Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association (AAAA) has formally lodged its submission in strong opposition to the NSW Government’s proposed changes to the Motor Dealers and Repairers Regulation 2025, warning that the planned mandatory training requirement for electric vehicle (EV) servicing will create chaos across the industry, drive up costs, and leave many EV owners without timely access to essential repairs.
The proposal—developed by the NSW Office of Fair Trading—would make it illegal for any technician to work on a battery electric vehicle (BEV) unless they have completed the AURSS00064 Skill Set, regardless of their qualifications, experience, or existing high-voltage safety credentials.’
“This proposal is deeply flawed, poorly planned and fundamentally disconnected from how modern workshops operate,” AAAA CEO, Stuart Charity, said.
“It would immediately disqualify more than 95 per cent of licensed technicians from working on EVs—even those who have been servicing these vehicles safely and competently for over a decade.”
Consumers Will Pay the Price
The AAAA warns that EV owners will be the first to feel the consequences. The number of technicians legally permitted to service or repair EVs in NSW will plummet overnight, creating artificial bottlenecks and long wait times for even basic logbook servicing.
“We are now facing a scenario where an EV owner in NSW could wait months for scheduled servicing—and even longer for collision repairs,” Charity said.
“In regional areas, where access to dealer networks is already limited, some EVs could be left stranded without a viable repair option.”
These delays will hit hardest in the very communities that the EV transition is meant to support—families, regional drivers, fleet owners, and everyday motorists who need safe, affordable, and timely access to vehicle servicing.
No Planning, No Support, No Safety Gain
The AAAA submission outlines the many flaws in the proposal:
- No recognition of existing qualifications, such as AURETH101 or OEM-accredited training.
- No transition period to allow for upskilling.
- No evidence that the training system has the capacity to deliver the required volume of courses.
- No cost-benefit analysis, and no acknowledgement of the significant disruption this will cause for both businesses and consumers.
“The regulation duplicates existing workplace safety laws, offers no implementation support, and delivers no meaningful safety benefit,” Charity said.
“It is a textbook case of over-regulation that punishes capable workshops and leaves the public worse off.”
Industry Offers Smarter Alternative
The AAAA is proposing two practical solutions:
- Preferred Option: A Business Accountability Model, where workshops remain responsible for ensuring technicians are competent, through nationally accredited training, OEM programs, RPL, or documented experience. Enforcement would be based on audits, not blanket bans.
- If the Skill Set is mandated: A five-year transition period, fee-free training for small/regional businesses, and a dedicated Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) mechanism.
“We are not opposed to EV training or reform—we are already leading the charge on this,” Charity added.
“But this proposal will set the industry back and seriously undermine EV adoption.”
“We hope Minister Anoulack Chanthivong will take the time to listen to the industry and see common sense. Because if this proposal proceeds, every EV owner in NSW is about to feel the consequences.”
With more than 8,000 independent workshops and 49,000 licensed technicians across NSW servicing over 5.6 million vehicles—including more than 50,000 EVs—the aftermarket sector is essential to the state’s transport future.
“This is not a sector that resists change—this is a sector that drives it,” Charity said.
“But reform must be grounded in operational reality, not bureaucracy. Otherwise, we risk leaving consumers with higher bills, longer delays, and nowhere to turn.”