UPDATE (12.12.2023): SERMI is picking up speed

While the year 2024 will be characterised by the (wooden) dragon in China, it could be characterised by SERMI in Europe. You can find out why here.

UPDATE (12.12.2023):

Sweden was way ahead of the other EU countries when it brought SERMI into force on 1 October 2023. But now SERMI is picking up speed all over Europe and the implementation schedule is filling quickly. For this reason, here is a brief overview of the latest developments.

• SERMI will go live on 1^st February 2024 in Denmark, Finland, Norway.
• These countries are expected to follow on 1^st April 2024: Austria, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain
• By 1^st June implementation is also expected in: France, Italy, Poland

Please note: For the countries scheduled 1^st April and 1^st June the final confirmation of the implementation date will be confirmed two months prior to the projected date.

At the time of publication, there were 9 CABs authorised by national authorities. Most of them only operate within their national borders – with the exception of Treffco (Denmark, Norway, Sweden) and KIWA (https://www.kiwa.com/en/media/news/2023/kiwa-now-accredited-for-sermi-certification), which looks to be taking the lead in Europe as it has announced that it will operate in every country.

UPDATE (04.09.2023):

First CAB in Finland has been accredited by national authority: AKL-Sertifiointi Oy (https://akl.fi/sertifiointi)

UPDATE (28.08.2023):

Last week two CABs in Denmark were accredited by the national body and are now ready to receive SERMI applications from garages and their employees:

1. Teknologisk Institut (https://teknologisk.dk)
2. Treffco (https://www.treffco.se); Swedish headquartered CAB, which is cooperating with SKAD in Denmark (https://www.skad.dk/sermi-certificering)

When SERMI will come into force in Denmark is not defined yet.

In Sweden SERMI based access to theft and security related RMI will come into force by 1^st October 2023. As of today there are already five CABs accredited by the Swedish body:

1. Certifierings Partner (https://certifieringspartner.se)
2. KIWA (for information in English see here: SERMI authorisation for security-relevant vehicle data | Kiwa®)
3. Kontrollerad Bilverkstad (https://sermi.nu)
4. Qvalify (https://www.qvalify.se)
5. Treffco (https://www.treffco.se)

Please note: Most websites mentioned are only provided in the specific national language but you may try automatic translation provided in your browser

UPDATE (11.07.2023):

Since 3rd July 2023 it is official: SERMI will come into force – but delayed. Aligned with the European Commission the SERMI Operations Group decided to go for a staged implementation, which means: the SERMI scheme will come into force in each EU member state as soon as the first CAB in the regarding country is ready to start its operations. Until then the current vehicle manufacturers’ proprietary identification systems will be continued in the regarding countries to keep independent operators capable of doing business.

Sweden – still the only EU country with an officially accredited CAB (global active, dutch headquartered organisation called KIWA) so far – will be the first member state to implement the new SERMI scheme, starting 1^st October 2023. For Germany there are rumors of eventually being SERMI ready by 1^st December 2023. SERMA (which is a spin-off of ZDK / Zentralverband Deutsches Kraftfahrzeuggewerbe) has submitted the application for accreditation as CAB to the German accreditation body (DAkkS) in March 2023.

SERMI: What is it about and where does it stand?

Executive summary:

• SERMI is the (near) future scheme for IO’s / Remote Service Supplier’s access to theft and security-related RMI.
• Conformity Assessment Bodies (CAB) will be the main contact points for IO for their electronical SERMI certification; these CAB have to be accredited by the national authorities.
• So far CAB have officially applied in 7 EU countries at the regarding authority for SERMI accreditation, but only in Sweden there is already one officially accredited (KIWA).
• It is becoming apparent that the initial deadline for SERMI (1^st August 2023) will not be met.
• In some EU member states, it even seems possible that SERMI will not come into force before 2024; from today’s point of view, in those countries nothing should change for IO / Remote Service Suppliers from the current RMI access situation until then.

Following up Carmunication’s General Assembly in Frankfurt we want to

• provide a brief summary of what SERMI is and
• give an update where the process stands right now.

Please note: SERMI is a work in progress. This means: Currently there are a lot of preparatory activities underway throughout Europe. Not all details are clear yet, especially when it comes to Conformity Assessment Bodies and their exact requirements for the approvement of Independent Operators and Remote Service Suppliers. For this reason, the information contained in this article does not claim to be complete.

What is the SERMI scheme?

SERMI is an EU-wide standardized multi-level accreditation and certification scheme for theft and safety-related repair & maintenance information. This scheme is developed, owned, operated and maintained by the SERMI Association, which Jan-Willem van der Linden has presented to us at the last General Assembly. According to the SERMI Association the scheme reflects the requirements of different regulations (e.g. Type Approval Regulation (EU) 2018/858), which grant standardised access to technical information whilst establishing specific provisions for access to vehicle security features.

From an operational point of view, the Conformity Assessment Bodies (CAB) will be the main contact points for Independent Operators (IO) for an electronical SERMI certification. This is where IO / Remote Service Suppliers and also their employees who are to be authorised for SERMI direct their certification applications. As of middle of June 2023, however, it is not yet clear which CAB will be authorised in which country. Currently there is only one accredited CAB in place within the EU: KIWA in Sweden.

What are the objectives of SERMI?

Currently, for certain activities, certification for each vehicle make must be obtained separately from the vehicle manufacturer (VM). The respective requirements are defined by the VM and can therefore vary – and so can the effort for the applying company. The SERMI scheme aims to standardise and simplify the certification process in the mid-term perspective:

• The digital SERMI certificate replaces all brand-specific (individual) certificates that currently must be applied for separately.
• The aim is to shorten the lead time for SERMI certification compared to the VM procedures.
• The term of the SERMI electronical certificate is 5 years.

What are the implications for daily business?

According to the SERMI Association IO and Remote Service Supplier employees will need

• a security token and pin protected electronic certificate and
• an authorisation

when accessing a VM’s website in search for theft and security-related RMI.

This requires successful completion of a two-step approval process with a national CAB: An employee will only be authorised for theft and security-related RMI access if their employer company has also been approved.

Therefore, an IO / Remote Service Supplier who wants to conduct theft or security related work will approach a national CAB. This CAB will then carry out the necessary approval:

1. for the company and
2. authorisations for the individual employees.

After notification, the Trust Centre (TC) will issue certificates and security tokens to be distributed by the CAB to the IO / Remote Service Supplier as appropriate.

Once complete, the individual employee will be able to access the information from each manufacturer with this single certificate and authorization. The company approval and employee authorisation are valid for a period of 60 months, unless revoked due to misuse.

What is the current status regarding accredited CAB?

As already mentioned, for the moment (as of mid of June 2023) there is only one accredited CAB in place within the EU, which is KIWA in Sweden.

In these EU countries at least one CAB officially applied at the regarding National Accreditation Body (NAB) for SERMI accreditation:

• Denmark
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Netherland
• Spain

Note: CAB can apply for multiple member states.

There are also some non-EU countries interested in implementing the SERMI standard:

• Norway
• Switzerland
• UK

Who will be allowed to apply for an electronical SERMI certificate?

All market participants of the independent automotive aftermarket, especially:

• Manufacturers of workshop equipment, tools or spare parts
• Distributors of workshop equipment, tools or spare parts
• Data publishers
• Garages & workshops*
• Training institutions for education and training of automotive specialists
• Roadside assistance providers
• Inspection service providers
• Motoring clubs
• AND: employees of the respective companies who are to be authorized for SERMI.

*restricted to garages / workshops that do not advertise and sell emission tampering related services (e.g. engine tuning).

This is how you will most probably get your SERMI certificate…

As soon as it has been determined which CAB is / are approved in each country, companies and their employees can submit their application to this / one of these CAB. However, the respective CAB has yet to announce exactly which documents are required.

Looking at EU member states, where CAB are currently going through the state accreditation process or have even recently received such (KIWA in Sweden), it can be assumed that such kind of documents are required:

1. Documents about the company (depending on what kind of registries one country has):
   1. Business license
   2. Extract from commercial register as proof of ownership or authorization to represent the company
   3. Sales tax identification number
   4. Confirmation of a liability insurance

2. Documents of employees, who apply for an electronic SERMI certificate:
   • Personal details and proof of identity
   • Employment contract with the company
   • Proof that the person(s) are trained in repair work related to maintenance, reprogramming, and safety and security functions of motor vehicles
   • Current proof of no relevant criminal record.

Since SERMI regulates online access to theft and security-related RMI, technical requirements, will most likely be required in addition to the various documents. These are expected to be as following:

• Internet access and common Internet browser for the application process
• E-mail address for the authorised representative and the respective employee(s) who are to receive an electronic SERMI certificate
• Mobile device incl. phone number for registration, identity verification and the personalised, electronic certificate

When does SERMI come into force?

In theory, SERMI was scheduled to come into force throughout the EU at the beginning of August 2023: As of 1^st August, access to theft and security-relevant RMI should only be possible with a valid, electronic SERMI certificate. In reality, however, it is becoming apparent that this deadline will not be met, partly due to the complex accreditation process that a CAB has to undergo; for the time being (as mid of June 2023), only Sweden is in time. It can therefore be assumed that CAB will only gradually commence their operational activities in the different EU member states in the coming weeks and months. Therefore, in some EU member states (e.g. Austria and others) it seems possible that SERMI will not come into force before 2024. From today’s point of view, in the regarding countries nothing should change for IO from the current RMI access situation until then. However, as soon as a CAB becomes operational in a specific country, companies and their employees are required to seek certification as quickly as possible.

• https://vehiclesermi.eu/
• SERMI auktorisering för verkstäder | Kiwa®
• https://www.serma.eu/
• VFT: SERMI: Infosammlung zum neuen Zertifizierungsschema für sicherheitsrelevante RMI