IGA refutes ‘slur’ on independent garages

"The suggestion that independent garages having access to vehicle manufacturer technical information is the cause of a rise in car crime is entirely false and unfounded" said Stuart James, Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) Independent Garage Association (IGA) Director, commenting on a recent press article.

The press article stated that a recent spate of car thefts where the criminals connect a device to the vehicle’s diagnostic system, and then reprogram a blank key to start the car is partly due to EU Block Exemption rules that allow independent garages access to this information to service vehicles.

James continued “Although the European legislation states that all garages should have access to vehicle manufacturers’ technical information, security information has still not been made available to the independent garage sector. Therefore it is impossible for reputable independent garages to be in anyway linked to this spate of car thefts. 

“The RMI, in the form of its RMI Standards and Certifications division (RMISC), is in the latter stages of gaining UKAS accreditation to become the first organisation in Europe to become a certification body for Security Technical Information. This technical information is vital for independent garages to be able to repair cars in the future.  With this accreditation we will be able to assist reputable garages across the UK in accessing this all important information in a tightly controlled and cost effective way.”