Massachusetts Attorney General to Enforce Right to Repair Law

Massachusetts Attorney General to Enforce Right to Repair Law

Andrea Joy Campbell indicated that she plans to enforce the law effective June 1.

The CAR Coalition has reported that Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell is prepared to move forward with the Massachusetts Right to Repair law.

Ballot Question 1, which updated the state’s landmark 2013 Right to Repair law, passed with 75% of the vote in November 2020. Since then, automakers have kept the law tied in up federal court in an effort to block its implementation.

While a federal judge has delayed ruling on the automakers’ lawsuit on six occasions, the attorney general recently issued notice that she intends to enforce the law effective June 1:

“The people of Massachusetts deserve the benefit of the law they approved more than two years ago. Consumers and independent repair shops deserve to know whether they will receive access to vehicle repair data in the manner provided by the law. Auto manufacturers (“OEMs”) and dealers need to understand their obligations under the law and take action to achieve compliance.”

– Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell

On the national stage, U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn recently re-introduced federal Right to Repair legislation.

HR 906, as introduced in Congress, aims to “ensure consumers have access to data relating to their motor vehicles, critical repair information and tools, and to provide them choices for the maintenance, service and repair of their motor vehicles, and for other purposes.”

“When it comes to repairing their automobiles, consumers deserve options,” said Dunn, a Florida Republican. “The REPAIR Act would give owners, including the rural communities in my district, secure access to critical data so their chosen service center can replace parts and repair their vehicles. I am proud to support competition in the vehicle repair industry.”

Dunn is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has responsibility for consumer protection, among several other topics. The bill was referred to the committee on Feb. 9.

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IMR Publishes New Insights On Private-Label Parts

As of August, more independent repair shops reported knowing what brand was in the private-label box compared to 2021.

IMR Inc., a full-service automotive market research firm, has released its latest insight, an update from its 2021 insight on the importance of private-label and national-branded parts at independent repair shops.

As of August 2022, more parts purchasers at independent repair shops reported knowing what brand was in the private-label box (20.8%) compared to 2021 (19.6%), with purchasers at smaller shops (one to three bays) more likely to know what was in the private-label box (22.6%) compared to larger shops with eight or more bays, where purchasers were less likely to know what was in the private-label box (16.4%).This year’s survey results showed that 40.8% of shops said that their first-call supplier carried mostly private-label parts with only a few national-branded parts options, which is a decrease from 2021 survey results, at 42.6%. Of that 40.8%, 19.1% said that they go to another supplier to purchase nationally branded parts, 10.3% said that they always or frequently do and 66.7% said that they occasionally do.  When shops were asked about the likelihood of switching their first-call supplier if it changed to offer majority private-label brands with limited national brands, only 6% of shops said that they definitely or very likely would switch, compared to 2021 survey results, where 15.2% of shops said that they definitely or very likely would make the switch. However, of the 59.2% of shops that said their first-call supplier doesn’t have heavy private-label branded categories, the number of those who would definitely/very likely switch rises to 8.8%, and another 13.5% say they would be likely to make a switch. Overall, more than half of shops surveyed reported in 2022 that they occasionally go to another supplier for nationally branded parts at 66.7%, while 17.9% rarely go to another supplier. 10.3% reported going to another supplier frequently and 0% reported always going to a different supplier for nationally branded parts. For more information on IMR Inc., visit automotiveresearch.com. The most recent Insights from IMR Inc. can be found here.

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