A washing machine, smartphone or vacuum cleaner that breaks down often ends up in the garbage bin. But now comes the ‘right to repair’. It is one of the provisions of a directive that the European Parliament has approved.
It means that as a consumer you are entitled to have your device repaired if a problem occurs, even when the warranty period has expired. And if the device needs to be repaired within the legal warranty period, the warranty period is extended by one year.
Now, throwing away broken devices costs European consumers, who then buy a new device, 12 billion euros per year. It also creates a waste mountain of 35 million tons every year.
Spare parts of appliances
“The new legislation provides for easier access to information, such as where and how items can be repaired. But manufacturers are also required to indicate spare parts on their website,” said European Parliament member Tom Vandenkendelaere (CD&V) on VRT 1.
“And a platform is being set up where people who want to repair something can look for people who have something to repair, and vice versa. We hope that this will create a new market and more things can be repaired.”
Tags: Broken smartphone washing machine device consumer entitled
