Triton shower guarantee

bambi1980_2

Hi, I bought a Triton unichrome Tees mixer shower on 16th May 2013 for a new bathroom install which was completed by a qualified plumber in early June 2013. The shower is fitted to the wall securely and with it being a mixer shower has a large umbrella type head and a smaller detachable shower head which is fitted to the shower with an attachment. Earlier this week I was taking a shower and went to remove the smaller shower head from the attachment with this attachment split in two and fell off from the shower unit, along with it fell a metal spring which I assume came from the attachment. I didn't use excessive force and the item hadn't been damaged at all. As stated above it's only been fitted 3 months. Anyway as I have registered the product Triton come with a 5 year guarantee so I have emailed them and explained the problem. I have sent some pictures of the damaged attachment and they emailed me back saying that the Quality Manager had looked at them and hadn't seen such damage before. He said that if an excessive load was put on the front of the slider it would be likely to break in this manner. From where the shower is positioned it would be impossible to hang anything on the slider or to drop something on it. I get the impression that my guarantee won't cover this. Has anyone got any advice on how I should deal with this? Is there anything I should/shouldn't be saying to them? They have asked for me to return the broken item to inspect which I will do.

Thanks in anticipation of any responses.

frugal_mike

Well whether or not the damage is covered by the guarantee will depend on the terms and conditions. However the Sale of Goods Act gives you statutory protection for inherent faults. The retailer you bought the item from is liable for any claim you make under this act (not the manufacturer).

If the manufacturer won't fix it then you can claim against the retailer. If the fault is inherent then they will have to repair, replace or refund. I would imagine replacing the shower head will be cheapest for them, and they get to pick whichever option is cheapest.

As the fault occurred in the first 6 months after purchase it will be assumed to be inherent, so it would be up to the retailer to prove it was from accidental damage or misuse if they refuse to offer a remedy.

I imagine the manufacturer will help though, they have an image to maintain.