EU to investigate Nintendo Switch joy-con drift after 25,000 complaints
The European Consumer Organisation has called for a continent-wide investigation into the Nintendo Switch joy-con drift issue after receiving over 25,000 complaints.
Such complaints originate from a number of different countries, emphasising the widespread nature of the hardware issue. Now, the group has submitted these complaints to the European Commission and other consumer authorities throughout Europe.
The investigation is based on rules surrounding “premature obsolescence and misleading omissions of key consumer information on the basis of the EU’s Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.” According to the BEUC, 88 percent of Nintendo Switch owners reported problems surrounding the joy-con within two years of the original purchase.
Some of the complaints (via Eurogamer) come from countries such as France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Slovakia, and Greece. We’ve also had personal experience with joy-con drift here at Trusted Reviews, and the BEUC is calling on Nintendo to offer free repairs to those affected.
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“Consumers assume the products they buy to last an appropriate amount of time according to justified expectations, not to have to pay for expensive replacements due to a technical defect,” BEUC boss Monique Goyens said. “Nintendo must now come up with proper solutions for the thousands of consumers affected by this problem.”
The United Kingdom is no longer part of the European Union, so it’s unclear if we would play a part in this investigation or benefit from the outcome if it leads to free repairs or other compensation on behalf of Nintendo. Either way, it will be interesting to see where this investigation will lead, and if Nintendo will take any serious steps to address it.
Reports point to a Nintendo Switch Pro being announced in the coming months, which will allegedly include an improved display, refreshed design and more powerful specs targeting 4K performance. None of this has been confirmed, but if true, we hope the new model takes step to address joy-con drift in a major way.
Have you experienced joy-con drift? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter @trustedreviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
