Tesla Insurance has told members of its certified collision repair network that they have to begin to use Audatex’s Qapter platform to produce and upload all Tesla insurance claims.
The announcement is made through an email to Tesla Approved Collision Centers . Copies of the email were presented to Repairer Driven News by a number of sources.
The OEM had previously shared data through the Audatex platform exclusively, but began providing repair times and upgraded VIN decoding to CCC in September 2022. One month later, Mitchell announced that it had launched a Tesla vehicle database.
The announcement, submitted late November, presumably has direct effect on TACC facilities in California and Texas, the only states by which Tesla Insurance currently sells policies.
In the e-mail, signed through the “Tesla Insurance Team,” the insurer explains that the shift to Qapter “allows Tesla Insurance and TACC repair facilities to quickly generate accurate estimates, improve overall cycle time, increase productivity, enhance Tesla’s compliance management program, and deliver best-in-class service to our mutual customers.”
The insurer promised that it would “actively engage with our TACC partners combined with the Audatex team to make sure a smooth transition to Qapter.” TACC facilities will begin receiving assignments via Audatex no later the Jan. 17, the e-mail states.
Qapter, a photo-based, artificial intelligence -driven estimating platform, premiered in the North American and European markets by Solera, Audatex’s parent company, on March 1.
According to the Solera website, Qapter uses a process it calls “Repair Science” to “automatically detect damage and produce an expert car repair estimate with unmatched speed and accuracy.”
It promises that customers using Qapter “will have the ability to empower non-skilled damage appraisers to produce estimates in under three minutes.”
The requirement to use Qapter could have a financial cost for TACC members in California and Texas that dropped the service when CCC and Mitchell, which are utilized by the majority of the major insurers, began providing Tesla data.
Whether a TACC shop which has dropped out opts to once more pay to subscribe to Audatex’s service may depend on the amount of Teslas it sees regularly.
A 2022 Collision Advice-CRASH Network “Who Pays for What?” survey was the most recent version to check out estimating system usage. Nationally, it found 83.7 percent of responding shops had CCC installed. Mitchell was used by 27.9 %, and Audatex by 23.7 percent.
CCC has witnessed “less and less overlap” within body shops’ estimating software, the company’s CEO, Githesh Ramamurthy, said in May in a call with investors. While “shops still have multiple ,” Ramamurthy said, the trend is on your journey to single-system usage.
Tesla’s email didn't specify what, if any, provisions may be designed for one its member shops that does not actually have an Audatex subscription, but asserted Audatex would begin contacting TACC facilities on Dec. 9 “to initiate contracting and discuss fees, setup and training requirements.”
“We are excited to continue our partnership and be sure Tesla Insurance customers receive the exceptional service that Tesla owners have come to expect,” the e-mail states. “Tesla Insurance is dedicated to utilizing resources and building relationships to deliver an unmatched vehicle ownership experience. We are confident that together we can create an event for the customers unlike every other.”
