EU repair rules are being ignored by most new smartphones, campaigners say

# EU repair rules are being ignored by most new smartphones, campaigners say

*Event date: 2026-09-07*

One year after the European Union’s repairability rules for smartphones and tablets took effect, most new devices on sale in the bloc still do not provide the repair information users are supposed to get, according to Right to Repair Europe.

The campaign group says it reviewed 2,334 records for smartphone models brought to market over the past year and found that only about 18 percent actually list a website where spare-parts prices or repair instructions can be found. Roughly half of the records had blanks where the link should have been, while another 19 percent pointed to a product or support page that did not contain the required repair information. In some cases, the records even sent consumers to Temu or AliExpress.

That is a sharp mismatch with the spirit of the rules. Since June 2025, manufacturers selling smartphones and tablets in the EU have been required to publish repair information and include a self-reported repairability score. But Right to Repair says the new regime has been treated more like a labeling exercise than an enforceable obligation. Some makers are still giving themselves top marks for repairability even while failing to publish the documentation behind those scores.

The report also argues that the information problem runs deeper than missing links. When spare parts are listed, they are sometimes given absurdly wide price ranges, such as a replacement battery priced anywhere between €14 and €128. Even when a manufacturer is technically compliant, the route from the energy label to the parts page can be so indirect that ordinary consumers are unlikely to use it.

The campaigners’ larger complaint is about enforcement. If more than 80 percent of records lack the necessary information, then, in their view, there is little sign that any public authority is actually checking the declarations before devices reach the market. That leaves consumers asked to trust a self-scored system in which manufacturers mark their own homework.

The issue matters because the EU has presented repairability as part of a broader push to extend the life of electronics, reduce waste and make ownership more transparent. If the labels are not reliable, the policy loses much of its practical value. Thomas Opsomer, iFixit’s EU policy spokesperson speaking for the coalition, said the obligation to publish spare-parts prices and repair manuals is a major step forward but needs better enforcement, and he argued that manufacturers should be required to publish the documentation behind their scores.

The report also points to a missing piece on the shelf itself: the repair link on the energy label is absent on a significant number of products offered both in stores and online. That makes compliance visible only on paper while leaving shoppers without an easy way to compare repairability in real time.

There is more regulation coming. Next February, new EU rules are set to require user-replaceable batteries in mobile devices, with some exceptions for wearables. That will add another layer to a system that campaigners already say is being gamed or ignored. The central question is whether regulators will move from publication requirements to active enforcement before the next wave of devices is sold.