On 31 July 2026 (Directive (EU) 2024/1799) something fundamental changes for households in Germany. By that date the EU member states had to transpose the European repair directive into national law, and from that date the new rules apply. What used to be the goodwill of individual manufacturers becomes an obligation: whoever makes a smartphone, a washing machine or a dishwasher must repair the device on request – even once the two-year statutory warranty has long expired and the repair is paid for (Directive (EU) 2024/1799). That sounds like legal small print, but it has very practical consequences for the question we are asked most often during a home visit: is a repair still worth it, or is a new device the more sensible choice? This guide explains in plain language what applies from the cut-off date, where the limits are, and how to reach a decision device by device that you will not regret later. And if it does become a new device, we accompany the data transfer to the new device at your home.
Key takeaways
- The new rules apply from 31 July 2026, but only to purchase contracts concluded after that date (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
- Manufacturers must repair certain devices on request – free of charge or for a reasonable price (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
- 10 product groups from Annex II are covered, among them smartphones and tablets, washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerating appliances, electronic displays and vacuum cleaners (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
- Anyone who chooses repair instead of replacement receives 12 months of additional warranty on the device (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
- For smartphones and tablets, spare parts must already be available for 7 years after sales end, within 5 working days during the first five years (Regulation (EU) 2023/1670).
- Before handing in any device for repair, back up the data, sign out of the account and switch off device tracking – we take care of that during the home visit.
What changes on 31 July 2026
The heart of the directive is in Article 5: manufacturers of products for which EU law sets repairability requirements must repair those products at the consumer's request – „either free of charge or for a reasonable price“ and within a reasonable time (Directive (EU) 2024/1799). What is genuinely new is the timing: this obligation applies regardless of whether the statutory warranty is still running. Until now the conversation often ended after two years with the sentence „there are no parts for that any more“.
The second change concerns sales law itself. If someone opts for repair rather than replacement while still within the warranty period, the seller's liability is extended by 12 months (Directive (EU) 2024/1799). This right exists once per device and is meant to balance out the disadvantage a repair has compared with a factory-fresh replacement. Repair thereby becomes a genuine alternative rather than the weaker fallback.
Third, repairability itself moves into the description of what a device has to deliver. Where European rules set requirements for spare parts, disassembly or repair instructions, complying with them becomes part of the contractual conformity of the goods. A device that, contrary to those rules, cannot be opened or supplied with parts is therefore not merely inconvenient but defective.
Repair on request
The manufacturer has to repair, including after the warranty has expired and against payment – for the product groups listed in Annex II of the directive (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
12 months on top
Choosing repair while within the warranty grants a one-off extension of the seller's liability by 12 months (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
A binding quote
The European repair information form names the defect, the price and the duration and stays valid for at least 30 days – which makes offers comparable (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
The key restriction: the purchase date
These devices fall under the duty to repair
The duty to repair does not cover every electrical device in the house, but the product groups for which European repairability requirements already exist. Annex II of the directive currently lists 10 product groups (Directive (EU) 2024/1799): household washing machines and washer-dryers, household dishwashers, refrigerating appliances, electronic displays, welding equipment, vacuum cleaners, servers and data storage products, mobile phones and slate tablets, household tumble dryers, and goods containing batteries for light means of transport. The list is deliberately extendable: as new ecodesign rules arrive, the circle of covered devices grows.
In everyday terms this means the expensive, heavy and long-lived appliances are included. These are exactly the ones where a premature replacement hurts the household budget most, and where the environmental effect is largest. Small devices such as kettles, toasters or headphones are not covered, and neither are ordinary printers – for those, statutory warranty, manufacturer guarantee and goodwill remain the route.
| Product group from Annex II | Typical device at home | What that means in practice |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile phones and tablets | Smartphone, tablet | Battery and display swaps stay possible for years, parts remain available |
| Household washing machines and washer-dryers | Washing machine in the basement | Pump, bearing or electronics instead of a complete replacement |
| Household dishwashers | Dishwasher in the kitchen | Spray arm, circulation pump and seals are spare parts |
| Refrigerating appliances | Fridge, chest freezer | Thermostat, seal and electronics are kept replaceable |
| Electronic displays | Television, monitor | Power supply and board instead of scrapping a working screen |
| Vacuum cleaners | Upright and handheld vacuums | Motor, switch and battery stay obtainable |
Why this is more than paperwork
Spare parts, deadlines and the price of a repair
A right to repair is of little use without parts. That is why the ecodesign rules work alongside it. For smartphones and tablets the following has applied since 20 June 2025: manufacturers must keep spare parts available for at least 7 years after the end of sales, deliver them within 5 working days during the first five years and within 10 working days during the remaining two years (Regulation (EU) 2023/1670). Those parts explicitly go to independent repairers too, not only to the manufacturer's contract partners.
For professional repairers the parts include battery, camera assemblies, charging and audio connectors, mechanical buttons, microphones, speakers and display assemblies; for end users they include battery, back cover, display assembly, charger and SIM card tray (Regulation (EU) 2023/1670). On top of that, operating system updates must remain available free of charge for at least 5 years after sales end (Regulation (EU) 2023/1670). A three-year-old phone is therefore rarely a case for the recycling yard.
The price remains negotiable, but it becomes more transparent. The European repair information form states the defect, the price or the way it is calculated, the expected duration and further conditions, and binds the provider for at least 30 days (Directive (EU) 2024/1799). That makes it possible to compare two offers calmly instead of deciding at the counter. From 31 July 2027 a European online platform is additionally intended to make finding repairers nearby easier (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
- Obtain two quotes and compare the prices of the binding offers.
- For phones, ask for original or equivalent parts and have their origin documented.
- Clarify whether the repair affects water resistance or an existing manufacturer guarantee.
- Ask how long the device stays in the workshop and whether a loan device is provided.
- Keep the invoice after a repair – it documents the extended warranty period.
- For large appliances, have the technician's travel share itemised separately.
The 50 percent rule of thumb
Repair, upgrade or replace: how to decide
Between „repair“ and „throw away“ lies a third option that is often overlooked: upgrading. With computers in particular, the perceived wear is usually not a defect but simply too little storage. A notebook that runs smoothly again with a fast SSD and more working memory costs a fraction of a new device – and the working environment with all its programs and passwords stays exactly as it is.
Four sober questions help with the decision. How old is the device relative to its usual service life? How high are the repair costs relative to the price of a new one? Are security updates still arriving? And how much effort does switching create? The last point is underestimated in most households: the real price of a new device rarely sits on the receipt, but in the hours that setup, data transfer and signing in to every service again will cost.
In Germany 96 percent (Bitkom) of people use a smartphone, and on average such a device is replaced roughly every two and a half years (Bitkom). In practice, a battery swap after three years therefore often means a device serves considerably longer than average – at a cost far below that of a new model.
| Device | Common defect | First choice | When a new purchase makes sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smartphone | Battery no longer lasts a day | Battery replacement at a workshop | When security updates have stopped |
| Smartphone | Cracked display | Display replacement, parts are available | When water has got in as well |
| Notebook | Everything starts slowly | Upgrade SSD and working memory | When the operating system is no longer supported |
| Printer | Paper jams, streaks in the print | Cleaning, print head, feed roller | When spare parts cost more than the device |
| Router | Wi-Fi drops out, slow network | Set it up again, check position and channels | When the line is switched to fibre |
| Television | No picture, device stays silent | Have the power supply or board replaced | When the panel itself is damaged |
The quiet cost trap
Device by device: phone, notebook, printer, router, television
Every category of device has its own weak points, and they are remarkably predictable. Knowing them saves the helpless feeling during a repair conversation and makes it easier to judge whether an offer is reasonable.
Smartphone
Battery and display are the two most common cases. Both belong to the parts manufacturers must keep in stock (Regulation (EU) 2023/1670). Before handing it in: back up, sign out, switch off tracking.
Notebook
A slow start rarely means a defect. An SSD instead of the old hard disk and more working memory achieve noticeably more than a cheap new device – see switching to Windows 11.
Printer
Streaks, paper jams or a device that disappears from the Wi-Fi: cleaning and a tidy printer setup often help more than reaching for the successor model.
Router
Drop-outs are more often caused by position and crowded radio channels than by the hardware. Before a new device arrives, Wi-Fi optimisation in the house is worth it.
Television
If the screen stays black, the power supply is frequently to blame rather than the panel. As an electronic display, a television falls under the duty to repair (Directive (EU) 2024/1799).
Large appliances
Washing machine, dishwasher and refrigerating appliance are explicitly named in Annex II (Directive (EU) 2024/1799). Here a quote is worth getting before a new device is ordered.
The router is a special case. It is not part of the duty to repair, yet it stands at the start of many supposed device defects: when the television stutters, the tablet drops out and the printer disappears, the home network is often the cause. A clean router setup clarifies that faster than three repair orders.
Checklist before the repair request
A repair request is handled faster and more cheaply when the paperwork is complete and the fault is described in a way that can be reproduced. „It does not work any more“ is not a fault description, whereas „since the update it only charges to 40 percent and gets hot doing so“ certainly is.
- Find the receipt: it proves the purchase date and therefore whether the new rules apply.
- Note the serial number – on phones via the settings, on large appliances on the door frame or the back.
- Describe the fault in one sentence: what happens, since when, in which situation?
- Take photos or a short video of the fault if it can be shown.
- Create a backup and check that the backup is actually readable.
- Sign out of the account, switch off device tracking and the screen lock or hand over the code.
- Remove the SIM card and memory card, keep cases and accessories.
- Request the quote in writing and note how long it stays valid.
Back up first, hand in afterwards
Do not forget accounts and access
If it does become a new device
Sometimes a repair does not make sense: the panel is broken, the operating system has run out of updates, the spare parts cost more than the residual value. That is when the part that creates most of the work begins. During the switch, photos, contacts, calendars, mail, messages, passwords, banking and TAN apps and documents all have to come along – completely and verifiably.
The order decides the outcome: back up first, then transfer, check at the end – and only erase the old device once everything has demonstrably arrived. What this sequence looks like in detail is described in our article on the data transfer to a new device. For older relatives the change is also a question of habit; here our tech help for seniors works with patience and recognisable routines.
Back up before anything else
A complete backup of the old device is the return ticket. It is created before anything is transferred or reset.
Transfer and verify
Photos, contacts, messages, mail and apps move to the new device. Afterwards we spot-check whether albums, folders and logins are complete.
Erase the old device securely
Only once everything has arrived is the old device removed from the account, reset to factory settings and prepared for passing on or disposal.
The device changes, the habits stay
Disposing of the old device safely instead of in a drawer
Retired devices belong neither in household waste nor permanently in a drawer. In Germany, just under 758,000 tonnes of waste electrical and electronic equipment were recycled in 2024, 1.5 percent more than the year before (Federal Statistical Office). By contrast, only 17,600 tonnes were prepared for reuse – 6.3 percent less than in 2023 (Federal Statistical Office). In total 920,000 tonnes of old devices were recycled, otherwise recovered or disposed of, of which 32.8 percent were small appliances (Federal Statistical Office).
There is room for improvement in collection: the collection rate was most recently 44.3 percent, while the EU requires 65 percent (Umweltbundesamt). Per inhabitant, around 10.06 kilograms of old devices were collected per year (Umweltbundesamt). Every phone lying in a drawer is missing from that calculation – and with it the raw materials it contains.
Returning a device is straightforward and free of charge. Retailers with a sales area for electrical devices of at least 400 square metres, and food retailers with a total area of at least 800 square metres, must take back old devices (German Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act). Small devices with an edge length of up to 25 centimetres are accepted without a new purchase, limited to three old devices per device type; with a new purchase, an equivalent old device is additionally accepted (German Electrical and Electronic Equipment Act). Municipal recycling centres are open alongside that.
- Erase all data before handing the device over: disconnect the account, reset to factory settings, remove the memory card.
- On computers, have the hard disk or SSD securely overwritten, or remove and keep it.
- Remove rechargeable and single-use batteries where possible and hand them in separately; report damaged batteries.
- Pass on working devices rather than disposing of them – reuse is the most economical option.
- Hand in cables, power supplies and remote controls as well, they belong to the old device.
- For large appliances, order collection together with the new purchase.
Data carriers first, device afterwards
What we take care of during the home visit
The new rules shift the question, but they do not take the work off anyone's hands. We handle exactly the steps that tend to get stuck in everyday life: we back up the device before it goes to the workshop, sign it out of the account cleanly and note what is stored on it. After the repair we set it up again the way you know it.
If the decision falls on a new device, we handle the complete move: photos, contacts, calendars, mail, messages, passwords and banking and TAN apps come along, the new device is set up, and the old one is securely erased. What that costs is stated transparently in our price overview; which services are included is shown on the page services at a glance.
We come to your home, in the Hildesheim and Leine valley region – for example as tech help in Hildesheim. The same principle from this article applies outdoors in the garden as well: check first, then act. What that looks like for a different device is shown in our article on setting up a robot mower safely.
Before the repair
Create and verify the backup, sign out of the account, switch off device tracking, document the access code – so the workshop can work.
During the device change
Complete move of photos, contacts, mail, messages, passwords and banking and TAN apps, followed by a joint check.
After the change
Setup according to your habits, secure erasure of the old device and a short walkthrough so that everything can be found again.
If you are unsure whether a repair is worth it, we look at age, cost and effort together and say honestly what we would advise against. A short description of the problem is enough to start – via the contact form or by phone.
Sources and studies