laptopsdirect refund problem

garcia

When I returned a laptop to Dabs I made sure to use their courier (they took care of arranging it, plus as soon as the courier picked it up it became Dabs' legal responsibility). Only downside was I had to wait a week. I know not every company does this, but if available I'd always use the companies own courier. Ok this doesn't help you now.

I would go with Bingo Bango where he says the company isn't allowed to charge a restocking fee and pursue that.

@LJ: thanks, I think I deliberately didn't open any cd's so the restore cd might have been amongst them.

Astaroth

I agree that under a distance selling regulations return that a restocking fee cannot be charged however the OP did not send it back under the cooling off period but as a faulty item (ie sales of goods act).

The item, supposidly, however was not faulty when it was received back and as such charges can be levied for the service.

What I would be interested in the opinion of others on is if the OP can effectively "switch" the reason for return from fault to simply not wanted ie from sales of goods act to distance selling regs to avoid the fees?

ABH_3

Astaroth wrote:

I agree that under a distance selling regulations return that a restocking fee cannot be charged however the OP did not send it back under the cooling off period but as a faulty item (ie sales of goods act).

The item, supposidly, however was not faulty when it was received back and as such charges can be levied for the service.

What I would be interested in the opinion of others on is if the OP can effectively "switch" the reason for return from fault to simply not wanted ie from sales of goods act to distance selling regs to avoid the fees?

No the OP cannot. For the simple reason that the DSRs don't permit the OP to open the box and make use of the item. They are supposed to provide the OP with the same rights as he would be able to obtain if he were going into a shop and seeing the product. Ie: he has the right to open the postal packaging and examine the product, but he doesn't have the right to use it. To do so would be tantamount to accepting it, or purchasing it. This would include taking ownership of the OS (assuming it's windows), installing his own software and\or re-deploying windows using the rescue disk.

So the only course of action left open to the OP is to state the reason for the return was due to SOGA and not of merchantable quality etc.

HTH

garcia

ABH wrote:

Ie: he has the right to open the postal packaging and examine the product, but he doesn't have the right to use it. To do so would be tantamount to accepting it, or purchasing it. This would include taking ownership of the OS (assuming it's windows), installing his own software and\or re-deploying windows using the rescue disk.

Hmm, I ordered a laptop from dabs. In order to "test" it I had to know what it was like in usage which required agreeing to the windows license. Only then was I able to decide (after a short while using it) that it wasn't for me and so sent it back under DSR. No questions asked.

In the return conditions I specifically remember that I wasn't supposed to have installed any software on the laptop, but there was no mention of agreeing to/activating the windows license.

ABH_3

garcia wrote:

Hmm, I ordered a laptop from dabs. In order to "test" it I had to know what it was like in usage which required agreeing to the windows license. Only then was I able to decide (after a short while using it) that it wasn't for me and so sent it back under DSR. No questions asked.

My understanding of the DSRs is that they are a set out to create a common understanding between all concerned. They are legal guidelines created specifically for that purpose. Your contract between Dabs and yourself is your own affair, the agreements made between yourself and them don't reflect in any way, shape or form the situation the OP finds himself in.

In the return conditions I specifically remember that I wasn't supposed to have installed any software on the laptop, but there was no mention of agreeing to/activating the windows license.

Probably as someone at your chosen vendors was capable of removing any identification you placed upon the machine as per their agreement with you.

Azeem_2

I ordered a Samsung laptop from Laptops Direct, Easy Computers. The laptop had a fault whereby the mousepad would freeze and would need to be hit before it would free up. I asked laptops direct for a refund, they told me i needed to take the laptop back to factory settings otherwise they would charge me £50. I asked them how to do this and they told me to ring the manufacturer. I spoke with the manufacturer on a few occasions, followed their instructions and they said that they were happy with what i had done. I then rang Laptops Direct to tell them, they seemed uninterested and then said "If the manufacturers happy then its ok".

A week later Laptops Direct rang me and told me that they were taking £50 for taking the computer back to factory settings and a further £10 for restocking on top of the £20 it cost to send the laptop back.

I told them that the manufacturer instructed me, and they had put me in contact with the manufacturer in the first place. The guy i spoke to was not interested and told me that he "knew more about laptops then Samsung" to which i laughed as a salesman in a dingy, card board box of a room seems to think he is superior to the people who actually create these things. I told him to refund the money he owed me and said bye.

All in all I really wouldn't deal with this company in its many guises at any cost, they sell inferior products and once you pay them you can kiss that money goodbye.

AVOID AT ALL COSTS

allymelv

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES BUY FORM LAPTOPS DIRECT/EASY COMPUTERS.
I bought a acer aspire notebook a few weeks ago and the company has taken two payments from my account. As a results my bank has added on £308 worth of bank charges due to payments i had made on my card not realising that they had taken an extra £478 from my account and unauthorised overdraft fees. Despite contacting the company several times by telephone, email and fax i am still no further towards receiving my money back. Any ideas anyone?

Blacksheep1979

by any chance do you have the serial no of the laptop or the windows installed on it? If so contact acer and see if the laptop has been returned - bet you it has.

Plaintiff123

During the week of 6th October 2008, I served a claim against Easy Computer Ltd. of Huddersfield (also trading as Acer Direct, Laptops Direct, &c).

Since the matter will be going before a court unless the company has a change of heart, it is inappropriate to make any comment. However, the text of any claim made through a county court is, I’m told, considered to be in the public domain. So, herewith a draft of my text:


1. On 25th June, 2008, I received an Acer Aspire 5920G computer and bundle, purchased new for £XXX.XX using my XXXXX credit card, from Easy Computers Ltd., a retailer.
2. The computer gave error messages during the start-up procedure. There were hardware problems in the hard drive, the optical drive and possibly the screen. The software failed within an hour, rendering the computer unusable.
3. Having asked the retailer for help by several emails and telephone calls without success (although free technical help was supposed to be part of the package), I wrote to them on 30th June, rejecting the computer as unsatisfactory and seeking a full refund with reference to the Sale of Goods Act 1979.
4. The retailer responded (on 8th July) that that the computer was "repair only" unless I referred to the manufacturer for a return number. I believe that this response disregarded my rights under the Sale of Goods Act; in any event, the manufacturer told me that they do not issue return numbers and that they've previously told Easy Computers so.
5. The computer was finally returned to the retailer, whose agent acknowledged in a telephone conversation (on 14th August, of which I have a recording) that 'some faults were found'. In a later conversation, another agent, while admitting that the computer was unusable when I received it, was adamant that there would be no refund or replacement.
6. I reluctantly agreed to accept the repaired computer subject to being able to refer the faults back to the retailer if they should persist / reappear. The agent then said that the retailer would accept no responsibility of any sort after seven days: I believed this stipulation to be a further dismissal of my rights under the Sale of Goods Act, and I therefore reverted to rejecting the computer.
7. I have had no further response from the retailer. [XXXXX credit card told me (12th September) that the retailer, who had not answered previous letters from the bank, has now claimed that there were no faults in the computer; however, the retailer has not communicated this to me.].
8. The retailer currently holds both the computer with bundle and the funds which I paid for it. I seek a full refund. (Also expenses and consequential losses. In connection with the itemisation of losses, the following text appears: “Since I believe Easy Computers to have ignored my rights repeatedly, with consequent losses for me, I also claim:”)


US companies have learned that the Internet is restoring a degree of muscle to the customers, and that it is increasingly difficult ride roughshod over them. UK companies haven’t quite caught up, yet. This posting is my first essay at flexing those muscles.

I may post this text on other sites.

azzaelectro

Surely if Caspol has been "fixing and building computers for 10 years" he surely must of come across an Acer in his time, didn't he know that Acer have one of the highest fault/error return rates


Avoid eMachines and Packard Bell like the plague as well, who also top the Failure rate charts and guess what there also owned by Acer.....I think there trying to corner the budget market.

Basicly the Acer group make cheap laptops which the DSG Group..who are Dixons, PC World and Currys, buy in bulk numbers at a very low price, they sell millions each year and make hugh profits.

Don't think I'm just taking a swing at cheap laptops....Fujitsu Siemens make decent budget laptops, and these days you can get entry level Toshibas, Sonys and the bullet proof "Tankpads" of IBM/Lenovos all for under £400, you should buy reliability over spec!

AzzA