Information on New EU Directives
Dear Partners,
Within the EU, regulations affecting Real Garant’s warranty business will come into force over the coming weeks and months.
Extension of the Statutory Warranty Period – Important Information for You as a Dealer
From 31 July 2026, the EU “Right to Repair” Directive will apply.
What is changing?
For vehicle sales from 31 July 2026, the following is expected to apply:
If a consumer (private buyer) has a defect repaired by you as the selling dealer within the statutory warranty period, the statutory warranty period is extended once by 12 months.
This means:
- New vehicles: instead of 2 years, a total of 3 years of statutory warranty for the entire vehicle.
- Used vehicles (if you have made a separate agreement with the buyer to reduce the statutory warranty period to one year): instead of 1 year, a total of 2 years of statutory warranty for the entire vehicle.
What does this mean for your cooperation with Real Garant?
In principle, statutory warranty rights and commercially granted guarantees must be distinguished from one another, as they cover different types of damage.
As a result of the extended warranty period, your customer may therefore be doubly protected during these additional 12 months:
On the one hand, through the statutory warranty extension due to a repair, and on the other hand, through a guarantee offered by you.
We are currently working on adapting our products accordingly and will inform you as soon as we have made any changes.
As the selling dealer, however, you have the option of contractually excluding the extension of the warranty period under certain conditions.
Our Protection Plus already covers damages arising from the warranty today
With our Protection Plus, we already offer an insurance product today that protects dealers against costs for remedying defects under the statutory warranty.
We are currently examining whether an extension of this coverage is sensible and possible, and what adjustments this could entail for you.
As soon as there are concrete decisions on this, we will inform you in good time.
Labeling Requirement for Guarantees and Warranty Rights
From 27 September 2026, the new labeling requirement for warranty rights and existing guarantees will apply within the EU. If, as a manufacturer or dealer involving a manufacturer, you offer guarantees for vehicles, these guarantees should be labeled with a guarantee label directly on the vehicle or in the contract documents from autumn this year.
Which guarantees are currently affected?
Only guarantees that meet all three criteria are affected:
- The guarantor is a manufacturer (= OEM)
Are you a dealer who offers its own guarantees without involving a manufacturer (e.g. in-house guarantees from Real Garant), you are not affected. - Inclusive marketing – the guarantee is not granted in exchange for an additional fee.
Real Garant guarantees are marketed exclusively on an inclusive basis in Germany and Austria. - Guarantee duration of more than 2 years
Only if all three points are met does the planned guarantee labeling requirement currently apply.
How does Real Garant support you?
We support our manufacturer partners with the specific implementation of the future label marking and assist you in implementing the new requirements.
This information does not constitute legal advice, but serves solely for general orientation. It is based on the current understanding of the upcoming EU regulations, makes no claim to completeness, and does not replace individual legal advice. For binding information, please contact a qualified legal advisor.