Who may read your car's service data: the EU rules on repair and maintenance information

If you service your car at an independent workshop rather than a dealer's—what is known in the US as an auto repair shop rather than a dealership service department—the work relies on something that is easy to overlook: access to the manufacturer's repair and maintenance information (RMI), from wiring details to service procedures. In the European Union, the European Commission describes that access as a duty placed on manufacturers, set out on its automotive sector page on access to vehicle repair and maintenance information. That page, as read on 11 October 2026, carries the provisions summarised below; undated web pages can be revised, so the Commission's wording here is the page's wording on that date.

According to the Commission's page as read on 11 October 2026, "Easy and clear access to information on vehicle repair and maintenance (RMI) is key to guaranteeing free competition on the vehicle aftermarket." The same page states that manufacturers must ensure independent operators get access, and that this applies on the EU market.

What the Commission's page requires

The obligation on manufacturers has three elements as the Commission's page phrases them: access must be easy, it must be free of restrictions, and it must be standardised. In the Commission's words, "Manufacturers must ensure that independent operators have easy, restriction-free, and standardised access to information on the repair and maintenance of vehicles." The page adds one more rule to the same effect: "Discrimination with respect to authorised dealers and repair workshops is not allowed." On that page's wording, an independent repairer in the EU is to be treated on the same terms as an authorised dealer or workshop when it comes to this information.

Where the rules sit in law

The Commission's page lists the legal instruments carrying the RMI provisions, separated by vehicle type. As the page states: "For light-duty vehicles, RMI provisions were introduced by Regulation (EC) No 715/2007 (Euro 5/6) and its implementing Regulations 692/2008 and 566/2011." For heavy vehicles, the page names a separate instrument: "For heavy-duty vehicles, RMI provisions were introduced by Regulation 595/2009 (EURO VI)". The same page lists the supporting documents behind these instruments, including Regulation (EC) No 715/2007 on emissions from light passenger and commercial vehicles, Commission Regulation (EC) No 692/2008 on emissions from light passenger and commercial vehicles, Commission Regulation (EU) No 566/2011 on access to vehicle repair and maintenance information, and Regulation (EC) No 595/2009 on emissions from heavy duty vehicles (Euro VI).

It is worth noting what these instruments are: emissions regulations. Per the page, the RMI provisions live inside the Euro 5/6 and Euro VI framework rather than in a standalone access law, although the page also lists Regulation (EU) No 566/2011 as being on access to vehicle repair and maintenance information itself. That matters when tracing which text governs which vehicle category on the EU market.

How the Commission has checked the system

A Commission-published study examined the system. Per the Commission's page, the "'Study on the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information' was published on 26 November 2014." The Commission describes the study this way: "The study aims to assess the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information (RMI) in the EU, as well as its effects on competition, the Internal Market, environment and safety."

A Commission report followed. Per the Commission's page, the "'Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information' was adopted by the Commission on 9 December 2016." The Commission describes the report this way: "The report aims to assess the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information (RMI) in the EU, as well as its effects on competition, the Internal Market, environment and safety." Both documents address the same four subjects: how the access system operates and its effects on competition, the Internal Market, the environment and safety.

The DASA feedback item

Among the feedback items on the Commission's "Have your say" portal, as captured on 11 October 2026, is one titled "Feedback from: Danish Automotive Service Association (DASA)", filed under initiative 12491. That is all the consulted page establishes: it does not set out the submission's contents or the initiative's subject, so this article makes no claim about what DASA argued there.

What the page's rules mean in practice

For a workshop and its customers in the EU, according to the Commission's page as read on 11 October 2026:
- manufacturers must ensure, in the page's words, that independent operators have easy, restriction-free, and standardised access to vehicle repair and maintenance information
- discrimination with respect to authorised dealers and repair workshops is, in the page's words, not allowed
- for light-duty vehicles, the provisions were introduced by Regulation (EC) No 715/2007 (Euro 5/6) and its implementing Regulations 692/2008 and 566/2011
- for heavy-duty vehicles, the provisions were introduced by Regulation 595/2009 (Euro VI)
- the Commission publishes its evaluations of how the system works in the 2014 study and the 9 December 2016 report these provisions are described under

The obligation described here is the Commission's own wording on its sector page: a duty on manufacturers over easy, restriction-free and standardised RMI access for independent operators, with no discrimination against them relative to authorised dealers and repair workshops. The Commission's 2016 report, per the Commission, was adopted to assess "the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information (RMI) in the EU, as well as its effects on competition, the Internal Market, environment and safety." How the system works in day-to-day practice is the subject of that Commission evaluation, which this article does not judge.

How to check this yourself

The documents cited in this article carry the following names, as listed on the Commission's page:
- Regulation (EC) No 715/2007 on emissions from light passenger and commercial vehicles
- Commission Regulation (EC) No 692/2008 on emissions from light passenger and commercial vehicles
- Commission Regulation (EU) No 566/2011 on access to vehicle repair and maintenance information
- Regulation (EC) No 595/2009 on emissions from heavy duty vehicles (Euro VI)
- the 'Study on the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information', published on 26 November 2014
- the 'Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the operation of the system of access to vehicle repair and maintenance information', adopted by the Commission on 9 December 2016

Because the Commission's page carries no publication or update date in its text and pages like it are revised over time, compare its current wording with the Commission wording quoted here rather than relying on this summary alone. If the page's sentences about easy, restriction-free and standardised access, or the regulation numbers listed above, have changed, that is the check that the rules have changed.