Automotive Services
Six service segments
Collision RepairGeneral Auto RepairTire & WheelAuto GlassTowing & RoadsideCar Wash & Detailing
For the owner of a shop. What changed in the rules, what it costs, and what to do about it — every other Monday, free to read and free to print.
Every issue · newest first
eBay's ban on airbags, inflators and steering-wheel airbag covers took effect September 24, closing the largest marketplace for the parts and giving sellers 30 days to clear listings.
eBay's ban on airbags, inflators and steering-wheel airbag covers took effect September 24; franchised dealers ran body shops at 31.9 percent of stores, Ford filed six recalls led by about 223,500 F-150s, the Steelworkers asked for a Section 201 tire case, and unlimited wash member price satisfaction fell to 46 percent — every claim sourced.
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Pump prices jumped 13 cents in a week to a $4.277 national average and diesel reached $6.204 a gallon as crude climbed back toward $100 a barrel.
Pump prices jumped 13 cents in a week to a $4.277 average and diesel reached $6.204 a gallon; a federal jury hit Progressive with $40 million in Oklahoma, eBay bans all airbag listings from September 24 after an eleventh inflator death, USTMA cut its 2026 tire forecast below 2025, Louisiana's towing act took effect August 1, and a Colorado car wash paid $1.35 million over cancellation practices — every claim sourced.
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Washington's insurance commissioner signed a claims-handling rule on Aug. 18 that from Oct. 18 gives insurers five business days to answer a shop's supplement in writing
Washington's claims-handling rule takes effect Oct. 18, Texas insurers must comply with mandatory appraisal from Sept. 1, and CPI shows vehicle repair prices up 6.6% while auto insurance prices fell 4.5% — every claim sourced.
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TechForce's 2026 report finds U.S. auto-service, collision and diesel shops face a combined 43,135-technician annual shortfall, with collision hiring covering only 43 percent of need
Commerce set a final tire-tariff rate up to 78.33% on August 14, Illinois' right-to-appraisal law takes effect July 1, 2027, and Mister Car Wash went private at roughly $3.1 billion as ZIPS filed Chapter 11 with $653.9 million in debt — every claim sourced.
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