We are down to just a few body shops here in my home county. Most of them are booked out for 2 weeks or more and have more work than they can really handle. Between fighting with the insurance companies and trying to find and keep good employees, they are worn out. Here in the county seat we only have 2 body shops left. And one of them has just gotten their re-builder's license and retail dealer's license with our help. If all goes as planned, they will drop their dependence on insurance work. Possibly to the point that they will not accept any at all. And the other one is about to implement a new policy where the insured will be responsible to discuss the estimates with the insurance companies. The constant counter proposals, and re-estimating as well as delays in getting work approved is burying them. So rather than go back and forth with the insurers, they are going to tell the insured that they will have the burden to get the estimate approved. Or they can find another body shop. It really has gotten that bad.

I'll spare you other details, but the difficulties that the insurance companies are putting onto the repair shops is unsustainable in modest markets such as ours. The insured are the ones that are going to be left in lurch with fewer choices and more difficulties in finding a competent repair shop. And the insurance companies are going to pay a price, too. Which they will just pass on to their policy holders.