True, although there is a cost associated with this, and ultimately it is likely to be loaded back into the product price if significant.
It does remain a mess; and it is surprising how much ignorance there is, with retailers believing that the manufacturer warranty is as far as they have to go. Most of the public either believe that as well or don't want to push the issue.
I recently had an issue with an electrical product (not a tool) which cost slightly north of £100 originally 18 months ago. It had come with a 12 month warranty from an on-line supplier who imports from the U.S.
I would not normally buy products without a reasonable method of spares or repair, but this was the only product of its immediate kind and it was fairly clear that spare parts would not be available and repairability limited.
Although quite well made, it failed after 18 months, which I felt to be unreasonable for the price point, and I took issue with the supplier. Their opening gambit was to say that it was nothing to do with them and product was out of warranty.
There were a few exchanges of FAX about that and they referred the issue to the manufacturer who tried to imply that the product had not been used and maintained properly and that they hadn't had other failures. It had been, religiously. They went on to say that in the U.S. the warranty would be the defining rule and they were sure that it would be the same in the UK.
I told the importer that I didn't accept this and pointed out the legislation. There was a rather sneering email back to the effect that I could raise it with Trading Standards if I wanted to, but in sales of many 10s of thousands of products, they had not had a single instance of being shown to be out of line with the legislation or to have been taken to court.
I looked at the product further and realised that it didn't have a CE label (although did have a UL one).
So I wrote to Trading Standards on both issues. The response was that it was up to me to take action through the courts regarding the longevity etc. of the product, but that CE marking did not apply to the class of product in question. I sent them the references to that, but basically they weren't interested in doing anything related to the CE requirement. I wonder why I spend money on getting professional products properly tested and certifications done.....
I wrote again to the supplier, having determined that legal action would cost £30 and made it clear that I would take action if a satisfactory solution could not be agreed.
They offered without prejudice to do a 50% discount on the sale of a replacement unit of a newer and better type having the same list price.
I accepted that and the replacement duly arrived together with about £20 worth of the consumable material that the product uses and a note of apology.