Silver necklace broke after 9 months

lesbonsmarches

Advice please :

I bought a silver necklace for my mum, with intertwined discs with our names on it, in Nov 2017 as a Xmas present.
By this Summer, the chain had broken and both it and the discs have blackened.
When i went back to the seller, they told me it was out of warranty and offered me a replacement chain for £10 and replacement discs at a 50% discount.

Does this count as 'faulty' under the Consumer Rights Act? Is it right that less than a year for an item that is meant to be regularly worn, it breaks and blackens in less than a year?

All advice gratefully received

thanks G

elsien

Breaking it depends on how your mum is wearing it. Parent regularly snaps the chain on necklaces because she can't help fiddling with them. And going black is just tarnish. Has she tried polishing it?

peachyprice

Lots of things make silver blacken. Natural oils in some peoples skin, perfume, skin creams, swimming pools, not being worn very often, all these can cause discoloration and wouldn't be considered a fault. Has your mum tried cleaning it with a silver cloth or polish?

As for breaking, it's very easy to catch a necklace with a hairbrush or the like, which may not break it the first time but done several times could cause it to break.

Could you push for a free replacement if you forego the replacement discs if they polish up?

LilElvis

Buy a Goddards silver polishing cloth - available in the cleaning products aisle in all the major supermarkets for a couple of pounds.

Greta_Sharbo

The onus would be on you at this stage to prove an inherent fault - that it isn't wear and tear or consumer misuse/damage.

Without that the trader isn't obliged to offer anything. Unfortunately sounds like that may be difficult.

MovingForwards

Tarnishing can be cleaned off by using newspaper.

You can buy another silver chain at any discount jewellery shop for reasonable prices.

forgotmyname

18" Silver Curb chain 2mm links under £9. Discs have blackened, how often do you clean them and with what?

My wife gets through chains in a few months, she has a habit of sliding the pendant backwards and forwards. Does not realise she does it.

Looking for some scrap silver to melt down, and thought all those chains will be ideal. She throws them in the bin... eek...