Who hasn't experienced it: a branded appliance, not a cheap product, runs flawlessly for two or three years and then goes on the fritz shortly after the warranty expires. It's often a small thing. A capacitor. A temperature sensor. A transistor that could be bought for a few euros. You check to see if you can fix it yourself or at least have it repaired.
Then the real frustration begins.
No spare parts. No circuit diagram. No repair information. Instead: a complete module for 200 euros - designed for twenty models, but without the right software. A technician has to install it, which you have to order yourself. In the end, the repair costs more than buying a new one. So you buy a new one. Cheaper, but this time perhaps not the branded device.
The device ends up on the scrap heap. Here in Europe millions of tons of electronic waste are disposed of every year, a significant proportion of which are appliances that would have worked for years with a single replacement part. Rare earths, copper, aluminum, steel - all used, all lost for the time being. Raw materials that are often extracted under precarious conditions: in mines in Central Africa, South America and Southeast Asia, where occupational health and safety and fair wages are not a matter of course.
The manufacturer loses a customer, but somewhere in a production hall the next appliance is being built according to the same principle.
This is precisely the pattern that European legislators are addressing. Not with a law. With a set of three interlocking legal acts.
Level 1: The design - ESPR (EU) 2024/1781
Repairability does not start with service. It begins in CAD. The Ecodesign Regulation for sustainable products obliges manufacturers to address three aspects from Art. 5 as early as the design phase: Retrofittability (aspect d), reparability (aspect e) and serviceability (aspect f). Specific requirements will follow for each product group via delegated acts. Until then, the old Ecodesign Regulations from 2019 will continue to apply with immediate effect, without a national transposition act.
The first cogwheel is already turning.
Level 2: The information - Directive (EU) 2024/825
Before a consumer makes a purchase, they need to know whether they can repair it. The EmpCo Directive amends the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (2005/29/EC) and the Consumer Rights Directive (2011/83/EU): Dealers must inform consumers before the contract is concluded - about durability, repairability value (where required by law), availability of spare parts and software updates. Blanket environmental claims without proof are prohibited.
Germany has implemented on time: Two laws come into force on September 27, 2026 - the Third Act Amending the Unfair Competition Act (BGBl. 2026 I No. 43) and the Act Amending Consumer Contract and Insurance Contract Law (BGBl. 2026 I No. 28).
The second cogwheel takes effect.
Level 3: The law - Directive (EU) 2024/1799
This is where the design principle and duty to inform become tangible consumer law. From the national implementation date - July 31, 2026 - manufacturers must repair all product groups in Annex II on request. This also applies after the warranty period has expired, must be carried out at reasonable prices and must be possible within a reasonable period of time. Spare parts and tools must not be offered at deterrent prices. Earlier repair by an independent company must not be a reason for refusal. And: withholding circuit diagrams, blocking software, refusing documentation is a violation of the law.
The product list today includes household washing machines and dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, electronic displays, welding equipment, vacuum cleaners, servers, smartphones, tablets, cordless phones and products with LV batteries (e.g. e-bikes, e-scooters). In parallel to the ESPR timetable, the Commission may extend it.
Anyone not based in the EU transfers the obligation to authorized representatives, importers and dealers on a subsidiary basis. The chain does not end at the border.
A side effect with weight: if a consumer opts for repair instead of replacement within the warranty period, the period is extended once by twelve months to a total of three years.
What comes next.
Similar regulations already exist in other markets: California has passed a Right to Repair law in 2023 (SB 244), and the UK and Brazil have comparable requirements under discussion. Whether and when these markets will converge remains to be seen - but whoever sets up processes for the EU market today will at least have a structural head start.
For manufacturers of affected product groups, this means that repair processes, spare parts logistics and consumer information must be in place by July 31, 2026. This affects product design, service processes and supply chains at the same time. Those who take quality seriously will not be at a disadvantage - on the contrary.
The right to repair is an opportunity to make "Made in Germany" great again. As a promise that remains valid long after the warranty has expired.
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Author's note
This article has been machine translated into English.
TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
ESPR =Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation
CAD = Computer-Aided Design
EmpCo = Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition
