LG phone manufacturing fault - warranty void if its 2nd hand?

michaelm

I bought an LG G4 from an ebay seller in Jan last year. Last night it died. And after some investigation, it appears to be due to an inherent fault which LG has recognised and are repairing under warranty, which was increased to 24 months, I believe, because of this fault.

I completed an online repair request form, stating the problem and I received a call from an LG representative about this. After going through the symptoms with him he asked where I had bought the phone. When I told him it was from an ebay seller, he asked if it was a private or business sale. I told him I believed it was a business sale, but asked if it was from a private seller, why this would make a difference. He said that if it was a private sale then the phone would be considered second hand and the warranty would be void. I asked why this should be the case when it is an inherent fault which LG themselves has admitted and have changed their warranty terms as a result. He just said that second hand phones have no warranty. It was left that I would send a copy of my proof of purchase and a decision would be made. (puff pant)

After checking, the phone was sold to me by a business, but it is whether LG would consider it a business is another matter. It isn't a Ltd company, for example. But I would like to know what my rights are regarding this.

I always held the belief that if something is within the manufacturers' warranty period, the warranty is still covered if it is sold between two private individuals. Is this correct? I know that if a business sells a used item, they can apply their own warranty period, but surely that is in addition to statutory rights?

Also, if the fault is inherent, ie it is a widely documented manufacturing fault, meaning the item was never fit for purchase, surely it is irrelevant who is the current owner?

I have checked LG's website for warranty details, and there is no mention of whether warranty is void or not if the item is second hand.

So some clarification is required regarding this matter. Any help, whether positive or negative, would be appreciated.

d123

Your statutory rights rest with your retailer, there is no legal obligation on a manufacturer to offer a warranty, and if they do it would be offered on their terms. Unfortunately if the manufacturer rejects a request for warranty you'd need to take it up with your retailer. That could be an issue if it's a private seller on eBay.

For example

The manufacturer has no contract with you (or with the first owner), so there's no liability in law there - the manufacturer's warranty is in addition to your legal rights, so you'll be in uncharted waters; you may be lucky and find that the maker will help out, but I wouldn't bank on it.

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/forum/consumerwatch-2/second-hand-goods-warranty-question-4236994/

A: Guarantees are an addition to our consumer rights and can have certain restrictions on them. For example it’s quite possible for a manufacturer to give a 5 year guarantee but only on condition that the customer registers the guarantee. They are likely to limit this guarantee (which is a legally binding contract) to the person that buys it when brand new, because in effect they make a profit when the product is first sold.

If the product subsequently gets sold on, they don’t. However, as you point out, their initial commitment to cover the appliance for the time they stipulate has already been made and paid for. They would like us to believe the guarantee is free, but of course they are built into the price of the product. Therefore there’s no real reason why they couldn’t honour a guarantee no matter who owns it as long as it’s within the guarantee period, and the (current) owner has the paperwork to show it is still within the guarantee period. Presumably it’s simply because they can get out of it (by saying the contract was with the original purchaser) – that they do.

https://www.whitegoodshelp.co.uk/is-a-guarantee-transferable-can-you-still-use-a-guarantee-if-you-buy-a-second-hand-appliance/