Right to Repair Would Help Consumers and Address ‘Affordability’

E veryone talks about addressing the “affordability” crisis, with housing and food leading the list of consumer complaints.

But another factor in the sticker shock of high prices is the cost of repair and maintenance. Take cars. Vehicle repair and maintenance prices are up 43 percent since 2021 — nearly twice the overall cumulative rate of inflation, with labor shortages adding delays averaging more than two weeks.

Supply chain problems and the increasing complexity of car technology play a role, but another factor is that carmakers are using proprietary software and locked diagnostic systems to block access to the data needed to produce, test, and deliver replacement parts. That leads to higher prices, longer wait times, and fewer choices for drivers.

A bipartisan group of House members — who seldom agree on anything — has introduced the REPAIR Act, a pro-consumer, pro-market bill that addresses the problem. It ensures that drivers, not manufacturers, own the data generated by their cars. That, in turn, would allow any qualified repair professional to have secure access to the tools and software needed to service vehicles.

The bill would also assure access to auto parts made by independent companies that are up to 50 percent less expensive than equipment made by the original manufacturer. Both would have to meet the same exact safety standards.

Consumers spend roughly 36 percent more at manufacturer-controlled service centers than they do at independent repair shops, so congressional action could make a difference.

And “right to repair” would also matter to consumers of dozens of products, not just cars. In some cases, manufacturers have limited consumers’ access to information on products including cellphones, military gear, refrigerators, and hospital ventilators.

Even the Pentagon has had enough with limits that defense contractors place on items they sell the government.

In April, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Army to include right-to-repair provisions in new contracts and existing deals “where intellectual property constraints limit the Army’s ability to conduct maintenance and access the appropriate maintenance tools, software, and technical data, while preserving the intellectual capital of American industry.”

A Senate bill, co-sponsored by Massachusetts Democrat Elizabeth Warren and Montana Republican Tim Sheehy, would even bar the Pentagon from signing military contracts that didn’t give it the right to secure the data needed to operate and repair any equipment.

Government regulators are also coming around. Last summer, National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator Jonathan Morrison, a Trump appointee, told Congress: “The ability of vehicle owners to service and maintain their own vehicles, or have their vehicles serviced or maintained at the facility of their choice, is important to ensuring safety. . . . I would support efforts to provide consumers with secure access to data necessary to maintain or service their vehicles.”

After years of delay, it appears that right to repair may actually become a national reality. Next week, a House subcommittee chaired by Florida Republican Gus Bilirakis is expected to hold a hearing on REPAIR that could lead to it becoming part of next year’s surface transportation bill.

The battle over the right to repair represents a clear dividing line between supporters of certain business interests and backers of a free market. As Adam Smith reminded us 250 years ago in The Wealth of Nations, business owners are often eager to find ways to maintain or expand profit margins by enlisting the government to enforce anticompetitive practices.

Reforms such as right-to-repair laws are a responsible way to enhance consumer choice and forestall calls for more heavy-handed government regulation that will slow innovation and limit economic growth. Support for a free economy can be sustained only if consumers feel that they’re being treated fairly and have real ownership of the things they buy.