Industry leaders testified before a Senate committee, pushing for swift action on bills adjacent to the right to repair movement last week.
J.F. Champagne, president and CEO of the Automotive Industries Association of Canada (AIA Canada), Chris Kinghorn, vice president of strategy and growth at UAP and Daryll O’Keefe, president of Fix Network Canada testified before the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Commerce and the Economy, advocating for the passage of Bills C-244 and C-294.
Bill C-244 addresses digital locks that currently restrict consumers from repairing or maintaining their products. By amending the Copyright Act, the bill would allow Canadians to legally bypass these restrictions without fear of infringing on copyright laws, giving repair advocates a significant victory.
Bill C-294, on the other hand, focuses on enabling compatibility between different systems and devices. This would allow for repairs and interoperability between various technologies, all while remaining within the confines of copyright regulations.
While these bills are not specific to the right to repair of motor vehicles, they do mark a significant step toward securing the right to repair in Canada and ensuring consumers’ ability to choose where and how their vehicles are repaired.
The trio separately urged the Senate to push forward on these bills and right to repair overall as they are critical for consumer choice. Champagne noted other countries as making progress and noted Quebec’s forward movement on right to repair.
Last fall, Quebec passed legislation to allow vehicle owners in the province to have protections in being able to choose the vehicle repair facility of their choice. It forces manufacturers to repair certain goods at “a reasonable price” to avoid having the consumer discard them entirely.
“It is critical that vehicle owners have a choice when it comes to where they get their vehicle repaired and serviced. But this choice could soon disappear if they don’t have access to their vehicle data,” Champagne stated during the testimony.
He further stressed that enacting this legislation will help ensure that independent auto care businesses continue to play a vital role in servicing Canadian vehicles, preventing a monopoly by automakers over repair data and services.
Both bills represent an essential step toward empowering consumers and supporting competition in the automotive service industry, AIA Canada outlined in a recap of the testimony.
However, the group has made it clear that their broader goal is the implementation of standalone legislation specifically for the automotive sector.
“Standalone legislation would affirm that vehicle data belongs to the consumer, granting them full control over where they choose to have their vehicle serviced or repaired,” AIA Canada observed.
“It is crucial that vehicle owners, not automakers, retain ownership of this data. This will ensure that consumers can continue to make independent choices while helping auto care businesses throughout the country remain competitive and serve as vital providers of essential vehicle services to Canadians.”
Image: AIA Canada’s J.F. Champagne speaks to the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Commerce and the Economy on October 9
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