Belgian Secretary of State: Manufacturers must have enough spare parts

The Belgian Secretary of State for Consumer Protection wants manufacturers to have sufficient spare parts in stock or to make it possible for third parties to manufacture parts. Belgians should therefore be able to have defective devices repaired more easily.

Currently, a Belgian consumer can demand free repair of a defective product via the guarantee law if it is still covered by the legal guarantee period. However, sometimes a part is no longer produced or a repair takes months. In such cases, according to the current Belgian warranty law, the seller can refuse repair, propose a replacement or offer a price reduction for another device. To prevent this, advocates State Secretary for Consumer Protection Eva De Bleeker ensure that manufacturers manufacture enough parts or share their designs for third parties to reproduce the parts.

According to De Bleeker, the current regulation is disastrous for the environment. In this way, according to the State Secretary, additional devices will come into circulation, while this is sometimes not necessary. De Bleeker therefore believes it is crucial that consumers can have their products repaired if necessary and that when purchasing a device they find out what the expected lifespan is, as well as how repairable a device is. “In this way, consumers can play an important role in making our economy more sustainable,” said the State Secretary.

The Belgian Secretary of State is not the only one who wants to tighten up the right to repair. European Commissioner for Justice and Consumer Affairs Didier Reynders announced earlier this year that he collect initiatives to promote the right to repair. The European Commission will present a proposal for the member states this autumn.