Sound Off!! NEAR’s Industry Survey Now Open!
The collision repair industry is certainly not short of its challenges. From insurer woes to training pressure and technology changes, you may find yourself shouting from the rooftop and feel like no one is listening. But you’d be wrong about that last part because someone IS listening! New England Automotive Report WANTS to hear from YOU!!
The New England Automotive Report 2025 Industry Survey is open now through December! Collision repair professionals have the opportunity to sound off – anonymously – about the things that matter most to you about your shop and the industry as a whole.
Every shop is unique in its own way, but as the previous survey results have shown, most encounter the same frustrating experience and voice the same complaints.
Last year, survey takers listed finding good help as one of the top challenges next to labor rate reimbursement. As the 2024 survey revealed, more shops are simply relying on word of mouth with 60 percent having reported this was their most common method for onboarding new employees. Searching online was also up with 37 percent reporting this as an option.
Referral programs have become somewhat of a touchy subject due to the belief that signing up with an insurance company to work for a set rate sets a really bad precedent for determining a fair and equitable labor rate – something the Alliance has been fighting to achieve for decades. Last year, 81 percent of survey respondents reported they are not on any referrals, and of the nine percent who did say they were on referrals, all of them reported being involved with five or fewer programs.
New questions are added each year to capture the latest industry trends. As NEAR has reported, more shops are bringing ADAS work in house, so it’ll be interesting to see if the 54 percent who reported sending the work out last year will have decreased this year. The survey will help us learn if more shops feel prepared to handle EVs and if more shops are using AI in their day-to-day operations. It’s always interesting to see which insurance companies Massachusetts collision repairers cite as being the most difficult to deal with. Will MAPFRE and Progressive top the list once again?
The survey only takes 10-15 minutes, and the answers make for some interesting reading in the February 2026 issue of New England Automotive Report. And remember, answers will remain anonymous, so don’t hold back in telling us how you really feel!
Your opinion truly does matter! Watch your inbox for details!
Want more? Check out the December 2025 issue of New England Automotive Report!