Faulty TV at 2 years - Currys charge to asses?!

danjan

I bought a TV in Apr 2014. It was £150, it's our bedroom TV, used once a week tops. It has a fault of some sort, and is completely dead. I called Currys, first they told me it was chargeable repairs only as it was outside the 12 month guarantee. I challenged that (querying 'satisfactory quality') and another option emerged (curious that). They collect it see what the fault is, and if they consider not a manufacturer fault I must pay £90 (and I get my faulty tv back). If not they fix or replace. I said I'd take it to a store, no cheaper. They tried to get me to agree on the phone to the £90 charge. I didn't.

It seems an unreasonable charge to me - £90 to test for a fault. I then only have their word if they say it's not a manufactures fault. It seems their charge is prohibitively expensive to deter me from taking the risk that it's not a manufacturers fault and so ditch the claim.

Any advice, please? Thanks in advance.

pinkshoes

After 6 months you need to prove it was inherently faulty.

If you do not want to pay their charge, then find your own independent person to give you a report stating it is faulty.

(You can claim this back off them if it IS faulty)

DCFC79

I take it you have checked the usual possible causes ?

danjan

Thanks for for your replies - I considered getting a local repairer to take a look which I'm sure would cost a lot less. I wasn't aware I could claim that back off Currys, though.

It's a JVC TV, it has no buttons at all on it (really odd - no power button!), and no standby light, so it could even be the remote. I've changed batteries in the remote and the fuse on the tv.

AJXX

Be careful you aren't setting yourself up for failure and/or financial loss OP. They're well within their rights to ask for a report or charge you (initially) to produce one.

For your claim to work you (or their report) needs to prove the TV was inherently faulty and this isn't the result of abuse, poor maintenance, other user contributing factor. It's all well and good to take the stance "well I've only used it one a week" etc... but that's not to say it hasn't been damaged accidentally etc...

s_b

danjan wrote: »

Thanks for for your replies - I considered getting a local repairer to take a look which I'm sure would cost a lot less. I wasn't aware I could claim that back off Currys, though.

It's a JVC TV, it has no buttons at all on it (really odd - no power button!), and no standby light, so it could even be the remote. I've changed batteries in the remote and the fuse on the tv.

have you tried hitting it really hard on the top?
always worked well when me dad did it in the 60's

bris

It's not just about knowing it's faulty it's why it's faulty that counts.


No point trying to quote the SOGA to them if you don't know the what it actually says, they do.

LadyDee

If a £150 TV lasted me two years I'd be thankful it lasted that long. If it's been working for two years it would be difficult to prove it is inherently faulty.

You'd be throwing good money after bad paying for a report, and what do you expect Currys to do if you are able to claim an inherent fault? You won't get a brand new TV as you've had two years use out of this one.

Fosterdog

As much as I agree that electronics don't tend to last as long as people expect, people still have well made bits of kit bought in the 70s running well and it's hard to get them to realise that things are just not made to last like that anymore, 2 years for a £150 TV that is only used around once a week isn't very good IMO.

It would also depend on the size of the TV £150 for a 22" even two years ago would be a high end one, £150 for a 50" I'd be surprised it lasted this long. As for what Currys would do, they have already said that if there is proof of an inherent fault they would repair or replace it so I'd imagine that is exactly what OP would expect in that scenario.

The other thing to think about is what else could have caused it to fail so soon? Is it wall mounted above a radiator so getting too hot, do people smoke in the room, it's amazing the coating of orange crap that builds up inside electronics in smokers homes, does the room suffer from damp or condensation? There could be many other factors that have lead to its early failing.

As it is completely dead have you tried the basics like changing the fuse or plugging it in to a different socket? Or a static reset, unplug it and if it has a standby button hold it in for 30 seconds before plugging back in. If it is fully controlled by remote leave it unplugged for a few hours before trying it again.

Autumnella

I would probably just get a quote from an independent company on how much it would cost to fix and decide if it's worth it. Then if not buy a cheap 2nd hand replacement as it's not used often. It's unlikely that you'll be able to prove it was an inherent fault and even then it might be more hassle than it's worth getting it resolved to your satisfaction.

[Deleted User]

£150?
Buy another one..