We are supporting the Right to Repair Campaign, which has been created by the independent automotive aftermarket in response to potential changes in legislation in Europe that could drive all repair work into the vehicle manufacturers franchised dealerships.
Block Exemption Regulations (BER) were introduced to give the consumer the freedom to choose where he/she had his car maintained without negating manufacturer’s warranties so long as original parts or parts of matching quality had been fitted by the repairer. To enable repairs to be made, the vehicle assembler under BER should make technical information freely available to the independent market.

By accident or design vehicles are more complex and access to information is being restricted in most cases by the price that the vehicle assemblers charge therefore negating the benefits that BER was intended to bring.  In addition using a loophole that restricts access to technical information in certain circumstances it is becoming increasingly necessary for vehicles to be sent to the dealership for ‘recommissioning’ even if the repair has been successfully completed by the independent repairer.

The effect of this on the independent repair industry is that inevitably there will be fewer vehicles that they are able to repair and if the vehicle assemblers succeed in their aims the independents will be fewer if any exist at all.

The effect on the consumer will be the reduction of choice on where the vehicle is repaired and an increase in cost of repair.

There are far fewer franchised dealers across the UK than independent repairers. The consumer will be faced with further distance to travel to have a vehicle maintained or repaired and therefore greater cost in both financial terms (fuel) and in terms of time.

The hourly rate of the independent garage is half that of the franchised dealers (source GIPA UK ltd Operation Rate Trends March 2007). The cost to the consumer of repairs could double!

The knock on effect could be that vehicles are serviced less often meaning they operate less efficiently, coupled with increased distances to travel for repair this will create a negative impact on the environment.

Lack of regular servicing will undoubtedly lead to unsafe vehicles on the road at what cost?