FTC reaches right-to-repair settlement with John Deere

The Federal Trade Commission and five states secured a settlement with John Deere on Wednesday, ensuring that farmers and independent technicians have the right to repair their machines. The settlement will allow farmers to fix their own farm equipment, such as tractors, without paying an authorized Deere dealer, said Daniel Guarnera, the director of the FTC Bureau of Competition. John Deere has faced complaints for years for withholding the tools or information needed to repair today’s computerized machines, such as the ability to reset software fault codes. The situation has left farmers and independent mechanics at the mercy of Deere’s monopoly over repair tools, said Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes.

The settlement was good news for John Deere’s customers, said Denver Caldwell, the company’s vice president of aftermarket and customer support. He said the deal bolstered the company’s commitment to keeping its machines running.

How did the case get here? Wednesday’s settlement resolved an antitrust lawsuit that the FTC and attorneys general from Arizona, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin filed against John Deere last year. The joint lawsuit alleged that the company unlawfully restricted farmers and independent repair shops from fixing farm equipment. Deere previously called the lawsuit baseless and denied its allegations.

Under the new settlement, John Deere will now have to provide the farmers and shops with the same equipment available at authorized Deere dealers. The company will also be barred from retaliating against owners who opt to repair their own equipment instead of paying for Deere’s services. John Deere will pay $1 million collectively to the five states for antitrust enforcement costs and will have strict compliance oversight for the next 10 years.

Dig deeper: Listen to Todd Vician’s report for The World and Everything in It as he talks with farmers about the right to repair.