Collision Repair Facilities, Insurers, Rental Car Companies and Industry Partners Team up with NABC® to Help Save and Change Lives for Deserving Military Members, Veterans and Families
PORT CHARLOTTE, FL. (January 26, 2023) — In 2022, The National Auto Body Council® and its members fulfilled their mantra of “Changing and Saving Lives” by gifting more than 300 refurbished vehicles to people in need of reliable transportation. Veterans, military families, single mothers and more received vehicles donated by NABC® member insurance carriers and rental car agencies, refurbished by collision repair centers and technical schools, and gifted to recipients who were nominated by local charities all across the country.
Through the NABC Recycled Rides® program, members can give back to their local communities and support those less fortunate by providing them with one of the most important assets a person needs after housing – a vehicle. For those overcoming challenging personal situations, fighting to avoid homelessness, recovering from military service-related injuries and working to regain their independence, lack of reliable transportation prevents them from pursing employment opportunities and caring for their families.
“Each vehicle gifted impacts not just one life, but the many lives of the family and friends that have supported these recipients and helped them with transportation when it is needed,” said Dale Ross, program manager for the NABC Recycled Rides® program. “The gift of reliable transportation is really the gift of independence, allowing recipients to work, grocery shop, go to medical appointments and take care of their families.”
Some of the many highlights of 2022 include:
- NABC® celebrated the milestone 3,000th vehicle gifted with a nine-car gifting on the main stage at the SEMA show in Las Vegas.
- GEICO provided the most vehicles of all the many donors with more than 135 cars donated and gifted.
- USAA celebrated its 100th anniversary by gifting more than 100 cars to military and veteran families, concluding their celebration with a two-car gifting at the Army-Navy Game in Philadelphia.
- Independent collision repair facilities accounted for almost a third of all the vehicles gifted, with Wreck-A-Mended in Purvis, MS being the single independent shop that refurbished and gifted the most vehicles from one location with 14.
- Vehicle presentations by national collision repair multi-shop organizations were led by Caliber Collision, who repaired and gifted 56 vehicles, followed by Crash Champions/Service King with 48 combined and Gerber Collision & Glass, refurbishing 33. Certified Collision Group, Driven Brands and others rounded out the list to complete the more than two-thirds of all vehicles refurbished and gifted during the year.
“It is under the umbrella of the NABC Recycled Rides® program that all our great members of the collision repair industry come together for the purpose of Changing and Saving Lives,” said Scott Sampley, chairman of the board of the National Auto Body Council. “We couldn’t accomplish any of this without the generous and enthusiastic support of our level one and level two sponsors, the insurance carriers and rental car agencies who donate the vehicles, the repairers that donate their time and talents, the vendors who support each repair with paint, parts, and materials, and everyone else who contributes to make these dreams come true for those in need.
NABC Recycled Rides® is a unique program in which businesses representing all facets of the collision repair industry team up to repair and donate vehicles to individuals and families in need of reliable transportation. Since the inception of the NABC Recycled Rides® program in 2007, members of the National Auto Body Council® have donated more than 3,000 vehicles valued at some $42 million.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL AUTO BODY COUNCIL®
The National Auto Body Council® is the premier organization of collision industry partners dedicated to strategic networking opportunities that positively change lives in the communities we serve. The collaborative membership of the National Auto Body Council® has gifted more than 3,000 vehicles, provided extrication opportunities for some 5,000 First Responders and is helping educate students and adult drivers in communities around the country through NABC Recycled Rides®, NABC First Responder Emergency Extrication (F.R.E.E.™) and the NABC® Drive Out Distraction program. That effort equates to a 4:1 ROI in dollar value delivered from NABC® membership dollars. The National Auto Body Council® is changing the paradigm of how the collision industry works and is viewed. For more information, visit www.NationalAutoBodyCouncil.org.
