Credit Card Protection - Section 75

ianconnal

Hi everyone,

About credit card protection, is there a time limit from point of purchase?

Here's the scenario, I have paid for a wedding dress in full. Thing is, the supplier provided it 6 months early, we'd been hoping it would arrive nearer the time of the wedding so we wouldn't have to store it at home but it's now 6 months early. I had called the CC company to ask whether section 75 applied if the dress company went belly up given that it's now been paid but we intend to leave it with them for storage rather than collect it right away. I didn't get as far as that though because I was adised that all disputes have a time limit of 6 weeks from payment!

Is this the case? I'd always assumed that any limit would be a lot longer than that!

jonesMUFCforever

What timescales were agreed in the contract when you placed the order?
To be honest you ordered a dress got a dress (you don't write to say there is anything wrong with the dress) so why is s75 in the equation at all.
Surely you can keep it somewhere at home??

S75 is a complicated beast - make it easy on yourself and store it at home - problem solved.

ianconnal

It was agreed november, this make me think that there may be a reason it was expidited! I'm aware the simplest solution is to take it home and store it but being a wedding dress ideally we'd like the safety of it being professionally stored by the wedding company, that however runs the risk of the scenario I'm concerned about arising, the company going out of business hence the query about section 75. To be honest, I tend to feel that in that event the CC company would be liable to ask why I didn't pick it up when it was ready, quite rightly in my view but am ot ruling out tbeing covered.

So i'm left with two options, bring it home, not having to worry about not getting it but worrying instead of it being damaged at home or leaving it with the company to professionaly store it and running the risk of the company going bust! This is why I was wondering if it would be covered by section 75 even though I had chosen not to take delivery of it until nearer the time...

chattychappy

OK, it's best to start with what S75 actually is.

Subject to provisos, it makes the CC jointly and severally liable with the merchant for a breach of contract (or misrepresentation). There are some provisos (>£100 etc). It doesn't offer any additional protections/insurance.

So when you buy something in a shop for cash, you get certain rights. You have whatever was promised in the T+Cs (if any) along with the usual consumer protection stuff. S75 simply means that whatever rights you might have against the shop, you can also enforce against the CC as well or instead.

Now your situation:
I believe the contract has now been completed. If there is anything wrong with the dress, then the shop is liable and so is the CC via S75. For breach of contract, you have 6 years to sue. So you get 6 years to go after the CC. The sooner the better if you want a refund and from an evidence point of view. Also, the CC might be easier to deal with soon after the event because they can use chargeback to recover against the merchant. But 6 years it is, whatever they might say.

Back to the dress. If you now ask them to store it - well, that's a favour. This is outside of the scope of the original deal. There's no contract so there can be no breach of contract. If they destroyed it - well you could sue, but that wouldn't be under contract law, so S75 wouldn't apply. In short, the CC is out of it. To place the CC back on the hook you would have to have a new contract for the storage, the cost would have to be over £100 and you would have to pay (at least in part) on your CC.

My answer would be different if there was provision in the original contract for storage until you were ready, or the delivery time was quoted in such a way that early delivery is not permitted or is to take place at a time to suit. Else you would be expected to take delivery/collect promptly.

bouncydog1

Personally, I would store it at home ensuring that the conditions are right e.g. Not in a damp room etc. I would also make sure that you have cover for it under your household contents policy just in case.

That way you have peace of mind that you have the dress, whether or not the shop continues to trade.

If you don't want to store it at home, do you have a relative who could store it for you, again making sure conditions are right and it is insured.

I would have thought peace of mind on this one point during all of the arrangements would be good!

missk_ensington

Section 75 (which I have used in the past and had my money back) protects you if you make a loss because the seller is in breach of contract. Unless your wedding dress seller is in breach of contract, and you have a loss (i.e item not arrived, arrived too late to be used, arrived faulty) then you case is a moot one. Totally irrelavent.

dalesrider

ianconnal wrote: »

About credit card protection, is there a time limit from point of purchase?
I was adised that all disputes have a time limit of 6 weeks from payment!

Is this the case? I'd always assumed that any limit would be a lot longer than that!

What type of card?

Visa certainly has 120 days from date of debit and I'm pretty sure MasterCard has the same....
In your case you would take 120 days from the expected date of delivery.

If you are wanting the company to store the dress for you then I would expect that they will want to charge you for this service.

yangptangkipperbang

dalesrider wrote: »

What type of card?

Visa certainly has 120 days from date of debit and I'm pretty sure MasterCard has the same....
In your case you would take 120 days from the expected date of delivery.

I think you are getting confused with the facility offered by card issuers to claim back money paid on a debit card (often called chargeback). This has NO legal backing.

"Section 75 does not, in itself, provide grounds for a claim against a supplier. Customers must have a valid claim of breach of contract or misrepresentation under other law, such as the Sale of Goods Act or the Misrepresentation Act" - Financial Ombudsman

This means, in effect, that you have (in England) 6 years.

dalesrider

yangptangkipperbang wrote: »

I think you are getting confused with the facility offered by card issuers to claim back money paid on a debit card (often called chargeback). This has NO legal backing.

"Section 75 does not, in itself, provide grounds for a claim against a supplier. Customers must have a valid claim of breach of contract or misrepresentation under other law, such as the Sale of Goods Act or the Misrepresentation Act" - Financial Ombudsman

This means, in effect, that you have (in England) 6 years.

I'm not getting confused with anything. Read the bit I quoted.

The card provider WILL use the chargeback process 1st.
In fact it is a lot quicker and easier for the cardholder as well.
S75 will require you to submit T/C and other evidence, and take months to resolve,

Bob_the_Saver

Would section 75 cover it if the Bride put on weight?

Naedosh

Hi,
I wondered if there was a time limit for purchases under Section 75.
About 6 years ago I bought a LCD TV with a Halifax Visa Card. It actually broke down during it's first year but was repaired free by Philips. However, about 5-6 months ago it packed in again and the repair engineer said Philips are rubbish and impossible to repair. So it's sitting there on it's stand while we wonder what to do next.
It was only after hearing Martin on the radio talking about Section 75 made me wonder if I can get some money/new TV from the Halifax.
Am I too late or should I make a claim and if so how do I do it?
Thanks.
P.S. I live in Scotland