Massachusetts Right To Repair Act 

Davico Manufacturing is a member of the Autocare Association. www.autocare.org The Auto Care Association is the voice of the $380 billion plus auto care industry. They provide advocacy, educational, networking, technology, market intelligence and communications resources to serve the collective interests of their members. Auto Care Association serves the entire supply chain of the automotive aftermarket: businesses that manufacture, distribute and sell motor vehicle parts, accessories, tools, equipment, materials and supplies, and perform vehicle service, maintenance and repair.

 

Since 2013 our industry has been fighting for the rights of car owners and repair businesses to guarantee the car owners right to have their vehicles serviced at the repair facility of their choice. The industry’s wildly successful campaign in Massachusetts paved the way for a national solution, eventually finalized in a 2014 memorandum of understanding between the Auto Care Association, Coalition for Auto Repair Equality (CARE), and vehicle manufacturers. For the first time ever, new car manufacturers must make the same service information and tools available to independent repair shops that they provide for their franchised dealers.

Vehicle manufacturers, who profit off-of selling vehicle data and restricting independent repair shop access spent millions of dollars to scare Massachusetts voters into opposing this measure and engaged in voter suppression efforts that included urging federal lawmakers to preempt this state ballot measure without any federal standards in place that will ensure that owners have transparency and control of data generated by their motor vehicles. The automakers filed a lawsuit to overturn the voter approved law and the case went to trial in the summer of 2021. A verdict was expected in September 2021.

 

After numerous delays, United States District Judge Douglas Woodlock issued a notice on Friday, April 15, 2022, informing of another delay to provide a decision on the Right to Repair court case in Massachusetts. Citing “the resurgence of a demanding criminal trial schedule, resumption of long delayed in-court non-trial proceedings coupled with insistent writing responsibilities in other matters,” Judge Woodlock extended the date to resolve the matter and invited the Defendant (the Commonwealth of Massachusetts) to “make a Further Modified Stipulation to adjust the relevant date necessary for an appropriate period of consideration in support of a fully satisfactory opinion until no later than July 2, 2022, to bring this case to an appealable final judgement.”

 

We encourage and urge everyone reading this to follow this case online and we will try to keep you posted in future newsletters. This is OUR industry, and we are ALL car owners so it affects us all no matter what your position may be on the subject.