Method and Apparatus for Tracking Repair Facility Performance for Repairs Relating to Replacement Rental Vehicle Transactions

Abstract

Systems and methods for tracking repair facility performance in a replacement rental vehicle context are disclosed. Aggregate data that is indicative of a repair performance quality by the repair facility with respect to a plurality of disabled vehicles that are associated with a plurality of replacement rental vehicle reservations can be computed, and a determination can then be made based on this computed aggregate data as to whether the repair facility has satisfied a benchmark.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method comprising:
 maintaining an account in a memory, the account being associated with a repair facility;   calculating aggregate data that is indicative of a repair performance quality by the repair facility with respect to a plurality of disabled vehicles that are associated with a plurality of replacement rental vehicle reservations;   determining whether the repair facility has satisfied a benchmark based on the calculated aggregate data; and   in response to the determination that the repair facility has not satisfied the benchmark, (1) identifying a remedial action to be taken against the repair facility, and (2) updating the account based on the identified remedial action; and   wherein the method steps are performed by a processor.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing an average length of an initial authorization period for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing an average length of a total authorization period for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing an average rental cost for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing an average extension length for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing an average extension length per extension for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing a percentage of the replacement rental vehicle reservations that have an authorization period beyond their initial authorization periods. 
 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises:
 the processor computing a percentage of the replacement rental vehicle reservations that ended a predetermined number of days prior to an expiration of their authorization periods. 
 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 the processor determining whether a predetermined time period has elapsed; and 
 in response to a determination that the predetermined time period has elapsed, the processor performing the aggregate data calculating step and the determining step. 
 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the predetermined time period comprises a member of the group consisting of a yearly basis, a quarterly basis, a monthly basis, a weekly basis, and a daily basis. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the processor and memory are resident within a rental vehicle reservation management computer system. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising:
 the memory storing data describing the replacement rental vehicle reservations; 
 the processor receiving vehicle repair data relating to the disabled vehicles as an electronic data communication from a computer system of the repair facility; and 
 wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises the processor calculating the aggregate data based on the stored data and received vehicle repair data. 
 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the aggregate data calculating step comprises the processor limiting the disabled vehicles subject to the calculation to only those disabled vehicles that are associated with replacement rental vehicle reservations being paid for by a common party. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13  wherein the common party comprises an insurance company that is a purchaser for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the identifying step comprises allocating a charge to the repair facility for a portion of a cost for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15  further comprising invoicing the repair facility in accordance with the allocated charge. 
     
     
         17 . An apparatus comprising:
 a memory, the memory configured to store an account, the account being associated with a repair facility;   a processor configured to (1) calculate aggregate data that is indicative of a repair performance quality by the repair facility with respect to a plurality of disabled vehicles that are associated with a plurality of replacement rental vehicle reservations, (2) determine whether the repair facility has satisfied a benchmark based on the calculated aggregate data, and (3) in response to the determination that the repair facility has not satisfied the benchmark, (i) identify a remedial action to be taken against the repair facility, and (ii) update the account based on the identified remedial action.   
     
     
         18 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing an average length of an initial authorization period for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         19 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing an average length of a total authorization period for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         20 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing an average rental cost for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         21 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing an average extension length for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         22 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing an average extension length per extension for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         23 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing a percentage of the replacement rental vehicle reservations that have an authorization period beyond their initial authorization periods. 
     
     
         24 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the aggregate data by computing a percentage of the replacement rental vehicle reservations that ended a predetermined number of days prior to an expiration of their authorization periods. 
     
     
         25 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to (1) determine whether a predetermined time period has elapsed, and (2) in response to a determination that the predetermined time period has elapsed, perform the aggregate data calculation and benchmark satisfaction determination operations. 
     
     
         26 . The apparatus of  claim 25  wherein the predetermined time period comprises a member of the group consisting of a yearly basis, a quarterly basis, a monthly basis, a weekly basis, and a daily basis. 
     
     
         27 . The apparatus of  claim 17  further comprising a rental vehicle reservation management computer system, the processor and memory being resident within the rental vehicle reservation management computer system. 
     
     
         28 . The apparatus of  claim 27  wherein the memory is further configured to store data describing the replacement rental vehicle reservations, and wherein the processor is further configured to (1) receive vehicle repair data relating to the disabled vehicles as an electronic data communication from a computer system of the repair facility, and (2) calculate the aggregate data based on the stored data and received vehicle repair data. 
     
     
         29 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to limit the disabled vehicles subject to the aggregate data calculation to only those disabled vehicles that are associated with replacement rental vehicle reservations being paid for by a common party. 
     
     
         30 . The apparatus of  claim 29  wherein the common party comprises an insurance company that is a purchaser for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         31 . The apparatus of  claim 17  wherein the processor is further configured to identify the remedial action by allocating a charge to the repair facility for a portion of a cost for the replacement rental vehicle reservations. 
     
     
         32 . The apparatus of  claim 31  wherein the processor is further configured to generate an invoice to the repair facility in accordance with the allocated charge.