Vodafone sales of goods quibble

G.Davies

Been with Vodafone for years, and in June this year upgraded from iphone 4s 32gb to nokia lumia 925 32gb. Two months ago started having an awful lot of problems. i have lost count of this times i have contacted them via there chat service and tech guys ringing me, each time they are no use what so ever. the tech team just say take it to the shop. I had it repaired last week, and three days after getting it back, the faults ( too numerous ) are still there. I spent at least 4 hours the other night to someone, i presume in India? the complaints manager would only say they cannot replace the handset, they dont have the authority, and take for another repair. ( they say there has to be 3 repairs before they consider a replacement)fact is, all the faffing about with resets and restore / backing up is getting me down. The offered me a reimbursement of line rental for the number of days its away?, told me to buy a pay as you go phone!!!! and offered me way out of my contract if i pay £533, and they said i could sell my phone to pay for the cancellation. How can i sell a faulty phone? it's just 5 months old. Help anyone...!

Silk

G.Davies wrote: »

they cannot replace the handset, they dont have the authority, and take for another repair. ( they say there has to be 3 repairs before they consider a replacement...!

Lot's of companies use the rule of thumb for 3 strikes then your out as far as replacements go, although few have it written into their policies.
Best option is to take it back to the shop again and insist on a loan phone whilst it's away for repair.

NFH

Where goods are supplied as a standalone product, the Sale of Goods Act 1979 applies. However, where goods are supplied in conjunction with a service and particularly where payments for the service wholly or partially cover the cost of the goods (as is the case here), the relevant legislation is Section 11N of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 which obliges the supplier (not the manufacturer) to repair or replace defective goods free of charge "within a reasonable time but without causing significant inconvenience" to the consumer. Given that Vodafone's choice of a repair has failed, you could reasonably insist on a replacement in order to comply with Section 11N(2)(a).

G.Davies

Thanks for your responses.... I Know they are holding out as they could be left with an expensive dud!. but to offer a couple of days line rental ( about £3) and advise me to purchase a payg mobile, is insulting. they did ask how i would resolve the issues, i did say a replacement, but then said that cant be done? i was promised two calls over the last couple of days, preferably before 12 midday, i'm still waiting. the way i feel at the moment is i don't want a replacement Nokia, as they probably have an inherent problem, and extremely disappointed in Vodafone. thanks once again

NFH

G.Davies wrote: »

I Know they are holding out as they could be left with an expensive dud!

Vodafone can return it to their supplier (ultimately the manufacturer) for a refund under the Sale of Goods Act 1979.

MataNui

I know its a drag but you may as well do the repair. I can virtually guarantee they wont repair it. When you get it back send it off again. Vodafone repairs used to be the biggest joke in the industry. You always get the phone back saying the 'flashed the firmware'. Thats voda answer to every phone issue though.

This is my biggest issue with phone contracts. As the phone is offered free as an incentive for the contract its exempt from the sale of goods act so they can do what they want, and worse still if they cant fix it then you can be left with an expensive contract and no phone to use on it. Its a bit of a mugs game really. They dont even need to give you a brand new handset in the first place. Voda tried to give me a refurb iPhone 3gs a few years back. You have much better protection if you get sim only or sim free. That way if the phone is faulty on delivery (or within a few weeks) you can pretty much demand a replacement or refund.

NFH

MataNui wrote: »

As the phone is offered free as an incentive for the contract its exempt from the sale of goods act so they can do what they want

Where do you get this rubbish from? If Vodafone were to claim the phone was "free", they would be breaching Schedule 1 Regulation 20 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. I have already explained the legislation concerning the supply of a phone with a service contract in post 3 above. Why are you posting incorrect information which will mislead the OP and others? Please don't make things up. Get your facts right, and if you're in any doubt, consult a solicitor (which I have done) before posting here.

G.Davies

Wow thanks for the input folks..! I'm still waiting for a phone call, supposed to be at 5pm GMT, but i'm hoping it's not at 10 tonight, due to the time difference where customer services are based ( according to the service chat transcript)? :rotfl:

Vodafone

Hi G.Davies,

Thanks for making me aware of this.

If you'd like any help from me could you email me with your details via the link in our profile here?

All you need to do is copy and paste the link into your web browser and it'll take you to the Contact us form on our website. To make sure it reaches me could you also quote the code WRT135 - MSE in the subject line?

Once sent you'll receive an automated reply with a reference number. So I can make sure I've got it could you update the thread with this and I'll get back to you as soon as possible?

Kind regards,

Lee

Web Relations

Vodafone UK

G.Davies

Hi Lee,

This is the only ref given ?
WRT135-MSE [#5200527]

Kind regards

Guy

Vodafone

Hi Guy,

Thanks for coming back to me.

I've received your email and will get back to you as soon as I can.

Kind regards,

Lee

Web Relations

Vodafone UK