The European Parliament has approved the Directive on the “consumers’ right to repair” and will gradually start the process of its integration by member states, with which problems such as excessive repair costs are addressed through transparent pricing of spare parts, an open repair ecosystem is strengthened and unfair anti-repair practices by manufacturers are addressed.
Repair is expected to help the goal of sustainable consumption by reducing the waste generated by discarding goods and limiting the demand on resources, including energy, caused by the process of manufacturing and selling new products that replace defective goods, as and greenhouse gas emissions.
It is recalled that between repair and the purchase of a new good, an important role is played by the cost of repair, durability, availability and proximity of the repair service, as well as the time required for the repair. Therefore, today it seems easier to replace rather than repair products that become defective, as the incentives provided to consumers to repair their products after the expiration of the statutory warranty are insufficient.
The above practice is changing with the new Directive making repair easier and more cost-effective for consumers, both within and outside of legal warranty, as opposed to replacing goods while, the increase in demand is estimated to lead to a boost in the sector of repairs, while incentivizing producers and sellers to develop more sustainable business models.
It is noted that consumers’ right to repair applies to products such as washing machines and dishwashers, clothes dryers, vacuum cleaners, telephones, computers and tablets and goods containing batteries for light vehicles but the aim is to extend it to other products in the future as well Directive states that “in order to fully exploit its benefits, it should be applied to all goods”.
The main axes of the directive with the rules for easier and faster repairs are the following:
– Obligation of manufacturers to repair their products at reasonable prices and within a reasonable time after the expiration of the statutory warranty. Regarding the warranty time, in order to encourage consumers to choose the repair, the warranty period is extended by 12 months, which should be added to the remaining warranty period for the good. This extension should be applied once. However, Member States could provide further incentives for repair by providing for additional extensions of the seller’s liability in the event of a new repair. Member States could also introduce or maintain rules extending the seller’s liability in case of repair for periods longer than 12 months.
– Consumer access to spare parts, tools and technical information. Consumers will be able to be informed in a special form of the price and required time for each repair service depending on the damage found, so that they can evaluate and compare the services in question.
– Incentives for product repair, e.g. vouchers and subsidies. As specified, Member States should take at least one measure to promote repair. These measures could be financial or non-financial in nature. Non-financial measures could include information campaigns or supporting local community repair initiatives in direct ways, such as providing spaces for repair workshops or for meetings, for example in community or cultural centres. Measures of an economic nature could, for example, take the form of repair vouchers, repair funds, support or creation of local or regional online repair platforms, organization or funding of training programs for the acquisition of specific repair skills or tax measures.
– In order to support consumers and provide incentives for repair, the seller should, depending on the specifics of the relevant category of goods, lend the consumer a replacement good free of charge if the repair is not completed within a reasonable time or without significant inconvenience of the consumer. This replacement good could also be a refurbished good. In addition, the seller should again undertake the repair within a reasonable time. Providing loaner goods throughout the repair may prevent significant consumer inconvenience, but cannot justify an excessively long repair time. In addition, in the event that replacement is chosen as a remedy and at the request of the consumer, the seller could provide the consumer with a refurbished good.
– Online platforms will help consumers find stores that offer repairs and remanufactured products. More specifically, the Commission will create a free European online platform for repairs. The European online platform should consist of national sections and be able to host, where appropriate, sellers of refurbished goods, buyers of defective goods for refurbishment or complementary means such as local community repair initiatives.
– Manufacturers will be required to offer parts and tools at reasonable prices and will be prohibited from using contractual clauses, hardware and software that prevent repairs. In particular, they will not be able to prevent the use of used or 3D printed parts by independent repairers, nor will they be able to refuse to repair a product solely for financial reasons or because the product has been previously repaired by someone else.
As it is underlined “the practices of traders that lead consumers to believe that their goods cannot be repaired because of previous repair or inspection by an independent repairer, non-professional repairer or end users, or false claims that such repair or inspection creates safety risks , thereby misleading consumers, could, where appropriate, constitute unfair commercial practices.’
It also clarifies that the repairability requirements do not oblige manufacturers to repair defective goods, but ensure that they can be repaired while providing that the repair obligation should also apply in cases where the manufacturer is established outside the Union. In order for consumers to be able to turn to an economic operator established within the Union for the fulfillment of this obligation, the directive provides for a series of alternative economic operators who are required to fulfill the manufacturer’s repair obligation in these cases. This is expected to allow manufacturers established outside the Union to organize and fulfill their repair obligation within the Union.
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