The IAAF has made public its view on the SERMI scheme, just days after the announcement from the IGA that it has gained full approval for the security-related repair scheme to go ahead in the UK.
Despite “welcoming” the announcement, the organisation’s statement very quickly goes on to express scepticism about the as-yet voluntary scheme’s effectiveness, referring to potential “confusion” and reminding workshops that many will not need to sign up to the scheme and that no participating workshops need to be part of an industry association.
The statement comes after the IGA announced on Wednesday that the long-anticipated scheme had finally gained approval to introduce the EU-wide scheme to the UK for the first time. The scheme aims to reduce obstacles for independent garages in gaining access to security-related information, by allowing garages to use a single log-in across multiple vehicle manufacturers.
The IGA’s director, Jon Douglass, appeared recently on the Professional Motor Mechanic Podcast to discuss the scheme, which you can listen to here.
Read the IAAF’s statement in full below:
“The IAAF welcomes the announcement of the first UK Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) being accredited as part of the EU SERMI scheme, but continue to have reservations about the impact of the scheme being voluntary in the UK and, as a result, confusion among garages.
“Every garage should judge accreditation against their own business case. If a garage is currently not involved heavily in anti-theft related repair activities such as coding keys and repairing door locks, there is little reason to justify signing up. Furthermore, workshops do not need to be part of an industry association to be SERMI accredited.
“This is because a CAB is also responsible for investigating claims of misuse of the scheme and for communicating the result to the trust centre in case the authorisation and approval should need to be revoked. The CAB must be free of any conflicts of interest to remain fully impartial.
“A voluntary SERMI scheme also raises the question of how many vehicle manufacturers will adopt this standardised scheme in the UK.
“This voluntary approach fundamentally impacts the business case for both other CABs applying to be accredited to provide independent repairers with a choice for their accreditation, as well as for the access to security related RMI (specifically anti-theft related RMI) not applying in a standardised scheme for all vehicle manufacturers in the UK. This is why the IAAF are calling for the scheme to be mandated, as it is across the whole of the EU.
“Therefore, the IAAF believes that independent repairers should consider their own business requirements in relation to anti-theft related repair activities before deciding whether to apply for SERMI accreditation, but also to consider their relationships with their parts suppliers and diagnostic tools providers who may also be able to provide alternative solutions.”
