Guide: How to use your Right to Repair in Oregon

On Wednesday, January 1st, Oregon’s Right to Repair Law goes into effect. This law ensures access to the parts, tools, information, and software access needed to repair electronic devices, keeping them in use and out of the landfill. Oregon’s law is also the first to ban the anti-consumer use of “parts pairing,” a restrictive practice that prevents independent repair.

To find your what your repair rights are under this new law, and learn how to file a complaint, you can read our guide below:

How to use the Right to Repair to get parts, tools, and documentation

1. Oregon’s Right to Repair law applies to cell phones released after July 1, 2021 and most other products released after 2015. You can find the release date of your device to determine if it is covered or not. Use a search engine and enter the make and model of your device, followed by “release date.” For example, if you have a Dell Latitude 550 laptop, search “Dell Latitude 550 Release Date.” You can often find this information on the product page for your device. We recommend adding your model number to the search. If you can’t find this information, reach out to the manufacturer directly.
2. Start by looking for parts, tools, and documentation on the manufacturer’s website. Some manufacturers will link to these materials directly on their homepage, while others will not. If there’s no link, use the search box either on the homepage or through a search engine – but be sure to go to the manufacturer’s website and not a third-party site. NOTE: We love third party repair, and encourage you to use it. In this case, we want to ensure that manufacturers are providing you with repair access required by law.
3. If you can’t find the parts, tools, or documentation you’re looking for, contact the manufacturer’s customer service using the chat function, email, or phone number listed on their website. Explain to the customer service representative what device you have, what repair materials you are looking for, and that you would like access to those materials as required by law in Oregon. NOTE: It’s best to be courteous with customer service representatives, but don’t be afraid to be persistent if they say that self repair is not possible or that they only provide materials to authorized technicians. Calmly explain that Oregon state law guarantees you access to the repair materials for your device.
4. You can also contact the manufacturer’s brick and mortar stores for repair materials, in addition to online sources.
5. You should be able to get the repair materials you need using these methods. However, make sure to document any interactions you have with customer service representatives if they won’t provide you with repair materials. Take screenshots of chat box conversations, email threads, and take notes during phone calls. That way, you’ll be able to file a complaint with Oregon’s attorney general. NOTE: It can be illegal or unethical to record a phone call without the other party’s consent. We recommend taking notes on phone calls rather than secretly recording phone calls with customer service agents.

Important things to know about Oregon’s Right to Repair law

Oregon’s Right to Repair law applies to any product that contains digital electronics embedded in the product, which are generally used for “personal, family or household purposes.” It applies to appliances as well. There is a one-year buffer between when a product is available on the market in Oregon and when the law will apply to that product, so for extremely new products, you may need to wait for these materials to become available. The law applies to electronics released in the state since 2015, except for cell phones, for which the law only applies to those released after July 1, 2021.

The law does not apply to vehicles, motor vehicles, or automobiles, air conditioning units, video game consoles, solar panels, marine vehicles or equipment, farm equipment, yard equipment, or electric toothbrushes. You can still attempt to get repair information for these products from manufacturers, but under the law they are not obligated to provide it to you. It also does not apply to any products for which the manufacturer does not currently offer repair services to consumers, either directly or through their authorized service provider. Right to Repair requires them to provide access to parts, tools, and repair information they already have. It doesn’t require them to make anything new that doesn’t already exist. 

Oregon’s law will also ban anti-consumer uses of the practice of parts pairing, but only for devices that are first sold in the state after January 1, 2025.

The ban on parts pairing means that manufacturers cannot use false warnings, pop-ups, and alerts to deter repair using functioning third-party parts. If you receive an irritating warning that there is a “non-genuine part” in your device first sold after January 1st after receiving a repair from an independent provider, they are likely in violation of this provision and you can make a complaint as such.

Finally, Oregon’s law requires independent repair providers to have a certification of their ability to adequately repair electronics. If you are a small repair business, you are required to have a certification to demonstrate “technical capabilities and competence necessary to safely, securely and reliably repair consumer electronic equipment…” Some examples of applicable certificates are the Wireless Industry Service Excellence Certification, an A+ from the Computing Technology Industry Association, or a National Appliance Technician Certification, among others. This is a non-exhaustive list, but some certification of ability is required, and manufacturers may request proof of this before providing repair materials.

If you are a device owner and your repair person of choice does not have such a certification, they may not be able to request parts, tools and manuals from the manufacturer. However, as the owner of the device, you should always be able to access these materials for applicable devices, regardless of certification.

How to report noncompliance with Oregon’s Right to Repair law

We would hope that all manufacturers will comply with the Right to Repair, but it’s not totally guaranteed that they will. If you are not able to obtain the repair materials you need from your device’s manufacturer, you do have recourse available to you. 

You can report a violation of the Right to Repair using the Oregon Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection website. You can fill out the form here. 

• Enter your information and the name of the business. For the amount lost, you can leave blank, or you can estimate via the amount the manufacturer charges for authorized repair/if they do not offer repair, how much it would cost to replace the item.
• In the “Details of Complaint” section, enter:
  • Briefly describe your complaint: Include the make and model of your device, the release date of the device, the repair materials that you attempted to access, the date you attempted to access the materials, the process by which you attempted to access repair materials, and how the manufacturer rejected your request.
  • Briefly state what you would consider a reasonable resolution from the company: “I want [COMPANY NAME] to provide access to repair materials on fair and reasonable terms, as required by the Oregon Right to Repair Act.”
  • Be sure to state that you have contacted the manufacturer (which we recommend before submitting a complaint) and that you will attach documentation from that interaction on the following page.
  • On the second page, you can submit documentation. Be sure to include either your notes from a phone call with a customer service representative, or screenshots from a virtual chat box.
  • After submitting, a copy of your complaint will be sent to your email inbox.

You can also call or email using the contact information found on this webpage. You should include the same information you would on the form in your email.

We also recommend submitting your complaint to Repair.org’s complaint tool. Repair.org can submit the complaint to your state’s AG on your behalf, and it lets them keep track of where and how repair regulations are being followed and if there are any repeat offenders. This helps them know which manufacturers in which industries aren’t following the law.