Previously only for e-bikes

Repair bonus will also apply to bicycles in future

Normal bicycles can also soon be made fit again with the repair bonus.(Bild: stock.adobe.com/arezin.com)

The Climate Ministry's repair bonus will be extended until 2025 with fresh money and extended to bicycles without electric motor support. Previously, the federal government's funding only applied to devices with electronic or electrical components, so e-bikes were included but normal bicycles were not. The bonus for the repair of bicycles can be applied for from September, announced Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) on Tuesday.

However, not all bicycle dealers have been able to redeem the repair bonus so far. This is because many dealers do not have a trade license for bicycle technology or mechatronics and are therefore only allowed to carry out simple repairs, but not, for example, change a disc brake.

More than one million devices repaired with bonus
According to the ministry, over one million devices have been repaired since the repair bonus was introduced. So far, 130 million euros from the EU Recovery and Resilience Fund have been available for this purpose. 124 million euros from national funds are now available for the continuation, 92 million euros for 2024 and 32 million for 2025.

In 2023, 39% of the repairs funded via vouchers were for smartphones, nine percent each for dishwashers, washing machines, espresso and coffee machines and five percent for laptops. According to the Ministry of Climate Protection, an average of around 100 euros is subsidized per repair voucher. Funding is provided for 50 percent of the costs, up to a maximum of 200 euros.