Re-thinking the way we produce and consume products represents a crucial driver for the transition to a circular economy. Over the last decades, replacement has often been prioritised over repair whenever products become defective. Likewise, consumers have not been given sufficient opportunities and incentives to repair their goods after the legal guarantee has expired. The Commission’s right to repair-proposal will ensure that more products are repaired, both within and beyond the legal guarantee, and that consumers have easier and cheaper repair options. In addition, increased demand will boost the repair sector while creating incentives for manufacturers and sellers to develop more sustainable business models.
The prioritisation of repair over replacement is the right direction to reduce the environmental footprint of unnecessary waste. However, in order to comprehensively inform consumers about the repairability of products, confidence-building measures and valid information at the time of purchase are equally needed. The legislator should therefore provide for an independent assessment of the reparability of products. Furthermore, the proposal does not address the quality of repair services to a sufficient extent.
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Position papier on the EU Commission proposal for a "Right to Repair"
