NUTS & BOLTS

Please Consider Supporting The Massachusetts Right To Repair Plus(+) Bill

The Massachusetts chapter of AASP has filed the most far-reaching and consequential “Right To Repair” legislation on behalf of consumers and the independent auto repair industry. It is, by leaps and bounds, superior to any other “similar” bill that has ever been written. Three of the many reasons you should consider supporting this bill are listed below:

STATEMENT ONE: Massachusetts’ consumers, from new and used vehicle purchasers and lessees as well as accident victims to those seeking convenient, competitively priced repairs and well-defined privacy rights, are granted important rights with the passage of this bill.

FIND IN THIS BILL: Sections defining the consumer’s ownership of the “entire vehicle,” including the “data stream” that is produced by merely driving the vehicle, the consumer’s privacy rights to that data stream, and the consumer’s right to assign access, in their behalf, to that data to the dealer and independent repair business of their choice. No other bill addresses these vital issues.

NUTS & BOLTS: Vehicle manufacturers will oppose passage of this legislation for as long as possible so that they can utilize, in a manner not obvious to consumers, the data stream to direct repairs and maintenance to their dealers. And, by restricting data access to independent repair businesses for such simple things as turning off dashboard lights and wiring logistics, they are “training” consumers to believe that dealers are the only places to get their vehicles repaired.

STATEMENT TWO: Vehicle manufacturers are able to continue to offer advanced technologies based on a new platform of consumer rights granted in this bill.

FIND IN THIS BILL: Sections to encourage vehicle manufacturers to bring new technologies to market through the opportunity to offer End User’s License Agreements (EULA). However, vehicle manufacturers must honor other sections that clearly define important consumer rights, such as protecting a vehicle’s resale value, the right to procuring updates for software and/or firmware, the right to their own vehicle security information, and the right to restore vehicles to original condition. No other bill grants such rights to vehicle manufacturers and consumers.

NUTS & BOLTS: By keeping these rights undefined and controlling the ability to restrict access to critical information, vehicle manufacturers can manipulate an environment in which repairs and maintenance of vehicles can more readily become economically unfeasible. Unknowing consumers may be forced to trade inoperable vehicles for new ones.

STATEMENT THREE: The “connected vehicle” that is currently sold, as well as those on future horizons, requires new thinking in terms of intellectual property rights, consumers’ rights and access, and the regulatory environment. This bill enters an important new territory in support of consumer rights.

FIND IN THIS BILL: Sections clearly defining trade secrets, proprietary information, software, firmware, and other pertinent principles that confuse consumers and lawmakers alike. No other bill gets at the heart of this debate.

NUTS & BOLTS: Vehicle manufacturers, to the detriment of consumers, hide behind legally confusing alibis and intentionally blurred definitions to establish and maintain control over those parts of the vehicle’s data stream that they can manipulate into their own economic advantage. It is not in keeping with the best American traditions and principles of capitalism and free enterprise to shut out competition for such a vital consumer product.