Historically, the right to repair concept has been around longer than you might expect. Through most of recorded history, the idea of right to repair was largely meaningless. There was no “right” to repair; repairing what you owned was simply expected. If you owned a thing, and that thing broke, you would try to repair it first. Buying a new whatever it was was an option, of course, but it was treated as more of a last resort than a first move.
But then, starting around the 1970s—though it took well into the 1980s to start truly accelerating—cars started adding a key feature: computerized elements. This increased the difficulty of many formerly-common repairs, which in turn increased drivers’ reliance on professional auto repair services. Dealerships, of course, were front and center. But small shops continued to exist during this time, and also learned how to use the computer-driven systems in question. This allowed them to keep pace with dealership repair services and maintain their customer bases.
Indeed, many independent shops fought back, asserting that the dealership was effectively trying to assert a monopoly—if more de facto than de jure—over repairs. In 2012, Massachusetts voters enacted the Right to Repair Law, which obliged manufacturers to supply information to repair shops on how to repair vehicles. This law actually served as the basis for similar laws in several other states. It also served as the basis of a larger memorandum of understanding in 2014 between automakers and repair-focused groups.
