2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 6 - CONSUMER AND COMMERCIAL AFFAIRS (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-28-102) › FAIR TRADE AND RESTRAINT OF TRADE (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-6.5-101) › Article 1 - COLORADO CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-1-1707) › Part 15 - CONSUMER RIGHT TO REPAIR (§§ 6-1-1501 — 6-1-1505) › Section 6-1-1503 - [Effective 1/1/2026] Manufacturer obligations regarding services - exemptions

(1)
Except as provided in subsections (2) and (5) of this section:
(a)
(I)
For the purpose of providing services for digital electronic equipment, agricultural equipment, or powered wheelchairs in the state, an original equipment manufacturer shall, with fair and reasonable terms and costs, as applied to agricultural equipment or powered wheelchairs, or fair and reasonable terms and costs for digital electronic equipment, make available to an independent repair provider or owner of the manufacturer's digital electronic equipment, agricultural equipment, or powered wheelchair any documentation, parts, embedded software, embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, or tools that are intended for use with the digital electronic equipment, agricultural equipment, or powered wheelchair or any part, including updates to documentation, parts, embedded software, embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, or tools.
(II)
A manufacturer shall make available to an independent repair provider or owner, on fair and reasonable terms, any documentation, embedded software, tool, part, or other device or implement that the manufacturer provides for effecting the services of maintenance, repair, or diagnosis on the manufacturer's digital electronic equipment.
(III)
With respect to parts, a manufacturer complies with this subsection (1)(a) if a contractor makes the parts available to an independent repair provider or owner on behalf of the manufacturer.
(a.5)
For the purpose of providing services for agricultural equipment in the state, a manufacturer shall, with fair and reasonable terms and costs and with owner authorization, make data available to an independent repair provider or owner, including updates to the data.
(b)
(I)
With respect to agricultural equipment or a powered wheelchair that contains an electronic security lock or other security-related function, a manufacturer shall, with fair and reasonable terms and costs, as applied to agricultural equipment or powered wheelchairs, make available to independent repair providers and owners any documentation, parts, embedded software, embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, tools, or, with owner authorization, data needed to reset the lock or function when disabled in the course of providing services. The manufacturer may make the documentation, parts, embedded software, embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, tools, or, with owner authorization, data available to independent repair providers and owners through appropriate secure release systems.
(II)
The requirement set forth in subsection (1)(b)(I) of this section does not apply to digital electronic equipment.
(2)
(a)
Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to:
(I)
A part that is no longer available to the original equipment manufacturer; and
(II)
Conduct that would require the original equipment manufacturer of Digital electronic equipment, agricultural equipment, or powered wheelchairs to divulge a trade secret; except that a manufacturer shall not refuse to make available to an independent repair provider or owner any documentation, part, embedded software, embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, tool, or, with owner authorization, data necessary to provide services on grounds that the documentation, part, embedded software, embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, tool, or, with owner authorization, data itself is a trade secret.
(b)
(I)
A manufacturer may redact documentation to remove trade secrets from the documentation before providing access to the documentation if the usability of the redacted documentation for the purpose of providing services is not diminished.
(ii)
a manufacturer may withhold information regarding a component of, design of, functionality of, or process of developing a part, embedded software, Embedded software for agricultural equipment, firmware, or a tool if the information is a trade secret and the usability of the part, embedded software, embedded software for Agricultural equipment, firmware, or tool for the purpose of providing services is not diminished.
(3)
Neither an original equipment manufacturer nor an agricultural equipment dealer is liable for faulty or otherwise improper repairs provided by independent repair providers or owners, including faulty or otherwise improper repairs that cause:
(a)
Damage to Digital electronic equipment, powered wheelchairs, or agricultural equipment that occurs during such repairs;
(b)
Any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages; or
(c)
An inability to use, or a reduced functionality of, a piece of digital electronic equipment, powered wheelchair, or piece of agricultural equipment resulting from the faulty or otherwise improper repair.
(4)
A manufacturer that provides data to an independent repair provider in compliance with this part 15 is neither responsible nor liable to the owner, the independent repair provider, or another party for any action that the independent repair provider or another party takes while using or relying on the data.
(5)
With respect to digital electronic equipment, this part 15 does not apply to:
(a)
A person acting in the person's official capacity as a motor vehicle manufacturer, manufacturer of motor vehicle equipment, or motor vehicle dealer;
(b)
Any product or service of a person acting in the person's official capacity as a motor vehicle manufacturer, manufacturer of motor vehicle equipment, or motor vehicle dealer;
(c)
A manufacturer or distributor of a medical device or any product or service that the manufacturer or distributor of a medical device offers; except that this part 15 applies to powered wheelchairs;
(d)
Any digital electronic equipment product or software manufactured for use in a medical setting, including diagnostic, monitoring, or control digital equipment;
(e)
Industrial, utility, construction, compact construction, mining, forestry equipment, or road-building digital equipment;
(f)
Electric vehicle charging infrastructure equipment;
(g)
Outside-the-meter commercial or industrial electrical equipment, including power distribution equipment, and any tools, attachments, accessories, components, and replacement and repair parts of the electrical equipment;
(h)
Portable generators, energy storage systems, fuel cell power systems, or power tools;
(i)
Marine vessels, aviation, all-terrain sport vehicles, and recreational vehicles, including racing vehicles;
(j)
Safety communications equipment, the intended use of which is for emergency response or prevention purposes by an emergency system organization, such as a police, fire, life safety, or medical and emergency rescue services agency;
(k)
Equipment installed for the purpose of energy storage, renewable power generation, power management, or distribution;
(l)
Set top boxes, modems, routers, or all-in-one devices delivering internet, video, and voice services that are distributed by a video, internet, or voice service provider if the service provider offers equivalent or better, readily available replacement equipment at no charge to the customer;
(m)
Video game consoles; or
(n)
Fire alarm systems, intrusion detection equipment that is provided with a security monitoring service, life safety systems, and physical access control equipment, including electronic keypads and similar building access control electronics.
(6)
With respect to digital electronic equipment, nothing in this section:
(a)
Requires a manufacturer to license any intellectual property, including obtaining a copyright or patent for any intellectual property, unless such licensing is necessary for providing services;
(b)
Requires the distribution of a product's source code;
(c)
Requires a manufacturer to make available special documentation, tools, or parts that would disable or override any privacy or anti-theft security measures for the owner's digital electronic equipment that the owner has set for the digital equipment;
(d)
Requires a manufacturer to make available documentation or tools used exclusively for repairs that are completed by machines that operate on several pieces of digital electronic equipment simultaneously if the manufacturer makes available to owners and independent repair providers sufficient alternative documentation or tools for the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of digital electronic equipment;
(e)
Shall be construed to require any original equipment manufacturer or authorized repair provider to make available any parts, tools, or documentation required for the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of digital electronic equipment in a manner that is inconsistent with or in violation of any federal laws, such as federal laws regarding gaming and entertainment consoles, related software, and components; or
(f)
Requires a manufacturer to provide or make available a tool or documentation to an independent repair provider or owner if the manufacturer itself uses the tool or documentation only to perform, at no cost, diagnostic services virtually through use of a telephone, the internet, chat, e-mail, or other similar means of communication that do not involve the manufacturer physically handling the customer's digital electronic equipment, unless the manufacturer also makes the tool or documentation available to an individual or business that is unaffiliated with the manufacturer.
(7)
(a)
Except as provided in subsection (7)(b) of this section, for digital electronic equipment that is manufactured for the first time and sold or used in the state after January 1, 2026, a manufacturer shall not use parts pairing to:
(I)
Prevent an independent repair provider or owner from installing or enabling, or inhibit an independent repair provider's or owner's ability to install or enable, the function of an otherwise functional replacement part or component of digital electronic equipment, including a replacement part or component that the manufacturer has not approved;
(II)
Reduce the functionality or performance of digital electronic equipment; or
(III)
Cause digital electronic equipment to display misleading alerts or warnings about unidentified parts, particularly if the alerts or warnings cannot immediately be dismissed by the owner.
(b)
Nothing in this part 15 prohibits:
(I)
The use of parts pairing to enable digital electronic equipment to record, catalog, and display information related to repairs done on that digital electronic equipment; or
(II)
A manufacturer's use of parts pairing for standalone biometric components used for authentication purposes in digital electronic equipment, which components are not bundled in commonly replaced parts, such as a device's screen, keyboard, ports, or battery.
(8)
Before providing services for digital electronic equipment, an independent repair provider shall provide the owner seeking services written notice, provided on site and in a conspicuous location at the independent repair provider's premises for providing services or provided in an e-mail to the owner, indicating:
(a)
That the independent repair provider is not an authorized repair provider of the digital equipment's manufacturer; and
(b)
Whether the independent repair provider, in providing services, uses any new or used replacement parts obtained from a supplier other than the manufacturer.
(9)
An original equipment manufacturer is not responsible for the quality or functionality of parts provided by a third-party parts manufacturer.
(10)
Nothing in this part 15 authorizes an owner or independent repair provider to alter digital electronic equipment in a manner that brings the equipment out of compliance with any applicable federal or state laws, including any applicable federal or state rules or regulations.
Amended by 2024 Ch. 258,§ 2, eff. 1/1/2026.
Amended by 2023 Ch. 107,§ 3, eff. 1/1/2024.
Added by 2022 Ch. 327, § 2, eff. 1/1/2023.
2024 Ch. 258, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
2023 Ch. 107, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).
This section is set out more than once due to postponed, multiple, or conflicting amendments.