Directive (EU) 2018/851 on waste encourages Member States to take appropriate measures to prevent waste generation. In addition, the European Circular Economy Action Plan (COM (2020) 98) includes among its objectives the improvement of the durability and reparability of products. Within the framework of Law No 2020-105 of 10 February 2020 on the fight against waste and on the circular economy and following the establishment of a European reparability index for smartphones and tablets, France wishes to gradually replace all reparability indices with durability indices, from 1 January 2024. The first categories addressed are smartphones, TVs and household washing machines.

The durability index consists of a score out of ten intended to be displayed at the time of purchase to inform consumers of the lifetime of electrical and electronic products. This index is intended to replace the French reparability index by taking into account product reliability and upgradability criteria.