Car industry: support from parliament
VEHICLE NOTICE With the adoption of a new motion, Swiss car buyers and garage customers, as well as garages and their employees, are now receiving strong backing from the Council of States, following the National Council.
The so-called motor vehicle notice gives the garage owners, suppliers and other market participants, among other things, the possibility to carry several car brands. The garage owner has a certain protection against dismissal and garages get access to the technical information for vehicle maintenance.
Unilateral contracts for dealerships
The big challenge so far has been that the Competition Commission (Comco) has not been able to enforce the Motor Vehicle Notice due to a lack of resources. As a result, garage owners, independent car importers and suppliers who wanted to enforce the rules of the Motor Vehicle Notice against international manufacturers always failed in court.
At the same time, the tendency to bind dealerships to one-sided contracts and to increase dependence on manufacturers intensified
Success of a broad alliance of the industry
The motion of Zug National Councilor Gerhard Pfister (Die Mitte) was supported by a broad alliance of the Auto Gewerbe Verband Schweiz (AGVS), the Verband Freier Autohandel Schweiz (VFAS), the Verband der Schweizerischen Schmierstoffindustrie (VSS), 2rad Schweiz, the Automobil Club der Schweiz (ACS), the Syna and Unia trade unions, Carrosserie Suisse and the Swiss Automotive Aftermarket (SAA) industry association.
As the umbrella organization of around 4000 garage businesses, the AGVS has taken note of the Council of States' decision with great satisfaction.
