Research by eSpares, the UK’s leading online spare parts retailer, has found that more than 75% of British householders do not attempt to fix repairable appliances themselves.
The retailer stocks spare parts for a wide range of large and small domestic appliances and kitchenware, including leading brands such as Bodum, Brevillle, De’Longhi, Dualit, Dyson, Haden, Jura, Kenwood, KitchenAid, Magmix, Melitta, Morphy Richards, Nespresso, Prestige, Russell Hobbs, Tefal and Smeg.
According to eSpares’ survey of 5,000 UK residents instead highlighted that consumers prefer to simply throw away broken appliances, replacing them with new models.
“Our findings indicate that real change is needed to encourage more repairs,” commented Ad Casey, head of brand at eSpares. “This change can only be made if the support is there to give customers the confidence and knowledge to fix repairable appliances. This is why we have launched our #FixFirst campaign – a national initiative that provides householders with comprehensive information on how to fix appliances and save money.”
When asked, those who would dispose of a broken appliance and buy new explained that their main motivation was ‘ease’. In addition, the research highlighted a widespread perception that fixing appliances was simply ‘not cost-effective’.
“These responses are concerning – not only because of the huge amount of money wasted every year – but due to the number of easily repairable appliances that, when discarded, go to waste,” continues Casey. “If we fixed just an extra 10% of those appliances, we could stop an estimated 100,000 tonnes from being thrown away.”
The eSpares online Advice Centre features more than 500 ‘how to’ videos, 700 fault fix articles and 9,000 appliance manuals.
See www.espares.co.uk/fixfirst,
Top: Some of the brand names with spare parts that are stocked on eSpares.
