ARA President Bill Tolpa of Tolpa’s Auto Parts (Remsen, NY)

To view the important video message from the President of the
Automotive Recyclers Association, please CLICK HERE.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking comments on a rule that would increase regulation of used oil collected from motor vehicles at recycling facilities, salvage yards, service facilities or from do-it-yourselfers to be burned in on-site burners, boilers and space heaters. We believe the rule, as written, will make it prohibitive for you to use recycled motor oil as a source of heat in your facilities.

ARA is in the process of drafting comments on the proposed rule that urge the EPA to continue to support current regulations which exempt used motor oil from these requirements so automotive recyclers and salvage yards can continue to use used motor oil in burners and furnaces.

We believe it is important for EPA to hear from as many people as possible on this issue. We are drafting the ARA comments so they can easily be personalized by individual automobile recyclers and salvage yards. The comments will be ready by the end of the month and we hope that you’ll join our efforts.

The comments will be set up so that you’ll just need to add in your name, signature and facilities’ address and print the comments. We’ll also provide the mailing address, email and fax number the comments should be sent to.

ARA actively monitors and responds to state and federal legislation and regulation that has the potential to impact automobile recyclers. We are looking out for you. Please join our efforts to protect your interest on this issue. Please email Elizabeth Vermette if you are interested in participating in this effort at elizabeth@a-r-a.org or fill out an online form.

UNTIL MONEY GROWS ON TREES…ARA IS HELPING SALVAGE OWNERS PROTECT THEIR INTERESTS & BOTTOM LINE

For over 65 years, salvage owners have placed their trust in ARA to help them prosper and advance their business. Hand-in-hand, we are shedding a positive light on our Green recycling efforts and are working to promote the sale of salvage parts.  Join Today!

Automotive Recyclers Association | 9113 Church St., Manassas, VA 20110-5456 USA | Phone: (571) 208-0428 | Toll-free (888) 385-1005 | Fax (571) 208-0430 | http://www.a-r-a.org

The current process for acquisition of titles, lien payoffs, dealing with salvage disposition and DMV’s combined with getting a salvage vehicle actually sold is manual, labor intensive and lengthy.  Cycle time to turn titles has an inverse impact to the eventual salvage recovery.
 
The Collision Industry Electronic Commerce Association’s (CIECA) goal would be to develop standard messages for the acquisition of motor vehicle titles, including electronic signatures (e-signatures), from auto loan institutions and state DMV’s and to facilitate messaging to support a paperless workflow that dramatically reduces the cycle time of total loss declaration to final disposition of salvage.  
 
With that goal in mind, CIECA is forming a Motor Vehicle Title Standards Committee to establish electronic communication standards for the industry. 
 
For more information regarding this committee, please reply to Fred Iantorno at fred@cieca.com by July 6.

Education is not always what it seems.  Sometimes it involves hours of classroom work accompanied by hours of homework and studying.  While some people like the virtual classroom of online studies, others enjoy the value of on-the-job training.  Just recently the  ARA Educational Foundation Employee Exchange Program was launched.  This program, brainchild of Ross Nicastri, ARA Educational Foundation Vice President, is open to any member in good standing with ARA.

The program will allow you to 1) host an employee, or 2) send an employee for training, or 3) the opportunity to exchange one employee for another.  We will review the applications and try to match employees with employers looking to mentor or engage in an exchange.  “After having been involved in an exchange program myself I believe the most is gained when employees are exchanged for one with a similar job title to allow more employers to participate and not find themselves shorthanded during the program”, was Sandy Blalock’s (of then, Capo’s Truck and Auto Parts) experience.  

The purpose of the program is to offer an opportunity to learn by doing and have some of the best teachers in the industry presenting the classroom material – Real Life!  I have always believed that the best way to learn this industry is from the inside out.  We automotive recyclers know our industry best and who better to teach our up-and-coming employees than us and other members of our industry. 
 
“I hope that members of our industry embrace this opportunity to educate and improve the systems within our industry,” Blalock concluded. 

What do you have to lose?  Or conversely, look at what you have to gain!
Registration is now open.  Click here to review the application.

New rules have gone into effect in the European Union requiring automobile manufacturers to share more technical data about their vehicles with independent repair shops and spare parts vendors.  The Automotive Recyclers Association (ARA) is calling upon Congress to pass similar legislation pending in the U.S. Congress  – the Motor Vehicle Owner’s Right to Repair Act. 

“Today, computers and electronics control nearly every vehicle function.  Too often, this allows automobile manufacturers  companies to limit access to the data that consumers and independent repair facilities need to service and repair vehicles”, said Michael Wilson, CEO of the Automobile Recyclers Association. 

“In today’s economic downturn it is even more important for consumers to have access to this data.  Every day our members have to turn customers away or send them to a dealer where they have to pay a fee to have the codes in a part reset before the part will work in their vehicle”, said Wilson. 

This lack of access to data limits the consumers ability to choose quality, recycled automobile parts that are more environmentally friendly and cost effective then OEM parts.  The Right to Repair legislation pending in Congress ensures that the person who owns the vehicle, and not the auto manufacturer, can decide how and where that vehicle is repaired and maintained.

“ARA is calling on Congress to level the playing field and to stop propping up the automobile manufactures at the expense of the U.S. consumer and auto recyclers across the country”, said Wilson.

Established in 1943, the Automotive Recyclers Association (“ARA”) represents an industry dedicated to the efficient removal and reuse of “green” automotive parts, and the proper recycling of inoperable motor vehicles. ARA represents over 4,500 auto recycling facilities in the United States and fourteen other countries around the world. With programs such as the Certified Automotive Recycler Program (CAR) and other partnerships, ARA members continue to provide consumers with quality, low cost alternatives for vehicle replacement parts, while preserving our environment for a “greener” tomorrow. To learn more about the Association, visit ARA online at www.a-r-a.org or call (571) 208-0428.