Dec. 7, 2015—On Wednesday, the Automotive Service Association (ASA), ASA-Midwest and the Missouri Alliance of Automotive Service Providers (AASP-MO), held the Second Annual Vehicle Safety Inspection Forum. Attendees heard presentations from automotive safety experts, shared experiences with safety inspections and brainstormed strategies to improve public awareness of the importance of preventative maintenance.
Participants in the forum included:
- Doug Woolverton, Hunter Engineering
- Paul Meyer, Missouri State Highway Patrol
- JoJo Heselmeyer, Texas Department of Public Safety
- Lester Elder, Missouri State Highway Patrol
- Paul Rehbein, Missouri State Highway Patrol
- Jade Winfree, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)
- Steve Hoskins, Motor Vehicle Bureau, Missouri Department of Revenue
- Ben Steinman, ASA-Midwest
- Mike Moehlenkamp, AASP-Missouri
- Joe Battista, Parsons Engineering
The lack of data comparing the number of automotive accidents, injuries and deaths in states with safety inspection programs to states with safety inspection programs was one of the major talking points of the forum.
Winfree said that although the majority of automotive administrators in states with safety inspections were confident about the benefits of the programs, an increase in federal guidance, collaboration and information sharing could improve their overall quality. Elder agreed with Winfree’s remarks about the need for this data at the state level.
Woolverton and Heselmeyer discussed the common-sense element of preventative maintenance and the difficulty of capturing data.
Audience members and panelists offered strategies to improve access to this data, including greater information sharing among vehicle inspection stakeholders, from accident teams to state administrators to shop owners.
“There is a universal consensus among today’s participants when it comes to the high value of safety inspections. The challenge we face now is educating the public, consumers and policymakers about what we know to be true,” said Tony Molla, ASA vice president. “We’ve seen the safety issues that can occur in cars, even within a year’s time. These programs allow repairers to identify and fix these problems before the accident.”
