It has been said that we are entering the biggest period of change in the automotive industry since motor vehicles came into existence. Hardly a day goes by now without some new announcement or revelation about electric cars or self-driving vehicles. All these technologies are no longer some futuristic stuff we read about in a science fiction novel.

But there is one question that may not have occurred to us. How will this impact the motor vehicle servicing and repair sector in the medium to long term?

No one would want to get into one of these cars if it has not been assembled by people who are properly trained and qualified. Likewise, once these vehicles proliferate and reach the wider service and repair market, we would want the assurance they are handled by technicians who have the appropriate training and qualifications. With upcoming new technologies already arriving and the quickening pace of technological changes, we are about to see a paradigm shift.

This shift is not unlike what we experienced in the late 1980s, which saw the progressive introduction of increasingly sophisticated electronics in the automotive industry. During that period, those working in the service and repair sector found themselves having to acquire knowledge and skills in line with the new technology in the vehicles. But the paradigm shift we are about to encounter now will be even more challenging.

Data from the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) show that the number of qualified repairers in the UK for fully electric, plug-in hybrid and hybrid vehicles remains at around 0.4% of the 250,000 technicians working on cars and vans commercially. This is despite sales for these vehicles having doubled since 2015, according to a recent research report titled On the Road to Sustainable Growth by Professor Jim Saker.

The study further revealed that 94% of independent workshops said they would need to retrain existing technicians to undertake work on such vehicles. But without financial assistance, many of these smaller workshops that make up a large chunk of businesses operating in the service and repair sector will not invest in such training.

Essentially, this means their technicians will have to risk their own safety when they attempt to work on the high-voltage electric cars or the workshops will simply refer the repair and servicing back to the franchised dealers and service centres which may charge car owners more. This will also lead to a lack of competition in the service and repair market where a small group of technicians have the skills and equipment to repair these vehicles and the other large majority could only repair cars based on the old technology.

Insurance premiums for electric vehicles are already 30% to 50% higher than diesel cars due to the shortage of qualified technicians. Ultimately, car owners will be left with few choices for service and repairs and will end up with higher pricing but poorer service. In the long run, this may translate into having ordinary working people priced out of the market for such cars.

Adding to this challenge is the introduction of self-driving cars into the market. Not only do they bring about the need for complex regulatory frameworks and questions about insurance liabilities, there is also the question of how such vehicles can be safely and reliably maintained and repaired.

If these cars do become a reality for the masses in the future, consideration will need to be ­given to the type of maintenance such vehicles require and the computer software skills technicians would need to have to carry out repairs. Instead of handling problems with mechanical parts, technicians will have to deal with software and digital malfunctions.

According to Saker’s report, connected and self-driving vehicles could create an additional 320,000 jobs in the UK alone, 25,000 of which would be in automotive manufacturing by 2030. Undoubtedly job roles will come into existence in this industry in the next 10 years that we would have never have thought of today, just like how it had never occurred to us 10 years ago that we would have job positions such as “social media experts” or “data scientists”. Instead of having mechanically-based technicians, the automotive service sector will need people who have skills that emphasise more on computer diagnostics and software manipulation.

To meet the major skills gap both in quality and quantity to support the servicing and maintenance of these new vehicle types, manufacturers should consider the concept of having “licensed technicians” for these vehicles and incorporating them as part of their own apprenticeship training for dealers.

Without a proactive strategy in training and certification, we will not be able to support the growth of future car technology.

Matthew Stuart is Fellow of the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI) and senior manager for Southeast Asia

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