On the eve of Black Friday, the association UFC-Que Choisir launches a reporting platform for defective objects or too quickly used. The Breakdown Watch is accessible to all consumers, free of charge. On Europe 1, Eric Boneff, director of comparative tests for the association, affirms a desire to position itself as a promoter of more responsible consumption.

INTERVIEW

On the eve of Black Friday, UFC-Que Choisir launches an Observatoire des pannees to combat planned obsolescence. A free platform, accessible to all consumers, which makes it possible to report defective or overly worn products or electronic devices on the UFC-Que Choisir website. "This is a kind of online questionnaire of a few minutes to complete, explains Eric Boneff on Europe 1, director of comparative tests." Behind, we can, depending on the case, give you free help, to explain what to do, what are the rights of consumers? "

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Products can be reported by category, make or type of failure. "We do tests and if we observe repetitions of failure, we wonder about this product, the defense of consumers.And we can take the case more markedly," said Eric Boneff.

Nintendo put in residence

The UFC-Que Choisir has, for example, put Nintendo on notice following a repeated report on the Switch consoles. "We've had feedback from our consumers, a problem with the ghost moving the joystick, which causes the pointer to move even if the joystick is stopped." Nintendo refused to provide complainants with the guarantee of legal compliance for two years, the association has raised the case above.

This platform is therefore a way to combat planned obsolescence. Nevertheless, it remains difficult to prove according to Eric Boneff who notes, however, "products whose lifespan is question, problems of availability of spare parts, repair costs." "We are trying to change these points, and this tool is a census and collective action tool to help consumers."

More reliable brands than others

To guard against failures, bet on brands is not always the solution. "The longevity of a product depends on a lot of things," says the director. "We do endurance tests, reliability surveys, some brands are more reliable than others."

Faced with hyper-consumption, UFC-Que Choisir offers an alternative. "We want to emphasize that we are promoting more responsible, more sustainable consumption."