May 10, 2021—The Automotive Oil Change Association is applauding the Federal Trade Commission for delivering a report to Congress about anti-competitive behavior that affects the aftermarket repair and service industries.
The report follows the 2019 hearing called “Nixing the Fix: A Workshop on Repair Restrictions” that covered tactics by OEMs and dealers to steer drivers away from independent service centers.
The FTC found that OEMs couldn't prove that aftermarket service providers cause any vehicle damage and made aftermarket parts out to be scapegoats for various engine symptoms, according to a press release from the AOCA.
“AOCA’s argument was no mere concept,” said AOCA President Mark Bochnowski in the press release. “We used decades of field experience, actual OEM TSBs, owners’ manuals, OEM advertisements, related defect recalls and class action litigation, thousands of consumer complaints to NHTSA, and critical Better Business Bureau statistics.”
