Repair accessibility issues heard loud and clear

Surveys and studies I’ve read lead to a common conclusion regarding the typical OEM’s approach to sharing data with independent shops. To summarize, these studies clearly state that data is hard to get, and that when techs do get something it’s expensive and usually incomplete.

Further, techs are pessimistic about being able to get the information in the future. And most significantly, they are turning away jobs because they can’t get the information.

The Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) recently commissioned a study to assess the scope of the difficulties facing independent repair shops in obtaining service information from vehicle manufacturers. The study was conducted by a noted outfit called the Opinion Research Corporation. It employed a sound methodology with more than 1,000 repair shops surveyed about their experience in obtaining service information from the OEMs. With that kind of a sample base, the finding would have something around a 95 percent level of confidence with an error range of about +/- 3 percent.

The findings are eye-opening. Shops reportedly found that either “much of the data” or “some of the data” was missing from information provided by car companies. The majority of those surveyed said that the manufacturers “never” or “only sometimes” provide all of the information needed to perform the repairs. Repair shops experience an average of 12 hours of lost work time or a 5.6-percent loss in productivity per month because of a lack of service information available to them. And 70 percent of the shops have no confidence that car companies will ever provide them with the necessary information required for repairs.

The survey discovered that independent repair shops turn away 1.2 million consumers each year because of a lack of repair information. Based on those numbers, the survey estimates that the independent aftermarket is losing $5.8 billion in service and parts sales annually because of the inability to access the necessary repair information. Let me repeat that: $5.8 billion in lost service and parts sales. Another study was conducted for a non-automotive association: the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), a respected group that represents all manner of small businesses. They have about 24,000 repair shop members and found that a staggering 78 percent of those who responded to one of their surveys have been forced to turn away business because they were unable to get repair data.

In an effort to keep their customers, 44 percent of the repair shops in the NFIB survey reported that they had paid an OEM dealer technician to get access to undisclosed manufacturer information. This is a sanitized way of saying that a significant number of shops have “bribed” staff mechanics at dealerships to slip them information they need to fix their customers’ cars. Such a practice is certainly unseemly and may be illegal, but completely understandable in light of the situation.

NFIB member Mike Sauce runs Sportscar Performance, an auto repair business in Arlington, Texas. He put it this way: “Public perception of my business is affected by my ability to handle all of their needs, and when I tell someone I can’t service their vehicle the first time they come to me, then I doubt that they’ll be coming back. I know customers are saying to themselves, ‘If they can’t fix this, what else can’t they do?’”

He’s right. If he doesn’t do something to protect his image with his customers, he’s sunk. So as an industry, what do we do about this problem?

I believe that working to pass the Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act is the only way to effect change. The Right to Repair Act is a proposed piece of legislation that would require car manufacturers to provide the same information to independently-owned repair shops that they provide to new car dealerships.

In essence, it would prevent car manufacturers from unfairly restricting access to the information necessary to diagnose, repair and install replacement parts. The Right to Repair Act does not affect the dealer’s right to perform any services, including warranty work, and does not take the manufacturer’s intellectual property or require them to disclose any trade secrets. It simply provides everyone with the information they need to perform repairs.

Turning up the support
What is perplexing to me is that some trade associations, both at the manufacturer and service levels, are not actively endorsing the Right to Repair initiative.

I believe these associations have chosen not to back a legislated solution to this problem because they prefer to leave government out of what is essentially a business issue. Generally speaking, I agree. This, however, is a different circumstance. The OEMs have a significant history that demonstrates that they will take little or no action without legislation or the threat of it. I ask, did the OEMs voluntarily submit to seat belts, air bags or crash safety standards? Did they actively volunteer to establish emissions standards or fleet fuel economy targets to assist with environmental initiatives? No, it was only through legislation that they acted to serve the greater good.

Make no mistake: I am no fan of “governmental intervention” in business, but unless there is at least the threat of legislation, the OEMs will never negotiate in earnest.

As strange as it sounds, this is really no different than the current situation with Iran or North Korea. The civilized world has been clamoring for both countries to give up their nuclear aspirations. They have both been offered carrots and threatened with sticks, but neither has reacted. Both realize that the only consequences they might face come from a toothless paper tiger called the United Nations. Since there is no real threat, there is no reason to act. They let deadline after deadline pass, saying only that they want to keep negotiating, confident they will never have to give up anything.

I submit that a similar strategy is being used by the OEMs. Anytime the Right to Repair Act gathers momentum, the OEMs begin to act penitential and return to talks. When momentum wanes, the stonewall reappears. It has held us at bay for years now.

I think we can negotiate with the OEMs, and I would prefer a negotiated settlement to a legislated one. But I’m also smart enough to know that the OEMs will never negotiate seriously without legislation or the very real threat of it. This leaves us with only one option — full out pursuit of a legislative solution.

We can get a bill passed. No. 1, it’s the right thing to do. I know that being right doesn’t automatically put you on the winning side on Capital Hill, but it does make it easier to put up the good fight. But consider also all the other good things we have going for us.

Our legislators like to view themselves as defenders of the little guy, the average citizen who, in all too many situations, gets the short end of the deal. Man, do we have a story to play to that predisposition. Here is the crux of a letter I recently wrote to my senators and my representative.

Honorable Representative,

Few Americans are aware of the monopoly currently held by auto manufacturers and dealerships and how it affects them as consumers. Consumers who want to take their cars to their local repair garage or body shop are often turned away and referred to a dealership because their shop does not have the technical information necessary to diagnose, repair and install replacement parts. Repair work performed at OEM dealerships often costs more than the same repair work performed at independent shops. This subjects consumers to longer waiting periods for repairs and higher prices. Moreover, it virtually eliminates their ability to get and compare repair estimates. The Right to Repair Act that is now pending before the House will allow consumers the freedom to choose where and who will service their vehicles.

History has documented that when consumer prices go up, automotive repairs are postponed. It’s a simple fact of life. Consumers who are faced with a steep repair bill will forgo the tune-up and will “put up” with a rough running engine. Rather than replace a leaking head gasket, they will buy a bag of oil dry to catch the spill on the garage floor. But when such repairs are postponed, there is a negative impact on the environment. Untuned cars emit more harmful gases into the air. Leaking gaskets and seals drip oil on the pavement that runs off into rivers and streams.

Even if the OEM dealerships could and would do the repairs for the same money, they don’t have enough bays to handle the demand of vehicles in operation. Industry statistics show that there are more service bays in the independent aftermarket than at dealerships. When you consider that there are over 230 million vehicles in operation, imagine the backup that could result. Longer waits for service and fewer locations to perform maintenance will inevitably put upward pressure on repair prices.

Consider also that car dealerships are independently-owned businesses that fix cars. Independent repair shops are likewise independently-owned businesses that fix cars. Should one class of independent business receive preferential treatment over another? There are about 200,000 small independent repair shops in America.

Those shops are serviced by about 35,000 parts stores who are supplied by a few hundred distributors and thousands of parts manufacturers. Your decision not to support Right to Repair could result in these businesses losing $5.8 billion in service and parts sales annually. And that money will go to the big automakers, not the small businesses that provide livelihoods for over 3 million individuals, many of whom are your constituents.

The refusal of the big car companies to share data with independent shops is just plain unfair. It’s bad for small business. It’s bad for the economy. It’s bad for the environment. And it’s bad for consumers. Please support Right to Repair.

That’s one letter. We need to get a lot more of the 3 million or so people who earn their living in the aftermarket to write similar letters. There is a simple way to do so. Go to the AAIA website (www.aftermarket.org), click on the Right to Repair link and use the tools available there to help you generate a letter that will be e-mailed to your affiliate in Congress. Have everyone that works in your company do the same thing, and do it often!

Meanwhile, the OEMs are following the North Korean script. Every time the threat of legislation gets greater, they are back at the table talking. One thing we know for sure…at nearly $6 billion, this talk isn’t cheap! Meanwhile, we just keep sending our repair business to them.