Auto repair shop texting that stays on the order

Customers answer texts, and the answer is about one car. In Wrenchy the thread sits on that car's repair order: the words, who sent them, the time, and any photo the customer sent back. The next person to open the order reads the whole conversation.

Texts go out from the shop's own number, not a person's. On a phone that supports it, the text arrives as RCS under the shop's name and logo. On any other phone it arrives as a plain SMS, and nobody at the counter has to choose. A technician with a question for the customer can be given the thread without being shown the customer's number.

The everyday texts start from templates for the shop's type, with the opt-out line already in them: estimate sent, ready for pick-up, invoice, thanks.

An estimate text carries a link, and customer approval does the rest: line by line, with the total moving, then a signature. A tap or a one-word reply can't be tied to a line or a price, so neither approves anything. "Go ahead" lands in the thread, where the advisor can act on it.

The shop keeps a copy of what was agreed, which is what an authorization has to be when it's read later. The same thread carries the rest of the job: the status link, ready for pick-up, the invoice, a pay link and appointment reminders.

While a text is on its way, the order shows nothing. If it didn't arrive, the order says so, with the reason and one thing to do: resend, send by email or call. It also goes on Needs attention, so an estimate nobody received doesn't sit there looking sent. When the number is a landline, a text with a link goes by email instead, and the order says that too.

A plain SMS never reports that it was read, so the order shows a read time only when the text went by RCS or the email was opened, and it never says a customer didn't read it. Twilio's documentation is the reason: read events come only "If the channel supports read receipts (currently RCS and WhatsApp)".

CTIA's principles sort a business text into three tiers. CTIA doesn't mention repair shops, so the first column is our reading of its table.

When a number comes in at the counter, the advisor asks the consent sentence and the answer is recorded on the customer, with the words, the time and who took it. Every text names the basis it relies on before it exists. With no basis the send is refused, and the dialog says why and offers printing or a call.

In Canada the record holds the basis CASL gives: section 6(6) lifts the consent requirement for a message that solely provides a requested estimate, and the sender still has to identify itself and offer an unsubscribe.

Under 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(10) a customer can revoke "by using any reasonable method". A reply of "stop," "quit," "end," "revoke," "opt out," "cancel," or "unsubscribe" counts on its face, and the ceiling for honoring it is ten business days. Wrenchy writes the opt-out in the same step as the message asking for it, in English or French. One confirmation goes out with no marketing in it, as paragraph (a)(12) allows, and HELP answers with the shop's name, its number and the opt-out words.

The rule also counts other words a reasonable person would understand, so a plain sentence in the thread is the advisor's to mark on the customer.

The FCC has put off until January 31, 2027 the part of the rule that makes a revocation sent in reply to one type of informational message cover unrelated messages from the same sender (DA 26-12). A STOP in Wrenchy already covers every text from that shop's number.

Twilio's page is plain about who has to register: "Anyone sending SMS/MMS messages over a 10DLC number from an application to the US must register for A2P 10DLC." The Campaign Registry adds that "direct registration with TCR is not available for Brands", so a shop registers through its provider.

Wrenchy files it. The shop's legal name, tax number, address and authorized representative go in once during setup, and the brand and the campaign are submitted from there, with the privacy policy and terms addresses that Twilio has required on new campaigns since June 30, 2026. Settings shows where each registration stands and the next step the shop owes. In Canada the same screen follows the toll-free verification instead. Until the carriers approve the number, a link goes by email and the thread says so.

Pricing says how much texting each plan includes.