Class action suit targets State Farm's parts policy

Topeka Capital-Journal, The, Aug 10, 1999 by MICHAEL PEARSON

The Associated Press

MARION, Ill. -- When Peggy Frey picked up her newly repaired Ford Mustang from the body shop recommended by her insurance company, she found the hood didn't fit and the headlights were loose.

Frey, of Indian Shores, Fla., spent the next year battling with State Farm Insurance Co., contending it forced the shop to use substandard replacement parts when repairing her car after an accident.

Next week a jury will begin hearing dozens of complaints like Frey's as it considers a class-action lawsuit that could force insurance companies to stop insisting on cheap parts.

The suit, filed on behalf of 5.5 million current and former State Farm auto insurance customers, is the latest chapter in a debate about auto parts that has gone on for more than a decade.

If the plaintiffs prevail, the lawsuit could cost State Farm more than $2 billion.

The suit involves door panels, hoods, fenders and other parts modeled on original equipment produced by automakers, but made without benefit of the original specifications. Known in the industry as after-market replacements, these parts made up about 15 percent of all crash-repair parts used last year.