Vehicle manufacturers urged to give independent repairers access to tools, training and diagnostics (March 02, 2009)

The Canadian Collision Industry Forum (CCIF) is supporting a private member’s bill before the House of Commons that would oblige vehicle manufacturers to provide independent repairers access to tools, training and diagnostic information.
“In Canada, certain vehicle manufacturers are denying [independent repairers] access to the tools, training and diagnostic information required to carry out repair and service work on their vehicles,” the CCIF notes in a press release.
“This is creating a competitive disadvantage that will impact independents at all levels, from distribution to repair and service.”
The private member’s bill will be debated in the House of Commons on Mar. 5.
AIA Canada, a national trade organization representing Canada’s Cdn$16.7-billion automotive aftermarket industry, has launched a ‘Right to Repair’ campaign. More information on the campaign can be found at http://www.righttorepair.ca.
The AIA says the restricted access effectively prevents independent vehicle repairers from working on late-model vehicles.
The AIA notes 59% of the 18.4 million light duty vehicles on the road in Canada today are equipped with on-board diagnostic capabilities, referred to as OBD II.
OBD II equipped vehicles were introduced in 1998.
“Blocked access to OBD II information shifted as much as $2 billion in auto repair work to the car company dealer network in 2004,” the AIA says. “The loss of business [for independent repairers] is expected to grow at a significant rate, potentially reaching $3.9 billion by 2010.”