The Competition Protection Agency calls on users of motor vehicle servicing services who have been conditioned by authorized service providers that repairs not covered by warranty must be performed at authorized service centers in order to maintain their warranty.
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The Competition Protection Agency draws attention to the fact that contracts concluded between suppliers/importers and authorized service providers could be contrary to Article 8 of the Competition Protection Act (ZZTN) which regulates prohibited agreements, if the manufacturer’s warranty to the customer is conditioned on the fact that the end customer must perform repairs and maintenance not listed in the warranty within the network of authorized service providers.
Namely, the obligation to repair and maintain parts of motor vehicles covered by warranty is not prohibited, but it is prohibited to condition that repairs not covered by warranty must be performed within the network of authorized service providers.
Therefore, users of motor vehicle servicing services have the option to service parts of vehicles not covered by warranty at unauthorized service providers without fear of losing their valid warranty.
This arises from the criteria from EU legal acquis, specifically point 69 of the Commission Notice – Additional Guidelines on Vertical Restraints in Agreements for the Sale and Servicing of Motor Vehicles and the Distribution of Spare Parts for Motor Vehicles. In the case of legal gaps or ambiguities in the interpretation of regulations, the Agency applies these criteria accordingly.
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Therefore, the Agency invites users of motor vehicle servicing services who have encountered the described practices to contact the Agency if their authorized service providers have conditioned that repairs not covered by warranty must also be performed at authorized service providers in order to maintain the warranty, as stated in the announcement.
