The new regulations governing bodyshop environmental

compliance will come into effect in January and whilst they may not satisfy everyone on all points, they will be a massive improvement on the old regime. The VRA has played a key role in making this happen and its active members deserve thanks for their efforts.

When the rules regarding environmental compliance were first introduced several years ago, most bodyshop operators moaned, but reluctantly accepted them as inevitable. As we all know, implementation of the rules was not a smooth process. Bodyshops first had to contend with a lack of understanding at local authority level and active misinformation from certain industry suppliers. Most responsible bodyshop operators, eventually gained some understanding of the regulations and became certified, but in many ways this was just the start of their problems.

It soon became apparent that the regulations could not be properly policed and enforced. This meant that while responsible operators had become certified, often at a considerable cost, non-compliant repairers could operate unhindered, and because of a lower cost base these illegal operators, could dramatically undercut their licensed counter-parts. An added problem was that with regard to the AIC inspectors as an unintentional monopoly developed, leading to dramatic increases in inspection costs.

In short, the regulations as they stood were seeing good businesses suffer, with some succumbing completely, while illegal operators prospered and the rules were only partly successful in achieving the original environmental objectives.

This thoroughly unsatisfactory situation could have been reluctantly accepted and become the norm. However, a number of bodyshop operators decided to get together and make a stand. The result was the formation of the Vehicle Repairers Association. It gave a voice and a focus to bodyshop operator concerns and took action to engage with the EPA and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, to highlight these concerns and fight for a better deal for compliant bodyshops.

It has taken a good deal of hard work by the VRA founders and some key active members, to get their message across and to suggest ways in which the environmental regulations may be improved. However, with patience, persistence and dedication, change has been achieved.

Whilst details of the new draft will not be made public until they have been signed off, it is understood that they will place less financial and administrative burden on certified refinishers. It is also hoped that the new regulations will be able to make enforcement in this area more strict, so as to restrict the activities of non-compliant repairers who are currently operating illegally.

It should be stressed, that changes to the regulations are not designed to close non-compliant operators, but to encourage them to become compliant, so that all bodyshops are operating on an equal footing. The VRA and local authorities can assist with the compliance process.

Environmental regulation is of course only one of a large number of issues and difficulties that bodyshops in Ireland currently face. It was the key issue on which the VRA initially campaigned, but there are many other challenges that the industry now faces. What the work of the VRA in this area has shown is that independent bodyshops clearly need their own organisation to represent their interests and give them a voice.

There are more tough challenges ahead for bodyshops and to meet these effectively the Vehicle Repairs Association needs your support.  For more information visit www.vra.ie

As soon as details of the new regulations become available, they will be published on the Autobiz website and will also be available via a new Autobiz Body Repairer E-news publication. To register to receive a copy of this E-news publication please click here and enter your details.