Nine Departments Jointly Advance EV Repair System, Promote "Repair Over Replace" and Open Technical Access

Nine government departments, including the Ministry of Commerce, jointly issued a notice proposing to strengthen the policy and standards system for automobile repair, reinforce the filing management of motor vehicle repair services, and improve standards and regulations for new energy vehicle (NEV) repairs. The notice calls for deeper implementation of the public disclosure of repair technical information, enhanced information quality, and promotion of standardized development in the repair industry. It also mandates the establishment of a credit management system for motor vehicle repair services, supports automobile dealers and repair enterprises in adopting an "online appointment + offline repair" service model, and encourages repair businesses to develop toward integrated, specialized, and branded chain operations. Automakers are required to expand channels for NEV repair services and spare parts supply and must not refuse to fulfill their statutory "three guarantees" (repair, replacement, and return) obligations on the grounds that consumers have chosen their own repair providers. Additionally, the notice urges NEV manufacturers and power battery producers to open up repair technology authorizations and promotes "repair instead of replacement" to enhance the socialized repair service capacity for new energy vehicles.