raising the minimum wage in stages to $15 an hour, CollisionWeek analyzes the latest government statistics for wages for auto body repair technicians in the largest metropolitan areas across the country. With the signing of legislation in both California and New York this week […]
Auto Body Technician Employment Up in 2015
The latest government statistics show the number of people employed as auto body repairers last year grew at the fastest rate since 2011. Wages also up. With the independent collision repair facility population projected to be on the increase, it’s to be expected that the number of body repairers would likely rise. The latest data […]
Largest Auto Insurers Added Market Share in 2015
The largest private passenger auto insurers in the U.S. gained market share in 2015. Growth continues long term trend. Since 2000, the largest private passenger automobile insurers have been growing their combined market share and more than half of all private passenger auto insurance in the United States is handled by just five companies. The […]
U.S. Independent Collision Repair Facility Population Grows During 2014 and 2015
Latest statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor indicate that the number of collision repair facilities was on the rise for much of the past two years. For most of the past ten years, the decline in the number of collision repair facilities in the U.S. has been considered by many as a given. With auto […]
Collision Repair Industry Business Conditions: Q4 2015
Shops reporting higher sales compared to 2014 increased during the fourth quarter. Repair facilities reporting higher earnings, however, declined. The CollisionWeek quarterly survey of business conditions reported by collision repair facility owners and managers indicates that the overall percentage of facilities with higher sales increased in the fourth quarter of 2015 over last year compared […]
Traffic Volume Up 4.2% in December Compared to 2014
The year finished on a strong note with record levels of driving in December. Driving increases continued across all five regions in the U.S. Travel for the month of December is estimated at 264.2 billion vehicle miles nationwide according to the most recent data released by the Federal Highway Administration. The December result puts a […]
Big 4 Collision Repair MSO Locations Up More than 25% in 2015
ABRA, Boyd, Caliber and Service King continue growth in new locations during 2015. Unit growth down from 2014, but up if 2014 Sterling sale to Service King excluded. The acquisition and new collision repair facility openings by the four largest multi-regional multiple collision repair shop operators (MSOs) in North America grew by nearly 300 units […]
Collision Repair Industry Production in November Surpasses Pre-Recession Peak
Production employees and hours worked both increase as industry surpasses the prior high recorded in March 2008. An analysis of the latest data released from the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), shows that total production for the collision repair industry increased in November versus October. More significant is the fact that […]
U.S. Length of Rental Continues Upward Trend in Fourth Quarter
According to the latest research from Enterprise Rent-A-Car, the U.S. average length of rental continued to increase across all regions during Q4 2015. The U.S. average Length of Rental (LOR) rose in 2015 to 11.5 days, up 0.3 days from 2014 and 0.8 days from 2010. Miles driven and lower gasoline prices have contributed to […]