,
,
,
Right to repairRight to Repair is not a niche hobby, and it is not “making everyone fix their own stuff”. It is the simple idea that when you own a device, you should be able to keep it working yourself, by a family member, with a friend, or through an independent repair shop. Without being blocked by parts monopolies, artificial restrictions, or missing information.
We have been working on repair, reuse, and user control for a long time, since long before the phrase “Right to Repair” became a mainstream label. The label is useful though, because it names a problem many people recognise: products that could be repaired, but are made difficult or expensive to repair on purpose (planned obsolescence).
Right to Repair also connects directly to Freedom (ownership and control) and Knowledge (sharing skills and practical know-how). Those topics overlap. They often turnout to be the same conversation.
Right to Repair is a mix of consumer rights, fair market access, and practical engineering reality. It means that owners and independent repairers can access the things that make repairs possible: spare parts, repair instructions, diagnostic information, longer term software and firmware updates, the aility to make your own choices, , and tools that are not locked behind “authorised-only” gates.
It also means that repairs should not be used as a trap. Warranties should not be voided by default just because a device was opened; which is forbidden by law in many countries, including the EU and the USA, by the way. Repair should not be blocked by software pairing, artificial error messages, need calibration or activation through unavailable software, or TPM (technical protection measures) that exist mainly to enforce a monopoly rather than to protect safety.
Repair is a normal part of ownership. Devices wear, batteries age, connectors break, and plastics fatigue. When repair is prevented, the result is predictable: higher costs for users, more waste, and less resilience. It also pushes people into replacement cycles they did not choose.
There is also a bigger picture. Repairability improves sustainability, but it also strengthens independence. A society that can maintain its equipment locally, competently, and without permission slips, has more control over its infrastructure and its privacy.
Some repairs are difficult. That is not debatable, as technology progresses things often get more complex. Repair takes skill, patience, and the right tools. But “difficult” is not the same as “impossible”, and it is not a reason to block repair for everyone. Devices are designed, built and repaired under manufacturers warranty by people working for large companies. Those people are still people. They are using tools, manuals, and test procedures that could often be shared in a safe and responsible way.
Repairs already happen every day under warranty, in service centres, and in independent shops. The difference is access. With the right parts, documentation, and diagnostics, many repairs are entirely reasonable: replacing a battery, a connector, a fan, a display, a hinge, a sensor, or a worn-out cable. Right to Repair is about making those repairs possible outside a closed ecosystem. Without pretending that every repair is a beginner project.
In practical terms, we advocate for fair access to parts and repair information, clear and non-punitive warranty terms, and interoperability in diagnostics and tooling. We also advocate for product design choices that make repairs realistic: modular parts where possible, standard fasteners, and assemblies that can be opened without destruction.
Right to Repair is not only a legal discussion. Law matters, enforcement matters, and market access matters. But a large part of the problem is cultural. Over the past decades, there has been a decline in education and skill, more demands on our time have been placed on us, and a repair mindset has been replaced by convenience as default: unawareness, instant gratification, and a quiet decline in skills and confidence. People stop trying, and then stop learning. Add a culture of ridicule; making fun of someone’s brand choices instead of helping them fix what they already have. Repair turns into a “tribal” argument rather than a normal part of ownership.
Manufacturers have moved in the same direction, often slowly and without a single obvious turning point: manuals disappear, schematics are no longer published, parts lists are restricted, and downloads that used to be public become gated, paywalled, or simply removed. When we bought a computer, it used to come with multiple manuals. Which included schematics, pin-outs of connectors, and examples on how to code your own firsts programs. Your central water heater came with schematics and a service manuals enclosed in the packaging. Your car or HVAC system had a diagram under the hood or service panel. Or you could order a schematic of your audio amplifier or television.
It is not a problem of “cheap products” only. In fact, some of the most expensive brands are the most aggressive in taking away user control, pairing parts, and making documentation and spare parts hardest to obtain. The visible examples differ by brand, but the underlying pattern is the same: lock-in beats long-term support. A repair culture pushes back by sharing skills, sharing knowledge, and supporting each other; not by blaming the user for what they bought.
None of this is anti-safety. Quite the opposite. When people are forced into guesswork and improvised workarounds, safety becomes worse. Responsible access, paired with guidance, standards, and community knowledge, leads to better outcomes for users and for the environment.
Copyright © 2026, ASK-Solutions
info@ask-solutions.nl
+31(0)23 369 0 269