John Lewis refusing replacement

ShinyHappyPerson

I'd be interested to know what others think of this.


I bought an iron from John Lewis.com in January 2012 which stopped working in August 2013. As it was within the 2 year warranty period I received a replacement. The replacement has recently developed a defect on the base which catches on clothes. I asked for a replacement but they told me that the warranty had expired as it starts from the date of the original purchase. Is it standard practice that a replacement item will have a shortened warranty?


I also pointed out that the replacement iron had failed within its first year of use which was not reasonable to expect but John Lewis will not budge.


Do I have any other options?


Thanks

shaun_from_Africa

It's pretty much standard amongst all manufacturers that when a replacement item is provided under a warranty claim, the warranty isn't extended or renewed so that it begins again from the date of replacement.

JL are also correct in stating that their liability under consumer legislation (the Sale of goods act) begins from the date of the initial purchase and not from the date any replacement goods were supplied.
You may still be entitled to a resolution using your sale of goods act rights, but this is by no means guaranteed.

The SOGA states that goods supplied must be fit for purpose and durable (part of which covers them lasting for a reasonable time).
However, as the purchase was made over 6 months ago, the onus is now on youto prove that the fault is due to a manufacturing defect and wasn't caused by misuse.

Bearing in mind that the "reasonable time" that goods are expected to last takes into account their price, if you are able to show a manufacturing defect in the iron, JL may have to provide a remedy.
This can be a repair, replacement or refund and it is their choice which to offer. If offered, a refund can be a partial one to cover the two and a half years use you have had from the iron.

Only you can really decide if it will be worth the time and effort that it may take in order to get John Lewis to offer a resolution.
For a £20 iron I would say forget it, but if it is a £200 one, it would be worth taking further.

Sponge

Have you tried contacting the manufacturer? They may offer a resolution as a 'goodwill gesture'.

Jakg

ShinyHappyPerson wrote: »

Is it standard practice that a replacement item will have a shortened warranty?

It doesn't have a shorted warranty - the warranty end date just hasn't change whether it was replaced or not.

Fosterdog

What sort of defect can just develop on an iron? It would usually be physical damage that would cause an iron to start catching on clothes which wouldn't be covered under any guarantee or SoGA

Money-Saving-King

ShinyHappyPerson wrote: »

Is it standard practice that a replacement item will have a shortened warranty?

Yes because obviously you'd end up with free replacements for life if it wasn't!

ThumbRemote

Money-Saving-King wrote: »

Yes because obviously you'd end up with free replacements for life if it wasn't!

Only if the product was of such poor quality that it always broke within the warranty period.

George_Michael

ThumbRemote wrote: »

Only if the product was of such poor quality that it always broke within the warranty period.

Or if some people decided to make sure that the item broke within the warranty period knowing that they would get a replacement that would come with a new warranty.
This probably wouldn't work too often with expensive items but I couldn't see manufacturers spending too much time investigating failures of low to mid priced goods that wouldn't normally be repaired.

Nenen

I think both John Lewis and Marks & Spencer used to have outstanding customer service which meant that they would go far above and beyond their legal obligations in cases like this. A few years ago, I would have expected JL to replace the second iron too, even when consumer law didn't demand it.

It was their outstanding customer service that made me a loyal customer, even when they were more expensive (despite JL's price promise, which used to be easy to claim on... I don't even want to start on that subject). However, I've emphasised the words 'used to' as my experience has shown that in the last few years their excellent customer service and policies have steadily been eroded and are now, in the main, no better than any other high street company.










I've had several hassles with JL customer service in the last two years and no longer buy from them unless they happen to be the cheapest. I do hope that JL will discover to their cost, just as M&S did, that eroding customer service leads to a downturn in sales, reduced customer loyalty and falling market share.

Money-Saving-King

Nenen wrote: »

I think both John Lewis and Marks & Spencer used to have outstanding customer service which meant that they would go far above and beyond their legal obligations in cases like this. A few years ago, I would have expected JL to replace the second iron too, even when consumer law didn't demand it.

It was their outstanding customer service that made me a loyal customer, even when they were more expensive (despite JL's price promise, which used to be easy to claim on... I don't even want to start on that subject). However, I've emphasised the words 'used to' as my experience has shown that in the last few years their excellent customer service and policies have steadily been eroded and are now, in the main, no better than any other high street company.

I've had several hassles with JL customer service in the last two years and no longer buy from them unless they happen to be the cheapest. I do hope that JL will discover to their cost, just as M&S did, that eroding customer service leads to a downturn in sales, reduced customer loyalty and falling market share.

But Marks & Spencers decline isn't because of service, it's well known that the lost sales are because it's clothes range had became boring.