Free Repairs for Europe

The European Repair Alliance (ERA) is committed to a sustainable future by strengthening the repair culture and reducing e-waste. We promote the repair of electronic products to extend their lifespan and contribute to the circular economy. At the start of the initiative, we want to specifically promote the repair of consumer electronics devices such as smartphones, cameras, laptops, tablets, smartwatches, etc. In the long term, however, we plan to work with electronics of all kinds.

In order to finance ourselves not only through donations, cooperations and sponsors, we want to politically enforce a repair levy on new devices in order to generate sufficient funds for free repairs.

We believe that a repair levy, evenly distributed among consumers, retailers and producers, can contribute to more equal opportunities, a stronger repair culture and less e-waste. Not everyone is in a position to afford expensive repairs. However, a new device often costs less than a repair.

With the levy, we are creating an incentive to redeem a service that has already been paid for (in this case the repair levy). At the moment, only around 20% of consumers make use of the repair option. Far too few in our eyes!

In 2019, around 720 million new consumer electronics devices were purchased in the EU alone. However, around 70% of all discarded devices could be reused with simple repairs. We need to make a change! With the help of our proposed repair levy of 6% on the new price, around 11.7 billion euros could have been raised in 2019, in the EU alone. Enough to make the majority of all repairs free of charge.

As we are striving to manage our funds wisely, at the beginning of the project, we will have to introduce a maximum limit for repair costs, so that as many people as possible can benefit from free repairs. The limit will be set at 200€ and will be raised as soon as our organization is financially self-sufficient.

Our goals are diverse. We strive to promote a culture of repair, reduce electronic waste, conserve resources and contribute to environmental protection. Our primary target group is consumers who own electronic products and are interested in sustainable use. In addition, we also target manufacturers, retailers and repairers who want to promote a greener economy.

By supporting our project, you are helping to promote a sustainable future. Reducing electronic waste and extending the life of electronic products has a positive impact on the environment and society. What's more, you could benefit from free repairs yourself with your donation.

After successful crowdfunding, the funds are used for various purposes. The majority will be used to finance repairs in order to offer consumers repair costs in full. Another part will be used for the development and implementation of educational and awareness-raising initiatives to promote awareness of sustainable consumption. The funds are also used for the administration and further development of the initiative so that we can pay our active members and employees fair salaries.