Faulty office type chair - help please

Living_proof

In December 2011 I purchased a black office type chair from Lidl which I use at home. It was to replace one I had had for at least 15 years but the fabric had worn thin and when Lidl bought out a plain black one for £59.99 I decided to invest in a new one.

From the start one of the wheels detatched itself from the base if the chair was lifted to clean, etc. It was easy enough to put it back and the chair would have been difficult for me to return to the store where I purchased it.

In January this year three of the five wheels became detached and it is impossible to get them to snap into the frame. I contacted Lidl's customer service who gave me the German manufacturer's email address and I wrote to them. They replied that I could either superglue the wheels back in (!!!!) or they would send a new chair base. I replied that I would feel safer if they replaced the chair base.

All ok so far. But they despatched the chair to the registered office of the company I work for, even though on my email to them I had clearly put my home address, offering to return the chair to my local Lidl. So they considered the right thing to do was to replace the base unit at this stage. I then asked whether they would refund me if I had to courier the base from the said Head Office, a couple of hundred miles away from where I live. I have since heard nothing.

I have phoned Lidl twice and each time the customer service response was that it was disgraceful that I had been expected to superglue the item and that they would follow it up. Nothing, nada. Zilch. I have emailed them today advising I will take small claims court action as the item is not fit for purpose and Lidl was the seller so should be dealing with my complaint. What do you guys think?

shaun_from_Africa

Before you consider legal action there are a few things to ponder.

As the purchase was over 6 months ago, the onus is on you to prove that the problem is due to a maunfacturing defect and not down to misuse.
You will need this evidence before going to court.
This thread will give you an example of what can happen if you try legal action without getting the required evidence first.
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4461441

The SOGA states that goods must be durable and fit for purpose, taking into account their intended use and the price.
It might be argued that a chair that cost £60 is at the lower end of the price range and so might only be expected to last a year or two.

Even if the court agrees with you, the SOGA states that any refund you are offered can have a deduction to cover the use that yuo've already had from the goods, so if the chair should last 2 years, you may only be offered about 40% of the cost price.

Living_proof

Thanks Shaun from Africa. My point is that the manufacturer was prepared to replace the base from the outset, it was his own careless fault that he didn't read the email properly.

I can't agree that you would only expect a couple of years' use just because a chair is inexpensive. Lidl seem to market their goods to suggest you are getting the quality of all the big names at a much better price. I would expect 5 years' use before replacing to be reasonable, and even then I would expect the problem to be with the fabric of the chair and not the wheels or any other safety aspect.

Fire_Fox

How on earth did they get the address of your company's head office? Other than that I agree with Shaun, I think your expectations are unreasonable and the law will not support your claim of five years average lifespan for a cheap office chair.

If you had formally reported the problem with the wheels to Lidl within the first six months you would be in a much stronger position because you would be establishing a likely inherent fault. They could well argue in court that the current failure is down to misuse, in that you continued to use the chair even tho you believed the wheels to be faulty. They may well not be designed to be snapped in and out repeatedly.

shaun_from_Africa

I can't agree that you would only expect a couple of years' use just because a chair is inexpensive.

But would you expect a chair costing £60 to have the same estimated life as a different model costing many times more?

The Sale of goods act allows for the price paid to be a factor when considering if an item is of satisfactory quality, so the price will probably be considered if you took legal action.

For the purposes of this Act, goods are of satisfactory quality if they meet the standard that a reasonable person would regard as satisfactory, taking account of any description of the goods, the price (if relevant) and all the other relevant circumstances.

My point is that the manufacturer was prepared to replace the base from the outset, it was his own careless fault that he didn't read the email properly

Did you write the e-mail in English or German as it could have been a simple misinterpretation error.
Whatever the reason for sending the parts to the wrong address, whatever the manufacturer did was an act of goodwill as they have no legal obligation towards you.

How did the manufacturer get the address of the company that you work for?

Living_proof

My signature on my email address has three different addresses - Head office, registered address and trading address. It is in small grey print under my phone number etc. I put my home address in large print in the body of the email. I wonder how he chose which address to send it to?

Fire_Fox

It does seem an unusual choice but maybe they normally supply to businesses not private individuals in Germany? You might be best using your personal e-mail account for personal purchases and communication in future, it's confusing supplying multiple irrelevant addresses. Also some employers take a dim view to work e-mail being used in this way.

Living_proof

I think if you saw the correspondence Fire Fox you would be amazed that anyone would even read the blurb at the bottom, whereas the address given in the body of the text was clearly visible. Inattention to detail. Fortunately my employer does not take such a prissy attitude to email which is why I don't mind working extra hours unpaid at times.

Living_proof

Update: Lidl have written agreeing that the quality is not what they would expect in their goods and they will be refunding me in full. I am delighted as I think their food products are generally very good value and I will now continue to shop with them as usual. Their customer service is just a bit on the slow side.