The Three Year Warranty You Cannot Claim on!

Paul_Varjak

I purchased an item from a supplier, who obtained the item direct from the manufacturer.

The three warranty supplied by the manufacturer states:

******** warrants its products to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for three years for the original purchaser.

But, according to the manufacturer, I am not the 'original purchaser' as I bought the item from one of their suppliers. In other words, their supplier has a 3 year guarantee (as the original purchaser) but I do not!

Strange thing is, the manufacturer does not supply direct to the end user - it sells to suppliers only.

poet123

We had a similar issue with Comet, we bought a fridge freezer but were having a kitchen fitted and they kept it in store for us for 2 months. The guarantee ran from date of purchase not date of delivery.

ETA Your issue sounds ridiculous though, is it not transferable?

Paul_Varjak

The guarantee only provided replacement or repair. It is a plastic shower stool, so replacement is the only option.

But, there is a manufacturing or design problem as this is the second one that has broken, so no point in getting a replacement. The supplier replaced the first stool within the first year and the second one broke within 8 months.

The suppliers have offered to give me a £15 credit towards a different stool from another manufacturer, an offer I have accepted.

I an trying to arrange for the manufacturer to collect the broken stool, so that they can determine the fault and do a redesign or whatever is needed. Apart from the fact it breaks, I really like the stool!

johnnyboyrebel

Paul_Varjak wrote: »

I purchased an item from a supplier, who obtained the item direct from the manufacturer.

The three warranty supplied by the manufacturer states:

******** warrants its products to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for three years for the original purchaser.

But, according to the manufacturer, I am not the 'original purchaser' as I bought the item from one of their suppliers. In other words, their supplier has a 3 year guarantee (as the original purchaser) but I do not!

Strange thing is, the manufacturer does not supply direct to the end user - it sells to suppliers only.

Everyone always bleats on here about how the contract is with the supplier and not the manufacturer so how is this any different? The manufacturer will only deal with its customer ie. your supplier.

Have i missed something as this is normal.

Paul_Varjak

johnnyrebel...

It is quite typical of companies to only offer the guarantee through their suppliers. That is NOT the issue.

When I first complained to the manufacturer they claimed the item was more than 2 years old, so would not honour the guarantee. They said the guarantee commenced the moment they sold it to the supplier.

When I pointed out to them that the item has a three year guarantee then tried to claim my item was sold to the supplier more than 3 years ago!

When I then managed to prove they only started making these stools less than 3 years ago, they came up with a new ruse...

They claim the 'original purchaser' was the supplier. As I was not the 'original purchaser' I could not claim under the guarantee either direct from them (the manufacturer) or via their dealer (the 'original purchaser'). In other words, the guarantee is not transferable to me!

As the manufacturer does not sell direct to the public, the guarantee is totally worthless.

Luckily, the dealer is more sympathetic and gave me £15 off the purchase off another item.

paddyrg

Shoddy behaviour, name and shame!

For what its worth, most manufacturers are genuine in their warranties, all HTC phones for instance will be fixed for free for 2 years direct with them.

maninthestreet

I think the manufacturer is confusing a retail and wholesale purchases. However, they need to be named and shamed - maybe they will change their mind when they realise the bad publicity they will get....