Drifting Joy-Cons have been the bane of many a Switch players’ existence for years now. If you’re located in Europe, we have good news–Nintendo will now repair broken or faulty Joy-Cons for free in a large number of countries in that region, even if your Joy-Cons are out of warranty.
As explained by the Nintendo UK support page, Nintendo will no longer charge customers in the European Economic Area, the UK, or Switzerland to repair the “responsiveness syndrome,” i.e. Joy-Con drift. However, the announcement notes that Joy-Con damage caused by unofficial mods or consumer tampering will not be covered by this policy. It also states that Nintendo’s warranty “does not affect any statutory rights which you may have under consumer protection legislation as the purchaser of goods.”
Joy-Con drift has been a major problem for Switch players since the console’s original release, especially for players who tend to play only in undocked mode. Nintendo has always claimed that the number of Joy-Cons that develop drift is relatively small, but that fact is disputed by some, including a UK consumer group that found that two in five controllers develop drift.
It’s worth noting that several fans have offered their own DIY fixes for the problem, but given that Nintendo will fix the Joy-Cons for free in most countries, that’s probably the best option for most people. Back in February, a judge dismissed a class-action lawsuit against Nintendo, ruling that the company’s user-license agreement does not allow for such suits.
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