NSW Government to act on Statutory Write-Off’s
MTA NSW has long been campaigning for all vehicles that are written-off by Insurers to be statutory loss vehicles. The NSW Government has now acceded to our requests and has issued a paper that proposes that either all written-off vehicles be banned from being re-registered or that vehicles over 5 years that are written-off by insurers [this was our fall-back position]. We congratulate the Government, the Police, the RTA and Fair Trading who have put this proposal together. This action will benefit the General Public of NSW, Body Repairers, Parts Recyclers and Insurers who reinsure these same vehicles.

Another Leading Insurer moving to RTRM
SUNCORP/GIO has advised MTA NSW that as from 1st of January 2010 they will be moving to Realistic Times and Rates = RTRM.

MVIRI Code of Conduct
MTA NSW is advising the Insurance Industry, the Insurance Council of Australia and the Office of Fair Trading of the current unrest in the Body Repair Industry. The letters contained claims the insurance companies were contravening the Code in the following areas:
- Aftermarket parts
- Refusing to consider quotes
- Steering
- Structural repairs
- Disclosure obligations.

Repairers requiring important information regarding manufacturer’s specifications should seek this information directly from the manufacturer.

I-Car is also an Industry leader on determining repair methodology. For more information please visit www.i-car.com.au

Other Leading Issues
Insurers inundated with Code Disputes
Repairers are lodging more and more IDRs to fix the crippling issues facing the Industry. To download an IDR form, click here and scroll down.

Industry Meeting
An industry meeting was held in the Sydney West Harbour area last night with over 30 repairers attending. Major issues discussed included steering, two quotes with no assessments and aftermarket parts (which are now being taken up by repairers through IDRs against these Insurers). A call to start advertising the benefits to customers of having their vehicles repaired correctly using manufacturer’s specifications (as per the Code) was agreed to.

A real issue was identified with a particular insurer that is using repairer’s copyrighted images to obtain second quotes without the repairer’s knowledge. Propositions were made not to submit electronic images with estimates to this insurer.

To find out more to become a Member, click here.
To find out more about the Motor Traders’ Association of NSW, click here.

What is the MTA?
MTA is an employer association established for businesses in the Motor Industry. The Association’s aim is to provide services to assist Repairers in the daily running of their businesses and to lobby key Government Departments. This entails actively representing the view of the Motor Industry to Government at liaison committee meetings. The association undertakes this and many other projects to ensure a long and viable future for the industry.

Receiving the Industry News Service
To ensure delivery of this and other important Industry Information to your Inbox, please email sophie.luttrell@mtansw.com.au

Regards

Greg Preston
Senior Manager
Divisional Services
Motor Traders’ Association of NSW
Phone:   02 9213 4218
Fax:       02 9212 6889 
Mobile:   0423 418 538
Email:    greg.preston@mtansw.com.au