TRUE OR FALSE. Will the EU ban repairs on cars over 15 years old?

For months, on social networks, motorists have been worried about a proposed law from the European Commission. But this legislation is not intended to ban repairs on these cars, as they claim. On the contrary, it tends to facilitate them.

Imagine your classic car, a jewel kept warm in your garage for years… When one day, agents of the European Union ring your doorbell and force you to scrap your vehicle. This scenario has panicked some motorists on social networks for several months. Number of videos or posts show people alarmed at the thought of losing their cars. According to them, the European Commission wants to ban the circulation and repair of vehicles over 15 years old and with high mileage. However, they are based on unfounded elements.

At the origin of this false information, a proposed regulation dating from July 13, 2023 from the European Commission. In this text, the institution wishes to update a directive dating from the 2000s concerning the management of the end of life of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs). Contrary to what some motorists are saying on social networks, there is nothing to suggest a ban on the repair of vehicles over 15 years old. “There is nothing in the proposed legislation that would prohibit the repair of vehicles of a particular age,” explains Adalbert Jahnz, spokesperson for the European Commission, to France Télévisions. “On the contrary, several provisions of this proposal aim to facilitate the repair of cars, for example by simplifying the identification of suitable spare parts,” he continues.

Encourage the circular economy

This rumor is therefore completely false. “The objective of this proposal is to facilitate the transition of the automotive sector towards the circular economy, from one end of the life cycle of vehicles to the other, from design to final treatment at the end of their life” , indicates the proposed regulation. The Commission therefore wants to encourage the production of cars in “environmental footprints” weaker and more easily repaired.

More generally, the idea of ​​this legislation is to stem a type of fraud. In fact, 6 million vehicles are considered end-of-life each year, but half are not treated according to European waste legislation. “Every year, between 3 and 4 million cars disappear from the statistics of EU Member States, says Adalbert Jahnz. Many of them are exported illegally and sold as used cars when they are no longer usable cars.” This new legislation therefore aims to better regulate the end of life of cars and to avoid their transfer to other countries if they do not meet standards.

A measure far from being applied

To avoid this traffic, the European Commission specifies the criteria for a car to be considered an end-of-life vehicle. Will be seen as “technically irreparable” vehicles cut into pieces, completely burned, submerged in water to a level above the dashboard, etc. This will therefore concern vehicles classified as wrecks today. They could be classified as ELVs as part of a sale or after an accident.

Furthermore, this legislation is only in the form of a proposal. For it to come into force in the countries of the European Union, it must be validated by the European Council and the European Parliament, under the same terms. The text could therefore be modified by MEPs. A process that can last many months. If this update to the regulation is voted on, it will be adapted in France. Contacted on this subject by franceinfo, the ministry responsible for Transport affirms that “these questions are still under arbitration”.

If a vehicle is classified as an ELV, it will be prohibited from driving, then will be sent to the scrapyard, as is already the case today. Concretely, if your vehicle is in the garage, there is no chance that agents will come to your home to collect it or prevent you from repairing it.