If you run an independent repair shop in the EU, you’ve probably heard that manufacturers now have to sell you spare parts “at cost.” That’s not what the law actually says, and the difference matters for how you price your services this year. The EU’s Right to Repair Directive took effect on July 31, 2026, and it sets a “reasonable price” standard, not an at-cost one.
Directive (EU) 2024/1799, the EU’s common rules promoting the repair of goods, has applied across member states since July 31, 2026. It covers 11 product categories listed in Annex II, including washing machines, dishwashers, refrigerators, electronic displays, vacuum cleaners, servers, mobile phones, tablets, tumble dryers, and products with light-transport batteries. Under Article 5, manufacturers of these goods must repair them within a reasonable time, for free or at a reasonable price, and must make spare parts and repair tools available to independent repairers at a reasonable, non-discriminatory price. They cannot refuse repair simply because another repairer worked on the product before, and they cannot use software locks or hardware barriers to block repairs without a legitimate, objective reason.
What Would a 30% Threshold Look Like?
For your shop, this means manufacturers are legally required to give you access to original spare parts and repair information at prices that don’t discourage repair — but “reasonable” isn’t defined as a fixed formula, cap, or percentage. That’s the detail you need to plan around: don’t assume a specific discount, and don’t assume your country’s enforcement body has published a benchmark yet. Track your national market surveillance authority’s guidance before rebuilding your pricing model around this law.
What “reasonable price” actually means
The Directive itself does not set a number. Article 5(4) requires manufacturers to offer spare parts and tools “at a reasonable and non-discriminatory price,” and a recital says pricing must not intentionally deter someone from choosing repair over replacement. The European Commission has said it will issue guidelines to define specific criteria for assessing what counts as reasonable. Until those guidelines land, the practical application of the rules depends on the Directive’s implementation and enforcement arrangements in each member state. Repair advocacy group Right to Repair Europe has argued in a public submission that a spare part shouldn’t count as reasonably priced if it costs more than 30% of the full product’s purchase price — though that’s the group’s proposal, not binding law.
Directive Timeline
What changed for your shop on July 31
Manufacturers covered by Annex II must now publish repair-service information and indicative repair prices on a free, accessible website, giving you a public benchmark to compare your own quotes against. They also can’t refuse to repair a product solely because you or another independent repairer already worked on it, which was a common gatekeeping tactic before this law. If a customer chooses repair instead of replacement during the legal guarantee period, the guarantee is extended by at least 12 months — a detail that should shape how you talk to customers about repair versus buying new.
11 Product Categories Covered
Karmactive has reported separately on how the EU’s circular economy rules are reshaping electronics waste policy, and this Directive is the enforcement mechanism behind that broader push. For related coverage, see our articles on the EU Digital Product Passport and repair obligations and EU repair rights and product waste.
If you handle e-bikes or other light transport products with batteries, note that the reasonable-price requirement for those specifically takes effect in February 2027, not July 2026, under separate EU battery waste rules.
Do tech companies have to sell spare parts at cost in the EU?
The EU’s Right to Repair Directive requires reasonable-priced spare parts and repair services, not at-cost pricing, for 11 categories of goods as of July 31, 2026. Repair shops should watch for the European Commission’s promised pricing guidelines, and battery-powered light transport products get their own reasonable-price deadline in February 2027.
Primary source: EUR-Lex Directive (EU) 2024/1799
