State Farm Select Service shops enrolling in ADAS Map for the carrier’s calibration program are met with an Opus IVS Agreement that states the repairer is liable for decisions made using the software and support service and that all results from the software should be checked against the OEM factory information. 

The insurer announced the national rollout last month after completing a regional pilot program based on an agreement with Opus IVS. It started in Colorado and Michigan in October and was expanded to Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, and Wisconsin in February.  

State Farm says in its recent email that Select Service shops are required to use ADAS MAP by Opus IVS to scrub estimates and/or repair orders to identify VIN-specific ADAS and necessary calibrations. It adds that the system provides OE repair procedures. 

“Repair facilities will incur a $3 charge per VIN when an estimate is run through ADAS MAP,” State Farm says. “This charge represents a 40% discount on the retail price of $5 per VIN. This operating expense should not be passed on to State Farm or our customers.”

State Farm doesn’t mention the additional administrative work shops need to research OE procedures after performing the scrub, as the Opus agreement requires. 

The Opus agreement further states, “You acknowledge and agree that any information generated by the software is based on and limited to the information collected by the software and must not be relied on as an alternative to your own professional skill and judgement. At all times and under all circumstances, you carry out repairs, servicing, or maintenance on motor vehicles entirely at your own risk.”

It also states that Opus does not guarantee that every aspect of every system, vehicle operation, repair, and maintenance information will always be fully supported or that the software provides or will continue to provide full support or functionality across all platforms.

A Repairer Driven News reader recently shared a complaint he made with Opus after doing a scrub with ADAS MAP on a Mazda3. He checked the scrub with Alldata OEM procedures and found the scrub missing a 360-degree view monitoring system aiming, front radar sensor aiming adjustment, and side radar sensor aiming adjustment. 

The vehicle wasn’t equipped with front grille or mirror cameras, so a 360-degree view monitoring system aiming was not needed on the vehicle, according to the reader’s observation. However, it did require the front radar and side radar sensor aiming adjustments. 

Opus responded to the reader’s complaint, saying that the original inspection had a model name issue, as CCC’s decoder names the vehicle as “3” when it is a Mazda3 from the manufacturer. 

“This mismatched model name did require a manual refresh, which corrected the report,” Opus responded. 

In a February interview, Brian Herron, Opus IVS president, told RDN that the ADAS scrubber works by recommending calibrations based on the vehicle and information uploaded about the damage by the repairer. The scrubber also provides service information from the OEMs.

He said the scrubber does not take the place of repairers looking at OEM procedures.

“The shop is always going to be responsible for the repair plan of the vehicle,” Herron said.

Under the agreement, shops also must agree to “procure and maintain insurance policies adequate to fulfill” their responsibilities and liabilities, according to the agreement. It states that upon written request from Opus, the shop agrees to provide evidence of such insurance policies.  

David Willett, chief underwriting officer of Spark Underwriters,  said it is not unusual for tools to require shops to maintain insurance policies. He said it is more common than not. 

He previously told RDN that no one else is going to take a shop owner’s liability, such as equipment companies. 

Other entities, such as equipment providers, have their own lawyers, he said. He added that shop owners should be prepared that indemnification is not going to cover a shop’s full liability. 

Willett said OEMs also aren’t perfect. However, historically, OEMs pay for any mistakes found in their procedures, he said. 

“If they tell you to do a procedure and you do it that way, you can hand any issues over to them,” Willett said. “No one can get in the way of you and that.”

The Opus agreement also states the company shall not be liable for loss or damages, whether direct or indirect, including loss of profits or revenue. 

It also notes that the company may, from “time to time,” collect personal data supplied by you or your employees and representatives in the course of ordering, registering, and using the software or services. It gives an example of names and contact details such as geographic addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers. 

A panel during a Collision Industry Conference (CIC) meeting earlier this month explored scanning and calibration myths. The panel said one of the greatest myths is that there is an easy solution to finding all calibrations needed to repair a vehicle.

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