Newell’s Hosted an Alternative Powered Vehicles Course for Local Insurance Agents

Newell’s Auto Body recently hosted a continuing education course for local insurance agents, titled “Insurance & Alternative Powered Vehicles”. These classes count towards Illinois’ 24 hours per year continuing education requirement, and helps agents to better understand what is involved in properly assessing vehicle damage and repairs. Informed agents and adjusters can help get repairs approved faster and easier, saving our customers time and frustration.

This course is brand new for 2021 and examined the proliferation of new energy sources that manufacturers are investing heavily in. We looked at the history of alternative powered vehicles and discussed the challenges that accompany these new technologies. The impact on insurance is multifaceted as it potentially adds additional risks exceeding that of traditional comprehensive and collision coverage.

Course Objective

Our primary objective was to give agents a more complete understanding of the impact of alternative powered vehicles including hybrids, natural gas, electric, hydrogen, and ethanol on insurance policies and rates. 

We also discussed repair conditions and concerns relative to alternative power sources. Having this understanding enables insurance personnel to better serve policyholders and offset the risk and liability of insuring alternative powered vehicles. 

Plus, they can further assist policyholders to better understand their options if their vehicle requires repair. By knowing the basis for Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, along with state and federal parts usage regulation, agents can more accurately inform, assist, and protect policyholders.

Knowledge Areas

Agent learned about:

• Sources of alternative power and the pro’s and con’s of each
• What is driving consumer demand for alternative powered vehicles
• Consumer resources and buying motives
• Regulatory agencies including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• Why NHTSA implemented Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) to better driver & passenger protection
• Common policyholder questions & concerns during the repair process
• Qualifying a professional repair shop
  

Skills & Abilities

The agent gained these skills:

• The requirements and insurance risks for repairing alternative powered vehicles
• How to protect policyholders when involved in an accident involving an alternative powered vehicle
• Assist agent in directing their customer to public resources that may help them understand their legal rights in the repair process
• Guiding policyholder selection of a qualified repair center for damaged systems

We hope you see how Newell’s Auto Body is working on behalf of both our customers and insurance agents to ensure repairs are done safely and properly, using the latest industry techniques.

We appreciate the agents who joined us and look forward to hosting more CE courses in the future!