a broken 2 year old washing machine from comet

colenutt

hello

20 months ago i purchased a washing machine from comet. The washing machine now comes up with an error code stating E2. i phoned the call center and argued about my consumer rights and the goods act and stated that under European law retailers have the right to replace/renew a machine with an inherent fault.

the supervisor of the kitchen appliance specialists told me that England have opted out of the EU law so they don't have to abide by that law any more (many years ago btw, yes, i asked him when) i then said i didn't beleave him and asked for the head office number. he gave me a wrong number.

i quickly found the right number online and phoned a helpful employee. he stated the supervisor was wrong to say we are not in the EU anymore but went on to state that we have 6 years warranty under the goods act. which i agreed was correct. but he then stated that an engineer will need to come out and look at the machine to decide whether there is an inherent problem, and this will cost me £69. if the engineer finds a problem that is inherent then they will refund me. he said he couldn't book it but he will forward me to the right department.

the next department took my details and stated for an engineer to look at the machine it will cost £150 and if i want all parts upto £250 covered then i will need pay a further £50. i laughed and calmly said i spoke to your head office and we spoke about my consumer rights and the goods act. without hesitation she said i now have two options, either i can book an external engineer and they can send a report to them or i can book their engineer for £69?

why couldn't they told me the truth from the beginning?

any way my reason for posting this is should i of payed the £69 and im very skeptical about the word inherent? im open to the engineers decision here whether it is or isn't.

CoolHotCold

Bingo.

Comet are right in saying the UK opted out of the EU 2 year *mythical* law, but thats because the Sales Of Goods Act provides better coverage then that (Which is allowed under whatever EU convention)

And yes under the SoGA it is up to you to prove that the fault is inherent, and that is done usually via a specialist. You can either use Comets, or source your own. If found to be in your favor the report is refunded and a remedy should be carried out under the SoGA

dshart

What leads you to believe it is an inherent fault with the machine, error code E2 could mean something as simple as pump filter blocked or door lock not locking correctly. You best bet will be to look up the error code first for your model of machine, if you do not have the manuals then check the manufacturers website.

If you do go down the route of trying to claim under an inherent fault you would be better paying an independent engineer to produce a report as the Comet one is more likely to be biased. Also do a search for similar problems for that model of machine to see if this is a regular problem that may indicate an inherent problem.

colenutt

dshart wrote: »

What leads you to believe it is an inherent fault with the machine, error code E2 could mean something as simple as pump filter blocked or door lock not locking correctly. You best bet will be to look up the error code first for your model of machine, if you do not have the manuals then check the manufacturers website.

If you do go down the route of trying to claim under an inherent fault you would be better paying an independent engineer to produce a report as the Comet one is more likely to be biased. Also do a search for similar problems for that model of machine to see if this is a regular problem that may indicate an inherent problem.

i have researched the e2 problem and purchased inlet valves to which the problem was directed to. ive fitted it to no effect. i have also taken the pump off and it is not blocked. ive checked everything. (the machine fills with water for 10 mins then the error occurs, then keeps filling up). im no engineer (at least not a washing machine one) but i can only presume its a wiring loom problem. i was just unsure on what was said to me on the phone about being charged and unsure about whati should expect in the worse situation.

dshart

Well good luck with your claim, I think you may be better off just spending the money on an engineer to fix the machine rather than look for an inherent fault. Remember that the manufacturer will fight it tooth and nail because if you can prove an inherent fault then it opens them up to possibly thousands of claims.

CoolHotCold

dshart wrote: »

Well good luck with your claim, I think you may be better off just spending the money on an engineer to fix the machine rather than look for an inherent fault. Remember that the manufacturer will fight it tooth and nail because if you can prove an inherent fault then it opens them up to possibly thousands of claims.

Except it doesn't as it's the retailers responsibility, it also doesn't mean every single model suffers from it, it just means that particular one, through either faulty craftmanship or defective component has suffered a faster than usual failure.

whitegoods_engineer

Sounds like your pressure chamber is blocked up causing the machine to keep filling (have you put in a water softening agent in recently?)

Water softening tabs cause this problem all the time. It would not be an inherent fault and Comet would not be responsible so it sounds as if you've jumped the gun a bit in assuming it is the fault of the appliance.

alistair.long

whitegoods_engineer wrote: »

Sounds like your pressure chamber is blocked up causing the machine to keep filling (have you put in a water softening agent in recently?)

Hi
It may be the pressure chamber, however diffrent companies have diffrent fill type switches.
If it is a Hotpoint then it will be more likley a pressure fill, however I dont see how tabs will block them.

Personally I donot agree to their engineers inspection before mine, as their engineer will try to favour Comet.
I would simply call a washing machine company and request a quote for diagnostic with a report.
And then send the report to Comet and demand a free repair if the engineer says its their fault. Alternativly you can call the washing machine manufacturer who will give you free parts but charge by the hour and then send the bill to Comet.
REMEMBER BEFORE DOING YOU NEED TO LET COMET KNOW, E.G. PRIVATE ENGINEER (iF THEY DISAGREE DO IT ANYWAY). ALSO THE FACT THAT YOU ARE USING THE MANUFACTURER.

Comet have got a big problem, I recently had a problem, got it sorted in the end, however they then refused to pay the bill of £30 for my laundry while not repaired.
Issued court proceedings then got £100.

So enjoy, they just want to see if they can fob you off

pinkteapot

http://www.which.co.uk/news/2011/11/staff-from-big-name-shops-fail-consumer-rights-test--269667/

I'm a Which subscriber and they had an article on this just this month - hopefully you can read that page without being a subscriber though (you'll need to do the £1 trial subscription to read the full report).

Basically, Which say that when it comes to expensive electrical items, you reasonably expect them to last longer than a year. Therefore, the retailer may be responsible if the item develops a fault outside of the standard one year warranty but within a "reasonable" time. They tested high street shops by claiming that a fridge bought just over a year earlier had broken down. If you buy a budget cheapy model then you'll have less of a case than if you buy a more expensive better brand.