Examples of existing post-warranty repair incentivising schemes in Europe for household electronics and electrical devices
| Amount of funding | Which products | Founding source | Application process | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Repair voucher schemes | Austria/national level | |||
| Max. €200 or 50% of the invoice (and €30 for cost estimate), unlimited number of vouchers per person (Meyer and Molnár, 2024) | Applicable to consumer electronics and bicycles | EU recovery fund and national funds (Ministry for the Environment) | The consumers download a QR code, pay the full invoice and the repair workshop submits the reimbursement form. Available both at repair cafés and repair businesses | |
| Thuringia, Germany/regional level | ||||
| Max. €100 or 50% of the invoice, in Repair Cafés spare part costs, minimum invoice: €50 (repair businesses), €25 (Repair Cafés), max. 1 voucher per person/year | Only consumer electronics | Thuringian Ministry for the Environment, energy and nature conservation | Consumers must pay the full invoiced amount, and then the invoice for reimbursement can be submitted online or by mail. Available both at repair cafés and repair businesses | |
| Saxony, Germany/regional level | ||||
| Max. €200 or 50% of the invoice amount (minimum invoice amount: €75), max. 2 vouchers/year/person | Only consumer electronics | Saxon state ministry For energy, climate protection, environment and agriculture | Consumers must pay the full invoiced amount, reimbursement application via an online platform. Only available at verified repair businesses | |
| The city of Starnberg, Germany/municipal level | ||||
| Max. €50/person/year or 20% of the repair costs | Only consumer electronics | Starnberg waste management company | Consumers must pay the full invoiced amount, reimbursement via an online platform available both at repair cafés and repair businesses | |
| France/national level | ||||
| Repair fund | Depending on the type of device, between €15 and €60 discount Unlimited number of repairs at a discounted rate (MTÉL, 2024) | Applicable to selected electronics, clothing and shoes | Repair fund financed from eco-modulation fees based partly on repairability paid by manufacturers into the EPR scheme | At verified “QualiRépar” label businesses, the reimbursement is directly deducted from the invoice |
| Sweden/national level | ||||
| Tax incentive | Up to 50% of the labour expenses for household appliance repairs at homes are tax deductible (Skattverket, 2024) | Only applicable to selected items, such as smart phones, IT equipment and white goods | NA | The system allows the repair business to immediately deduct this amount from the invoice |
| Amount of funding | Which products | Founding source | Application process | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Repair voucher schemes | ||||
| Max. €200 or 50% of the invoice (and €30 for cost estimate), unlimited number of vouchers per person ( | Applicable to consumer electronics and bicycles | EU recovery fund and national funds (Ministry for the Environment) | The consumers download a QR code, pay the full invoice and the repair workshop submits the reimbursement form. Available both at repair cafés and repair businesses | |
| Max. €100 or 50% of the invoice, in Repair Cafés spare part costs, minimum invoice: €50 (repair businesses), €25 (Repair Cafés), max. 1 voucher per person/year | Only consumer electronics | Thuringian Ministry for the Environment, energy and nature conservation | Consumers must pay the full invoiced amount, and then the invoice for reimbursement can be submitted online or by mail. | |
| Max. €200 or 50% of the invoice amount (minimum invoice amount: €75), max. 2 vouchers/year/person | Only consumer electronics | Saxon state ministry | Consumers must pay the full invoiced amount, reimbursement application via an online platform. Only available at verified repair businesses | |
| Max. €50/person/year or 20% of the repair costs | Only consumer electronics | Starnberg waste management company | Consumers must pay the full invoiced amount, reimbursement via an online platform available both at repair cafés and repair businesses | |
| Repair fund | Depending on the type of device, between €15 and €60 discount | Applicable to selected electronics, clothing and shoes | Repair fund financed from eco-modulation fees based partly on repairability paid by manufacturers into the EPR scheme | At verified “QualiRépar” label businesses, the reimbursement is directly deducted from the invoice |
| Tax incentive | Up to 50% of the labour expenses for household appliance repairs at homes are tax deductible ( | Only applicable to selected items, such as smart phones, IT equipment and white goods | NA | The system allows the repair business to immediately deduct this amount from the invoice |
Source(s):
Authors’ own work
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