WELCOME TO THE NEW AND IMPROVED 'CONNECTED'; SAME TIMELY & INFORMATIVE CONTENT, NEW PLATFORM 'Connected' curated by Alan Demers & Stephen Applebaum  January 9th 2023

The 16th annual white paper, A 2021 Profile of the Evolving U.S. and Canadian Collision Repair Marketplace, is now available

The pinnacle year for the collision repair industry was 2019 with an all-time high TAM of $38.3 billion. Repair facilities were flush with repairable vehicles and had the manpower and parts to service the demand. The recovery years of 2021 and 2022 were and continue to be awkward and choppy as the collision repair industry attempts to bounce back within the constructs of numerous macro industry challenges and opportunities, U.S. economic and geo-political headwinds despite the many post-pandemic recovery advances within the collision repair industry and throughout the broader interconnected auto physical damage landscape. In 2021, despite a continued reduction in repairable claims, the industry’s TAM recovered to $38.6 billion despite fewer repairable claims which were primarily supported by an offset increase in higher severity.

January ITL Focus: Claims

FROM THE EDITOR In the going on 10 years that I've been editing ITL, there have been two truisms about claims.

First is that claims are "the moment of truth" for insurers. That's certainly true, and, taking that notion to heart, insurers have made real progress. They've made it easier for insureds to report claims -- via app, sending in their own pictures rather than waiting for an adjuster, and so on. They've used new technologies, such as drones to survey damage after a storm, and have become much better at triage so they respond faster to the situations that are the most important and most urgent. Many have institutionalized compassion, for instance by quickly providing money to people forced out of their homes in a major storm, rather than making them wait for a full inspection and settlement. I could go on.

The second truism, which has taken its full form more recently, is that the industry needs to get to straight-through processing. It's certainly worth heading in that direction. You can already see the benefits that have come from those apps for reporting claims, submitting photos of damage, etc. But it also seems to me that making straight-through processing has obscured some real opportunities for progress.

I'm thinking, in particular, of all the attention paid to AIs that can look at pictures of damage to cars and, increasingly, homes and render a quick estimate for repairs. The technology is as cool as can be, but having the AI take the place of an adjuster may take two or three minutes out of a process that lasts days or weeks -- and developing the AI is expensive. I believe the AI will eventually prove its worth, but, in the meantime, it may be distracting us from ways that we can shorten the process much more while saving money, rather than spending it.

Editor-in-Chief, Paul Carroll

III: Auto insurers curtail coverage of Kias, Hyundais as thefts soar

The social media-driven fad that spurred would-be car thieves to target newer-model Kias and Hyundais is now having notable insurance implications, the Insurance Information Institute and AM Best are reporting.

See also: Latest social media craze: Stealing Kias & Hyundais

Thanks to TikTok, car thieves are exploiting a vehicle defect that makes these particular cars comparatively easy to steal with little more than a pin and a USB cable.

“They are significantly damaging the steering column of the vehicle,” in the course of such thefts, the Triple I’s Mark Friedlander recently told the Chicago CBS affiliate WBBM-TV. “That is a significant repair, and unfortunately we’re seeing this multiply by thousands across the country.”

There were 328 Kias stolen in 2021 in Chicago, the news station reported. That number swelled to nearly 3,600 in 2022.

An Allstate spokesman added that repair times and costs are up, increasing the pain for vehicle owners and insurers alike.

It follows that a class-action lawsuit has been filed in Iowa that argues Kias and Hyundais are “easy to steal, unsafe, and worth less than what drivers paid due to the vulnerability plaguing the cars’ ignition system.”

Must-See Highlights of CES 2023: A Flying Car, Dreamy 8K Projector and the Tesla of the Sea

Tons of new tech caught our eye at CES 2023. Here are the highlights you don't want to miss.

The future is bright, the future is flying -- and maybe folding too. A flying car and an incredible shape-shifting screen were among our favorite highlights of CES 2023. The world's biggest consumer electronics show is back and, for the first time since 2020, that means prowling an actual show floor in Las Vegas. CNET has been on the ground, sifting through the big reveals from companies like Samsung, LG, Intel, Nvidia, Razer and Dell. But the real stars may be the smaller, wackier products that push the envelope on what technology can really do.

CES returning to its prepandemic levels of intensity means there's an enormous amount of tech to gawk at. There are electronics that'll hit store shelves this year, gadgets that are a few years off and wild concepts that may never become a reality. There's plenty of hype, but no shortage of truly promising tech to go along with it.

The world's biggest consumer electronics show is back and, for the first time since 2020, that means prowling an actual show floor in Las Vegas. CNET has been on the ground, sifting through the big reveals from companies like Samsung, LG, Intel, Nvidia, Razer and Dell. But the real stars may be the smaller, wackier products that push the envelope on what technology can really do. 

Jerry 2023 State of the American Driver Report Reveals Impact of Rising Car Expenses on Household Budgets

A Quarter of Americans Spend Over 15% of Take-Home Pay on Monthly Car Payments; Two-Thirds of Drivers Report Rising Auto Expenses Force Them to Cut Spending Elsewhere

Jerry, the superapp for car owners, today releases the findings from its 2023 State of the American Driver Report, its second-annual study that offers a comprehensive, data-driven look into the current state of the car ownership experience. It reveals the full extent of the financial burden American car owners face and breaks down their shifting pandemic-era purchasing patterns.

Big Tech Layoffs May Further Disrupt Equity and Diversity Efforts

2023 is shaping up as a challenging year to be a woman or minority working in the tech sector, or even a person with one too many years under their belt.

Surging firings by technology companies last year are disproportionately affecting women and mid-career talent which may make it more difficult to improve diversity in one of the most sought-after industries, according to data from a research firm.

In recent years, U.S. tech majors have stepped up hiring and made diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) a priority. But as the industry grapples with over-hiring since mid-2020, rising interest rates and changes in business and consumer behavior, tech companies have announced deep cuts, risking their diversity efforts.

Amazon.com Inc’s layoffs will now include more than 18,000 roles as part of a workforce reduction it previously disclosed, its CEO said on Wednesday. That comes to about 6% of its corporate workforce. Salesforce Inc. said on Wednesday it planned to eliminate about 10% of its staff.

The rare shakeup in big tech companies risks further disrupting diversity pledges that have already grown stagnant as companies de-emphasize DEI efforts.

Companies including Meta Platforms Inc., Amazon.com, Twitter Inc and Snap Inc. have together cut over 97,000 jobs in 2022 to deal with the slowing economy and shareholder pressures, according to a report from employment firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. That is up 649% from 2021.

Commercial insurance composite rate rises 5.1% in Q4: MarketScout

The composite rate for U.S. commercial insurance was up 5.1% in the fourth quarter of 2022, according to a report Friday from MarketScout Corp.

On an annualized basis, the composite rate for 2022 is 5.7%, making last year the sixth straight year of commercial insurance rate increases, MarketScout said.

By coverage line, fourth-quarter rate increases came in at 9.3% for commercial property, 7.7% for excess and umbrella cover, and 7% for commercial auto.

General liability rates rose 6.7% in the fourth quarter, employment practices liability insurance rose 6.3%, and directors and officers liability was up 6%. I

Professional liability was up 5.3%, business owners policy up 5% and business interruption was up 3.7%.