Consumers want the right to repair
You just dropped your phone and it’s still face down on the sidewalk. You could call it Schrödinger’s screen. Is your phone broken or not? You won’t know until you pick it up. A smartphone is part of life these days, things break too. However, we are not talking about simple things like fixing a bicycle tire here.
Electronic devices are often difficult or even impossible to repair, or repair is so expensive that you might as well buy a new one. Dutch consumers are fed up. Research by Radar has revealed a simple requirement: repairing electronic devices must become easier and cheaper.
Aiming for a circular economy by 2050
By 2050, the government wants to have fully switched to a circular economy. This means not only the reuse of materials, but also that products remain in use for as long as possible and that repair is therefore possible. Many companies do not agree with this because it reduces sales of new products. Apple is a notorious example. The company has long made it very difficult for consumers when it comes to repair. Finally, after a lot of pressure from the US government, Apple partially tacked in 2021. But that achievement was not welcomed as a great victory.
Consumers are clear: they would rather repair than buy new
Back to Radar’s research. A survey in which more than 2400 respondents participated showed that 93% believe that devices should be affordable to repair. 90% believed that a repair manual should be included as standard and 89% are in favor of a label indicating that a device is easy to repair. Finally, an overwhelming 95% believe that manufacturers should be required to make products that are easy and affordable yourself to be repaired.
The reasons why repair often fails are predictable. The test panel indicates that in 67% of cases a device cannot be repaired at all and in 52% of cases it is too expensive. It apparently frustrates a lot of people, because repair is therefore considered very important. Whether it’s from the desire to live more sustainably or just about the money. Sometimes people just like being able to keep their current device.
Experts agree with consumers
It’s still nice when the expert and consumer agree with each other. Experts themselves also refer to being able to repair easily and affordably as one of the most important paths to a circular economy. That’s not surprising. Every year we generate approximately 40 million tons of electronic waste, of which 85% goes to landfill. It’s equivalent to throwing 800 laptops into the dumps per second. Many of those devices are full of precious and rare, and in this case quite pertinent, recyclable raw materials. There must therefore be laws in which the right to repair is guaranteed. Not only through the manufacturer, but also with a third party or yourself!
Fortunately, the legal field is being worked on. On March 22, 2023, the European Commission announced that new common laws will be introduced to make repairs easier. The explicit goal here is also savings for the consumer on the one hand and the achievement of climate goals on the other.
Consumers must be able to demand that manufacturers repair a product. Manufacturers will be obliged to provide information about repair options and a quality standard for repair will be introduced. Self-repair or third-party repair is not yet mentioned, but it is a step in the right direction. The proposal must first be adopted by the European Parliament and the Council.
