Access to repair and maintenance information
16.—(1) From no later than two years after the placing on the market of the first unit of a model or of an equivalent model until the end of the period referred to in sub-paragraph (1), the manufacturer, importer or authorised representative must provide access to the appliance repair and maintenance information to professional repairers in accordance with the following provisions.
(2) The manufacturer’s, importer’s or authorised representative’s website must set out the process for professional repairers to register for access to repair and maintenance information.
(3) Before granting access to the information, manufacturer, authorised representative or importer may require the professional repairer to demonstrate that –
(a)the professional repairer has the technical competence to repair electronic displays, and complies with the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989;
(b)the professional repairer is covered by insurance for liabilities resulting from its activities.
(4) The request for registration must be accepted or refused within 5 working days from the date of the request.
(5) Once registered, a professional repairer must be given access to requested repair and maintenance information within one working day of any request. The available repair and maintenance information must include—
(a)the unequivocal appliance identification;
(b)a disassembly map or exploded view;
(c)list of necessary repair and test equipment;
(d)component and diagnosis information (such as minimum and maximum theoretical values for measurements);
(e)wiring and connection diagrams;
(f)diagnostic fault and error codes (including manufacturer-specific codes, where applicable); and
(g)data records of reported failure incidents stored on the electronic display (where applicable).
(6) Manufacturers, authorised representatives or importers may charge reasonable and proportionate fees for access to the repair and maintenance information or for receiving regular updates. A fee is reasonable if it does not discourage access by failing to take into account the extent to which the professional repairer uses the information.