“The industry has raised concerns about data sharing with independent repair shops to justify opposing right-to-repair, while earning profits from sharing large amounts of personal data with insurance companies.”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) wrote to the leaders of each of the top 10 U.S. automakers with concerns about the companies’ fierce opposition to car owners’ right to repair the vehicles they own in the way they choose. The letters were sent to General Motors, Toyota, Ford, Hyundai Group, Stellantis, Honda, Nissan, Tesla, Subaru, and Volkswagen.
The letters denounce automakers’ actions to prevent vehicle owners from taking their vehicle to the mechanic of their choice by blocking vehicle owners’ ability to access or share information necessary for repair, like diagnostic data. These repair restrictions are an example of companies’ opposition to “right-to-repair,” which refers to a person’s ability to choose where they repair the products they own, including vehicles, consumer electronics, household appliances, agricultural equipment, and other goods. Without restrictions on right-to-repair, a vehicle owner can go to a local mechanic of their choice and is not forced to go to the manufacturer or car dealer for maintenance and repair of their vehicle.
By restricting right-to-repair, equipment manufacturers like car companies can create a monopoly on vehicle repairs, allowing them to raise prices. Customers consistently rate independent repair shops better on price (as well as overall satisfaction) than dealerships, which nearly all receive the worst possible ratings from car owners on price. Right-to-repair is also crucial for local economies, with more than half of independent repair shops reporting difficulty in making repairs on a daily or weekly basis because of auto manufacturers’ repair restrictions.
“As the gatekeepers of vehicle parts, equipment, and data, automobile manufacturers have the power to place restrictions on the necessary tools and information for repairs, particularly as cars increasingly incorporate electronic components,” wrote the senators. “This often leaves car owners with no other option than to have their vehicles serviced by official dealerships, entrenching auto manufacturers’ dominance and eliminating competition from independent repair shops.”
Now, auto manufacturers are trying to claim that they restrict independent repairs as a matter of cybersecurity. However, according to a study by the FTC, as well as analysis from cybersecurity experts, these concerns have no legitimacy. Rather, experts have found that cyberattacks on connected devices are due to “the poor quality of deployed software and the poor state of device security – not the availability of diagnostic and repair tools and information.”
“Car manufacturers should not hide behind a false dichotomy of cybersecurity and consumer choice in order to avoid their legal obligations to facilitate independent vehicle repair,” wrote the lawmakers. “Cybersecurity experts have forcefully pushed against manufacturers’ fearmongering.”
The lawmakers note that the automakers’ cited concern with sharing data with independent repair shops to facilitate repairs appears to conflict with their practice of selling large amounts of sensitive consumer data with insurance companies and other third parties — often without clear consumer consent.
“The industry has raised concerns about data sharing with independent repair shops to justify opposing right-to-repair, while earning profits from sharing large amounts of personal data with insurance companies,” wrote the lawmakers. “It is clear that the motivation behind automotive companies’ avoidance of complying with right-to-repair laws is not due to a concern for consumer security or privacy, but instead a hypocritical, profit-driven reaction. This kind of anti-consumer, anti-repair practice must come to an end in all industries.”
The lawmakers are urging the car companies to comply with all right-to-repair laws while protecting consumer privacy interests and are requesting information from the companies regarding their data sharing practices.
###