Bill Hanvey, president of the Auto Care Association, took to the stage at ATI’s Fall ShowCase to make a spirited appeal for full industry support in the Right to Repair fight.
Opening his session with data that showed the strength of the automotive aftermarket’s position in the automotive industry at large, Harvey praised the aftermarket for its commitment and the work it takes to keep Americans on the road.
According to Harvey, independent auto repair shops account for 2.2 million daily vehicle repair and employs 915,000 auto technicians all within a $477.6 billion industry where 4.77 million people earn their living.
Shifting to Right to Repair, Hanvey outlined the issue and its importance to independent repair shops: an end to repair restrictions; access to repair data; market competition for repair; no mandates for specific brands, tools or equipment; a long-term solution that guarantees the future of independent aftermarket businesses.
He added that while the original memorandum of understanding was governed by telematic data through the OBD-II port, now, with wireless access, automakers are able to bypass the OBD-II port to maintain stronger control over vehicle data, which puts independent auto repair shops on their heels.
Harvey stated that while Right to Repair revolves around providing fair and equal data access, it’s also about protecting the consumers, who stand to lose a voice in where they can have their vehicles repaired. In a slide, Harvey explained that consumers could feel the brunt of a $100 billion hit if automakers and the aftermarket can’t come to a consensus on executing Right to Repair.
He took attendees through the complete history of Right to Repair from its inception in Massachusetts in 2012 to present day, including the recent challenges with the new memorandum of understanding between ASA and the automakers and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) letter to automakers to ignore the enforcement of Right to Repair by Massachusetts in June.
He concluded encouraging the attendees to get involved in Right to Repair by sending a letter to their congressperson, reporting repair restrictions, hosting a legislator at their facility, and/or attending the legislative summit in Washington, D.C., from September 20-21, 2023.
