Legislation >> E.U. Commission Irish / National Members States Import / Exports Multi-Stage Holder
Primary legislation refers to the Law, Act or Ordinance passed by the legislative Body of a particular jurisdiction.
Two examples of how Legislation has an impact on the Motor Industry are outlined below. The first example is European Legislation and the second is International Law.
1. European Block Exemption Regulation: (European Legislation)
European Block Exemption Regulation (BER) is an exemption in a business line or industry, which restricts organizations in the industry from some business activities in order to create competition. The regulation is highly known in the automobile industry due to the effect caused by the Block Exemption Regulation (BER) from the European Commission.
BER has changed the European automobile industry in the last decade. Prior to 2003 automobile owners in the EU region risk nullifying their vehicle warranty when the vehicles were serviced or repaired in workshops not belonging to the vehicle manufacturer or its dealers. This barrier was broken in October 2003, when the European Commission (EC) passed a law allowing vehicle owners the freedom of having their servicing and repairs done at their chosen workshop.
Standards pertaining to showroom size, parking, after sales (service, parts, and warranty), Signage, Special Service Tools (SST) and various other areas depending on the Manufacturer were required as part of the BER.
Reaching BER compliance has proven to be very costly to the Irish Motor Industry. A large number of dealerships invested heavily in building premises and reaching required standards set by Manufacturers / Distributors. Many of these investments where made just prior to the Economic downturn.
2. Kyoto Protocol: (Treaty – Governed by International Law).
The Kyoto Protocol was the first agreement between nations to mandate country-by-country reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions. Kyoto emerged from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which was signed by nearly all nations at the 1992 mega-meeting popularly known as the Earth Summit.
The framework pledged to stabilize greenhouse-gas concentrations and a new Treaty was required, setting binding targets for greenhouse-gas reductions. The Treaty was finalized in Kyoto (the Killarney of Japan), Japan, in 1997, after years of negotiations, and it went into force in 2005. Nearly all of the World Nations have now ratified the Treaty.
The Kyoto Protocol has had a positive impact on the Motor Industry Worldwide, with ALL Vehicle Manufacturers (VM’s) making massive investments in Research and Development (R&D) in areas such as Body Design, Engine Development(Hybrid, Full Electric vehicles, Bio Fuels & Fuel Cell) and Engine Management systems. The shift in selection of materials used in the production process from steel to plastic for example (Fuel tanks) thus reducing the weight of the vehicle, resulting in amending the “Power to Weight Ratio” and returning better fuel consumption figures. This also allows for reduction in the emissions (Co2/ Nox / Particulates etc).
European Emission Regulations (Euro #)
European Legislation has set high targets (low emission levels) for Vehicle Manufactures to reach. We have reached Euro (5b) Standards at present and Euro (6) implementation is scheduled for September 2015. Some Vehicle Manufacturers have expressed concern in respect of reaching further emission targets and discussion / review is ongoing at present.