Am I responsible for repair?

swinbank5

I bought a NEW 10" VIDA-IT tablet from Vidait on EBAY i payed through paypal and received it the end of september 2012 it was then stored till december 2012 as it was a xmas gift. Two weeks ago my son plugged the charger in to the unit and smelt an electrical burning smell so he unplugged it immediately, after trying to turn the unit on it was totally dead i contacted the supplier and returned the unit for repair under a 12 warranty that also came with the purchase, I sent it off 1st class recorded delivery after a week i received an email saying the touch screen needed repairing he also emailed me pics, Th e unit and origional packaging where damaged which obviously must have happened in transit he wanted £50 to repair the screen ,i told him just to leave the screen and i would get in touch with royal mail about it and asked him just to repair the electrical fault that it was origionally sent back for.He sent an email back admiting the motherboard was faulty but tried to blame this on the touch screen been damaged and has refused to repair it where do i stand? could you please help me thank you ...
this is a copy of the recent email sent :-

The unit had an electrical fault that's why it was posted off to you for repair. The touch screen was fine when i sent it off so was obviously damaged in transit to you for repair. So you blaming this for the faulty motherboard is a very poor excuse for not keeping your end of the after sales service of 12 month warranty on electrical faults.Im a single parent and it takes me all my time to make ends meet and this was a xmas present for my son which i cant afford to replace so unless this problem is sorted out i will be getting in touch with consumer rights and reporting it to trading standards and also ebay for false advertisement the price i paid for it i expect to get more than 3 moths use out of it before it burns out

In a message dated 26/03/2013 09:54:19 GMT Standard Time, returns@vida-it.com writes:

Dear Customer,

Sorry, but any physical damage the item is not cover under warranty. Too much force has influenced to destroy motherboard.

Regards
Vida IT

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Original Message

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so if the motherboard is faulty what do i do now ? if the unit is faulty
how do i go about getting a repair or refund as its still under warranty?


In a message dated 25/03/2013 15:28:09 GMT Standard Time,
returns@vida-it.com writes:

Hello,

We tried repair the tablet but it is too much damaged. The motherboard
inside the tablet is faulty and we can not repair that. We will send back to
you shortly.

Regards
Vida IT

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Original Message

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thank you for getting back in touch the tablet and box was intact when i
sent it off could you just repair the electrical fault i returned it for
and
i will have to get in touch with royal mail to see if i can claim for the
screen as it must have happened in transit thank you


In a message dated 22/03/2013 09:46:14 GMT Standard Time,
support@vida-it.com writes:

Hello,

I enclose pictures the tablet we have received from you.

Regards

Oli.s

Can't you just claim from Royal Mail for the full cost of the item as it has been damaged in transit?

shaun_from_Africa

Oli.s wrote: »

Can't you just claim from Royal Mail for the full cost of the item as it has been damaged in transit?

This would be a fraudulent claim as RM were not responsible for the internal fault that caused the initial problem, and it wouldn't need much investigation by them to find out why the tablet was being sent through the post.

The other problems with claiming of RM is that as the unit was sent recorded and not special delivery, the maximum that can be claimed for is £46 and that's providing that RM agree that sufficient care was taken with regards to packing and protection.

unholyangel

If the mobo is damaged in a way that makes it non operational, it would be silly (and likely impossible) for them to repair the electrical fault.

They have no liability for physical damage (providing it wasn't sold as "indestructible" as then it would be not as described) unfortunately.

Good judgement comes from experience. Sometimes experience comes from bad judgement. Sending 1st class (and not as above poster stated) is perhaps bad judgement this time.

I'll keep thinking but I honestly can't really think of any way around this one other than if they sold it as indestructible.

Buzby

Recorded/Signed For does not provide anything useful - they will want to see the original packing material to assess whether it was adequate. Assuming this is no longer available, a claim may get you a book of 1st Class Stamps, but nothing more meaningful.

It would probably also query why it was being sent to the repairers (IF you had used SD, which would be the expected service choice for a valuable item).

There would be little point in doing a partial repair - you will either have to bite the bullet and get it completely fixed (paying the price) or cutting your losses and starting again with a new product.