Why are appliances so difficult to repair?

The planet is the real loser in our replacement over repair culture. So how did we get to this point? With us now is Tim Cooper, Emeritus Professor of Sustainable Design and Consumption at Nottingham Trent University.

Tim - I think there's a systemic problem. I think we're in a consumer based society where there's a benefit, commercial benefit, to companies, making products that are worn out, whether it's how they look or how they work or how long they work. For most businesses, gradually reducing the lifespan of products over a sustained period of decades, they make more money that way. There are, of course, a few products that last much longer, a few companies that are focused in that area, but it's a relatively small share of the market, but they demonstrate that it is possible to make longer lasting products.

James - So are the manufacturers doing this on purpose? Is that what you're suggesting? Is it right to lay the blame on them?

Tim - No, I'm not suggesting that at all. I'm saying it's a systemic problem and I think governments, companies, consumers are all to blame. We all have a role to play. As John said just now, governments have got a role in setting the framework, the legislative framework, that determines whether products are allowed to be put on the market - short-lived products, irreparable products. Consumers have got a role because if there isn't a demand for products that are repairable, then it's pointless to introduce legislation or for companies to do research making them repairable. You can make a repairable product, but they're still thrown away when they break because the consumer can't be bothered to get it repaired. It's too expensive to get it repaired. So we all have a role to play in this.

James - Let's take those points in turn and start with, as John was alluding to, the fact that the technology companies are starting to take this a bit more seriously. Is that because of legislative pressure they've come under?

Tim - Yes. Over the past 10 to 15 years, there's been the growth of what's being called the circular economy debate. And in particular, this has been strong in Europe. Legislation is gradually being introduced to force manufacturers to address the problems of short-lived irreparable products. Companies need time to adapt to that. The concern is how much time we've got and, certainly as John was alluding to earlier, too many companies are trying to slow down the process, but the process is inevitable because we all know that the whole world can't live in the way that rich industrialised countries have been doing in recent years. We all have to move onto a more sustainable path where there's far less waste, where products last longer and at the end of life they're fully recyclable.

James:
In practical terms, what's being done to make repairing electronics simpler?

Tim - Well, a number of things are happening. In terms of the requirements, over time we are going to see products labelled with their repairability and with their durability. Already that's happened in France. They brought in legislation before the European Union. That came into force three or four years ago now, where a small number of products now, when you buy them, there's a label that says how repairable they are. The European Union is moving in that direction, and those labels will be ready probably by around 2025 on a limited number of products. And as they do this, consumers will be able to make informed judgement as to whether or not they want to buy a product. And I think we'll see the same kind of trend as we did with energy labels, that people will say, well, why would I buy a product that's designed not to be repaired when there's one that could be repaired? That's only part of the problem as I just said a moment ago. We still need to have the question of how expensive it is to repair products rather than replace them and we still need that desire to keep things going for longer, which means we have to have products that are designed for upgradeability, particularly in the high tech sector.

James - I'm pleased to hear your optimism when it comes to consumers and their approach to buying products that they know will be more sustainable, even if it might hit them in the pocket. How have you come to that confidence?

Tim - Well, maybe that was slightly misleading if I was optimistic. What I was trying to say was that consumers need to play their part, and there is evidence that if products are longer lasting but better value for money, then they will move in that direction. Consumers are often irrational, but they're often very rational indeed. And if they see products on the market and one is cheaper than another and there's no real assurance that the one of a particular brand or a particular functionality will last long, they won't pay the extra. So we do need to have communication with consumers to put them on the right track. We also need to raise people's expectations. I think people, in my generation, we were used to products being designed to last for as long as possible. It's only really in recent decades that we've moved to a society where people do treat electrical goods as throwaway items. And then the legislation actually isn't very strong on that at the moment. So these new laws, right to repair legislation, for example, the revisions to the Ecodesign Directive, they actually tend to focus on the large products. One of my concerns and one of my frustrations are small appliances, which are proliferating in the industrialised countries, and those products are often very short-lived.