The Federal Government’s new taskforce to overcome some of the longstanding issues between the smash repair and insurance industries had its first meeting yesterday.

A recent Productivity Commission report into the issue initially said the industries should come up with a code of conduct of their own, or otherwise have it developed for them with input from the Government.

Mary Urquhart, former Deputy President of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, is the Chair of the taskforce and has six months to come up with a code.

She’ll be dealing with five members each from the auto and insurance industries. But while the insurance side is made up of four private industry representatives and one industry body representative, the five smash repair representatives are all from industry bodies.

Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) spokesman Patrick Flynn told Sunrise Exchange News the council “welcomes the announcement of the taskforce, and looks forward to working with its members”.

Small Business and Tourism Minister Fran Bailey says the taskforce will be responsible for implementing the Government’s response to the Productivity Commission, which found the dispute between the industries was “serious enough to warrant” the introduction of a code.

“The ultimate aim of the taskforce is to inject some much-needed transparency for smash repairers,” she said, which presumably means she thinks the insurers need to accept some changes.

The members of the taskforce are:

For the insurers – ICA Executive Director Alan Mason; AAMI National Manager, Strategic Development Repair Industry Maureen Joseph; Allianz Australia GM Corporate Affairs Nicholas Scofield; IAG Head of Claims and Assessing (Personal Insurance) David Brown; and Suncorp Metway GM Property Claims Mark Milliner.

And for the auto trade – Motor Trades Association of NSW Chairman Body Repair Richard Nathan; Motor Trades Association of Australia (MTAA) Deputy Executive Director Sue Scanlan; Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce GM (Divisions and Membership) Gunter Jurkschat; Motor Body Repairers Association Chairman and Motor Trades Association of Queensland Chairman David Weatherall; and MTAA Executive Director Michael Delaney.