Right-to-repair advocates ask FTC for more aggressive rules

Right-to-repair advocates are calling on the FTC to introduce new rules for electronics manufacturers to make it easier for consumers to repair their own devices. Repair guide site iFixit and the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) on Tuesday sent a petition to the federal agency, with the ultimate goal of initiating a new rulemaking process for the right to repair. Although three states (California, Minnesota, and New York) have recently enacted right-to-repair laws, reforms have taken place at the national level. stagnant in Congress. The reparation reforms outlined in the petition also go far beyond what states have enacted thus far.

The Biden administration’s FTC supports right to repair, but advocates say more aggressive action is needed to outpace the tech industry.

“The FTC can only take action on something if it has relevant rules,” iFixit Chief Sustainability Officer Elizabeth Chamberlain wrote in a statement. blog entry. “And many of the things manufacturers are doing to block repair are new enough that the FTC has never ruled against them before, such as using proprietary screws and parts-matching software blocks to make it difficult the repair”.

The “parts pairing loophole,” of which Apple is a frequent offender, is the practice of digitally linking the individual parts of a device to the device itself, meaning that unpaired parts are inoperable. For many Apple product repairs, like a broken screen or a new battery, for example, consumers must purchase a new part from Apple and pair it with the device by contacting the company. Otherwise, the device will have limited functionality or, in some cases, not work at all. Critics of pairing of parts They say it prevents users from purchasing third-party and aftermarket parts and forces consumers to only purchase parts from the original manufacturer.

iFixit and PIRG are also asking the FTC to establish rules requiring companies to make a product’s components easily replaceable throughout its life and to ensure that parts that break easily (like screens) are readily available. as repair parts. The groups also call for rules that allow consumers to take products to a repair shop of their choice or perform DIY repairs and require that discontinued products keep their key functions intact. In some cases, repair shops are currently required to provide customer personally identifiable information to the manufacturer, which the FTC is also being asked to prohibit companies from doing. Finally, repair advocates are calling on the FTC to develop a repairability scoring system, similar to that used in France and in development by other countries.

The FTC’s rulemaking process is known to take time and the agency must solicit input from the public and other interested parties. Not to mention, the FTC has yet to decide whether to accept the petition itself. So while the fight for the right to repair continues to gain momentum, it looks like it will still have to wait a while.