Some white goods and electronics in France are set to be labelled with a new logo to show their durability, reparability, and reliability, in a bid to encourage consumers to buy longer-lasting products.
The ‘durability index’ (indice de durabilité) logo will show a reliability and reparability rating out of 10, and be coloured from dark red to green depending on its score.
The five colours of the new logos and scores under the schemeEconomie.gouv.fr
Dark red: Very low score, 1.5 out of 10 or under
Red: Low score, 3.5 out of 10
Orange: Medium score, 5.5 out of 10
Yellow: Medium-high score, 7.5 out of 10
Green: High score, 9.5 out of 10 or above
Relevant goods sold in supermarkets and electronic stores will soon begin to show the logo.
From January 8 the logo has been required for televisions. Washing machines will follow from April 8.
Update of existing anti-waste law
The logos are essentially an update to measures introduced as part of the 2020 anti-waste law (loi anti-gaspillage). Then known as the ‘reparability index’ (indice de réparabilité), the system gave products a score from 1 to 10, showing how easy they were to repair.
This law has been in place since January 2021 for five product categories: smartphones, laptops, televisions, lawnmowers, and front-opening washing machines (those with a ‘window’ in the front).
At the end of 2022, it was extended to four other categories: top-opening washing machines, dishwashers, hoovers and high-pressure cleaners.
But in April 2024, a new decree stated that this index would be replaced by the indice de durabilité for certain goods.
Ad
New index criteria
This new index has extra criteria, with the main change requiring an assessment of the product’s reliability (its resistance to stress and wear), and a commercial guarantee.
This is a “more comprehensive” indicator that is “essential for enlightening consumers about the reliability of goods and encouraging manufacturers to produce eco-designed goods”, said the anti-planned obsolescence association Halte à l'obsolescence programmée (HOP) on its website.
The reparability of equipment (the accessibility of technical documentation, ease of dismantling, and the availability and price of spare parts)
The reliability of the equipment (resistance to stress and wear, ease of maintenance and servicing, and the existence of a commercial guarantee and a quality process).
‘Too few products’ included in the index
However, the HOP association has said that the new rules do not go far enough, and “still apply to too few products”.
The EU felt that the new French index clashes with existing European regulation providing for a similar scheme for smartphones, reports consumer association UFC-Que Choisir.
This regulation already states that from June 2025, smartphones sold in the EU “will have to display information on their energy efficiency, longevity, protection against dust and water and resistance to accidental drops”.
The HOP association said that this regulation was “less restrictive” than the new French index, and would be less effective in reducing smartphone waste.
