Dehumidifier broke down 13 months after purchase

Jox

Can anyone advise me please? I bought a dehumidifier from currys in Dec 2012 and it stopped working Jan 2014, due to me having a baby and not going out much I didnt get round to taking it back until this week. I took it back to currys and they said that as it was out of warranty they would give me a voucher for £90 (it cost me £150). I was under the impression that they should replace or repair it. Am I wrong? Is there anything I can do to get them to replace it like for like or have I left it too long?

powerful_Rogue

Jox wrote: »

Can anyone advise me please? I bought a dehumidifier from currys in Dec 2012 and it stopped working Jan 2014, due to me having a baby and not going out much I didnt get round to taking it back until this week. I took it back to currys and they said that as it was out of warranty they would give me a voucher for £90 (it cost me £150). I was under the impression that they should replace or repair it. Am I wrong? Is there anything I can do to get them to replace it like for like or have I left it too long?

As its over 6 months old, you will need to get an independent report to show that the fault is inherent - ie, the fault was present when you purchased the item.

If the product is inherently faulty, you will also get the money back from the independent report.

unholyangel

Jox wrote: »

Can anyone advise me please? I bought a dehumidifier from currys in Dec 2012 and it stopped working Jan 2014, due to me having a baby and not going out much I didnt get round to taking it back until this week. I took it back to currys and they said that as it was out of warranty they would give me a voucher for £90 (it cost me £150). I was under the impression that they should replace or repair it. Am I wrong? Is there anything I can do to get them to replace it like for like or have I left it too long?

You can request one remedy over another but the retailer can refuse if disproportionately costly in comparison to another remedy (repair, replace or refund - which can be partial to take into account use you have had).

Try going back to them and saying you feel £90 is too low an offer in the circumstances and you feel it should be higher/you would prefer a repair or replacement rather than a refund and see what they say.

The report info above by powerful rogue is good but personally I'd wait to speak to them before getting one as generally its only needed if they refuse to offer a remedy at all.

Of course if they do require a report, you could point out that instead of them being liable for the cost of the report (if found in your favour) they could just increase their offer and draw a line under the matter with a happy customer included.

Jox

I don't think the fault was present when I purchased the dehumidifier, it just stopped working a few months ago (I didn't use it consistently since Dec 2012, just when needed every few months). I may just accept their offer as getting a report might be a hassle for me, no idea how to go about it and need a replacement asap as bedroom is damp and affecting baby's breathing. Thanks for your responses!

unholyangel

Jox wrote: »

I don't think the fault was present when I purchased the dehumidifier, it just stopped working a few months ago (I didn't use it consistently since Dec 2012, just when needed every few months). I may just accept their offer as getting a report might be a hassle for me, no idea how to go about it and need a replacement asap as bedroom is damp and affecting baby's breathing. Thanks for your responses!

Inherently faulty is more than a fault being present at time of manufacture. In short, its a fault that was "present" but may not have been apparent at that time. It could be because substandard components were used - which leads to them failing prematurely.

Even without the report.....there is nothing to stop you asking them if they'd be willing to increase their offer.

I dont think their offer is far off though (if that helps). £90 refund puts the life expectancy at 4-5 years (deductions dont have to be linear, they could deduct 30% for the first year, 25% for the 2nd and so forth). Personally I'd try and push for somewhere between £100-120