Take your auto repair shop to the next level by getting AAA Approved—get access to the 60+ million AAA members who rely on AAA affiliated businesses for quality and reliable auto repair services.
Becoming an AAA Approved Auto Repair (AAR) facility can seem daunting, but we’ve done the research and summarized the process for you below:
1. Employ ASE certified mechanics
The most important step towards becoming an AAA Approved Auto Repair shop is for you to hire Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Certified technicians. For auto mechanics to earn this certification, they should have:
- Relevant hands-on work experience.
- Gone through the necessary technical training.
- Passed the relevant ASE certification exam(s).
Obtaining this certification from the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence is an achievement in its own right, and one that AAA holds in high regard. Hiring only ASE Certified mechanics will demonstrate that your auto repair shop is committed to providing top-notch auto repair service to its customers.Â
After you’ve applied for AAA Approval, be ready for a site visit, AAA staff will speak directly with your technicians and also perform facility checks and inspection.
2. Provide an exceptional customer experience
AAA Approved Auto Repair shops pride themselves on providing a best-in-class auto repair experience to their customers. This is largely in part due to the stringent standards that the AAA has set out for its AAR certification program:
- Certified, yet approachable and friendly staff. This includes having staff trained to deal with unhappy customers.Â
- Adequate parking and a clean waiting room which is away from the service bays/repair facilities.
- A customer satisfaction score of at least 90% (AAA will visit your premises for conducting customer surveys—they will ask your customers to rate their satisfaction with your auto repair shop and the services they’ve received from you).
A good way for you to think about this is that customers want the 3 C’s when it comes to automotive repair i.e. confidence, cost and convenience.Â
3. Use advanced computer diagnostics
Another key requirement on the path to obtaining AAA Approval is for your auto repair shop to use advanced diagnostics equipment.
This will enable you to quickly pinpoint problems in customer vehicles, with a high level of accuracy. Your technicians can then ascertain the exact problem at hand in a scientific and data-driven manner, and take the appropriate steps to fix it. By using tools with features such as digital vehicle inspections (DVI), you can increase profitability at your shop. Using automotive diagnostic software allows you to conduct DVI and much more!
4. Meet environmental standards
In order for your auto repair shop to get AAA Approved, it must adhere to strict environmental standards. The fact that auto repair businesses produce substantial amounts of waste is no secret—the AAA is interested in how the waste is disposed of and prevented from spreading. Towards this end, you should:
- Ensure that your equipment is in great shape.
- Dispose of waste material (e.g. used engine oil) in a responsible way.
5. Provide a warranty
The AAA also requires its member AAR shops to provide a parts and labor guarantee (a minimum of 24-months/24,000-miles) for their repair jobs. If you think about it, this has the added benefit of reassuring customers that you are confident in your quality of auto repair work, which in turn will help you win repeat business.
Other than the requirements given above, as long as you’ve been in business for 1+ year and can give AAA members a 10% discount (up to $50), becoming a member of the AAA Approved Auto Repair (AAR) certification program isn’t that hard.
So what are you waiting for? Become AAA Approved today!
Customers at an AAA-approved auto repair facility enjoy:
- Trusted repair work by ASE-certified techniciansÂ
- Use of genuine OEM parts for every repairÂ
- Discounts off select services and repairsÂ
- Free inspections and other complimentary perks
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