AO Installed new Washing Machine / Left transit bolt in

shaun_from_Africa

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

It will be covered by the guarantee because the action of using the machine with one of the transit bolts was the fault of the AO installer, not the customer.

I would agree with you if the appliance was delivered by Beko and it was their installer that fitted it but it doesn't sound like this is the case here.
If it was an AO installer then what they did or didn't do was totally outside of the control and responsibility of Beko.
This is from the T&C's for the Beko UK guarantee:

What is not covered?
.
.
•Installation or use of a product where such installation or use fails to meet the requirements contained in this guarantee or the User Instructions Booklet.

https://www.beko.co.uk/guarantee-terms
And the user instruction book states:

CAUTION: Remove the transportation safety bolts before operating the washing machine! Otherwise, the product will be damaged.

[Deleted User]

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

I would agree with you if the appliance was delivered by Beko and it was their installer that fitted it but it doesn't sound like this is the case here.
If it was an AO installer then what they did or didn't do was totally outside of the control and responsibility of Beko.

Obviously, that's cover by the manufacturer you are referring to, more correctly called a warranty. The first port of call for the customer would be to the retailer who will clearly be responsible for any replacement or repair costs caused by their installer.

shaun_from_Africa

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

Obviously, that's cover by the manufacturer you are referring to, more correctly called a warranty. The first port of call for the customer would be to the retailer who will clearly be responsible for any replacement or repair costs caused by their installer.

I called it a guarantee simply because Beko themselves call it a guarantee.
I agree that AO will be responsible for repair or replacement costs due to the faulty installation but this responsibility is because of their statutory obligations under the Consumer rights act and not under any guarantee.
In fact, I don't know if AO even provide any guarantee/warranty on the goods they sell.

[Deleted User]

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

I agree that AO will be responsible for repair or replacement costs due to the faulty installation but this responsibility is because of their statutory obligations under the Consumer rights act and not under any guarantee.

I'd regard their "statutory obligations" as a guarantee, but now we are splitting hairs over a definition.
AO will have to take responsibility for their employee's mistake.

shaun_from_Africa

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

I'd regard their "statutory obligations" as a guarantee, but now we are splitting hairs over a definition.
AO will have to take responsibility for their employee's mistake.

I disagree that it's splitting hairs over a definition.
It's a fact that a guarantee and a sellers legal obligations are two entirely separate things and to interchange the two terms can only cause confusion for people who don't understand their rights and a retailers legal obligations.

In fact, the Consumer rights act covers this very clearly as it has a section covering guarantees where it gives the definition of a guarantee as:

“Guarantee” here means an undertaking to the consumer given without extra charge by a person acting in the course of the person’s business (the “guarantor”) that, if the goods do not meet the specifications set out in the guarantee statement or in any associated advertising

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/30/enacted
and it also states that your statutory rights and the rights under the guarantee are separate:

(b)the guarantee states that the consumer has statutory rights in relation to the goods and that those rights are not affected by the guarantee,

[Deleted User]

shaun_from_Africa wrote: »

It's a fact that a guarantee and a sellers legal obligations are two entirely separate things

While I agree up to a point, the thrust of my post is that it is the retailer rather than the manufacturer who has a legal responsibility to make good their employee's error.

It's likely to still be a Beko engineer who attends

Zandoni

It doesn't matter about who the guarantee is with. I'm sure AO will exchange without fuss if they are asked.


I certainly wouldn't trust the machine now, there's no way of knowing if the case of the machine has been distorted.

George_Michael

Zandoni wrote: »

I certainly wouldn't trust the machine now

Nor would I.
Apart from the chassis maybe being distorted, it's possible that operating it with the transit bolt fitted has caused damage to the drum bearing or shock absorbers. especially as it jumped around so much.
Even if the machine is now working perfectly, it may fail in a few months at which time getting the retailer to agree a repair or replacement may be far harder than doing it now.

PaperPauper, what I would do it to send AO.com an e-mail explaining exactly what happened and tell them that as it's impossible to determine if there has been any long term damage done, you want the appliance replacing.
If they refuse, I would them contact Beko customer services and ask them if your guarantee has been voided becuase of what happened.
If they state that this is the case, contact AO again and point this out to the,

How did you pay for the machine? as this can affect what actions you can take if needed.

[Deleted User]

George_Michael wrote: »

PaperPauper, what I would do it to send AO.com an e-mail explaining exactly what happened

The OP has already sent a complaint detailing all that via Resolver.
See post #5

They can't demand a replacement if there is nothing wrong, but they can expect an inspection of the machine by a qualified engineer who will determine the machine's condition.

George_Michael

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

They can't demand a replacement if there is nothing wrong,

A transit bolt shearing off, bouncing about enough to knock things off a shelf and a water leak from the bottom of the washing machine would be enough for me to say that there is now something wrong with it.
Without complete disassembly and detailed inspection of all of the internal components it will just about impossible to determine if there has been any damage which may not show up for some time.