Who to chase - Littlewoods or Morphy Richards

beaker_smiles

I don't know if anybody can help (or confirm my suspicions) about who to chase to replace or repair a faulty item.

On 23rd July 2010 I purchased a Morphy Richards Steam Generator from Littlewoods for £150, as I was getting sick and tired of sub-standard irons.

In late December 2010, less than 5 months after purchasing the steam generator, the thermostat in the iron hot plate stopped working, so the steam from the generator was condensing as it came out and leaving huge puddles over my ironing instead of removing the creases. I followed the advice on the Littlewoods website and contacted Morphy Richards who replaced it without any issuue (sending a new steam generator by courier that arrived between christmas and new year).

10 months on and the replacement steam generator has developed the same fault.

I have contacted Morphy Richards who do not want anything to do with me as the guarantee on the steam generator is (according to them) from the date of purchase and so in their eyes my steam generator is 15/16 months old.

On this basis I have complained to Littlewoods that the product is faulty, and has not lasted a reasonable amount of time as defined by the Sale of Goods act and that I would like a repair or replacement.

Littlewoods have since replied that as the item is now out of guarantee and that the replacement came from Morphy Richards that I can not return the item as faulty.

Am I being unreasonable? I know that these things are not designed to last anymore in our "throw away economy" but is three years an unrealistic lifespan for a steam generator?

Are Littlewoods (as the retailer) still responsible under the sale of goods act SAD FART for the quality of the product, or should I be turning my attention to Morphy Richards because they supplied a replacement.

Elle7

No, I don't think they are.

I'm pretty sure that if you go straight to the manufacturer for a repair/replacement, you rid the retailer of their responsibility under the SOGA.

Did you contact littlewoods originally? They may have been willing to supply a whole new unit rather then just a replacement generator, but they would have also had the option to repair or refund.

As you didn't allow them to choose how to deal with your issue, I don't think they need to do anything now.

I'm sure someone will come along to confirm, but until then, I think getting Morphy Richards to replace again will be your main aim. Did the refurbished part not come with a warranty?

beaker_smiles

I didn't contact Littlewoods because their website states....

For electrical products, please contact the supplier directly. We have arrangements in place with these helpline providers for them to identify the cause of a fault (we do not have the necessary technical expertise to do this) and to offer you an appropriate remedy on our behalf.

....so feeling a bit displeased that I'm now being told by them that I don't have a right of reply with Littlewoods because I've done what they asked.

To clarify as well, Morphy Richards replaced the whole unit without fuss in December when it first went wrong with a brand new unit.

Elle7

Ah.

Legally, the SOGA allows you a remedy against the retailer, not the manufacturer. So if you had contacted Littlewoods, while they might have guided you towards Morphy Richards, under SOGA the responsibility was theirs.

I'm sure someone posted an extract of the SOGA on here recently which stated that if the consumer approached the manufacturer direct the retailer no longer had responsibility, I'll try and find it.

Morphy Richards sound like they were very helpful the first time, it's a shame that they aren't being so helpful now. I'm still surprised they didn't offer any type of warranty with the new machine!

Flyboy152

Elle7 wrote: »

Ah.

Legally, the SOGA allows you a remedy against the retailer, not the manufacturer. So if you had contacted Littlewoods, while they might have guided you towards Morphy Richards, under SOGA the responsibility was theirs.

I'm sure someone posted an extract of the SOGA on here recently which stated that if the consumer approached the manufacturer direct the retailer no longer had responsibility, I'll try and find it.

Morphy Richards sound like they were very helpful the first time, it's a shame that they aren't being so helpful now. I'm still surprised they didn't offer any type of warranty with the new machine!

Littlewoods told the consumer to go directly to the manufacturer, this does not absolve them from their contractual liabilities.

somethingcorporate

Flyboy152 wrote: »

Littlewoods told the consumer to go directly to the manufacturer, this does not absolve them from their contractual liabilities.

I'd be inclined to agree with this. Which means the OPs issue needs to be dealt with by Littlewoods.

zoob

Most morphy richards products come with a 1 year guarantee, but morphy richards will give you a 2 year guarantee when you register the product gaurantee as stated in the instructions.

Elle7

Flyboy152 wrote: »

Littlewoods told the consumer to go directly to the manufacturer, this does not absolve them from their contractual liabilities.

Ah okay, thanks for clearing that up!

Sorry OP.

beaker_smiles

OK, well I'm going to chase Littlewoods for a refund/repair/replacement of their choosing. They are currently being (in my mind) obstructive - playing the Data Protection Act card against the e-mail my wife sent detailing where we thought they had fallen down regarding the SOGA and the remedy we were after. This despite the fact they had replied to two of her e-mails previously.

So the e-mail of complaint has been re-sent (I think I forwarded to make the point) from my e-mail account.

For the record, the product I bought was a Morphy Richards 42301 Steam Generator. Whilst it worked it was fantastic, and so much better than a bog standard iron. But it has suffered the same fault twice (and a friend I know who also bought one has had two replaced for exactly the same reason - thermostat failing leading to water rather than steam on the clothes) so I would not recommend buying one. Seems like an endemic fault in the manufacturing process.[FONT=C?EX3040_T?EX0000]
[/FONT]