"Backyard Mechanics" and Service Support.
Members may have read about a purported lack of support for non dealership mechanics by car companies in Australia. According to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, there’s no real detriment being seen, under the current guidelines, to customers. In a review conducted in 2012 by the Australian Treasury, a recommendation was that access to repair information would not become an issue, which appears to have been reached with the FCAI’s Voluntary Code of Practice relating to Access to Service and Repair Information. This represents a minimum standard for the provision of service and repair information to independent repairers, by car manufacturers selling vehicles in Australia.
There’s been assertions that car makers don’t supply information; this is, in fact, incorrect, with a number of manufacturers providing the minimum amout of information required and more to a wide range of independent repairers. Part of this is to do with security. Just as you may have a code for your tablet or smartphone, the Code of Practice allows makers to protect their customers from the release of personal and vehicle information, such as safety, security and legal matters. For example, it allows car makers to help customers protect their vehicles from theft by restricting access to the security codes that would allow any person who purchases the information to access a vehicle. Also, information that an manufactuer is prohibited from disclosing under any law, including privacy laws, will not be made publicly available.
You, as a consumer, have the rightto choose who and where services and/or repairs to your car. You should also expect that crucial and critical systems can be serviced without youself and others being put at risk. The Code is intended to reassure consumers that they can have confidence that their vehicles are being can be serviced safely and appropriately by repairers that have taken the time to ensure their equipment and tools are appropriate, along with up to date information. YOU have the right to have your vehicle serviced and repaired to a high level, a professional standard and why the FCAI will work with the independent service and repair industries.
Level 2, 9 Help Street