Breakfast network meeting addresses aftermarket issues

The IAAF’s latest breakfast network meeting addressed the big issues affecting the automotive aftermarket, with internet parts dominating discussions.

Held at Valeo Service UK, Redditch, Jeff Bradshaw of Capita – a leading FTSE business and provider of business process management solutions – urged garages to think twice about fitting a part supplied to them from the customer and not from a traceable supply route.

He said garages had a “duty of care” to motorists to ensure that any work is carried out with reasonable care and skill and that consumers are entitled to expect that parts are of satisfactory quality and “fit for purpose”.

Wendy Williamson, IAAF chief executive, said: “There is still much confusion when it comes to parts sourced by the motorists over the internet, but through all the debate, the clear message to garages from IAAF is: Don’t fit parts of unknown origin.

Jeff Bradshaw also highlighted new legislation such as the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and gave attendees a sample policy for managing social media use within the workplace.

Wendy Williamson provided an update on IAAF’s wide-ranging activities covering eCall, vehicle telematics and the “connected car”. She also highlighted the Federation’s increased dialogue with motorists and garages on the continual misinformation provided by dealerships on vehicle warranties under block exemption regulations.

“The IAAF continues to work tirelessly to promote the independent aftermarket and we have forecasted the increased aggression from vehicle manufacturers for some time,” she said. “With the support of our members, who continually feedback to us examples of this misinformation, we are able to head them off quickly and find a resolution that benefits the entire automotive aftermarket and motorist.”