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Governor Gavin Newsom recently approved California’s SB 244, also referred to as the Right to
Repair Act, positioning California as a pivotal state advocating
for comprehensive electronics or appliance repair rights. Effective
on July 1, 2024, the legislation will have profound implications
for consumers, independent service repair facilities, and
electronics and appliance manufacturers.
The Right to Repair Act follows in the footsteps of similar laws
in several other states. In December of 2022, New York signed into
law the Digital Fair Repair Act, which requires original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) to make available to independent repair
providers and consumers the same diagnostic and repair information
that is available to authorized repair providers. Shortly
thereafter, Minnesota and Colorado followed suit. The Minnesota law
follows New York’s in many respects but requires OEMs to make
parts and documentation available to consumers regardless of
whether they are also made available to authorized repair
providers. Colorado’s version of the law has similar
requirements to Minnesota’s law, but mainly applies to farming
equipment.
The European Union took a different approach. Rather than
forcing OEMs to provide parts and documentation to consumers and
independent repair providers, the EU law imposes an obligation on
all entities providing repairs to repair certain goods (household
washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators, and electronic
displays) if the goods meet repairability requirements spelled out
in other EU legislation. Notably, mobile phones, cordless phones,
and tablets are forecasted as the next set of goods to carry
repairability obligations for manufacturers.
Compared to these previously enacted laws, California’s
Right to Repair Act most closely resembles that of Minnesota.
Changes from Previous Obligations
- Self-service. Currently, under the
Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, similar obligations are imposed
on manufacturers, but the documentation and parts need only be
shared with service providers. Under the Right to Repair Act,
consumers will have direct access to the documentation, parts, and
tools. - Greater coverage of electronics and
appliances. The Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act imposes
obligations on manufacturers only for electronics or appliances
carrying an express warranty from the manufacturer. The Right to
Repair Act removes the requirement of an express warranty as a
prerequisite.
Key Provisions of the Right to Repair Act
- Manufacturers’ obligations. Central to the
act is the directive compelling manufacturers to provide, on fair
and reasonable terms, consumers, service and repair facilities, and
service dealers with both sufficient documentation and functional
parts and tools (including updates) to diagnose, maintain, or
repair electronics and appliances. That directive applies to a wide
range of electronics and appliances that are sold in California,
from smartphones and tablets to laptops and televisions. The
directive only applies to products with minimum retail prices
ranging from $50 to $99.99 or greater than $100, depending on the
product. Products related to infrastructure (e.g., agricultural,
utility, industrial, mining, outdoor power, and garden equipment),
alarm systems, and video game consoles are excluded. - Requirements for documentation. The act
requires OEMs to provide sufficient documentation, including
manuals, diagrams, reporting output, service code descriptions, and
other materials that the OEM uses or provides to an authorized
repair provider to diagnose, maintain, or repair the product. - Requirements for parts and tools. The act also
requires OEMs to provide functional parts for their products,
including replacement parts or an assembly of parts, both new and
used, that a manufacturer makes available to authorized repair
providers. Tools include hardware and software for diagnosis,
maintenance, repair, calibration, or restoration of operability for
electronics or appliances. - Requirements for fair and reasonable terms.
Manufacturers must offer documentation, tools, and parts on the
most favorable terms with which the same were provided to an
authorized repair provider. If a manufacturer does not use an
authorized repair provider, then documentation, tools, and parts
must be offered at cost (not including research and development
(R&D) expenses). - Length of obligations. If the electronics or
appliances are sold for $50 to $99.99, the OEM’s obligations
last for three years from the date the last model or type was
manufactured. If the electronics or appliances are sold for more
than $100, the OEM’s obligation lasts for seven years from the
date the last model or type was manufactured. - Exceptions to manufacturers’ obligations.
Manufacturers that provide equivalent or better, readily available
replacements to consumers for free are not required to provide
documentation, tools, or parts to anyone. Additionally,
manufacturers are not required to divulge trade secrets, license
any intellectual property (IP), or distribute the source code for
any electronics or appliances.
Service providers’ obligations. Service
providers that are not authorized dealers must provide written
notice to consumers informing the consumer that it is not an
authorized dealer prior to servicing any electronics or appliances.
And such service providers must disclose if non-OEM replacement
parts will be utilized.
Takeaways
The Right to Repair Act underscores California’s commitment
to ensuring that consumers are provided reasonable options and
fosters a competitive service provider industry. However, the act
has its boundaries. It does not encompass every electronic product
or appliance, nor does it mandate unrestricted access to all repair
resources of a manufacturer. Nonetheless, it gives consumers and
service providers sufficient knowledge and substance to participate
and compete in the service provider industry.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.
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