Advice please: Fridge Freezer lasted only 3 years

Tiggifarfar.

Bought Hotpoint Quadric from AO 3 years ago £605.00
2 weeks ago it stopped working, had no warranty . Called Hotpoint who said their next engineer can come in a month; too long. Called Currys (who do repairs) they sent out engineer yesterday to say it had a gas leak & is beyond repair, no charge.
Bought new Samsung fridge, again from AO, arrive this morning, happy with it.
Redundant fridge in garden now, would have expected it to last longer than 3 years (almost to the day) - called AO, they put me through to HP, HP say nothing they can do,
Do I have any rights on this to claim compensation back? Whilst it wasn't delivered faulty, should I have expected the gas to leak after 3 years?
Suggestions welcome

shaun_from_Africa

Tiggifarfar. wrote: »

Do I have any rights on this to claim compensation back? Whilst it wasn't delivered faulty, should I have expected the gas to leak after 3 years?

The Sale of goods act (legislation in force at the time you made your purchase) basically states that goods should last a reasonable time. The time isn't specified and it can take into account the type of goods, price paid, the use it received etc.
If a consumer thinks that the goods failed too soon, they have up to 6 years from purchase in England and 5 years from the date of discovery of the fault in Scotland to attempt to get the retailer to provide a resolution.
This resolution can be a repair, replacement or refund and a refund can be a partial one to cover the time that you had good use of the item.

After more than 6 months from purchase, the onus is on the consumer to prove that the fault was inherent (there at the time of purchase although it may not have been apparent at that time).
If you try this, you will need an independent report stating what caused the fault and stating that it was due to a manufacturing defect and not down to misuse.
Personally, after 3 years this is something that I think you will struggle to get but in the end, only you can decide whether or not it's worth it.

[Deleted User]

Tiggifarfar. wrote: »

Do I have any rights on this to claim compensation back? Whilst it wasn't delivered faulty, should I have expected the gas to leak after 3 years?

You won't get "compensation", but what you might end up with is a replacement fridge which you no longer need.

You'll have to organise an independent report (at your own cost) to support your claim that the Fridge had an inherent fault. The cost of this report will only be refunded if the retailer agrees to repair, replace or refund (any of which they are at liberty to choose).

Leaving the fridge exposed to the elements in the garden will not help.

If it were me, I'd just get your local council to take the old fridge away for recycling.

Tiggifarfar.

Thanks for help. Yeh I guess it's condemned now, such a shame it looks immaculate. I'll email HP to complain but I doubt I'll get much from them.

agrinnall

Of course, your initial error was calling Hotpoint, you should have called AO who your consumer rights are with. Had they organised an engineer to come out they might have agreed that the F/F was faulty and made you some sort of offer, perhaps a reduction on the replacement you bought.

agrinnall

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

You'll have to organise an independent report (at your own cost) to support your claim that the Fridge had an inherent fault. The cost of this report will only be refunded if the [STRIKE]manufacturer[/STRIKE] retailer agrees to repair, replace or refund (any of which they are at liberty to choose).

Corrected that for you.

hcb42

in my recent experience, calling the Manufacturer is better, despite the legal side

I bought all new goods as part as a kitchen remodel just over two years ago- goods via ao.com

- Zanussi Dishwasher failed after 1yr guarantee, complained to manufacturer, free engineer visit and fix, simple fix so far so good - March this year
- BEKO integrated Fridge freezer broke down - purchased May 2014 but not installed until Jul 2014, broke down Jun 2016 1 month out of warranty. One email and I had a callout, new compressor, new pump - fixed within a week. - Jun this year

[Deleted User]

agrinnall wrote: »

Corrected that for you.

Edited accordingly.:)

WhyNot?

Tiggifarfar. wrote: »

Bought Hotpoint Quadric from AO 3 years ago £605.00
2 weeks ago it stopped working, had no warranty . Called Hotpoint who said their next engineer can come in a month; too long. Called Currys (who do repairs) they sent out engineer yesterday to say it had a gas leak & is beyond repair, no charge.
Bought new Samsung fridge, again from AO, arrive this morning, happy with it.
Redundant fridge in garden now, would have expected it to last longer than 3 years (almost to the day) - called AO, they put me through to HP, HP say nothing they can do,
Do I have any rights on this to claim compensation back? Whilst it wasn't delivered faulty, should I have expected the gas to leak after 3 years?
Suggestions welcome

Move on, life is too short!

If you really can't do that, seek independent legal advice. A public forum is not the place to obtain such advice. That should keep you occupied for a nice while (either gettting it, or paying for it)