FEBRUARY 2024 AFTERMARKET 55 www.aftermarketonline.net ON THE ROAD Back once more at its traditional home at the DoubleTree By Hilton Milton Keynes, nestled around the MK Dons stadium, IAAF Chief Executive Mark Field kicked off 2023’s IAAF Annual Conference: “It’s fantastic that we have the largest ever IAAF Conference at the DoubleTree. We are also going to launch the largest ever Right to Repair campaign for consumers for next year.” Eschewing the full speech opening approach that was heard over the years, Mark opted to let the speakers do the talking. “One of the biggest things we do is our lobbying,” he said, “and that has taken on new levels in 2023. A lot of that is down to Neil Pattemore.” With that, IAAF Technical Director and regular Aftermarket contributor Neil took to the stage and the conference was fully underway. State of the nation Neil’s presentation was entitled State of the Nation: UK Aftermarket, and provided an overview of the legislative situation the sector currently finds itself in. Starting with Block Exemption, and the unveiling of the UK’s own Motor Vehicle Block Exemption Order (MV-BEO) earlier this year Neil said: “We have gotten a lot more than what Europe got. We have got things like aftermarket services included. Obviously we service cars, but we do more like diagnostics, and the CMA recognised this. This led into a conversation about abilities, and they recognised the importance of access to vehicles.” There were some gaps though: “They recognised the importance of access, but they did not say how.” Neil continued: “Essential inputs were recognised, and they included hardcore restrictions. They also included new excluded restrictions. They have made this really quite hard-hitting.” There were some quite helpful redefinitions as well: “They do not talk about vehicle manufacturers as vehicle manufacturers; They describe them as vehicle suppliers.” Aftermarket goods had also been looked at differently: “We got lubricants recognised as parts, but they also talked about spare parts and data. It’s not perfect, but they have gone a long way. The MV- BEO is eight pages, and introduced the notion of technical progress. They have seen things are moving quite fast. Chapter one is vertical agreements, chapter two is horizontal, and they recognised this too.” Neil then moving on to the MOT Consultation: “Everyone knows we supported 3-1-1, but the second part was a request to improve the scheme, especially for testing PN and ADAS. I would suggest that the DVSA understand that, but I’m not sure if the politicians do. They are due to say something imminently, just not sure what that will be.” His next stop was the Digital Markets and Competition Bill: “It has been through the House of Commons, it has been through the House of Lords. It is now at the Committee Stage. Similar to the EU Data Act, it will probably have a Sector Specific Legislation (SSL) for the automotive industry.” Cybersecurity was up next, which is having a major impact. “How many of you knew this was on Type Approval for new vehicle types since 6 July 2022, and will apply on all Above: The IAAF Conference and Awards IAAF ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2023 Bringing 2023 to a close for the automotive aftermarket, Decembers IAAF Conference covered the major issues set to affect the sector in 2024 and beyond
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