hTTi

After 9 and a half years the pump on our washing machine went bust yesterday, but I was able to get a technician come round within a few hours, which was sooner than I had expected. Very quick and efficient, if anyone is interested: https://www.waschmaschinen-dienst.de

Replacing the pump cost just over €200, which I guess is not so bad if you consider what the guy said, namely that the pumps on Siemens models tend to go kaputt after 6 or 7 years.

The guy told me that you can reclaim a portion of the repair costs from ReparaturBonus, an initiative supported by Land Berlin which aims to reduce waste by repairing electrical appliances rather than buying new; the repair should cost a minimum of €75 and a maximum of €200. I applied online - a bit complicated at first but sorted it out eventually..

https://www.iamexpat.de/expat-info/germ ... lectronics

https://www.ibb-business-team.de/reparaturbonus/

Now I'm wondering how long they will take to confirm and pay out - some online sources indicate it could be several weeks. But nothing ventured, nothing gained...

Hey! That´s a super idea!!!
I wish all towns/cities would do something like that!!!

Great information john_b!

It's taken a couple of months to process, during which time I had to upload a screenshot of my bank statement to prove the €200 had been paid (even though I had originally uploaded a receipt); but finally it has been approved that I receive 50% of the sum to be paid shortly into my bank account.

It's quite a fiddly online process that would probably defeat anyone not used to such things, but I'm glad I persevered to get €100 in the end.

The programme is now on ice until 2026 when it will apparently run again.

I have fixed mine, cousin’s and friend’s washers for free.
Where is my bonus
Both of them wanted to replace the machines since they thought that they have already passed the warranty time. Fixing them helped so much on polluting!