The Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act

Modern cars and light trucks contain advanced technology that monitors or controls virtually every function of the vehicle including: brakes, steering, air bags, fuel delivery, ignition, lubrication, theft prevention, emission controls and soon, tire pressure. Car owners and independent shops need full access to the information, parts and tools necessary to accurately diagnose, repair or re-program these systems.

Vehicle manufacturers are making access to such vital information increasingly difficult to obtain for the independent aftermarket and its customers.  Without access to critical information, parts and tools, motorists are forced to patronize new car dealerships, which may not be convenient or easily accessible to a car owner.

A nationwide survey of a 1,000 independent repair shops conducted by Opinion Research, Inc. found that either much or some of the data needed to repair vehicles was not provided by the vehicle manufacturers.  Further, the survey found that the manufacturers never or only sometimes provide capabilities in their tools needed to complete repairs.  The difficulty in accessing the needed tools and information has caused a 5.6% loss in productivity per month for independent repair shops, adding up to a whopping $5.8 billion loss of revenue per year for the industry. 

The Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act (H.R. 2694) is critical to ensuring that the independent vehicle aftermarket have access to the service information and tools necessary to repair today’s computer controlled vehicles. 

The Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association urges lawmakers to support “The Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act” for the following key reasons: 

• Requires vehicle manufacturers to provide the same service information and tools capabilities to independent shops that they offer to their franchised dealer network to repair and maintain late model computer controlled vehicle systems;
• Restores the right of consumers to have their vehicle serviced and maintained at the repair facility of their choice; and,
• Authorizes the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce requirements in order to protect consumers and to promote competition in auto maintenance and repair.

Right to repair would not:

• Affect the dealer's warranty agreement with the vehicle manufacturers; and,
• Require manufacturers to disclose manufacturing processes or trade secrets unless that information is made available to the new car dealer.

For additional information, contact AAIA Government Affairs at
      301-654-6664 or e-mail govaffairs@aftermarket.org.