Ernest Jones refusing to fix ring - but said they would...

Ashin

Hi guys, some advice if possible.

I recently took in a ring with a cracked diamond, and the clerk had a look at it and told me it'd definitely be eligible to be repaired under warranty/guarantee (less than 1 year old). I asked her if this would definitely be fixed for free, and she said yes (obviously our conversation carries no legal weight at all though, so perhaps irrelevant). 2 months later I get a phone call telling me actually they want to charge me for it... which was a bit of a surprise!

Now, what bothers me most here is that they gave me a receipt at the time outlining that the repair will be done, and that the total repair cost is £0, and the balance to pay of £0 has effectively been "paid".

They are trying to fob me off that the "repair" was merely an assessment, and they are accusing me of damaging the ring, so I would have to be £200+ to have it repaired (I questioned how they can just increase the price quoted, and apparently they can increase it whenever they feel like, which seems dodgy to me?).

For clarity I would like to point out that the receipt has absolutely no mention of any kind of assessment or checking of the ring - only that it will be repaired, and the total cost of repair is £0. There are no terms and conditions stated on the receipt, simply a note from the clerk saying "please repair this cracked diamond under warranty". Again, there is 100% no mention of any kind of assessment of any kind on the receipt.

I suppose what I really want to know is what, if any, legal weight does a receipt such as this actually have? Does such a receipt constitute as some kind of agreement of sale, and could I use this to push them to delivering the service as agreed/promised?

My main argument would be that if they did want to send it off for assessment first I would have been more than happy to do that, but to be promised something at the time, wait 2 months, and to then be told I will be charged seems really ridiculous to me. They surely should print me a receipt saying "sent for assessment - eligibility of warranty repair pending" or something to that description, but certainly not a straight up "we will repair this for you" receipt... thoughts?

marliepanda

The receipt is probably simply one for you to prove you handed over something for repair. Not an indication of cost. What does it actually say?

Ashin

Basically -

Repair Type - under warranty
A note from the clerk to the repair place saying "please fix under warranty, as one diamond is chipped" - she looked at it with a loupe, so should have seen if it was damaged enough to be out of warranty (there is no damage btw)
An estimated collection date.
Total cost of repair £0
Total to pay £0
Nothing to pay

Then all the usual receipt stuff - date etc

marliepanda

Well tbh it doesnt make any sense, diamonds dont chip by themselves (so to say theres no damage makes no sense.

I imagine she doesnt have the authority to decide on a warranty replacement, but without knowing the stores systems I couldnt say for certain where you stand.

Has the repair been carried out yet?

Ashin

I waited 2 months and was then told I would have to pay (when they rang I thought it was already repaired).

marliepanda

Ashin wrote: »

I waited 2 months and was then told I would have to pay (when they rang I thought it was already repaired).

If its not already done, then I would just ask for the ring to be returned. I doubt you will get a free repair out of them as it sounds like the whole diamond needs replacing if its cracked/chipped.

daytona0

. There are no terms and conditions stated on the receipt, simply a note from the clerk saying "please repair this cracked diamond under warranty"

- Do you qualify under the warranty? (especially if the damage was caused by the user - bear in mind that I'm a third party who is hearing one side of the story!)

If you don't qualify then the receipt is quite clearly void (because of the "under warranty" bit)! IF you DO qualify then you need to dig out the warranty and refer Ernest Jones to the relevant part of this.

Simple as that, and if there is any further mither then you need to consider small claims etc

PS If you don't qualify for a warranty repair then you either need to go down another route, or pay their normal repair charge (or ask for the original item back).

Le_Kirk

How do you crack or chip a diamond? It is (one of) the hardest substances in the world! I would suggest it is/was faulty.

agrinnall

Le_Kirk wrote: »

How do you crack or chip a diamond? It is (one of) the hardest substances in the world! I would suggest it is/was faulty.

Or not a diamond in the first place.

paddyrg

Very hard, but hardness is only one measure of a material - it's actually rather brittle and impact pressure can cause damage.

You could use a pane of glass to cut cheese, but drop both and the cheese will survive better than the glass - same kind of thing

Hintza

Le_Kirk wrote: »

How do you crack or chip a diamond? It is (one of) the hardest substances in the world! I would suggest it is/was faulty.

You can smash and/or crack diamonds very easily.