Strongly oppose some home appliance manufacturers who, under the guise of "home appliance products having a warranty period," promote "trade-in" promotions, and especially reject the notion of using "old household appliances pose safety risks" as an excuse to encourage users to replace their appliances. It is necessary to respect market laws, consumer autonomy, adapt to the sluggish development of the industry and market, and avoid engaging in the "premature consumption" practice. The home appliance industry must have the vitality for healthy and sustainable development.
Yang Jia || Authored
Recently, the topic of "trading in old appliances" and the fact that home appliance products also have a "warranty period" suddenly gained popularity in society, attracting considerable attention and sparking numerous discussions and even controversies.
Home appliances, like perishable consumer goods such as beverages and food, have a "shelf life" or "freshness period" just like other products. After the warranty period, the relevant components and overall performance of home appliances may deteriorate, leading to increased power consumption and even risks such as electrical leakage and fire hazards, which are basic product knowledge and scientific common sense. However, many home appliance manufacturers have been busy selling and competing for business in the market for over 30 years, without conducting scientific popularization and consumer education.
In recent years, due to the transition of the home appliance market from incremental to stock competition, many manufacturers have begun promoting the concept of "home appliance warranty period" to users, and even displaying a series of risks associated with "over-aged" appliances such as high power consumption and fire hazards. In this process, many manufacturers directly link the popularization of "home appliance warranty period" knowledge with commercial "trade-in" promotions, making many consumers feel uncomfortable.
This has led many consumers to believe that in the past two years, many home appliance manufacturers have been promoting knowledge about the "warranty period" of home appliances just to guide or even deceive consumers into prematurely "replacing old appliances" and "buying more new appliances." In response, the home appliance industry believes that there is no problem with promoting the knowledge of the "warranty period" of home appliances and the existence of risks associated with over-aged appliances, as this requires social popularization and education. Similarly, there is no problem with "trading in old appliances" as a market-oriented promotion and advertising policy that encourages consumers to actively upgrade their appliances to improve their quality of life.
The main issue arises from manufacturers simplistically linking professional home appliance knowledge dissemination with commercial trade-in promotions. The belief that because home appliances have a warranty period, they must be replaced immediately, or even that appliances should be replaced after 10 years of use even if they haven't malfunctioned, can cause discomfort or even resentment among consumers.
As durable consumer goods, home appliances do indeed have a "warranty period," which is both scientific and common sense. Many home appliances' electronic components may indeed cause increased power consumption and safety issues such as electrical leakage and fire hazards after exceeding their useful life. Manufacturers need to continue promoting this knowledge to more households and users to prevent accidents caused by the long-term use of old appliances.
Whether old appliances that have been in use for more than 10 years without malfunctioning should continue to be used or whether they must be replaced immediately is currently a question without a standard answer or mandatory standard constraints. It is more of a friendly reminder from businesses and merchants. However, the long-standing Chinese tradition of frugality has led many households to develop the habit of "continuing to use products as long as they are not broken." Trying to change this habit through scientific knowledge or even mandatory standards is neither realistic nor easy.
In recent years, the focus on "trading in old appliances" in the home appliance industry is a typical commercial promotion. Although it has received support at the national level and various regions have introduced "trade-in subsidies" and "consumer vouchers" to stimulate the trade-in of home appliances, whether consumers participate and respond is entirely a matter of "voluntary cooperation" in commercial activities rather than a mandatory requirement.
In this context, the home appliance industry believes that home appliance companies and merchants need to conduct long-term and regular public education on home appliance products, such as the knowledge that "home appliance products also have a warranty period" and the various risks associated with over-aged appliances. However, regarding the competition, cultivation, and activation of the "trading in old appliances" market, it takes time, skills, and methods, and rushing or linking it with the promotion of the "warranty period" of home appliances will only accelerate the mainstream users' distrust of the market.
Home appliance manufacturers must conduct public education on the knowledge of the "warranty period" of home appliances and consumer education. However, they must not link this with commercial "trade-in" promotions, nor should they exaggerate the hazards and risks of "old appliances" in product marketing. Otherwise, they would be "shooting themselves in the foot"!
