HSL Recliner Dispute

J_Page

I purchased an ASTA recliner from HSL in August and there is a gap between the footrest and one side when the footrest is closed down. You can also see the gaps are different at the back between the back and the two sides. It is obvious the cause of the gaps is the fact that the sides are not fitted symmetrically. They sent a technician to inspect, who claimed the gaps are within tolerance and there is nothing wrong. Needless to say the chair in the store had no gaps. , The chair cost £1148 and they have ignored my claim that it is not of satisfactory quality and refuse to give me a repair or refund because they have some tolerance value on their furniture. Do I have to accept this?.

bris

Try asking here http://www.thefurnitureombudsman.org/ they may be able to help. Tolerances are sometimes allowed for but it depends on what they think is fair and what is fair, it's not always the same.

J_Page

Thanks Bris. HSL have already told me if I wanted to take it further to get a report from the Furniture Ombudsman, However, HSL is not a member, and anything the FO decides cannot be enforced on a non-member company, So I decided £125 for a report was just money down the drain and HSL were just fobbing me off .

shaun_from_Africa

J_Page wrote: »

Thanks Bris. HSL have already told me if I wanted to take it further to get a report from the Furniture Ombudsman, However, HSL is not a member, and anything the FO decides cannot be enforced on a non-member company,

Even though the Ombudsman might not be able to enforce anything on HSL, this doesn't mean that you have no other options.
If the report finds that there is a manufacturing defect then you could either take legal action against HSL yourself or if you paid for any of the total cost of the recliner by way of credit (either a credit card or finance) then the credit provided becomes equally liable for any defects and as such they have to provide a remedy.http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/section75-protect-your-purchases

A report from the FO showing a manufacturing defect should hopefully be more than enough to see you win a case.

naedanger

J_Page wrote: »

I purchased an ASTA recliner from HSL in August and there is a gap between the footrest and one side when the footrest is closed down. You can also see the gaps are different at the back between the back and the two sides. It is obvious the cause of the gaps is the fact that the sides are not fitted symmetrically. They sent a technician to inspect, who claimed the gaps are within tolerance and there is nothing wrong. Needless to say the chair in the store had no gaps. , The chair cost £1148 and they have ignored my claim that it is not of satisfactory quality and refuse to give me a repair or refund because they have some tolerance value on their furniture. Do I have to accept this?.

You could make a legal claim against the retailer.

To win you would need to prove, on the balance of probability, that the recliner would not meet the standard that a reasonable person would regard as satisfactory, taking account of any description of the goods, the price and all the other relevant circumstances (e.g. possibly a comparison between your recliner and the one on display in the store).

If you feel you have a valid case and you think a judge would agree then see the following link for details on how to make a court claim:

https://www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money/overview