Help with guarantee

loolabelle80

Hi

This is my first post, so if this is in the wrong place please let me know and i'll ask for it to be moved...

I purchased a pushchair in February last year when my baby was a few days old. As the item stated, it was not suitable for babies under 6 months so it was not used until Aug/Sept time and only occassionally since. The recline on the seat unit has always been a bit stiff and now has stopped working completely.

My DH took the pushchair back to Argos today with the receipt and they insisted that they could only refund us onto a giftcard. Is this correct? The item is not fixable according to them and they no longer stock this Mamas and Papas pushchair.
I had to quickly buy a new pushchair the day our one broke as we could not get to Argos until today and we were desperate! (our nearest store is over 40 miles away)

Is it correct that they can refund for faulty items onto a giftcard and not offer back the cash that we paid?

Loolabelle

zenseeker

According to Argos' own T&C:

If you've had the product for up to 1 year, we'll repair the product or, if that's not possible, give you a replacement or, if that's not possible, a refund.

But it doesn't state how that refund will be given.

The Sale of Goods Act says:

• But if the goods are faulty, incorrectly described or not fit for purpose, then you are entitled to your money back (provided you act quickly), and you certainly don't have to take a credit note

What that "provided you act quickly" means I am not sure. It may refer to this part of the SoGa:

For the first six months the consumer need not produce any evidence that a product was inherently faulty at the time of sale. If a consumer is seeking any other remedy the burden of proof remains with him/her.

This reversal of the usual burden of proof only applies when the consumer is seeking a repair or replacement. After the first six months the onus of proof is again on the consumer.

Which could mean that they will not accept it as faulty after 11 months, they could argue that you damaged it and offer to repair or replace, and as neither of these options are available, they may be perfectly within their rights to offer you credit rather than a cash refund

torizia

I'm quite surprised that they refunded onto a gift card if you had the receipt and you still had the original card which you used to pay. I'm not sure of the official policy, but I have always known of refunds being back onto the original method of payment in this type of circumstance...

loolabelle80

Thanks to all for the advice, im not unhappy with it I just would have prefered the cash back as we had to purchase another pushchair straight away.

Thanks again!