NAII Backs Move by CAPA

The Certified Automobile Parts Association (CAPA)’s recent decision to require all certified parts to pass its stringent Vehicle Test Fit (VTF) will increase the market demand for high-quality replacement parts.

“This recent decision is a smart move by CAPA,” commented Robert Hurns, counsel for the National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII). “By improving the quality of certified replacement parts, CAPA will in turn see an increased demand for them.”

In the past, CAPA only subjected a portion of its certified replacement parts to the Vehicle Test Fit, in which the part has actually been placed on an undamaged vehicle and compared with the automakers’ parts. Going forward, CAPA will only apply its seal of approval to parts that pass the VTF. CAPA has already removed more than 300 parts that did not pass the test.

“Although CAPA-certified parts have traditionally performed respectably in fit tests conducted by the auto repair industry, fit is one of the red herrings that the original equipment manufacturers like to bring up in their criticism of replacement parts,” Hurns said. “By ratcheting up the requirements on fit, CAPA is both raising the bar on its own standards, and taking the sting out of that tired old argument.”