Yesterday, the European Commission proposed a directive that will oblige manufacturers to fix products that have been damaged up to ten years after buying them.
Brussels wants to enshrine the right to repair products and put an end to the "spiral" of buy-use-throw-buy. The new proposal introduces changes to the right to repair for consumers both inside and outside the statutory warranty.
Products currently have a two-year warranty, during which time sellers will be required to offer repairs, unless replacement is more expensive.
After these two years, consumers will have more rights and facilities, as many currently prefer to buy a new product because of the difficulties or the huge cost of fixing the product.
Put a limit to what is known as programmed obsolescence, which mainly technological products have; and facilitate its repair, currently very limited and difficult to access. Often these types of products can only be repaired by official operators without the ability to fix it yourself or in a more affordable workshop.
Thus, with the new rule, consumers will be able to ask manufacturers to repair household appliances, such as televisions or dishwashers, and will be obliged to repair them between five and ten years after purchase (depending on the product). They can only refuse if it is technically impossible.
"We want to incentivize producers to make repairs possible, instead of participating in an endless race to buy new products that we, the consumers, don't need. This is not sustainable", said the vice-president in charge of Values and Transparency, Vera Jourovà. Among the products that can be repaired are dishwashers, washing machines, vacuum cleaners, televisions or dryers. Mobile phones and tablets will be added soon.
With this aim, an online repair platform will be created to put consumers in touch with repair shops based on where they live and which have high quality standards and enough variety for freedom of choice.
The European Commission aspires to reduce the huge volume of discarded products that could actually have been repaired. The result is 35 million tons of waste and 261 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. In addition, consumers lose around 12 billion euros a year when they choose to buy instead of repair.
The proposal is a response to a request in a non-binding resolution from two years ago by the Eurochamber, which already asked for measures to be taken to facilitate the right to repair. Now the proposal will have to be negotiated with the States and the European Parliament for it to come into force.
