Returning an Faulty good, asking for refund?

Jamorio

Hey!
I was wondering...
I purchased an Android tablet about 2 weeks ago.
Used it last week and it was working fine.
Then I went on holiday for a week after, forgot my tablet and it was at home in its box (I put it in its box to keep it in good order).
But, today when I went to turn it on, the on/off button is broken.
Im a busy person and don't have time to be having a repair (Its obviusly not a good product anyway as it has broken so easily with no use) and having it back.
I just want a refund.
It was not caused by me, that I promise you.

I bought it from Comet, do you think they will give me one?

DWatts

They're not obliged to, but if you ask nicely you might get one.

If it hasn't had much use, I'm assuming it shouldn't have any scratches? Clean it off so it looks like you've barely used it and take it into a store, say it's broken after a couple uses so you'd prefer a refund because you don't think the build quality on another's going to be any good. They might offer you a refund, since it is only 2 weeks.

Techhead_2

I wouldn't tell them the button broke while it was packed away in the box. That sounds unlikely so I would stick with it broke on the second use.

arealhighlander

DWatts wrote: »

They're not obliged to, but if you ask nicely you might get one.

If it hasn't had much use, I'm assuming it shouldn't have any scratches? Clean it off so it looks like you've barely used it and take it into a store, say it's broken after a couple uses so you'd prefer a refund because you don't think the build quality on another's going to be any good. They might offer you a refund, since it is only 2 weeks.

I disagree, it is reasonable to expect that the on/off button would last longer than 2 weeks therefore you are entitled under the Sale Of Goods Act for a full refund as it is not of merchantable quality.

Do not let them fob you off with a repair or say that you need to send it into the manufacturer under guarantee. The contract was between you and them, THEY are responsible.

If you used your Credit Card to purchase the item (and it was over £100) then you may contact the CC company and ask them for a refund under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. See Martins guide about this at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/section75-protect-your-purchases

DWatts

arealhighlander wrote: »

I disagree, it is reasonable to expect that the on/off button would last longer than 2 weeks therefore you are entitled under the Sale Of Goods Act for a full refund as it is not of merchantable quality.

While the tablet may be of bad build quality, proving that would be difficult. If after several repairs it continued to break there would have a good case, but otherwise they could easily say it was a simple manufacturing fault and can be repaired or replaced.

Esqui

arealhighlander wrote: »

I disagree, it is reasonable to expect that the on/off button would last longer than 2 weeks therefore you are entitled under the Sale Of Goods Act for a full refund as it is not of merchantable quality.

I (theoretically) disagree with your disagreement. OP would be entitled to a remedy under SoGA, not necessarily a refund. In my opinion (I'm not a court of law!), 2 weeks is more than long enough to have accepted a tablet PC (particularly with regards to a power button), so there's no right of rejection after this time. But like I say, this is just my opinion - there's no time set in stone for it, and if it ever got that far, it would down to how a court interprets the law.

But all of that is rather moot - Comet have a return policy of (I think) 21 days - in that time, you can return a faulty item for a replacement or refund (your choice). And that forms part of the contract of sale, so is legally enforceable - they can't choose not to honour their returns policy.

So if it's within the returns policy time, OP can get a full refund and is legally entitled to one. If there were no returns policy, it would be a lot trickier, and they may not be entitled to a refund. But any shop wanting to give decent service wouldn't think twice about it.

wealdroam

arealhighlander wrote: »

I disagree, it is reasonable to expect that the on/off button would last longer than 2 weeks therefore you are entitled under the Sale Of Goods Act for a full refund as it is not of merchantable quality.

Do not let them fob you off with a repair or say that you need to send it into the manufacturer under guarantee. The contract was between you and them, THEY are responsible.

I thought the Sale of Goods Act said that the seller had to provide a remedy, and that remedy could be either a repair, replacement or refund?

My understanding is that the consumer can choose the remedy, but the seller could refuse that remedy if disproportionate. (In other words, the seller gets to choose )

However, having said all that, after only two weeks you are probably ok to reject the thing for a full refund.
Unfortunately, the only definition of the time allowed for rejection is 'a reasonable time'.

fluffnutter

DWatts wrote: »

While the tablet may be of bad build quality, proving that would be difficult.

The customer doesn't need to prove anything. It's under six months since purchase therefore the onus is on the retailer to prove that the fault wasn't inherent, not for the customer to prove it was.

OP, I see a lot of posts on here advising 'say this, pretend it broke on second use, say that'. Don't bother making up some elaborate story; you've only had it two weeks. Just take it back, point out the broken button and ask for a refund.

If they suggest a repair or replacement, then get into the nitty gritty of build quality etc. Similarly if they suggest the damage is due to misuse remind them that under the SOGA the onus is on them to prove that the damage was due to misuse (at their own cost). They can't just say 'you damaged it, sorry'.

If you wanted to arm yourself with some extra ammo re. build quality, it might be worth googling to see if anyone else has had a problem with the button. If they have, then it's a good reason for Comet to refund without dispute, and if they haven't, perhaps you might consider a replacement.

arcon5

IMO opinion 2 weeks are by far enough to be deemed to have accepted the goods and for them to have the right to offer a repair.

On a side note, poor build quality isn't necessarily a right to a refund. Most of the rubbish you see in pound shops is a terrible build quality which you wouldn't expect to last long at all, but this is reflected by the price.