Subaru in court for allegedly failing to give independent repairers equal access to car repair information

The ACCC has commenced Federal Court proceedings against Subaru (Aust) Pty Ltd alleging that it failed to give independent repairers equal access to the software and technical information needed to service and repair Subaru vehicles, in breach of the Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Information Sharing Scheme. The scheme, which took effect on 1 July 2022, requires data providers such as vehicle manufacturers to supply repair and diagnostic information to all Australian repairers on fair and reasonable commercial terms, so that independent workshops can compete with dealership networks.

The ACCC alleges that between 1 July 2022 and 31 August 2024, Subaru Australia did not offer independent repairers the same scheme information it gave its dealerships, in some cases providing access only through remote assistance, required independent repairers to purchase additional hardware to use the software, offered information only on an annual subscription basis when daily or monthly options were required, and failed to provide requested information to at least two independent repairers immediately on request. This is the first court action the ACCC has brought for an alleged breach of the scheme, and the allegations are yet to be determined by the Court.

The proceeding is an enforcement action, not a judgment, and the allegations have not been tested or admitted. It is relevant to vehicle manufacturers and other data providers under the scheme, and more broadly to any business operating under a mandated information sharing regime, since it signals the ACCC's willingness to pursue the first test case under this particular scheme through litigation rather than negotiated resolution.