Faulty Lenovo laptop - warranty / rights query

patey

Hello,

I bought a laptop about 10 weeks ago and it has recently gone wrong (still works but the battery life is half what it used to be and the fan is a lot noisier). I have phoned lenovo and they say that under the terms of the warranty I should send it to them for repair. This will cost me £54 (Parcelforce, £1000 compensation cover).

I have tried complaining saying that it is not fair to expect me to shell out for something that has gone wrong so soon, and that it is a premium brand and I expected better reliability. However they were very firm and told me that if I didn't like the terms of my warranty then I should pay for an upgrade to a higher level of cover.

Despite feeling it is unfair, I accept that under the terms of the warranty I am responsible for getting the laptop to them. However I wonder whether I am entitled to expect the repair/replacement to be their reponsibility (under the Goods and Services Act, perhaps?).

Any advice will be gratefully received (even if it's that I should stop wasting my time and just pay to send the laptop to them)

Thanks,
Matt

neilmcl

Your contract of purchase is with the retailer, contact them.

patey

Thanks for your rapid response, neilmcl. I bought it on the internet directly from Lenovo. Does that mean I should phone the sales phone number instead of technical support? I can see them referring me to back technical / warranty support.

Do you think that it is reasonable to expect them to sort this out at their expense?

neilmcl

In that case Lenovo is the retailer and under the Sale of Goods Act, if the item is faulty they should pay for the return. If you still have to pay up front make sure they agree that they are legally obliged to reimburse you should the laptop prove faulty.

patey

OK, that sounds great. And does this apply even though it has developed the fault after I have bought it? Does the law specify a minimum length of time that it has to function as described in the specification?

Darksun

patey wrote: »

OK, that sounds great. And does this apply even though it has developed the fault after I have bought it? Does the law specify a minimum length of time that it has to function as described in the specification?

No, the law just specifies a 'reasonable' length of time. What is considered 'reasonable' depends on the product and how much it cost. Also, within the first six months, the burden of proof is on the retailer to show that the fault did not exist at the time of sale. After six months, the burden of proof changes, so you have to prove that the product was inherently faulty.

Now, have Lenovo said that if they find a fault, they will refund the money for postage? I know a lot of warranties reserve the right to charge you for postage and admin costs if they don't find a fault, or it is out of scope of the warranty, but it's unusual that they ask you for it up front.

patey

Well, I have only had the computer for 10 weeks, but it did seem like everything was okay for the first few weeks. Perhaps I could argue that there may have been an underlying fault / weakness in some component at the time of purchase?

Lenovo have not asked me for any money as such. I have been told that my warranty is "return to base" and so it is my responsibility to get it to them at my own expense. They said that this is specified in the terms of the warranty and they will not change them just for me because I don't like them. The person I spoke to then suggested that I should pay for a more expensive warranty if I want, for example, an engineer to come out.

Many thanks

patey

So, based on what you both have said, I should phone them and say I expect them to repair it not under the terms of the warranty but according to the Sales of Goods Act? And if the laptop cost £1000 then I should expect to last longer than 2 1/2 months? I suppose the "reasonable length of time" is not written down in a table anywhere?!