Dec 17 2020
While it’s no surprise that ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) has taken the auto industry by storm, there are still many uncertainties when it comes to how your business will be impacted. There are several benefits to these new features, including increased safety and convenience for drivers, and concerns, such as costly repairs, making ADAS a very complex topic that even those selling, insuring, and repairing these features will require clarification on.
In this article, we’ve covered how some auto industry segments have been impacted by ADAS. Read on to learn more.
Whether you’re a business dealing with risk management, such as insurance and extended warranties, or a fleet management company concerned about risk to your drivers, ADAS features could have a very large impact on your overall business.
For example, insurance providers will need to know which ADAS features are installed on each vehicle they insure (or potentially insure) and how they function in order to provide an accurate insurance quote, right price the policy in the underwriting stage, and accurately determine the repair costs in the claims process. As for extended warranties, specifically those offered through the dealer or 3rd party, more than likely they’ll need to know which ADAS features are installed on the vehicle and what it costs to repair/replace these features to ensure they are still making money on their extended warranties.
Assessing the risk to fleets is much different. These businesses will want to lower the risk of their drivers, both from a property damage and personal injury standpoint. According to an Automotive Fleet article, fleet drivers are at a greater risk of accidents due to the sheer number of miles driven, thus increasing driver exposure to crash risks. ADAS equipment has proven to be effective for many fleets with a significant decrease in collisions. Though these features will end up increasing asset expenses beyond the initial purchase, in maintenance and repairs, many companies are moving toward upgrading their fleet for the safety aspects alone. As a result, it will be necessary for fleet management and drivers alike to be trained on the ADAS features they adopt in their newest fleet assets.
Many car shoppers/buyers consider safety to be a top vehicle requirement, which accounts for most ADAS features. Whether you are a dealer or an online research/shopping site, it’s imperative you provide these shoppers with helpful resources on the different ADAS options available. This is especially important due to differences in ADAS equipment across brands and models.
If you are a dealer, you not only need to ensure that your website is providing helpful ADAS information, but also that your sales staff is trained up as well. This will allow your sales team to better educate buyers on the capabilities and limitations of these ADAS features before they drive off the lot. According to this TNW article, “59% of independent retailers received little or no information about the ADAS tech they sell, for manufacturer owned dealers, this figure was less than 9%.” ADAS can only be effective when the driver has realistic expectations of its functionality.
With ADAS features present, there’s no such thing as a $500 windshield replacement or a thousand-dollar bumper anymore. Many of the sensors and cameras that make these ADAS features functional are integrated into the windshield and bumpers. ADAS features greatly affect the repair business, both from the additional training and certification requirements, to the special equipment needed to calibrate the sensors affected.
One of the more controversial affects of ADAS on the auto repair business is the use of aftermarket parts. Many OEMs will void warranties if OEM parts are not used. Here’s an interesting article by Reuters on the subject.
Regardless of which part of the auto industry you serve, your bottom line will likely be affected by the increasing availability of ADAS equipment in one way or another. While these are just a few examples, many other segments of the industry will need to be well-versed on ADAS as we move forward.
Is your business in need of a vehicle data provider that covers these features in depth? DataOne offers a comprehensive database with OEM marketing names and generic names (normalized).
Check out the next article in the series - 3 Key Challenges with ADAS and How to Solve