Manufacturers Guarantee and Warranties

Aragorns_daring

Looking for some advice.

My Mum has just bought a new cooker which has a 12 month guarantee however when she registered the appliance she's been told that she doesn't have a guarantee unless she buys a warranty and that if she doesn't have one then she will have to pay for any parts that need replacing PLUS a £109 call out fee.

She queried whether she needed this and was told she must have it and is due to start paying for this as of 1st November. The paperwork that arrived today states that she'll be paying a reduced amount for 20 months and then the payments will increase to what they should be for a normal 12 month period.

We are both confused as to:
1) Why does she have to have this warranty?
2) Why is she having to pay for it now when she only purchased the cooker on 14th October?
3) Why is it only over 20 months?

Any guidance/clarification would be really appreciated. My mum completely baffled by this (so am I to be honest) and the insurance company won't talk to me as I'm not the policy holder.

Thanks in advance

[Deleted User]

Warranties are in addition to statutory rights, so your Mother doesn't have to pay for any additional insurance unless she wants to. It sounds like it's an (expensive) extended warranty.

Doesn't sound like a good deal at all. I'd throw the paperwork in the bin.

cono1717

After the first 6 months the onus is on the consumer to prove that the fault is due to a inherent manufacturing defect - this is usually done via a independent engineers report - providing the report says it's a manufacturing defect the retailer needs to repair, refund or replace the unit in addition to the cost of the report.

So no you don't really NEED the warranty.

unholyangel

Who told your mum she needs a warranty? The manufacturer? Who are the manufacturer if you dont mind me asking? Is that who the warranty paperwork is from also or is it from a different company?

I know some manufacturers do a 1-2 year manufacturers warranty along with a 5-10 year parts guarantee but I've never heard of any company insisting you buy a warranty in order to benefit from their basic guarantee.

If they really told your mum that she must have it (whether they meant must have you have absolutely no choice or must have it if she wants the guarantee), I'd report them to trading standards as well as cancel the contract. If there is no credit agreement in place, also cancel the direct debit or revoke their CPA if it was done via card details rather than account details.

[Deleted User]

unholyangel wrote: »

Is that who the warranty paperwork is from also or is it from a different company?

Appears to be from an Insurance company.

Aragorns_daring wrote: »

the insurance company won't talk to me as I'm not the policy holder.

I very much doubt the manufacturer is in any way involved.

I suspect this may be one of those "pay weekly" retailers...

Aragorns_daring

It's a Hotpoint cooker which we bought via Argos. The insurance company are Domestic and General.

The telephone number to register the appliance goes through to D&G.

She's had nothing from Hotpoint themselves however I'm lead to believe that any Hotpoint or Whirlpool appliance you purchase goes to D&G to register them.

unholyangel

Personally I would say definitely cancel the contract, DD/CPA and report them. Although if you have actual proof of them misleading your mother, it would be a lot better - ie recorded call or them confirming what she was told by email.

IMO there are some limited circumstances where an extended warranty can be useful but in my experience, D&G in particular are extremely bad value and dont really offer you anything above what you'd be entitled to under law. I remember one thread we had where someone had been paying them for more than 10 years - if I remember correctly it was well over £1000. And they could have bought a new & better machine several times over for that.

Cancel it quickly and do it by email preferably so you have a record of you doing so. Not sure of dates involved but she should still be within the cancellation period given the purchase date of the cooker.

[Deleted User]

There is no need to cancel anything unless it's already in place , just don't fill in any paperwork you have been sent agreeing to the insurance (or payment of same).

However, certainly cancel anything that has been arranged and do it quickly.

I suspect that this is a misunderstanding rather than actual misleading information.

As already stated, there is no need for any additional insurance unless you actually want it. Your statutory rights are unaffected.