ACCC takes Subaru Australia to court

The ACCC has filed proceedings in the Federal Court against Subaru Australia, and if you run an independent workshop, this is a case worth watching closely. It's the first time the regulator has gone to court over the Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Information Sharing Scheme – the law that's supposed to stop manufacturers locking independent mechanics out of their own systems.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s allegation, in plain terms is thus: between July 2022 and August 2024, Subaru gave its own dealerships full, ongoing access to the diagnostic and repair software they needed to carry out repairs, maintenance of Subaru vehicles.

Independent repairers got something else entirely – a ‘remote assistance’ offer requiring extra hardware, annual-only subscriptions, and a wait of up to 10 working days just for a technician to remotely push an update.

The ACCC has evidence showing two workshops actually tried to use it. O'Brien Glass paid $2,607 to access diagnostic software for windscreen camera recalibration. Smart AVR paid the same to get SSM4 for vehicle repairs.

In both cases, Subaru told them the tool they needed wasn't available – and refunded the money without supplying anything at all.

That's the sharp end of the ACCC's case, and the concise statement doesn't mince words about what it means.

The regulator alleges the offer left independent repairers “not a reasonably accessible form” of access, and that the shortfall was serious enough that, as the statement puts it, “no independent repairer ultimately obtained the information from Subaru Australia during the Relevant Period”.

So zero workshops across in two years got what dealerships had by default, says the ACCC.

Subaru isn't the first name attached to this scheme – Honda copped an $18,780 infringement notice in 2024 over similar annual-only subscription issues.

But this is the first time the ACCC has escalated to a full court proceeding, and that shift is significant.

Infringement notices are a slap on the wrist manufacturers can absorb as a cost of doing business. A Federal Court case, with declarations, penalties and costs on the table, is the ACCC signalling it's done asking nicely.

For the average car owner, this is really about choice – whether you can take your Subaru to the family-run mechanic down the road, or whether you're quietly funnelled back to the dealer network.

The MVIS or motor vehicle information scheme was built to guarantee that choice. This case will test whether it actually has teeth.

The Federal Court proceedings against Subaru Australia will determine whether the access offered to independent repairers met the requirements of the Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Information Sharing Scheme.

For independent workshops and car owners alike, the outcome could have implications for how easily non-dealer repairers can access the diagnostic and repair information needed to service modern vehicles.

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