By far the main topic of conversation I have had with clients and market commentators in the past month has been the sale of CRASHWORTH to The Innovation Group. I recently had the opportunity to catch up with Chris Ashworth, MD of CRASHWORTH, to discuss these issues. Chris will be writing a guest article for us later in the year but, despite being a very busy time for him, and the market, he made the time to speak to Credit Hire AWARE.
John Gibson
Chris, it’s clearly a very exciting time for you personally, what does the acquisition of CRASHWORTH actually mean for the insurance market?
The reaction from the key stakeholders in UK motor insurers has been incredible; from words of personal support to a desire to see The Innovation Group make a real difference in the current market.
Credit repair has been on the increase in the last 12 months, what is your view of the current repair market?
Like credit hire it is an unhelpful label that effectively tars everybody with the same brush. Our comparative non-fault repair model is, and will continue to be, different through our focus on the customer, cost controls driven by our buying strength and what we are confident is the industry’s most efficient operating model. We don’t call it credit repair, we just repair cars quickly, to the highest standard and at the right price for the customer and their insurer at the same price irrespective of fault.
What are the issues in the repair market that you think need redress?
In relation to non-fault repair, insurers need to differentiate. For example, our average cost per repair is over 20% cheaper than our nearest competitor and it is also considerably lower than the average cost figures released by the Competition Commission (CC). Insurers are starting to recognise and understand this and the result for us is trust, considerably improved payment times and an appetite for them to look at our wider repair offerings for their own AD customers.
The outcome of the investigation and pending court cases will undoubtedly cause further change which we are more than ready to embrace.
What are you hoping to achieve with The Innovation Group in 2014?
I hope that we will become the ‘go to’ place for insurers that want to obtain insight, great technology and business services that give them a competitive advantage at the point of claim or as we prefer to call it, ‘the moment of truth.’ I want us to be recognised as a business that has the customer at the centre of our strategy and that is genuinely reducing the cost of claims rather than using it as a cosmetic strapline.
What are you hoping to see from the CC investigation relating to repair?
Solutions that don’t put additional cost into the process by way of unintended consequences and a recognition that their proposed remedies could have a profound effect on the wider repair industry in the UK; not just the two markets that they are suggesting the investigation will impact, namely motor insurance and price comparison websites.
Chris Ashworth, MD, CRASHWORTH
John Gibson
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