Connecticut auto body shop owners are welcoming the state attorney general’s support of their continued effort to force one major Hartford auto insurer to reimburse fairly for collision repairs.
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal says he asked the Stamford Superior Court for permission to appear as a “friend of the court” on behalf of the Auto Body Association of Connecticut.
The auto-body lobby is involved in an ongoing legal battle against auto insurer Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. to “prevent unfair and biased automobile body damage appraisals.”
Last November, a jury awarded $15 million to auto body repair shops, saying The Hartford unfairly depressed shop labor rates by using inhouse damage appraisers instead of independent appraisers.
Now, Blumenthal has agreed to join shopowners who want the court to issue a permanent injunction barring The Hartford from relying solely on its inhouse appraisers. Shopowners also have asked the court to impose penalties against The Hartford.
In a company statement The Hartford said it is “disappointed that the Attorney General has chosen to support a position that the body shop owners admit is intended to increase costs for Connecticut consumers.
“It is important to us that our customers have access to a repair program that provides great service at a fair price.”
