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LAPTOPSDIRECT refusing refund

Hi all,

I bought a refurbished ALL-IN-ONE Packard Bell desk top in A1 (like new) condition from Laptops direct.

After a week it started giving blue screens and freezing up. I did all the usual stuff, updating drivers, re-installing windows etc but it carried on with the same problems. Windows said it was an issue with the NVIDIA graphics card.

I called Laptopsdirect and they put me onto another company (ZUU MEDIA) who took control of my system and updated my drivers etc.. They ended the session by saying that the graphics card was physically faulty.

Laptops direct told me to return the PC at my own expense and if there was a fault then they would refund the shipping costs (£32)

Today they confirmed that there is a fault and offered me a repair or replacement. When I asked for a refund they refused saying that the terms and conditions say that after 7 days I can only have a repair or replacement. When I stated my statutory rights due to the item being faulty they said that their terms and conditions are the most important thing and "I will not get a refund" I threatened Trading standards and got the reply that that was my right but that "I would not get a refund". The guy sounded like a broken record.

I don't believe I was told about these terms and conditions when I bought the PC over the phone. Can they just refuse to give a refund because their terms and conditions say something different to statutory law?

Please advise what my rights are.

Thanks in anticipation,

Comments

  • wealdroam
    wealdroam Posts: 19,181 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Firstly they are wrong when they effectively say that their terms and conditions over-rule your statutory rights.

    However...
    Your statutory rights entitle you to a remedy.
    That remedy can either be a repair, refund or replacement.
    You can choose the remedy, but the seller can refuse that remedy if it is disproportionately costly.
    So, effectively the seller chooses the remedy.

    You need to decide whether you want a repair or replacement.

    They must cover the cost of delivery/collection, but there seems to be no problem there.
  • vax2002
    vax2002 Posts: 7,187 Forumite
    The Golden Question :
    How did you pay and how did you order ? By phone
    Hi, we’ve had to remove your signature. If you’re not sure why please read the forum rules or email the forum team if you’re still unsure - MSE ForumTeam
  • wealdroam
    wealdroam Posts: 19,181 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    edited 21 April 2012 at 6:29PM
    OP, can you please give exact number of days you have had the thing?

    [STRIKE]Distance Selling Regulations may allow you to return it for a full refund if you notify the seller that you wish to cancel the order withing seven working days of delivery. That seven working days start with the day after delivery.[/STRIKE]

    Scrap that. I see from your other thread that it's 'three weeks old'.
  • colmax
    colmax Posts: 37 Forumite
    Thank you very much for your speedy reply.

    But what about the fact that I have not been deemed to have accepted the item if it is faulty within a reasonable period of time? Surely three weeks would be reasonable for a £400 machine? Or have I misunderstood something?
  • colmax
    colmax Posts: 37 Forumite
    wealdroam wrote: »
    OP, can you please give exact number of days you have had the thing?

    Distance Selling Regulations may allow you to return it for a full refund if you notify the seller that you wish to cancel the order withing seven working days of delivery. That seven working days start with the day after delivery.

    I got the machine on the 24th March. It appeared to work perfectly for the first week. Then I was off sick so had the thing on all day. Half way through the day it started giving problems. Because of easter I didn't call them because I thought they were off for the bank holidays. So I finaly called them and started the returns process on the 11th April (18 days after receiving the PC)
  • colmax
    colmax Posts: 37 Forumite
    vax2002 wrote: »
    The Golden Question :
    How did you pay and how did you order ? By phone


    Sorry, I don't follow?......
  • wealdroam
    wealdroam Posts: 19,181 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    colmax wrote: »
    But what about the fact that I have not been deemed to have accepted the item if it is faulty within a reasonable period of time? Surely three weeks would be reasonable for a £400 machine? Or have I misunderstood something?
    If you think three weeks is a reasonable time to decide whether to accept or reject the item and the seller thinks otherwise, then you need to visit the small claims court and get a judge decide who is being reasonable.
  • colmax
    colmax Posts: 37 Forumite
    wealdroam wrote: »
    If you think three weeks is a reasonable time to decide whether to accept or reject the item and the seller thinks otherwise, then you need to visit the small claims court and get a judge decide who is being reasonable.

    Fair point! I think I will. Thanks for taking the time to answer:)
  • wealdroam
    wealdroam Posts: 19,181 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Just to add that The Sale of Goods Act says this on acceptance...
    35 Acceptance.
    (1)The buyer is deemed to have accepted the goods subject to subsection (2) below—
    (a)when he intimates to the seller that he has accepted them, or
    (b)when the goods have been delivered to him and he does any act in relation to them which is inconsistent with the ownership of the seller.
    (2)Where goods are delivered to the buyer, and he has not previously examined them, he is not deemed to have accepted them under subsection (1) above until he has had a reasonable opportunity of examining them for the purpose—
    (a)of ascertaining whether they are in conformity with the contract...
    In my opinion, by using the laptop for three weeks without any indication that there is a problem is probably "an act which is inconsistent with the ownership of the seller".

    But that is only my opinion.
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