advice please.......

michilin27

not a vent as such but need advice and you guys are always so full of wisdom!

my oh upgraded his contract a few weeks ago and got a new phone- he had the phone a week and a crack appeared on the screen!

he didnt drop it- he is so careful with his things- always telling me to be more careful! there are no marks on the phone either to suggest he has dropped it.

so, he took it back into the store two weeks ago and they looked at it and said it looked like damage to the INTERNAL screen and agreed that there were no scratches or other damages- they agreed to send it away and put on the paper work that phone condition was "as new " and that the damage was to internal screen and no other damage

he got a phone call from company today to adv it will cost £40 to get repaired?!!

where do we stand? how do we prove he didnt do the damage?

we have looked at SOGA and it seems to say that if the item purchased is less than six months old, the onus is on the seller to prove the damage was down to mis use- have we interpreted this correctly?

also, as he brought it back within a week of buying does rejecting this as not fit for purpose apply?

thanks

shaymenRup

As i understand it most new phones come with a one year manufacturers guarantee. This should have been included within the paperwork that came with the phone (or back of instruction book)

Check the terms and you'll probably find that accidental damage isn't covered. Which it would appear they are alleging has happened.

If the shop you purchased the item from have supported your fault, then you are helped by the Sale of Goods Act

Under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 traders must sell goods that are as described and of satisfactory quality.
If consumers discover that products do not meet these requirements they can reject them and ask for their money back providing they do so quickly. Alternatively, they can request a repair or replacement or claim compensation.

I suggest returning to the shop, quoting the above to them and requesting that they resolve the matter to your satisfaction. I would also suggest that the time you have spent without your phone (whilst still paying for the contract) should be compensated too.

uktim29

shaymenRup wrote: »

Under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 traders must sell goods that are as described and of satisfactory quality.

But that won't be that difficult. They just have to find other phones of the same make that don't mysteriously have cracks that appear on the screen (which they'll probably have in store anyway).

Cracks don't just appear. It'll have either been there from the start and slowly grown, or he's dropped it.

smcaul

uktim29 wrote: »

Cracks don't just appear. It'll have either been there from the start and slowly grown, or he's dropped it.

Not quite correct. If the screen had been put in a bit tight during manufacture then the normal flexing of the phone during everyday use could cause the screen to crack. I have seen this on employees phones before.

pinkshoes

uktim29 wrote: »

Cracks don't just appear. It'll have either been there from the start and slowly grown, or he's dropped it.

Wrong. If the screen isn't sitting square in the phone when it's assembled, then it would be subjected to a lot of shear stresses, so it would only take a tiny tap, or even just putting the phone in a pocket/bag to cause the screen to crack.

Can happen on Velux windows too if they're not put in correctly, and just closing the window could cause it to crack.

OP, take it back to the shop, and tell them that given the excellent condition of the phone, it blatently hasn't been dropped or mis-handled, so the crack is due to a fault, and under the SOGA, it should be repaired free of charge.

michilin27

pinkshoes wrote: »

Wrong. If the screen isn't sitting square in the phone when it's assembled, then it would be subjected to a lot of shear stresses, so it would only take a tiny tap, or even just putting the phone in a pocket/bag to cause the screen to crack.

now thats interesting- its one of those phones that come with the pen things as its a touch screen so would i be right in saying the tiny tap of that could damage it?

OP, take it back to the shop, and tell them that given the excellent condition of the phone, it blatently hasn't been dropped or mis-handled, so the crack is due to a fault, and under the SOGA, it should be repaired free of charge.

we had taken the phone back to the shop, they sent it away to get investigated- the outcome of this is that they want £40 to repair

the phone has now been returned to the shop- so i think we will go down and talk to them in the shop- must say, they have been lovely in the shop so far

i think the fact that there is no other damage to the phone- ie marks, etc should show an indication that it hasnt been dropped

so i am correct in the bit of the SOGA i have quoted then?

pinkshoes

michilin27 wrote: »

we had taken the phone back to the shop, they sent it away to get investigated- the outcome of this is that they want £40 to repair

the phone has now been returned to the shop- so i think we will go down and talk to them in the shop- must say, they have been lovely in the shop so far

i think the fact that there is no other damage to the phone- ie marks, etc should show an indication that it hasnt been dropped

so i am correct in the bit of the SOGA i have quoted then?

Yes, under the SOGA, they should offer you a free repair, and as the phone is only weeks old, and blatantly hasn't been damaged due to misuse, then the repair should be free, and not £40, because they supplied you with a faulty product.

If they say no, then ask them for their head office address and a contact name, and that you will be taking the matter further, and if needs be, claiming the £40 back through the small claims court.

If they seem nice, then hopefully they'll agree to the free repair, so you won't have to kick up too much of a fuss.

michilin27

one other question- should we accept the phone unfixed and then pursue the complaint?

or refuse to accept it back untill complaint dealt with?

thanks

michilin27

bump bump bump! any more thoughts/advice any one?