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Massachusetts Auto Right-to-Repair Chapter 93A Demand Letter
The situation
A two-bay independent auto shop outside Worcester loses a longtime customer's business because the customer's 2023 SUV won't let the shop's diagnostic tool read telematics data the way the dealer's system can. The shop owner has heard Massachusetts has a "right to repair" law but doesn't know that acting on it requires a specific, formally defective-proof legal document, a Chapter 93A demand letter, before any real leverage exists.
Who receives this
Independent Massachusetts auto repair shops and vehicle owners denied telematics data access on 2022+ model-year vehicles.
Why the agency will not advise you
Automakers spent five years litigating to avoid complying; now that the legal challenge is dismissed, the practical burden of enforcement still falls entirely on individual shops and owners, each of whom must independently produce a technically valid 93A demand letter, a document with real formal requirements, not a casual complaint email.
Key facts, with sources
- Massachusetts Chapter 93K (the 2020 ballot-initiative Data Access Law) gives vehicle owners with model year 2022+ telematics-equipped vehicles the right to access mechanical data through a mobile app and to authorize an independent repair shop to access the same data; Section 6 permits an owner or authorized independent repair facility denied access to bring a civil action seeking remedies under Chapter 93A, the state consumer protection statute. Source: Motor Vehicle Telematics System Notice Requirement — Mass.gov · Massachusetts Right to Repair - Vehicle Repair and Maintenance Data — Auto Care Association
- A federal judge dismissed the automakers' remaining legal challenge to the Massachusetts Data Access Law in February 2025, citing the law's plain language; as of February 2026 the Alliance for Automotive Innovation and the Massachusetts Attorney General's office were still discussing a potential settlement, meaning individual repair shops and vehicle owners denied data access today cannot wait on a global resolution and must independently invoke Chapter 93A's mandatory pre-suit demand-letter process, no self-serve tool for drafting this specific demand letter was found. Source: Auto Innovators, Massachusetts AG agree to consider Data Access Law suit settlement — Repairer Driven News · OEMs Might Soon Get Clarity On Massachusetts and Maine Right to Repair Laws — Seyfarth Shaw
When to bring in a professional
Self-serve responses fit routine cases: clear facts, amounts a business can absorb, and a deadline still ahead of you. Bring in a licensed professional when the amount at stake is large relative to their fee, the facts are genuinely disputed, criminal exposure is possible, or the deadline has already passed. A short paid consultation to sanity-check your plan is often worth it even when you handle the filing yourself.
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All sources for this guide
- Motor Vehicle Telematics System Notice Requirement — Mass.gov
- Massachusetts Right to Repair - Vehicle Repair and Maintenance Data — Auto Care Association
- Auto Innovators, Massachusetts AG agree to consider Data Access Law suit settlement — Repairer Driven News
- OEMs Might Soon Get Clarity On Massachusetts and Maine Right to Repair Laws — Seyfarth Shaw
This guide is general information compiled from the cited public sources, last verified on the date above. It is not legal advice, and rules change; confirm anything you rely on against the linked source or with a licensed professional in your state.