Licensing In Texas?

[clear]

Does The Training Class You Provide Coming Up In San Antonio Cover The Certification By A Manufacturer (delta)

[Delta Kits]

Upon successful completion of our training class, you will be certified by Delta Kits.

[repare-brise]

Helo all, I would like to add my 2 cents worth(actually worth about 1 1/2 cents US) Some sort of legislation may not be too bad if it is administered and inforced properly. It can help the WSR industry with it's image problem created by fly by night operators, by reducing there chances to get to our customers. The NWRA in conjunction with the manufaturors, should be the logical choice for testing and approving WSR techs. If a tech has passed a manufactorors training and testing the NWRA certification should then be granted. If the tech choses not to attend a class, then they should be requires to pass a test or 2 to get certification. The fact that a tech is certified or not may be of no importance to most drivers, but where certification can be benificial is with fleets and dealers, if they are advised of the need for certification they normaly should chose a certified tech over a non certified tech(I had one customer ask me for my ISO9001 certification before I could work on there site, fortunatly for me I was there only hope, so they let me work in there factory without ISO certification).

If the NWRA is not interested in helping it's members(you are all members I trust) with this percieved problem, then maybe we should aim for a certification program from ISO(international standards orginisation) then not only the residents of the USA would benifit from certification but also residents of other countries.

MERCI

[maxryde]

Good point('s) Yvan. I agree! The problen is the Certification process is in the hands of the replacement industry (The NGA)instead of folks like the NWRA, they only have a voice in the requirements outlined in the Cert process where the replacement folks have a larger say so. Not at all the way things should be getting done IMO. Scott

[mafsu]

My take on manufacturer certification is that it really won't be a viable test for licensing. No offense to any manufacturers but who will decide which manufacturers will be approved to test for the licensing, and which will be willing to jump through hoops or pay fees to become approved. An organization like the NWRA will have to be willing to take on the certification for it to be viable.
If anyone thinks that regulation will get rid of the crooks in this business, I think that is a naive viewpoint.

[Layne]

I tend to agree with MAFSU. Licensing can become political and encumbered with graft!

[glassfixerCO]

A problem I see with any sort of licensing or REQUIRED certification are the various restrictions imposed on the TYPE OF REPAIRS and maybe even the TYPE OF TOOLS a "certified and/or licensed" technician could work with. For instance, if someone wants a crack repaired that's in their line of vision, the way it stands NOW their ins. co. won't pay for the repair, but the customer is STILL FREE to pay a willing tech. to do the repair anyway ( a repaired crack or chip in the line of vision is SAFER than UN-REPAIRED damage). If licensing or required certification is in place this repair probably couldn't be done legally and a cash-strapped vehicle owner with a crack in his/her line of vision will be driving around with a more serious visual hindrance than they would if everyone just minded their own business. Also, what if someone develops a new tool or technique to fix windshields and wants to try it out in the field or start marketing it to others, what sort of hoops will they have to jump through to make this happen? IMO, most new advances/ideas come about because someone is free to try putting new ideas into practice without a bureaucrat telling them what to do every minute ( provided someone's idea doesn't involve hurting other people, animals, property, etc.). Cliff

[StarQuest]

I just wanted to bring up a subject in WSR licensing that nobody has touched on so far! How is the state going to regulate those DIY's that buy $7.99 kits from the local auto parts outlets? You think those are going to be pulled from the shelves or is the consumer likely to face a fine for operating without a license?;)

[DaveC]

Or, even better, what happens if the state only allows WSR Equip. Manufacturers to sell to licensed/certified techs.?

[maxryde]

I have been following this thread with great interest and appreciate the folks who are responding!! The issues are important to us all!
It would be nice to think that the legislators will be concerning themselves with the public's interest in mind however that is not usually the case in these matters! They (the folks involved with the drafting of this legislation all have an agenda and are therefore biased to some degree, the NWRA included!) I am glad we, the repair tech have the NWRA there. A great deal of the reasoning behind this thing going forward is a result of the unscrupulous replacement and repair folks that have permiated the industry and duped the public and their insurers out of a ton of cash over the years!! They are the only folks who ultimately will be hurt by the proposed legislation IF they are able to enact a bill that is truly in the best interest of the consumer. That is the true problem, as I stated before the folk who are being trusted to draw the thing up are slanted by influence from lobbiest's, manufacturers etc.etc.etc. I do not envy anyone on that list as it will be very difficult to get the thing done to the satisfaction of all involved with the public in mind.
Not to take issue with you glassfixer but I was wondering if you have addressed the issue of liability involved with repair in the acute area you described earlier,

someone wants a crack repaired that's in their line of vision

where does that leave a person that does this kind of repair when the customer use's the repair as an excuse for the accident they are involved in and attempts to throw the blame on the repair ("I couldn't see") the next thing you know your in hot water for the price of a repair. I wanted to make sure you were aware of the reasoning the Insurance co's suggest this limitation. We protect ourselves as much as we can on these matters and would strongly suggest that all techs do the same!! It's just not worth the effort to perform repairs like that, especially when you can be working on something else and maintain (enjoy) the same income level. When I first began doing the WSR thing I was pretty gullable and did a few of these but no more once the liability issue came up!!!! Anyway you decide and best of luck on that issue.
As far as the DIY situation it will not fall under the legislation and while it would be nice, the folks who use the product wouldn'd buy a repair anyway. I had a guy tell me he did it himself the other day, the chip didn't appear to have been touched, I saw the before and after. I just moved on with my day and all went well!! Mabey they'll learn from the experience and call for repair next time.
Scott P.S. Sorry for being so long winded.