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Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for any person to install or reinstall for compensation or distribute or sell any previously deployed air bag that is part of an inflatable restraint system if the person knows that the air bag has been previously deployed.

A Whittier man held two family members hostage near Montclair, CA after fleeing from police for alleged metal theft.

Felipe Vega, 43, was arrested by Ontario police officers after taking the hostages and barricading himself for more than two hours in their residence on Kadota Avenue.

The hostages were able to safely escape during the ordeal, Ontario police Sgt. David McBride said.

Longtime Autobody News columnist Rich Evans is taking his brand international, having set out in July with a team of nine other automotive experts to Elmsdale, Nova Scotia for the filming of an upcoming episode of “World Wide Car Building with Rich Evans,” a car building show with a cultural twist.

“World Wide Car Building with Rich Evans (WWCB)” is a documentary-style TV series in which Evans collaborates with car builders around the world, engaging the audience in a cultural exchange of creativity, technique, and the universal love for the automobile. In this episode, Rich and crew teamed up with Curtis MacLean of Curtis Customs Designs for a ten-day build in late July. Together, the team built a customized 2004 Hummer H2. Evans also made a public appearance on the Curtis Customs Classic Car Show on July 28 and 29.

Two bills seeking to regulate auto insurance coverage in California saw recent action from lawmakers, including one that would exempt public safety officers from liability in work-related crashes and transfer that liability to the public agency employing the officer.

AB 1551 would apply to firefighters, police officers and other public peace officers using their personal vehicle for work-related functions and duties, barring insurance companies from raising premiums on those policyholders because of crashes while using their cars for those purposes.

The Washington Metropolitan Auto Body Association (WMABA) has announced that the results of its 2012 labor rate survey.

The survey was conducted to determine a more equitable labor rate since, according to WMABA Executive Director Jordan Hendler, some areas around DC haven’t seen a rate increase in five-plus years.

“So many of our members tell us that they’re very rarely, if ever, surveyed by any insurer,” says Hendler. “When they attempt to tell the carrier their new rates, they’re often stonewalled or referred to another manager. In many cases, the shop is told that their rates aren’t competitive, and [the insurer] will have to inform all of their customers not to go to that shop or risk paying the difference. This type of threat seems to be the unnecessary approach that most insurers take with any labor rate request or needed repair procedure.”

CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts, one of North America’s largest multi-shop operator (MSO) networks, has announced the addition of CARSTAR Autopark Appearance Center of Escondido, CA, to its network of collision centers. Although new to CARSTAR’s national lineup, Autopark Appearance Center has served the “Hidden City” of Escondido for more than 30 years, and shop owner Scott Hillery has worked in the automotive industry since 1974. Bringing CARSTAR Autopark Appearance Center on board gives the company a strong foundation of collision centers in the Southern California area.

CARSTAR says the new store will benefit from the CARSTAR Management Systems, which provide resources to improve key business metrics such as cycle time, participation in CARSTAR’s 19 corporately managed DRP programs, and improved purchasing power from 45 corporately managed purchasing programs.

“We are excited to welcome Scott Hillery and CARSTAR Autopark Appearance Center to the CARSTAR network,” said David Byers, CEO of CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts. “We are thrilled to expand our presence in California with this new top-notch collision repair center.”

President Bill Drew of Drew Ford in La Mesa, CA, announced that the Drew Collision-Fix Auto and Glass has been awarded the coveted VQ Medallion for collision repair quality. The Medallion signifies recognition that the facility has achieved and sustained the highest possible quality in collision repair, as determined and documented by the independent repair inspection firm VeriFacts Automotive. There are only 54 collision repair businesses in the U.S. who have reached Medallion level. Drew Ford’s collision center is the first auto dealer of any brand to have its collision repair operation so recognized.

The monthly VQ inspections are unannounced and exceptionally rigorous. They exhaustively examine and record over 300 different aspects of the repair process, including equipment, repair materials, technical information, quality procedures and hands-on observed skills of the technicians. The Medallion rating must be continually re-earned with every inspection.

Bill Drew is the third generation to guide the Drew Ford dealership, which has operated in La Mesa for 85 years, starting as a garage that serviced and repaired model T’s, including body and fender repairs. The business became a Ford dealer in 1934.

Travelers Insurance Regulators in California announced that the state is receiving more funds from an enforcement investigation they brought against Travelers Insurance for several violations that included denying discounts to eligible drivers.

Travelers agreed with regulators last month to settle the case for a total of more than $10 million in refunds and fines stemming from violations in the first seven months of 2006. Commissioner Dave Jones announced on July 3 that he deposited $1.5 million from the case into the state’s general fund.

ABC Channel 7 recently announced its 2012 Bay Area A-List. Voting took place in February and March and was conducted by ABC7 and CityVoter. With 72,000 votes collected, 113 body shops were nominated out of more than 2,500 auto body shops. The top 5 are:

Coming in at #1 is Spectrum Auto Body in San Francisco.

In second place is Fremont’s Maaco Auto Body and Paint. For the second year in a row, the shop has been honored by local residents as one the top five collision centers in the community. Last year, the shop placed first. The auto body shop serves Fremont, Newark, Union City and surrounding areas.

In third place is Cars Dawydiak in San Francisco, an authorized, dealer-approved body repair facility for Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Land Rover and Panoz automobiles as well as a Jaguar authorized aluminum collision repair center for structural and non-structural repairs.

In fourth place is Mike Rose’s Auto Body located in Walnut Creek, and the fifth place winner is Uptown Body Shop in Oakland.

Precision Collision Auto Body, a multiple shop operator (MSO) headquartered in Bellevue, WA, announced it acquired two new collision centers in Tacoma, WA and Kennewick, WA.

The acquisition brings the Precision Collision Auto Body network to 20 locations in Washington.

“With increased growth over the past few years, Precision Collision is one of the fastest growing auto body companies in the U.S. maintaining excellent customer service,” said Mark Lovell, marketing director.