Sales of goods act, 6 year cover on tv's?

hoffmeister

Sorry if I am in the wrong forum.

A few years ago my tv broke after 3 years due to a mechanical fault, I tried again and again for a replacement but could not get one. Then somebody told me that if its the manufacturer's fault within 6 years, then I am covered under some law. I did that and managed to get my tv replaced.

Can anyone enlighten me to the process again because it has happened to my friend in similar circumstances?

Toxteth_OGrady

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/returning-damaged-or-faulty-goods/

ChiefGrasscutter

Sale of goods act '79 is the one that cover the 6 year issue.
However you the purchaser have no "automatic rights" under the act.

The goods sold have to be of merchant like quality and if they fail within 6 years and it might be reasonably expected that they last more than 6 years in normal use then you the customer may have a claim for compensation.

Expect to be required to fight your case in court.
As an example trying to claim that your mobile phone packed up inside 6 years when most get upgraded within that period and the rest have been dropped on the floor regularly is going to be a waste of time - and you'll end up with some court costs against you.

To take another example of a washing machine failing in 6 years. Now it could be a single person household when it's used once per week or it could be used in a huge family household when its used multiple times per day. Clearly radically different use patterns.....

You can see why consumers have no automatic rights under the act for compensation for a failure within 6 years.

hoffmeister

My case was I bought a plasma tv for £2300 which broke after 25 months, I complained and currys gave me vouchers to by the equivalent tv. My friend's case is also on a tv that has lasted less than 6 years.

CoolHotCold

hoffmeister wrote: »

My case was I bought a plasma tv for £2300 which broke after 25 months, I complained and currys gave me vouchers to by the equivalent tv. My friend's case is also on a tv that has lasted less than 6 years.

Well, well done by currys for providing vouchers, but where was your pals purchased from (and what sort of fault is it)

fwor

You may have been lucky in that Currys caved in without a fight. At the least, the retailer can insist that the customer gets a report from a qualified person stating that the fault was inherent and not caused by misuse - though you can claim the cost of this from them if the report proves your point.

And, as others have said, there is no direct, hard-and-fast link to 6 years. All that's required is that the product should be sufficiently durable for its intended purpose. It's based on "reasonableness", and is therefore open to interpretation.

hoffmeister

I am seeing my friend today and will see if I can get more info on how long he has had the tv, where he bought it etc. When I had my problem with currys, currys said that if I can get a tv repairman to evaluate the tv and if he can write a report saying that its a manufacturer's error then I will get a replacement.

Toxteth_OGrady

You don't need to prove it's an inherent manufacturing defect - that's a subtly different aspect of SOGA. Your claim is the TV is not of satisfactory quality based on unreasonably short durability. It's a failure not due to misuse or wear and tear and the TV should have reasonably been expected to last longer. The SOGA does not specify what reasonable durability is in terms of satisfactory quality (except it cannot be more than 6 years) as it is dependent on the type of goods. You could reasonably expect a TV to last 6 years. See this thread here where somebody successfully claimed on SOGA durability for a faulty laptop:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/41578908#Comment_41578908

moonrakerz

ChiefGrasscutter wrote: »

The goods sold have to be of merchant like quality and if they fail within 6 years and it might be reasonably expected that they last more than 6 years in normal use then you the customer may have a claim for compensation.

That is NOT what the Law says !!!!!! Read what the Act says, not what people INCORRECTLY report it as saying.

SoGA gives the consumer to RIGHT (that is all) to claim damages from the supplier in certain circumstances. Those circumstances basically mean that the consumer has to prove in Court that the item was faulty by either design or manufacturer at the time of purchase.
Apart from the initial 6 month "change over" point, SoGA does not mention any specific time that an item may be expected to last.

AND there isn't a "secret" EU Law that gives a 2 year Warranty either!

Fifer

Toxteth_OGrady wrote: »

The SOGA does not specify what reasonable durability is in terms of satisfactory quality (except it cannot be more than 6 years)

It can be more than 6 years in Scotland, where the SOGA provides up to five years from discovery of the defect.