A Green Solution? - Joe March

It’s come up time and time again in these interviews. Like a shelter to huddle under in a thunderstorm, repairers are turning to green parts as a solution to the perfect storm.

Mo Givian speaks highly of their quality, Mark Omerod is keen on being transparent about their providence and Dave Shepherd thinks leasing companies should embrace them. 

Whatever the personal opinion of our interviewees, it’s clear that green parts will play a huge role in plotting a path through the perfect storm. So it’s time we heard from a green parts expert.

This week, Kirsty is speaking to Joe March, Head of Commercial and Network Management at Hills, and someone who’s well ahead of the game in the recycling world.

He’ll tell us exactly what we all need to know.

 

“The door was just being slammed in our face.”

It’s easy for Joe to read the comments we’ve seen in the past few interviews and feel vindicated. Because green parts aren’t new. They aren’t a reaction to the perfect storm. They’ve been a potential solution to a whole host of problems for years - and people just wouldn’t see it.

Hills did. Joe did. But it’s been an uphill struggle.

“We need to go back to the beginning. We’ve been waxing lyrical about green parts for five, six years now. And when we’d talk to insurers, to repairers, the door was just being slammed - firmly shut - in our faces.”

But why? Why would insurers - always a price-conscious audience - be so against green parts?

“The arguments were the same, ‘it’s not gonna happen, there’s no need for it, we’ve got great deals in place across our supply chain partners, repairers don’t want to use them, you guys aren’t good enough.’ Well there is a need. Repairers will use them. And we are good enough.”

 

Times have changed

That was five years ago. This is today. And Joe’s unloved green parts are now in high demand. Because - and you may have noticed this yourself - there’s a lot going on in our industry.

“The appetite wasn’t there, and then along came the pandemic. And that was the beginning of the perfect storm. We started to get some traction with a couple of insurers because suddenly they could see what was happening.”

It’s not all hindsight though. Some people could see which way the wind was blowing.

“Some insurers had the foresight to agree with us, to see what was happening in the repair industry just before the pandemic. Costs were rising, repairers weren’t being paid a fair rate for the work they were doing. And generally everyone was finding it a little bit harder.”

And then, Covid.

“Throw in the pandemic and suddenly all the work volume dried up.”

Nobody saw the Coronavirus coming. But Hills had seen potential issues on the horizon, and they’d already started to push green parts as a possible solution. It’s a forward-thinking approach that’s paying off.

 

Affordable, and effective. The rise of green parts.

Because there are so many reasons a vehicle can be a total loss, each car that Hills salvages is a treasure trove of perfectly safe, perfectly usable green parts. If a car is written off because of an electrical fault, there are still mechanical parts to use. And bodywork damage doesn’t always mean that other, more crucial components can’t be re-used.

With a shortage in new parts from manufacturers, suddenly green parts make a lot more sense.

“Repairers and insurers are starting to lose a lot of their options. Parts discounts are being eroded, lines of credit are taken away, and people are questioning things. Asking what they can do. Where can they save on costs? And that’s where green parts started to shine.”

“We’ve seen a rapid increase in enquiries from repairers, and the momentum is carrying on. Every single day we’re asked for parts and panels.”

But Joe isn’t a “told you so” kind of guy. Attitudes have changed, and doors that were slammed in his face five years ago are now open. And he’s just happy to help.

“It’s the right thing to do. It helps to alleviate some of the pressure that’s on repairers.”

“And because we’ve got robust quality assurance protocols in place, it helps us meet our promise of delivering cost-effective parts on time, in the promised condition.”

 

Do customers really want second-hand parts?

During these interviews, we’ve seen that repairers have been very keen to make use of green parts. But there’s still a worry that drivers and policyholders aren’t. They’re skeptical about using second-hand parts in their vehicles.

Joe disagrees.

“For several years, repairers were mandated to speak to and advise the policyholder before fitting a green part.”

“What we found was that repairers are very good at communicating back to the policyholder, explaining how the process works and where the benefit lies. They discovered that they’d get very little pushback from policyholders.”

Why?

“Ultimately, all the policyholder wants is a car repaired, put back in the condition that it was previous to the accident.”

“But consumers are more aware of their environmental responsibilities than ever before. If they understand that they’re making a positive impact, the decision becomes even easier.”

“It’s all about giving policyholders and consumers what they’re looking for.”

And high quality green parts do just that.

 

It’s about giving repairers what they want

During his chat with Kirsty, Joe was clear that sometimes a green part isn’t suitable. That for safety-crucial repairs, sometimes a brand new part is the only option. But he’s keen to support repairers any way he can - reducing repair times, and ensuring that affordable parts are available.

“Our whole green parts process is built around what repairers want, what they require. We understand how they work, what they need, and replicate that in terms of the parts supply process and our standards.”

“It’s not about the cheapest part. It’s not as simple as that. It’s about understanding what a repairer wants, why he wants it done and delivered in a certain way. We take a great amount of care and time to understand that.”

So ultimately, green parts supply isn’t a matter of price. It’s a matter of trust.

“We know repairers need to trust us to actually supply the parts they need.”

When everyone can trust the people up and down their supply chain, we can solve any problem. That’s what Hills believe, and that’s why they’re a perfect partner for Cogent Hire.