It’s a useful but still in its infancy boost. It must promote the extension of the lifespan of the products. The repair bonus, provided for by the anti-waste law adopted at the start of 2020, entered into force on December 15, 2022. It reduces the repair bills of around thirty families of appliances. The discount goes up to €45 for laptops. It is €30 for televisions, €25 for mobile phones and washing machines, €15 for electric scooters, €10 for irons… The bonus applies when the device is no longer under guaranteed, with some exceptions. Breakdowns caused by misuse are excluded: no bonus for repairing a broken smartphone screen!
The amount of the reductions is ” significant “, welcomes all the same the Halte à l’obsolescence programmed (HOP) association, which campaigned for the creation of this aid. It can represent 20% of the bill. “The objective is to make repairing the broken device more profitable than buying a new product”, explains Laëtitia Vasseur, its general delegate. To benefit from it, you have to go through a repairer with the new QualiRépar label (1). The bonus will then be deducted directly from the invoice, without any special steps for the consumer.
No income conditions
“The aid is accessible to everyone, without income conditions or limit per household: you can activate the bonus to repair your television or game console even if you have already benefited from it for your oven”, explains Nathalie Yserd, Managing Director of Ecosystem, one of the two eco-organizations in charge of the system.
You still have to find a certified repairer. The territorial network remains limited, we point out at HOP. And not just in rural areas. According to our findings, the directory lists, for example, only one major appliance repairer in Orléans. And impossible to find one to repair an electric mower, even in Île-de-France. A temporary difficulty. According to Ecosystem, 400 companies are labeled for the moment, but 2,500 have started the process to be.
It also remains to be hoped that QualiRépar repairers will not take advantage of this to increase their prices. This would nullify the interest of the bonus for consumers. “We must continue to encourage competition between repairers, certified or not”, advises Nathalie Yserd.