Some Right to repair news – the Federal Trade Commissions has released a report that confirms anti-repair actions by large companies… hurt small businesses. The unanimous report includes some major findings:
- Warranties are being routinely voided, in violation of the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act. “The Commission takes these allegations seriously and will continue to address illegal practices in the marketplace.”
- “[T]he burden of repair restrictions may fall more heavily on communities of color and lower-income communities.”
- “The pandemic has exacerbated the effects of repair restrictions on consumers.”
The FTC has also made a call for reports of voided warranties around repair, and endorsed creating new rules that would prohibit unfair repair restrictions.
While slow moving as always, legislation is driven by recommendations like this. With multiple states and countries considering right-to-repair legislation, this is the kind of guidance that gets laws passes. In some cases, there are already laws to enforce.
Put that in context from the previous stories about consumer mood, and it’s easy to see the changes coming.