Work

A critical assessment of the European Directive proposal on the common rules promoting the repair of goods

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: • The European directive promoting repair has been approved. • This directive fails to address the most fundamental barriers to repair. • No new tools have been provided to overcome barriers to repair. • Right-to-repair takes the form of the obligation to repair by the manufacturer. • There are no incentives to change the balance of power in the repair market. The European Commission has recently approved a Directive proposal to promote repair. After review by the European Parliament and Council, we can assess the policy measures in light of their intended objective. Our analysis shows that the Directive proposal fails to address the most important barriers to repair – planned obsolescence, availability of repair instructions and spare parts, economic incentives – while potentially generating greater administrative burdens for independent repairers. The Directive consists mainly of information tools and proposes a closed, narrow version of the Right to Repair (R2R) that transfers the power over an expanding repair market to the manufacturers.

Source: Resources Conservation and Recycling

DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2024.107996

Authors: Francisco López-Bermúdez, Xavier Vence

Institution: Universidade de Santiago de Compostela

Language: English

Topic: Sustainable Supply Chain Management

Subfield: Strategy and Management

Field: Business, Management and Accounting

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,520