Costs slowed down

Accidents can happen quickly – whether due to human error, technical defects or external influences. Vehicle damage is not only annoying, but can also be expensive. This can lead to enormous cost pressure, especially for social institutions. Not only the direct material damage to the vehicle must be taken into account, but also possible consequential costs for towing or for a rental car. After all, social economy employees in particular depend on vehicles to carry out patient visits, for example. The Ecclesia Group has recognized this problem and found a solution. By working with partner garages, the responsible contact persons can arrange a cost-effective repair for the customer. This is particularly interesting for our customers in the social economy sector.

Car repairs are becoming more and more expensive due to the sharp rise in spare part prices and hourly wages. The German Insurance Association (GDV) has evaluated the costs for 2022 and come to the conclusion that the hourly wage has risen to 173 euros. This is now 5.5 percent higher than in the previous year. “One reason for the higher costs is technological change. This means that new and complex work steps have to be applied during repairs, and the personnel need specific training for this,” says Lukas Wapelhorst, Head of Ecclesia Mobility Motor Claims.
 

High costs when replacing assistance systems

New technologies, such as lane departure warning systems, lane change assistants, emergency brake assistants and parking and maneuvering assistants, may reduce the damage, but if something needs to be repaired, the repair costs are significantly higher. The reason for this is the expensive sensors that are built into the bumpers, windows or behind the radiator grille. GDV estimates that replacing a windshield with an assistance system costs around 25 percent more.

But the material costs for spare parts such as headlights and fenders have also increased noticeably in the past twelve months. In addition, there is the issue of supply bottlenecks. A GDV analysis from April 2024 shows the cost explosion: In 2014, motor liability insurers paid an average of around €2,500 for property damage to a passenger car; this year, it is likely to be around €4,000. This is also due to the higher prices of spare parts, which lead to rising repair costs for insurers after accidents. The costs for passenger car spare parts are thus rising rapidly and faster than inflation.

Solutions for avoiding high costs

“We offer our customers a cost-effective solution for repairing damage,” says Lukas Wapelhorst. ‘However, the referral to a partner workshop must be made through Ecclesia, because only in this way can the agreed parameters be guaranteed for our customers.’ The Ecclesia Group network includes various partners.

The specialists offer different services, such as the repair of body, paint and accident damage, but also glass damage or the preparation of leased vehicles.

“Our partners use new methods, such as smart repair, which allows minor damage to be repaired with little effort. They also have many workshops and are active throughout Germany. Due to our large volume, we have been able to negotiate special conditions for Ecclesia customers, which greatly reduces costs,” explains the head of Ecclesia Mobility Motor Claims.
 

Advantages of the workshop cooperation

Ecclesia customers not only benefit from the lower hourly wage that Ecclesia has negotiated with its partners, which is significantly lower than that of the brand-name companies, but they can also take advantage of other benefits. After the customer has reported the damage to Ecclesia, the responsible claims handler selects a suitable partner workshop and contacts it. The workshop then gets back to the customer within a few hours to arrange an appointment. “This service is free of charge for our customers and is part of our service portfolio,” says Lukas Wapelhorst. A garage near the customer is almost always offered. Similarly, the partner garages sometimes offer a pick-up and delivery service so that vehicles that have been involved in an accident can be picked up and delivered to the front door after repair. While their car is being repaired, customers can use a courtesy car from the garage free of charge. “This is important, for example, in day care, where the car is needed to provide the services,” reports the expert. Only in the case of stone-chip repairs is no courtesy car provided, since the repair only takes a few hours.
 

It is also important that the workshops offer a warranty for their services. “Our customers are happy to take advantage of our service,” says the expert. “Last year, we were able to integrate a four-digit number of claims in which repairs were successfully carried out, with the exception of total write-offs. Savings in the double-digit percentage range were regularly achieved.”