Radio interview with the TEPA Director Vishal Premlall and Gugu Mfuphi from Kaya FM on the topic of counterfeit parts in South Africa.
Also view article in last week’s web letter pertaining to this subject: Consumers to be vigilant of illegal and inferior quality automotive parts – Retail Motor Industry Organisation (rmi.org.za)
Planning through uncertainty requires you to have the latest and relevant information at your fingertips. Join our NADA Panel and guest speakers as we unpack:
Wednesday, 8 September 2021
10:00 to 11:00am
Your NADA Panel: Mark Dommisse – NADA Chairperson
Marcia Mayaba – NADA National Vice Chairperson
Alex Boavida – NADA Central Region Vice Chairperson
Register here: Webinar Registration – Zoom
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Kigali, Rwanda. 6-12 September 2021.
Trade with Africa’s Automotive role players at the continent’s
largest Automotive meeting place and tradeshow under the theme:
“Building Bridges for a successful AfCFTA”
Over the last two years the South African Motor Body Repairers’ Association (SAMBRA), has been lobbying hard to remove restrictive Insurer Supplier Panels and OEM approval programmes, which effectively preclude consumers exercising their right of choice and damages small business’ who have spent years building up their loyal client base.
Richard Green, National Director of SAMBRA says with the industry still reeling from the impact of Covid-19, there is no better time to open up the market. “SAMBRA has always been one of the strongest advocates for a free market strategy as well as the entrenchment of client’ ‘right of choice’ of service provider,” says Green.
Green says we have to create a more inclusive market by opening up access to insurer supplier listings and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) approval systems in order to remove barriers to entry for any and all qualifying applicants.
Insurers have, and still do, largely dictate where repairs can be carried out and some motor manufacturers still restrict the number of approved Motor Body Repairer (MBR) facilities that can obtain their approval. Both Insurers and OEM’ have long maintained that restricting numbers is necessary due to the size of the available market for repairs. SAMBRAs view is that it is the responsibility of each MBR business to market and service its customers and thereby grow and prosper – it is not the Insurer or OEM’ responsibility to ensure sufficient work flows to their ‘chosen few’.
More inclusivity
“Whilst SAMBRA has managed to convince most major OEMs of the need to be more inclusive in their approach to their manufacturer approval systems, unfortunately almost all short term motor insurers still practice an extremely restrictive supplier base choice and this is simply not sustainable,” says Green.
He says the net result of these restrictive insurer and manufacturer panels is that small businesses in particular, that are fully compliant with set standards, find themselves being precluded from accessing business just because the Insurers and manufacturers say they have sufficient suppliers in an area.
SAMBRA argues that surely if the business is prepared to accept the investment risk and comply with accreditation criteria set by Insurers and manufacturers, it is a restrictive business practice to preclude them from servicing customers. Current businesses, that have in some cases spent 20 to 30 years cultivating loyal clients, are suddenly precluded from doing so simply because the MBR business cannot obtain manufacturer approval or access an Insurer supplier listing.
Right of Choice
The issue of right of choice is so important. “We need to eliminate work allocation control by Insurers and even more importantly their intermediaries and allow service and quality records to determine which Motor Body Repairer customers wish to utilise. More transparency will create a fairer market and facilitate consumer choice in relation to motor body repairs. At present the insurers preclude the customer from making that choice by the introduction of commonly used ‘road blocks’ such as indemnity forms and threats of zero support post repair,” says Green.
An olive branch
During the first couple of months of lockdown the MBR sector welcomed alternate payment and fee arrangements by insurers who were sensitive to the cash flow risks being experienced by the sector. “This has shown us that collaboration is possible. The market has changed dramatically and it is definitely time for a new set of rules which can open up the market and help retain jobs.
Consumers are also under severe economic pressure and there is no doubt that the time for insurers to advise consumers, in clear and explicit terms, that they have a right to have motor-body repairs, to their vehicles undertaken by a service provider of their choice, is now,” concludes Green.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that South Africa would be moving from Alert Level 2 to Alert Level 1, effective from midnight on Sunday, 20 September 2020 and that business, leisure and other international travel, under strict conditions, would come into effect from 1 October 2020.
NADA applauds government for acknowledging that the South African economy and society has been devastated as a result of the National Lockdown which had been implemented to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.
Moving to Alert Level 1 removes many of the remaining restrictions on economic activity, which hopefully will go a long way to stimulating the economy and start the long road to rebuilding and restoring fiscal growth, and creating much needed jobs to address the extremely high levels of unemployment.
It is now time to heed the warning of the President, that South Africans need to continue to act in a highly responsible manner to avoid a resurgence of infections, as a second wave would be devastating for our country as whole.
NADA appeals to all its members, as good corporate citizens, not to relax their guard but to rather maintain and reinforce their Covid-19 mitigation protocols within their dealerships, so as to ensure that the spread of the novel coronavirus is keep under control until such time as an effective vaccine becomes available.
We urge you to please continue to apply your dealership’s Covid-19 mitigation protocols for the safety of your, your employees and your customers health and safety.
Be vigilant and stay safe.
What should pension funds & their members be thinking about now?
Today’s pension fund members should be investing for a horizon of 80 years or more. While it is impossible to predict what the world will be like in 2100, it is safe to assume that it will be radically different to the one we live in today.
We can expect the retirement industry to be disrupted by many unforeseen changes, just like we saw with the very recent Covid-19 pandemic. So, it is useful to consider the trends we can identify. How are these likely to impact long term savings outcomes, and what should pension funds and their members do now to capitalize on the opportunities presented and mitigate risks?
Below are some factors that the retirement industry should be considering in order to transform its traditional approach and ensure it is able to meet future expectations.
