Lisa Foshee, senior vice president of government affairs and general counsel for the Auto Care Association, took the stage at the VISION Hi-Tech Training and Expo keynote breakfast on March 8, 2025.
"We need access to the repair and maintenance data in the same way you give it to your independent dealers," Foshee stated. Right to Repair legislation has been reintroduced in Congress, but more work remains.
"Cars are getting more and more complex,” Foshee said. “Cars have SIM chips, which transmit terabytes of data to cloud servers which (automakers) buy, and they control data in the cloud server and can sell that data to anyone they want.”
At the event, the Auto Care Association provided attendees with a QR code to submit detailed, practical cases where they've faced problems due to lack of access to information required for repairs. In her presentation, Foshee focused on continuing to support the industry and grow case-by-case involvement and reporting. She emphasized that reporting such real-world issues is crucial, as it provides lawmakers with information to support arguments for fair competition, consumer choice protection, and the impact of potential new legislation.
The industry needs all the support it can get from all parties. By assisting in reporting actual cases it can only help lawmakers have even more palpable evidence of how the issue affects the auto care business, and the many people that depend on these businesses.
