Climate protection

EU Parliament votes in favor of right to repair

In future, appliances such as cell phones, vacuum cleaners, washing machines and dishwashers will have to be repaired in the EU if the customer requests it.

(Bild: Toyakisfoto.photos - stock.adobe.com)

On Tuesday, the EU Parliament gave the green light for the so-called "right to repair" directive. In future, appliances such as cell phones, vacuum cleaners, washing machines and dishwashers will have to be repaired in the EU if the customer requests it. The automotive sector is exempt from this, and headphones are also exempt for the time being.

584 MEPs voted in favor of the "right to repair", three against and 14 abstained. Until now, there has been no legal entitlement to repairs outside of the statutory guarantees for so-called white goods - mainly household appliances - and for everyday electronic products used by many people, such as smartphones. The EU Commission proposed the regulations in March 2023. In addition to strengthening consumer rights, its aim was also to protect the environment.

According to the EU Commission, discarded products that could still be repaired cause 35 million tons of waste, 30 million tons of wasted resources and 261 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU every year. According to the figures, consumers lose almost twelve billion euros per year because they throw away goods instead of repairing them. A European form for repair information and a quality standard for repair services are intended to remedy the situation.

Climate-neutral by 2050
Like the "Net Zero Industry Act", which is on the agenda in Strasbourg on Wednesday, the law is part of the European Green Deal for climate protection. The aim of the Net Zero Emissions Act is to increase the production of technologies that contribute to CO2 neutrality within the EU. To this end, approval procedures and state aid rules are to be simplified, among other things. The Green Deal aims to make Europe climate-neutral by 2050 and is one of the priorities of the Commission under Ursula von der Leyen.

"The right to repair is active climate protection: good for the climate and therefore also good for the stock market. For consumers, repairing electrical appliances will be quicker, easier and cheaper," said Thomas Waitz, Green MEP and Chairman of the European Green Party, welcoming the law.