play.com - our policy is to deal with faulty goods for 35 days only

Doc_N

Do people know that Play use their returns policy (below) to avoid having to deal with any goods that go wrong after a month or so?

"Our returns policy is valid for 28 days from receipt of an item."

Although they show this policy on their website, you might reasonably assume that they don't apply it if they've sent you faulty goods. Don't you believe it! They do still apply it, and unless the fault shows up in a month or so (35 days is what they told me), you're on your own. Play will do nothing at all about it.

I've had problems recently with a non-functioning item bought from them more than 35 days ago, and they absolutely refuse to do anything about it. So if your expensive new TV, camera, PC, mobile or whatever else you buy from them fails on day 36, it's your problem - not theirs. They will do nothing to help, apart from suggest you go to the manufacturer, and that's almost certainly going to mean you sending the item away for repair at your own cost.

If a UK firm tried to fob off its customers like this it would have Trading Standards on its back very quickly because of the Sale of Goods Act. Unfortunately Play are based in Jersey, which doesn't yet have such strong consumer legislation.

There's a pretty clear message here for anyone out there thinking of buying a big item from Play - DON'T! You'll have none of the normal UK consumer protection, and Play just won't want to know when your nice new TV or whatever packs up 36 days ater you've bought it.

hollydays

THeir t & cs also say you HAVE to notify them of faulty goods within 10 days of delivery,and that this doesnt affect your statutory rights?

Doc_N

hollydays wrote: »

THeir t & cs also say you HAVE to notify them of faulty goods within 10 days of delivery,and that this doesnt affect your statutory rights?

Gets worse and worse, doesn't it - particularly when you realise that it's not even UK statutory rights that they're talking about.

Clause 32 of their T&C:

Every purchase you make shall be deemed performed in Jersey. Jersey law shall govern every aspect of contractual agreement concerning purchases made from the Site.

Which, in essence, means you get very little protection against Play when things go wrong.

Altarf

Provided the item costs more than £100 the simple way to deal with this (and any other shop which messes you around) is to take it up with your credit card company.

Your credit card company will bleat that you need to deal with the retailer, but Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act makes them jointly and severally liable with the retailer. So although they may say that you should deal with the retailer, there is nothing to stop you dealing with the credit card company from the very start of a problem.

However I normally give the retailer one chance to sort the problem. If they then try the "you need to deal with the manufacturer, head office on an 0870, etc", then I stop dealing with the company and will write to the card company (no point in phoning the card company as the front line staff are not trained in this area or are deliberately mis-trained card company), and set out the details are that you are holding the card company under Section 75 and that they are liable to resolve the problem.

Obviously as the card company cannot practically repair or replace the item, I have found that the end result is that they just reverse the transaction on your account. Whether this has an implication for the retailer I neither know nor care, as it has been their lack of customer service that has caused this.

mpython

Hopefully someone more educated than me can help you out, but as far as I know, whatever a company's policy is, it doesn't overide your legal rights. So if a company says their policy is not to refund after 10 days, thats irrelevant if the goods are not as described, no fit for purpose or not of merchantable quality. The only 'fly' in the ointment I can see with this case, is that Play.com is not a UK company, its a Jersey (?) company & I'm not not au fait with the sale of goods law on goods from Jersey.

superscaper

mpython wrote: »

I'm not not au fait with the sale of goods law on goods from Jersey.

Don't think anyone is because there isn't any consumer law. So play.com actually can say whatever they want and there is NO law to override it. There is an equivalent to the sale of goods act in draft form and is yet to be implemented. Everything with consumer rights falls under "common law" so essentially relies on a case by case basis arguing from precendent. I only learned all of this today in trying to prove the OP wrong but they're completely right and I'm now going to be wary of buying anything expensive from Jersey.

Doc_N

Spot on, Superscaper - you've been looking at the same stuff I have. Jersey are currently carrying out a consultation exercise on the proposed new legislation, which is likely to bring them in line with the UK.

It may be mainly to improve things for their own residents against the likes of Play, but they've probably also realised that if they don't do something more and more people like you and me are simply going to stop buying anything from Jersey registered companies.

It doesn't have to be like this. Not all Jersey companies exploit the situation as Play are doing, and some of them look after their customers when things go wrong.

So far as Play are concerned, their policy is crystal clear - after 35 days you're on your own. The answer is also crystal clear - don't buy anything from Play until they change their policy.

colin79666

Here's the web address for anyone looking for advice on how to complain in writing to a cc company: http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/after_you_buy/making-complaint/complaining-in-writing/

Dave_Brooker

Doc_N wrote: »

Do people know that Play use their returns policy (below) to avoid having to deal with any goods that go wrong after a month or so?

"Our returns policy is valid for 28 days from receipt of an item."

Although they show this policy on their website, you might reasonably assume that they don't apply it if they've sent you faulty goods. Don't you believe it! They do still apply it, and unless the fault shows up in a month or so (35 days is what they told me), you're on your own. Play will do nothing at all about it.

I've had problems recently with a non-functioning item bought from them more than 35 days ago, and they absolutely refuse to do anything about it. So if your expensive new TV, camera, PC, mobile or whatever else you buy from them fails on day 36, it's your problem - not theirs. They will do nothing to help, apart from suggest you go to the manufacturer, and that's almost certainly going to mean you sending the item away for repair at your own cost.

If a UK firm tried to fob off its customers like this it would have Trading Standards on its back very quickly because of the Sale of Goods Act. Unfortunately Play are based in Jersey, which doesn't yet have such strong consumer legislation.

There's a pretty clear message here for anyone out there thinking of buying a big item from Play - DON'T! You'll have none of the normal UK consumer protection, and Play just won't want to know when your nice new TV or whatever packs up 36 days ater you've bought it.

If you want all the rights associated with buying something in this country, buy things in this country.

Why is it surprising to you that off shore websites selling discounted goods don't offer the same back up as a local shop???

Doc_N

Dave_Brooker wrote: »

If you want all the rights associated with buying something in this country, buy things in this country.

Why is it surprising to you that off shore websites selling discounted goods don't offer the same back up as a local shop???

It might surprise quite a lot of people actually, because most of Play's customers probably don't realise they're making a contract with a non-UK company under non-UK law. That was the point of the OP.

Some overseas websites actually offer better back-up than a lot of local shops. Some don't - and Play is one of these.

pulliptears

Doc_N wrote: »

It might surprise quite a lot of people actually, because most of Play's customers probably don't realise they're making a contract with a non-UK company under non-UK law. That was the point of the OP.

Some overseas websites actually offer better back-up than a lot of local shops. Some don't - and Play is one of these.

It surprised me. I do buy from Play, albeit the Odd T shirt etc but its made me think twice about larger purchases.

I for one am grateful to the OP for pointing this out.:T