Safelite

Last updated

Safelite Group, Inc.
Company type Private
Industry Automotive, Insurance
Founded1947(78 years ago) (1947) in Wichita, Kansas, United States
Founders
  • Bud Glassman
  • Art Lankin
Headquarters
Columbus, Ohio
,
United States
Number of locations
832 [1]
Area served
North America
Key people
Renee Cacchillo (President & CEO)
Parent Belron
Website www.safelite.com OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Safelite Group, Inc. is a Luxembourg provider, operating in America, of automotive glass repair and replacement services, wholesale automotive glass sales, along with insurance claims management, based in Columbus, Ohio. Safelite was sued by the states of California and Illinois for alleged insurance fraud but settled for $31 million. [2]

Contents

Company history

Bud Glassman and Art Lankin started Safelite in a junkyard in Wichita, Kansas in 1947. [3]

The company declared bankruptcy in 1997, after which it became owned by its largest creditor, J.P. Morgan & Co. [4]

In 2007, Safelite was acquired by U.K. based Belron, which is in turn owned by the D'Ieteren group. [5] Belron is the world's largest vehicle glass company, providing service in over 32 countries.

Thomas Feeney became the president and CEO in 2008. [6] In late 2021, Renee Cachillo became the President and CEO as Thomas Feeney moved into a leadership role for Belron North America.

On 5 January 2023, Safelite and two of its business units were sued for insurance fraud in a lawsuit brought by a former employee, product development and strategy manager Brian Williams, on behalf of himself and the people of California. The lawsuit alleged that the company used less expensive universal moldings, but billed insurers for more expensive part-specific units instead. [7] A motion to strike this whistleblower complaint was denied in 2024, [8] and the trial date has been set for September 2025. [9]

Operations

Safelite operates in all 50 states. The company is composed of three major business operations: [10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Safelite Shop Near You | Our Auto Glass Locations | Safelite". www.safelite.com.
  2. ↑ "Safelite and former employee settle alleged insurance fraud lawsuit for $31 million". repairerdrivennews.com. March 11, 2025. Retrieved April 12, 2025.
  3. ↑ "About Safelite | Safelite Reviews | Safelite AutoGlass". www.safelite.com. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
  4. ↑ Database (undated). "Safelite Glass Corporation" Archived September 23, 2015, at the Wayback Machine . BankruptcyData.com. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  5. ↑ "UPDATE 2-D'Ieteren's Belron buys U.S. market leader". Reuters. February 6, 2007. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Safelite AutoGlass Leaders | Safelite AutoGlass". www.safelite.com. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Safelite Sued for Insurance Fraud in California". Glassbytes.com. August 28, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Whistleblower Complaint Remains Unstricken, Safelite Lawsuit Heads To Trial". Glassbytes.com. July 23, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  9. ↑ "California Court Orders Safelite AutoGlass to Answer Whistleblower Complaint Alleging Rampant Insurance Fraud; Case Set for September 2025 Trial". CPMLegal.com. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  10. ↑ Staff (undated). "Safelite AutoGlass® Companies". Safelite Group. Retrieved July 4, 2015.

https://glassbytes.com/2023/08/safelite-sued-for-insurance-fraud-in-california/

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