The Auto Care Association launched a new Right to Repair video campaign, featuring independent repair shop owners from across the United States share their stories and shed light on the increased challenges independent repair shops are facing with accessing repair data to service their customers’ vehicles.
The video campaign emphasizes the need for the Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair Act (“REPAIR” Act), which ensures vehicle owners and repair shops have access to tools and data needed to keep cars and trucks on the road safer, longer.
At a time when car repair prices are rising and wait times are increasing, federal right to repair legislation would provide much-needed relief to independent repair shops and consumers alike, according to the Auto Care Association.
“Swift action on the REPAIR Act is needed to protect the 273,000 shops and 900,000 technicians that service the nearly 300 million vehicles on the road in the United States,” said Bill Hanvey, president and CEO, Auto Care Association. “We look forward to working with the full House Committee on Energy and Commerce to advance the REPAIR Act and, ultimately, see this legislation enacted into law.”
The REPAIR Act (H.R. 906), which has 50 bipartisan co-sponsors, unanimously advanced out of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce last November.
“You can’t do the simplest job anymore without [needing] to get into the computer system,” said Dwayne Myers, co-owner, Dynamic Automotive, an automotive repair business with six locations in Frederick County, Maryland. “If Congress doesn’t take action on the right to repair, it will only increase what it costs to fix your car. The REPAIR Act has bipartisan support because it really ties back to the American dream. It puts everyone on a fair playing field.”
“The impact to the consumer is that they have less choice and pay more for repairs that take two, three, or four times longer,” said Kathleen Callahan, owner, Xpertech Auto Repair, a family-owned automotive repair shop in Englewood, Florida. “I support the REPAIR Act because I want to protect my legacy, my customer’s choice, and the independent aftermarket that I’m so proud to be a part of.”