Long-time local businessman chided for mentioning Rep. Lynn Westmoreland

Long-time Fayetteville auto repair shop owner Richard Hoffman was ready to testify before the Small Business Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives two weeks ago.

But he never got the chance. His testimony was axed after what he was told was a controversial reference to Rep. Lynn Westmoreland in the written narrative he submitted ahead of time, per House rules.

Hoffman was to testify in support of legislation entitled the “Motor Vehicle Owner’s Right to Repair Act.” In his written statement, Hoffman referred to Westmoreland after touting Hoffman Tire’s pride and reputation in the community for its quality work.

“The Honorable Lynn Westmoreland should be able to confirm that, since he was a long-time customer before moving to another county,” Hoffman wrote.

Westmoreland is an opponent of the bill and helped get it defeated during the previous legislative session.

Hoffman said he was told the comment about Westmoreland “would create rancor on the commission.”

Hoffman said the Right to Repair Act is designed to allow independent repair shops like his to have all the necessary information needed for repairs to be provided by auto manufacturers. Hoffman subscribes to a software service that is supposed to have the full data, but about 5 percent of the time the information is incomplete, inaccurate or non-existent, Hoffman said.

Brian Robinson, a spokesperson for Westmoreland’s office, said the Right to Repair Act is being pushed by large auto parts corporations such as Pep Boys and Advance Auto Parts so they can gain access to proprietary parts designs and then manufacture the parts far cheaper in China to sell in competition with the U. S. auto companies who spend “millions upon millions, even billions” designing the parts in the first place.

Robinson said if the Right to Repair Act were passed, the large after-market parts chains “would laugh all the way to the bank.”

Robinson said Hoffman’s testimony was cancelled because it was designed to “create an uncomfortable position,” by having one of Westmoreland’s constituents oppose his position on the bill.

Robinson said the bill would require the Federal Trade Commission to oversee automobile repairs, which in a recent year totaled more than 500 million transactions at independent shops alone, not counting dealership repairs. But Federal Trade Commission officials have said they do not want to take on the task, Robinson noted.

As an example of inadequate maintenance information received by auto dealers, Hoffman mentioned a recent customer who bought tires from him for a Toyota Sequoia SUV. After the tires were installed and the customer left the shop, there was an ongoing problem with the tire pressure monitoring system, Hoffman said.

After Hoffman was unable to remedy the situation, the customer went to the Toyota dealer in Newnan and was quoted a price of about $380 to replace the tire pressure monitoring sensors on the vehicle, he said. The dealership mechanic told the customer that the sensors had been damaged, but Hoffman said he knew better.

“I personally checked them,” Hoffman said.

Ultimately it cost the customer about $89 to pay the dealership to reprogram the tire pressure monitoring system, Hoffman said, though he offered to pay for it instead of the customer.

Such scenarios are intended to force vehicle owners to get their repairs at dealerships, Hoffman said. They can also leave a bad taste in the customer’s mouth for both the dealership and the independent repair shop, he added.

“Do you think that person’s going to buy a Toyota again?” Hoffman asked, adding that the tire pressure systems deal directly with a car safety issue.

Hoffman noted that even if the customer changed the tires himself, he’d be in the same situation. And, he added, the tire pressure monitoring system is mandated by the federal government.

The big-picture issue is one of fairness, Hoffman said.

“I don’t mind competing on a level playing field,” he said. “But we’re not on a level playing field.”

Forcing auto owners to go to dealers for repairs is a matter of “thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars,” Hoffman added.

The National Automobile Dealers Association opposes the legislation, “because the private sector already provides cost-effective access to any information necessary to service or repair vehicles,” according to a statement on NADA’s website.

NADA has donated $5,000 to Westmoreland’s campaign over the past two years, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Defeating the Right to Repair act in the 109th Congress as a freshman representative was a big victory for Westmoreland, Robinson said, noting that Westmoreland had to take on a powerful committee chairman in the Republican party.

In 2004, of the more than 500 million repairs conducted by independent shops, only 49 complaints were made to the National Automotive Service Task Force, Robinson said. The “vast majority” of those were resolved within 24 hours, he added.

Robinson said that data did not show a need for any government intervention on the issue. He also said that if a vehicle owner feels they’re unfairly being forced to repair their auto at a dealership, the market will remedy that situation because that person won’t buy the same brand the next time they need a vehicle.

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