Comparative prices

I have been investigating the pricing of parts for appliances further and it is clear that manufacturers are pricing parts so that the appliance owner is almost forced to replace an appliance when it breaks down rather than repair it.

I researched a whole range of appliances from kettles through wash boilers and tea urns and in every case the price of a new heater element was about a third to one half the cost of a new appliance, before paying someone to fit it. Many of the elements for tea urns and wash boilers were more powerful than the one in a dishwasher. A 3000watt element for a tea urn cost under £20, a 1400watt element for a dishwasher cost £70.

I doubt whether the manufacturing cost of an element is much more than about £5.00 using the price of a spare for a tea urn. Kettle elements are nearly all under £10.

This is a clear case of manufacturers using the tactical pricing of spare parts to deliberately flout all principles of energy conservation and recycling.

The ink cartridges which come with the printer probably won't last for long.

Hear hear. Why does a new printer complete with a set of cartridges cost the same as a set of ink cartridges?