Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today introduced the Fair Repair Act, legislation to guarantee consumers and small businesses a right to repair their own products by requiring manufacturers to make diagnostic repair information, parts, and tools readily available.
“When you buy something, you shouldn’t have to pay extra, or ask special permission from a corporation just to get it fixed,” said Senator Wyden. “The Fair Repair Act is a common-sense step to put users in control of the phones and other electronics they already own. I’m glad to work with Sen. Luján and Sen. Lummis to help enshrine the right to repair in black-letter law.”
Currently, many electronics manufacturers require that repairs, or parts to complete a repair, be made by the original equipment manufacturer itself or through one of their authorized vendors, making the process costly and burdensome for consumers. The Fair Repair Act will require original equipment manufacturers to make diagnostic and repair information, parts, and tools available to third-party repairers and owners in a timely manner and on fair and reasonable terms. That will help consumers and repair shops to avoid unnecessary and costly delays while also reducing waste.
According to U.S. PIRG, the Fair Repair Act could reduce household spending on electronics by 22 percent, leading to an annual savings of around $330 for each family and about $40 billion of annual total savings nationally.
The Fair Repair Act is also cosponsored by Senator Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., and Congressman Joe Morelle, D-N.Y.
The full text of the bill is here.
A web version of this release is here.