Faulty freezer... can I insist on replacement rather than repair?

dlpw

Our 3 month old freezer failed whilst we were on holiday, it looked like we had a short power cut (minutes according to the neighbours) and the freezer had not restarted when the power came back on. We lost all the contents and it has ruined the new stone floor of the utility room where it had leaked. We contacted the retailer (co-op) to ask for a replacement but they are insisting they send out an engineer instead.

However I'm concerned as if you plug the freezer in now, it appears to function, so doesn't appear faulty. But I can't trust the freezer not to fail again if we have another power cut (which happens very frequently here). Also the drawers / elements inside (despite several litres of bleach) still smell horrific, and there are areas I can't get to which still contain bits of rotten food (inside the drawer fronts for example).

I have photographic evidence of the failure / state of the freezer when we found it to prove the initial failure and am covered under insurance for the contents. Would I be within my consumer rights to demand a replacement freezer rather than accept a (probably impossible to guarantee the fault had been fixed) repair?

Any advice gratefully received!
D.

Le_Kirk

You have to let the retailer have one attempt at a repair - if that fails you are within the rights accorded by the CRA 2015 to ask for a refund.

Leo2020

Even if they were to offer a replacement they are still entitled to inspect the freezer to confirm the fault.

Steam cleaners are a good way to clean small hard to reach bits. I have used to mine to clean my fridge drawers also round the bit where the tap joins the sink. They're really good for things like that.

LilElvis

My parent's freezer "blew" when the power came back on after an outtage. If you suffer from them regularly then it might be worth looking to see if some sort of protection (surge protection?) might prevent a recurrence.