Deere oh Deere: Tractor repair row heads for $99M settlement
- Reference: 1775754007
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2026/04/09/john_deere_repair_settlement/
- Source link:
One of several similar legal challenges underway across the US, the lawsuit brought against John Deere pertains to farmers' longstanding concerns over the company's rigid maintenance rules, which plaintiffs say prevent farmers from repairing their own equipment.
Customers are often forced to rely on John Deere-approved specialists – the only outfits to which the company provides crucial repair and diagnostic software.
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Plaintiffs argue these authorized dealers charge artificially inflated prices, in turn harming farmers' incomes.
[2]
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John Deere has agreed to the preliminary settlement, which is still subject to a fairness assessment and final approval, after initially denying the antitrust allegations first leveled against it by the class in 2022.
Settlements do not constitute an admission of wrongdoing.
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If the settlement receives court approval, the $99 million, plus interest, will be distributed to class members based on total labor hours spent on repairs since January 10, 2018.
Crucially, it would also require John Deere to make available the software and diagnostic tools needed for farmers to make their own repairs or seek analogous services from independent repair providers at competitive prices.
Further, the settlement would secure customers' access to future repair resources after they have been made available to over 50 percent of official John Deere dealers.
[5]
By December 31, 2026, it would also ensure customers can perform reprogramming and diagnostic functions through John Deere Operations Center PRO Service in offline mode, as well as access and view the same repair tools as the company's Dealer Technical Assistance Center (advanced, remote repair tooling).
"This Settlement is an excellent result for the Class, providing substantial injunctive and monetary relief while avoiding the extensive risks and uncertainties of continued litigation," wrote co-lead counsel in [6]documents [PDF] submitted to the US District Court.
"As we continue to innovate industry-leading equipment and technology solutions supported by our world-class dealer network, we are equally committed to providing customers and other service providers with access to repair resources," said Denver Caldwell, vice president of aftermarket and customer support at John Deere.
[7]Oh, Deere! FTC sues tractor maker, alleging decades of monopolized repairs
[8]John Deere accused of being full of manure with its right-to-repair promises
[9]John Deere now considers VMs to be legacy tech, Ethernet and Wi-Fi on the brink
[10]The fix inches closer: Iowa moves farm right-to-repair bill forward
"We're pleased that this resolution allows us to move forward and remain focused on what matters most – serving our customers."
Deere in the headlights
The class action in Illinois is just one of the right-to-repair cases John Deere is battling at present.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), together with the states of Illinois and Minnesota, [11]filed a similar lawsuit against the company in January 2025, which remains ongoing and is currently in the discovery phase.
Its goals are similar to those of the Illinois class action in that it aims to make repair resources available to owners, but it also seeks clarity on whether the company violated antitrust law, as well as whether it violated a [12]2023 memorandum of understanding with the American Farm Bureau Federation.
Right-to-repair advocates over at iFixit are also supporting [13]legislative proposals in Iowa that aim to compel all large agricultural equipment manufacturers to release their repair resources to customers, not just John Deere.
A right-to-repair bill passed in an 18-5 vote in the Iowa House Agriculture Committee in February.
Following the vote in the US's second-largest agricultural state, iFixit said: "We think it's got a good chance of passing." Only Colorado has passed right-to-repair laws specific to farming equipment. ®
Get our [14]Tech Resources
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[6] https://regmedia.co.uk/2026/04/09/deere_class_action_settlement_illinois_2026_courtlistener.pdf
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/15/ftc_sues_john_deere/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2024/10/03/john_deere_repair_restrictions_warren/
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/22/john_deere_vms_legacy/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/24/iowa_right_to_repair_bill_farming/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/15/ftc_sues_john_deere/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2023/01/09/john_deere_repair_mou/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/24/iowa_right_to_repair_bill_farming/
[14] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Serves the bastards right
"Settlements do not constitute an admission of wrongdoing."
They look at this as doing no wrong, despite the facts and continue to charge for their locked down services.
99 million is a drop in the bucket for a multi-national and at the end of the day they are home free.
Re: Serves the bastards right
Thanks to a quirk of American law, if the settlement WAS an admission of wrongdoing, everyone who wanted to opt-out of the class action would have a private right of action against John Deere, along with an admission of wrongdoing to make it easier to win. This is the main reason settlements always include "not an admission of wrongdoing," despite being clear evidence that somebody clearly thought that it was wrong that they did whatever it was the settlement is about.
I do predict that the tools and software will be available for the low price of $10K/year or some similarly over-priced but 'within the letter of the settlement' expense.
Re: Serves the bastards right
I don't think it did much to Deere at all. It's just a small fine, essentially.
Don't Celebrate Just Yet
Crucially, it would also require John Deere to make available the software and diagnostic tools needed for farmers to make their own repairs or seek analogous services from independent repair providers at competitive prices.
Further, the settlement would secure customers' access to future repair resources after they have been made available to over 50 percent of official John Deere dealers.
The linked document was a summary which didn't contain the crucial definition of "repair resource".
Putting on my BOFH hat, I can imagine at least three different possible ways John Deere can maintain their effective control over who repairs John Deere ag equipment, all without J.D. violating the agreement.
Reg readers should be able to figure out at least one of those ways. I'm sure John Deere's attorneys can, too.
Its fucking stupid
Stop being fucking greedy. You can still make fucking money selling parts to local repair garages and mechanics and farmers direct. If you made them self repairable everyone would recommend them and you'd actually sell more. You'd get free advertising and word of mouth sales. You'd been seen as "the friendly and actually helpful company". Instead of the cunts that you're seen as now, all to give the share holders more money.
Why can't I make lots of money consulting these ideas? It seems people just want to pick consultants who bullshit all the time, eventually get found out and then "moved on to another project".
Its quite simply. Treat your customers well and they'll fucking advertise for you, for FREE.
Fuck whits.
This Settlement is **NOT** an excellent result for the Class
This, as other commentards have mentioned, does not provide a legal precedent, which Deere wanted to avoid at all cost.
This is the same reason I would not buy an EV... they're all locked down even worse. All the components and service procedures are proprietary, so if the dealer wants $5,000 for a battery management board, there's no recourse. Also, it's even worse, if you do get the BMS board, you don't have the software/procedures/magic incantations to make it work in your vehicle.
That's why I've never bought an iPhone, because until recently Apple could be like "oh we don't like your repair shop, you're not getting parts"
Unfortunately, farmers are mostly f*cked. It's basically John Deere or a basket and shovel, these days.
Right to repair is important.
Re: This Settlement is **NOT** an excellent result for the Class
Do you extend that to everything? How do you manage without a wireless router, given that all of them are less repairable than an iPhone?
There needs to be some sort of monetary limit on the repair stuff, what is non negotiable for a $500K combine, highly important for a $35K car, and nice to have for a $1000 phone doesn't matter much for $100 products and is counterproductive for $10 products.
Serves the bastards right
That is all.