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Deere & Co. and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission have agreed to settle a joint lawsuit brought against Deere by the FTC and five states alleging that Deere unlawfully limited the ability of farmers and independent repair providers to perform repairs on Deere farm equipment.
Under the settlement, the tractor manufacturer agreed to provide farmers and independent repair shops the same equipment repair resources, including software, that it currently gives authorized Deere dealers, the FTC said in a news release. The requirement lasts for 10 years, and the FTC and plaintiff states, including Illinois, Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, will monitor compliance.
“Today’s settlement enables farmers to do what they’ve done for generations—fix their own tractors and other farm equipment—without having to pay an authorized John Deere dealer to do it for them,” FTC Bureau of Competition Director Daniel Guarnera said in a statement Wednesday. “The settlement with Deere will help lower costs for American farmers. The FTC will continue fighting against anticompetitive restrictions on American consumers’ right to repair.”
