I-Team: Car repair law passed by Mass. voters not yet being enforced - WWLP.com

BOSTON (WWLP) – A ballot question giving people in Massachusetts more options when it comes to getting their cars repaired was passed in the November 2020 general election. Now, it’s at the center of a federal lawsuit. It’s known as the Right to Repair law.

Right to Repair Law

A Right to Repair Law was first passed by Massachusetts voters back in 2012. It allowed manufacturers and repair shops direct access to a car’s computer system so issues can be diagnosed. This gave consumers a choice of going to either a dealership or a local repair shop to have their car fixed.

This 2012 law doesn’t include real-time wireless communications, known as telematics, which later-model cars now have. Think of it as an aux cord vs. Bluetooth.

In cars that have these telematics, the information currently only flows from the car directly to automakers and dealerships.

In the November 2020 election, Massachusetts voters passed Ballot Question 1. It created a shared database for these telematics that can be used by independent repair shops, too, beginning with model year 2022.

“We believe if you bought the car, it should be your information and you should decide who gets that diagnostic repair information,” explained Tommy Hickey of the Right to Repair Coalition. “Without that ability to get that information to the owner, only the car manufacturers have it. They’ve created a closed system where they are the only ones that can tell you what’s wrong with your car and where to send it to.”

Before it was passed in 2020, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration expressed doubts that auto makers would be able to comply with the law by the 2022 deadline. One western Massachusetts lawmaker has filed a bill that would push the start date back from model year 2022 to model year 2025.

“What I was trying to do is get to a point where compliance is something that can be done because we are all looking to protect consumers,” said State Rep. Michael Finn.

Car manufacturers filed a lawsuit in federal court just weeks after Right to Repair was passed by voters, challenging the law. In the complaint, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation argues that the law is unenforceable because it compromises vehicle and data security, and conflicts with federal law and the Constitution.

Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said she would not enforce the law until the federal court decided the lawsuit. That ruling has not happened yet.

Video: Flying ice shatters snow plow truck's windshield

In the video, you can see snow and ice fly off of one of the cars heading in the opposite direction. It was enough to do all that damage to the plow truck windshield. Luckily no one was injured.

CONNECTING...

source: https://www.wwlp.com/news/i-team/i-team-car-repair-law-passed-by-mass-voters-not-yet-being-enforced/

Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.