The IAAF has restated its calls to mandate the SERMI scheme in the UK to ensure its full benefits are realised.
It believes that while the scheme remains voluntary, it will mainly appeal to workshops heavily involved in anti-theft related security work.
In a statement, chief executive of the IAAF Mark Field said: “The IAAF welcomes the announcement of the first UK Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) being accredited as part of the EU SERMI scheme, but continues to have reservations about the impact of the scheme being voluntary in the UK and, as a result, confusion among garages.
“Every garage should judge accreditation against their own business case. If a garage is currently not involved heavily in anti-theft related repair activities such as coding keys and repairing door locks, there is little reason to justify signing up.
“Furthermore, workshops do not need to be part of an industry association to be SERMI accredited.
“This is because a CAB is also responsible for investigating claims of misuse of the scheme and for communicating the result to the trust centre in case the authorisation and approval should need to be revoked. The CAB must be free of any conflicts of interest to remain fully impartial.”
Business case
Field continued: “A voluntary SERMI scheme also raises the question of how many vehicle manufacturers will adopt this standardised scheme in the UK. This voluntary approach fundamentally impacts the business case for both other CABs applying to be accredited to provide independent repairers with a choice for their accreditation, as well as for the access to security-related RMI not applying in a standardised scheme for all vehicle manufacturers in the UK.
“This is why the IAAF is calling for the scheme to be mandated, as it is across the whole of the EU.
“Therefore, the IAAF believes that independent repairers should consider their own business requirements in relation to anti-theft related repair activities before deciding whether to apply for SERMI accreditation, but also to consider their relationships with their parts suppliers and diagnostic tools providers who may also be able to provide alternative solutions.”
