Groups File Complaint with FTC Over Right to Repair

Groups like the National Farmers Union and other right-to-repair advocates filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against John Deere over the right to repair its equipment. 

The complaint alleges that the tractor manufacturer makes its product difficult or impossible to repair unless taken to a Deere dealer. 

The groups say it’s a monopoly that violates Sherman antitrust laws. 

“Deere usually outcompetes rivals to win farmers’ and ranchers’ business but has recently begun to leverage its monopoly power in the market to dominate the repair market for its equipment,” the complaint says. 

“The company has made it impossible for farmers to make important repairs themselves or go to an independent repair shop.” 

Vice Dot Com says this is an issue impacting a lot of farmers as Deere makes more than 50 percent of tractor sales in the U.S. 

The complaint says farmers have no real choice about where to get repairs.

(Story Courtesy of the NAFB News Service)