It’s time to end our frustration with unrepairable products thanks to new proposed legislation

There’s no doubt most Kiwis want to repair the stuff they own and a new Bill introduced to Parliament – the Consumer Guarantees (Right to Repair) Amendment Bill – could finally take us one step closer.

When Repair Café Aotearoa New Zealand (RCANZ) surveyed 2831 of its supporters in 2023, two-thirds said they always or often tried to get broken or damaged things repaired. Consumer NZ has also reported that just 24% of New Zealanders would sooner replace something faulty than get it repaired, while half felt bad when they’ve had to junk an appliance, which often ends up in landfill.

In the RCANZ survey 72% of people said saving money motivated their desire to repair.

“We’re all feeling the cost of living, and keeping stuff working is a great way to save money.” says Dr Paul Smith of the Right to Repair Coalition Aotearoa.

Despite this strong motivation, many people find repair is frustratingly difficult. Fewer than half of people surveyed told Consumer NZ it was easy to find someone to fix an appliance, while only a quarter thought it was easy to find spare parts. Two-thirds said appliance repairs cost too much. Similarly, the top barriers reported by RCANZ supporters were impossible to repair products, no local repair options, a lack of repair information, and the cost of repair.

“Repair shouldn’t be so difficult, but it’s more profitable for manufacturers to sell new products, so they aren’t motivated to help us keep hold of the ones we already have.” said Dr Smith. “However, we have a golden opportunity to fix that with the Consumer Guarantees Act (Right to Repair) Amendment Bill currently going through Parliament.”

This Bill, currently heading towards its First Reading, would update our consumer rights to ensure consumers can ask for repair, although repair may not always be possible. It aims to make repair easier and cheaper for everybody by requiring manufacturers to maintain service repair facilities themselves or through third parties, and also to provide information, spare parts, software and other tools to consumers upon request. The Bill also prohibits manufacturers from voiding warranties if an item is repaired by an unauthorised repairer.

“It’s essential that the government hears our desire to repair the stuff we own.” said Dr Smith. “We’d urge everyone to contact their local MP and demand their party supports the Bill.”

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