National Farmers Union (NFU) celebrates the settlement announced today by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and attorneys general in Illinois, Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, resolving a lawsuit against Deere & Company over restrictions on farm equipment repair.
“Farmers Union championed this win from the beginning, and we are happy to see the settlement provide farmers with what they should have had all along: the right to repair their own equipment,” said NFU President Rob Larew. “Today’s action didn’t happen by accident. Farmers across the country refused to stay quiet about this injustice. This settlement belongs to them.”
NFU filed a formal complaint with the FTC in 2022 and has long been at the forefront of the fight for farmers’ right to repair.
The settlement requires Deere, for the next 10 years and under the supervision of the FTC and the participating states, to provide farmers and independent repair providers with the same repair resources currently available only to Deere’s authorized dealers. Deere is also barred from discriminating or retaliating against customers who choose to repair their own equipment.
“Every farmer, no matter what state they farm in or what equipment they run, deserves this same right. We will keep fighting for a permanent, nationwide right-to-repair law that guarantees farmers fair and lasting access to the tools, parts and information we need to keep our operations running,” added Larew.
Read more about the settlement here.
