Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the Competition and Consumer Amendment (Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Information Sharing Scheme) Bill 2021. I have long sought to help small-business vehicle repairers in my electorate and around Australia. Their businesses have been thwarted from working on new cars by the car manufacturers' refusal to share the information necessary to work on today's computerised vehicles. They asked me to push for a mandatory information sharing scheme. This bill is long overdue and very welcome. I know that this bill is supported by the House; many members have been pushing for this. While it has taken some time to consult the industry, costing Australian drivers over $1 billion every year, according to the ACCC, I commend the government for introducing a bill to achieve this aim, to bring Australia in line with the European Union and a number of states in the US.

At the heart of this bill is consumer choice and support for local small businesses. When we buy a motor vehicle we should be able to have it repaired and serviced by a qualified mechanic of our choice, perhaps close to where we live or work, based on price or on the recommendation of others, particularly in rural areas. It is a fair and reasonable expectation. Once, vehicles were less complex to repair. I know my first car was much less complex to repair; I think it was made in 1969, and it didn't have a computer! But all of today's cars have computers in them. Today our choice of repairer has been, until this point, constrained by the limited availability of service and repair information. You need real-time access to digital files and codes for each car to conduct repairs or service. They are usually owned and controlled by the car's manufacturer, tying the consumer to the car dealer. It is monopolistic and plainly unfair to the qualified local small businesses and to the consumer. If you live in regional areas you don't necessarily have a large dealer to take your car to in any event, so it's particularly unfair for regional people.

In 2017 the ACCC found existing voluntary obligations were insufficient to make car manufacturers share the same technical information provided to the dealers on fair and reasonable terms with independent repairers. This applied even to environmental, safety and/or security related information necessary for repair or service of a new car. This all equates to cost, delay of repairs and a lack of consumer choice. This bill addresses deficiencies in the voluntary arrangements. It will require manufacturers to promptly share all diagnostic repair and servicing information with repairers and training organisations at a fair and reasonable market price. It will allow consumers to choose their own repairer, which is so important in regional communities such as mine. The minister will be able to make disallowable regulations to update technical details or the scheme's operation and prevent any attempts to frustrate the scheme. Penalties will be provided for bodies corporate and individuals who fail to comply, and a new statutory scheme adviser will be established to administer the scheme and ensure this is effective.

This is about fairness—fairness for consumers and fairness for small businesses. I thank the government for introducing a bill that seeks to address the great challenges that our automotive repair businesses have experienced for many, many years, and unnecessarily so. I commend the bill to the House.

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