Australia's $23 billion-a-year vehicle servicing and repair sector will get a major injection of new competition under new legislation tabled in federal parliament.
The legislation, if passed, would force car manufacturers to share vital technical and service information with all Australia's 35,000 repair and service businesses at a fair market price from July next year.
Car manufacturers would no longer be able to restrict this information to their dealer networks and preferred repairers.
Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar told federal parliament the legislation would help reduce the cost of servicing the nation's fleet of 20 million vehicles.
"This bill establishes a mandatory scheme to promote competition in the Australian automotive sector by requiring all motor vehicle service and repair information be made available for purchase by independent repairers at a fair market price," he said.
"Around one in 10 motor vehicles taken to repair workshops are affected by a lack of access to service and repair information.
"When this is the case it results in higher service costs for consumers. This is because there is little choice as to where a vehicle, particularly newer models, can be repaired safely and efficiently," he said.
The legislation would provide compulsory access to diagnostic, repair and servicing information and cover the majority of vehicles including passenger and light-goods vehicles built from 2002.
Motorists in the bush will welcome the legislation as they often have to travel long distances to get repairs and services done at their nearest dealership.
A 2017 Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) market study into the sector found that a lack of access to service and repair information was causing delays and detriment to consumers.
The ACCC's market study also found that independent repairers were not often given fair access to information they needed to do their job safely and effectively.
Meanwhile, the legislation stipulates information related to safety and security would only be available to individuals with the appropriate qualifications.
The ACCC will be responsible for monitoring compliance and taking action where necessary with maximum fines of $10 million for data providers found guilty of not complying with the scheme.
Australia's peak automotive body, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), supported the intent of the legislation but said the new laws would create a costly administrative burden.
FCAI chief executive Tony Weber said the new regulations would require car repairers to demonstrate they were eligible to access the information to each car company individually.
"Instead of supporting the service and repair industry to provide outstanding service to their customers, the legislation creates onerous administrative compliance checks at an annual estimated compliance cost of around $30 million.
"This is a red tape nightmare for everyone concerned. Repairers will have to make up to 60 separate annual applications to the car companies and other data providers," he said.
"A simple change to the legislation could have made the process one application to prove eligibility to access information for all Australian car brands.
"Overnight, every car company in Australia will become a separate de facto 'regulator'.
"I cannot see why car repairers would see it as a good use of their time and resources to prove to each car company separately that they are eligible to receive information.
"A much better cost-effective solution is to establish a single step to assess eligibility," he said.
"The legislation as drafted places the responsibility on each car company to check a range of information including proof that the repairer is seeking to carry on a service and repair business.
"In some cases, this process might include police checks.
"If these checks are not performed to a standard that is not fully defined yet, the car companies can face significant fines under the Competition and Consumer Act," Mr Weber said.
"The legislation in its current form is inefficient, cumbersome, expensive and onerous for all parties," Mr Weber said.
"Instead of focusing on the customer, this legislation will tie up the car companies and repairers in expensive and time-consuming compliance checks," Mr Weber said.
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Vernon Graham
Former editor of The Land, former Fairfax Media Agricultural Editor
Former editor of The Land, former Fairfax Media Agricultural Editor
