Quick questions on Consumer Rights

HarryClarke

Hi,

I purchased a Hotpoint washing maching from Very.co.uk in Sept 2014 and it has now developed a fault, it suddenly stopped functioning as normal and now displays various fault codes

I wanted to know if I have any rights to return this item outside of the standard 1 year warranty as I believe it has not lasted a time which would be considered reasonable

It was purchased for £300.00

I contacted customer service who kept referring me to contact Hotpoint direct, at first I refused to do so as Hotpoint were not the ones I purchased from, I eventually did and were passed back to Very as Hotpoint wanted me to pay an upfront engineer fee due to the item being over 1 year old. Everytime I know call Very to try and speak to a manager about this issue I keep getting fobbed off and told a request for a manager to call back will be made.

In the situation what are my options and how can I get my washing machine back to working state without having to fork out

Any help would be really appreciated

Thanks

wealdroam

HarryClarke wrote: »

Hi,

I purchased a Hotpoint washing maching from Very.co.uk in Sept 2014 and it has now developed a fault, it suddenly stopped functioning as normal and now displays various fault codes

I wanted to know if I have any rights to return this item outside of the standard 1 year warranty as I believe it has not lasted a time which would be considered reasonable

It was purchased for £300.00

I contacted customer service who kept referring me to contact Hotpoint direct, at first I refused to do so as Hotpoint were not the ones I purchased from, I eventually did and were passed back to Very as Hotpoint wanted me to pay an upfront engineer fee due to the item being over 1 year old. Everytime I know call Very to try and speak to a manager about this issue I keep getting fobbed off and told a request for a manager to call back will be made.

In the situation what are my options and how can I get my washing machine back to working state without having to fork out

Any help would be really appreciated

Thanks

After this time you will probably need to prove to Very that the thing is inherently faulty. Put simply, that means proving that the problem isn't due to misuse or something that you have done.

You might like to read MSE's Consumer Rights guide, but do come back with any further questions.

jimbo49

just to give an update guys.
i was contacted by LG via email on 22nd Jan. i was asked to send a photo of the problem socket. i told them i couldn't do that because of the position of the socket and i suggested it would be better if they were to look at their own instruction manual. i haven't heard a thing back since!!
i was contacted by Richer Sounds who have told me that i can have a full refund, but they would not exchange the TV nor would they allow me to have a higher priced one if i paid the extra amount. basically, i have been told that i am no longer wanted as a customer! that is a disgraceful way to behave! i have done nothing wrong and been poo-pooed off. what is the point of issuing 6 year warranties if a customer has to request something done within that period? the 2 things that happened were not my fault. i didn't break the TV foot causing the set to fall over and i didn't do anything other than unplug the opt cable when that socket became faulty. it cant have been tested very much or very well when you consider the cable was plugged in originally, unplugged recently and then wont take the cable again. it seems very much like i am being persecuted because Richer Sounds doesn't like it when a customer is unlucky and has to use the warranty. i was of the opinion that is what it's for!
now i have to find another tv!

cant recommend either of them i'm afraid! LG just ignores the customer and Richer Sounds washes it's hands of you for being unlucky and calling on the warranty!! what a disgrace!!

naedanger

jimbo49 wrote: »

just to give an update guys.
i was contacted by LG via email on 22nd Jan. i was asked to send a photo of the problem socket. i told them i couldn't do that because of the position of the socket and i suggested it would be better if they were to look at their own instruction manual. i haven't heard a thing back since!!
i was contacted by Richer Sounds who have told me that i can have a full refund, but they would not exchange the TV nor would they allow me to have a higher priced one if i paid the extra amount. basically, i have been told that i am no longer wanted as a customer! that is a disgraceful way to behave! i have done nothing wrong and been poo-pooed off. what is the point of issuing 6 year warranties if a customer has to request something done within that period? the 2 things that happened were not my fault. i didn't break the TV foot causing the set to fall over and i didn't do anything other than unplug the opt cable when that socket became faulty. it cant have been tested very much or very well when you consider the cable was plugged in originally, unplugged recently and then wont take the cable again. it seems very much like i am being persecuted because Richer Sounds doesn't like it when a customer is unlucky and has to use the warranty. i was of the opinion that is what it's for!
now i have to find another tv!

cant recommend either of them i'm afraid! LG just ignores the customer and Richer Sounds washes it's hands of you for being unlucky and calling on the warranty!! what a disgrace!!

What is the problem with Richer Sounds offering a full refund? (I have not read the full background but I think Richer Sounds also apologised.) Surely you can get a comparable tv elsewhere for the amount of the refund?

I cannot really understand the logic of simultaneously wishing to remain their customer while at the same time deriding their service.

jimbo49

yeah, you're right. you didn't read the whole thing.
the point i'm making is what good is having a 6 year warranty if, when actioning it, you are told 'we will give you a full refund but you cant have anything else from us'. surely the whole point of having a warranty is to cover incidents to items bought, isn't it? i have basically been told they dont want my custom, all because of a fault on the tv i bought from them.
finding a new TV is easy, finding one i want with the spec i want at a price i can afford is not so easy!
as for deriding Richer Sounds, what would you do if you had been told you cant buy from a particular company, because of faults on a item bought from a company? sit there and do/say nothing? sorry, but i am not someone who just rolls over and dies because a company doesn't want to trade with me because of things out of my control!
i thought the whole point of MSE was to inform you of your rights, help you to express them and get a fair deal, not give in because a company is bigger than you and doesn't like something that has happened!

wealdroam

jimbo49 wrote: »

yeah, you're right. you didn't read the whole thing.
the point i'm making is what good is having a 6 year warranty if, when actioning it, you are told 'we will give you a full refund but you cant have anything else from us'. surely the whole point of having a warranty is to cover incidents to items bought, isn't it? i have basically been told they dont want my custom, all because of a fault on the tv i bought from them.
finding a new TV is easy, finding one i want with the spec i want at a price i can afford is not so easy!
as for deriding Richer Sounds, what would you do if you had been told you cant buy from a particular company, because of faults on a item bought from a company? sit there and do/say nothing? sorry, but i am not someone who just rolls over and dies because a company doesn't want to trade with me because of things out of my control!
i thought the whole point of MSE was to inform you of your rights, help you to express them and get a fair deal, not give in because a company is bigger than you and doesn't like something that has happened!

Oh dear, you do seem to be over-reacting a little bit.

RS could have decided that they didn't like your complaint being aired here... but who knows.

Since you mention rights, and the enforcement of them, it appears that RS have done exactly what they should've done. In fact, they have done more than they are obliged to do under The Sale of Goods Act.

Have you looked at John Lewis' television range?
Their five year warranty, together with their price match policy, should help you find the right tv.

naedanger

jimbo49 wrote: »

... the point i'm making is what good is having a 6 year warranty if, when actioning it, you are told 'we will give you a full refund but you cant have anything else from us'. surely the whole point of having a warranty is to cover incidents to items bought, isn't it?

The point of the warranty is, as you say, to cover incidents. You had an incident and it has been covered - you have been given a full refund.

i have basically been told they dont want my custom, all because of a fault on the tv i bought from them.
finding a new TV is easy, finding one i want with the spec i want at a price i can afford is not so easy!

But if you are unhappy with them, you are getting the opportunity to walk away from them with all your money back.

as for deriding Richer Sounds, what would you do if you had been told you cant buy from a particular company, because of faults on a item bought from a company? sit there and do/say nothing? sorry, but i am not someone who just rolls over and dies because a company doesn't want to trade with me because of things out of my control!

If a company said they did not want to do business with me then, in general, I would be fine with that.

i thought the whole point of MSE was to inform you of your rights, help you to express them and get a fair deal, not give in because a company is bigger than you and doesn't like something that has happened!

But it's not clear to me how you have not had a fair deal.

When I have been unhappy with a company I would have been very happy to be able to walk away with a full refund (had that been available). And I would not wish to give them any more custom. The fact you want to remain RS's customer seems to indicate to me that they can't have treated you that badly.

Suggestion: If RS have not explicitly said they don't want you as a customer, then perhaps you could take the refund and then buy from them again, as a new and separate transaction. (That will also mean you will get a new warranty.)

jimbo49

it seems to me that both of you are blaming me for what has happened. the point i am making more than anything else is, why issue a 6 year warranty, then tell someone who has actioned that warranty because of some issue or failure, that they will be given their money back, that they cant have an exchange when offering to pay the difference in price. surely if there is a warranty in operation and it is revoked, does it mean the seller was aware of certain problems with the item concerned and didn't want to risk greater claims happening or is it perfectly ok to just say to a customer, 'we want the item back and we are not prepared to exchange it' particularly when the customer hasn't even asked for anything other than a repair? how are we to get on if every company takes that stance? it's ridiculous and you two are backing what is happening. i wonder how you will feel in the future then when something you buy fails and rather than the seller replacing it, they tell you you will get your money back but you cant buy from them again? remember here, i hadn't done anything wrong!! i reported a problem, which i already told RS i was happy to have a repair done, and not trying to get an exchange done. there could be a precedent set here, and i dont think that would be a good thing! suddenly, people could find themselves on a 'do not sell to them' list, for no reason.

wealdroam

jimbo49 wrote: »

it seems to me that both of you are blaming me for what has happened. the point i am making more than anything else is, why issue a 6 year warranty, then tell someone who has actioned that warranty because of some issue or failure, that they will be given their money back, that they cant have an exchange when offering to pay the difference in price. surely if there is a warranty in operation and it is revoked, does it mean the seller was aware of certain problems with the item concerned and didn't want to risk greater claims happening or is it perfectly ok to just say to a customer, 'we want the item back and we are not prepared to exchange it' particularly when the customer hasn't even asked for anything other than a repair? how are we to get on if every company takes that stance? it's ridiculous and you two are backing what is happening. i wonder how you will feel in the future then when something you buy fails and rather than the seller replacing it, they tell you you will get your money back but you cant buy from them again? remember here, i hadn't done anything wrong!! i reported a problem, which i already told RS i was happy to have a repair done, and not trying to get an exchange done. there could be a precedent set here, and i dont think that would be a good thing! suddenly, people could find themselves on a 'do not sell to them' list, for no reason.

I'm blaming no-one, but if you think I am, best I say no more.

Good luck with whatever you do.

naedanger

jimbo49 wrote: »

it seems to me that both of you are blaming me for what has happened.

I am not blaming you. The item broke. You were entitled to a refund which you got. (If I thought you were to blame I would have said you were not due a refund.)

the point i am making more than anything else is, why issue a 6 year warranty, then tell someone who has actioned that warranty because of some issue or failure, that they will be given their money back,

The point of the warranty is exactly that. If the item fails you get (1) your money back or (2) a repair or (3) replacement, at the retailer's choice. (Many people would consider a full refund the best option, especially on a consumer electronics item, as they tend to fall in price over time.) You got your money back, that is the purpose of the warranty.

that they cant have an exchange when offering to pay the difference in price. surely if there is a warranty in operation and it is revoked, does it mean the seller was aware of certain problems with the item concerned and didn't want to risk greater claims happening or is it perfectly ok to just say to a customer, 'we want the item back and we are not prepared to exchange it' particularly when the customer hasn't even asked for anything other than a repair?

Yes it is perfectly OK, as they have given you a full refund.

how are we to get on if every company takes that stance? it's ridiculous and you two are backing what is happening.

You get on no problem. You take the refund and buy a comparable item elsewhere with the refund i.e. at no cost to you.

i wonder how you will feel in the future then when something you buy fails and rather than the seller replacing it, they tell you you will get your money back but you cant buy from them again?

I would have no problem. There are plenty of other retailers. I would use the refund to buy from one of these other retailers.

remember here, i hadn't done anything wrong!!

RS are not saying you have done anything wrong. If they were I doubt they would give you a full refund.

i reported a problem, which i already told RS i was happy to have a repair done, and not trying to get an exchange done.

Yes, but RS don't need to offer a repair or exchange. They can instead offer a full refund. (It is not usual for people to consider a full refund as a poorer remedy than repair/replacement.)

there could be a precedent set here, and i dont think that would be a good thing! suddenly, people could find themselves on a 'do not sell to them' list, for no reason.

As far as I am aware retailers don't need to do business with anyone (though certain specific forms of discrimination would be illegal ). There is no shortage of them. So if one retailer won't take your custom there are many others to choose from.