Right to Repair: Looking for Common Ground
January 23, 2023 – Prior to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts passing Right to Repair in 2012, on the heels of an 86 to 14 vote by its citizens, automakers entered into a memorandum of understanding with independent repair shops across the country. The crux of this memorandum was that the automakers would grant independent repair shops the same data access as dealerships at a reasonable price compared to the OE dealers and in a standardized format. Muddying the water, however, was the introduction of telematics, which happened midstream. It was the one thing missing from the memorandum and its implications weren’t fully understood by advocates for independent repair shops.
Today, the debate over telematics access has the aftermarket and automakers in a seventh judicial delay in November. The automakers say they cannot follow the rules for providing independent repair shops equal access to this vehicle data, citing security concerns regarding independent repair shops. It’s an issue Bill Hanvey, president and CEO of the Auto Care Association (ACA) and Bob Redding, the Automotive Service Association’s Washington, D.C. representative have spent the past decade trying to resolve.