Guarantee without paperwork

WeAreGhosts

Does anyone know where I stand with a guarantee for a product (just over a year old) that doesn't have paperwork? I have the PayPal receipt for the now broken product, but the company wants to know that I filled in the paperwork for the guarantee, but I know there wasn't any paperwork included with the product. The product is still on the company's website saying it comes with a 3 year guarantee. If it comes with a 3 year guarantee then they must be pretty certain it will last 3 years, not the one year I've had it for. 
I've previously seen paperwork for "warranties" for say, TVs etc, but have never had to fill in paperwork when something is "guaranteed", usually the receipt and photos of the product is enough.

*edit* UPDATE BELOW

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

With a guarantee you are bound by the terms so if they require you to fill out a form or register within x days of buying for the guarantee to be valid that can be imposed. 

Your consumer rights would lie with the retailer, after 6 months they can ask you show the goods don't conform to the contract.

With goods expiring before their time you'd be looking at durability and if requested by the retailer typically a report to show the issue is caused by something failing that wasn't caused by misuse. 

Have you contact the original retailer to raise your concerns?  

WeAreGhosts

Yes, it's the retailer who's asking if I filled in the "warranty" (as they're calling it).
The product is a chiminea and the bottom has fallen out of it, so completely useless after a year.

user1977

WeAreGhosts said:

Yes, it's the retailer who's asking if I filled in the "warranty" (as they're calling it).
The product is a chiminea and the bottom has fallen out of it, so completely useless after a year.

If you're claiming under your statutory rights, those don't depend on there being any warranty offered in the first place, or on you filling in a form.

If there was some sort of manufacturer's warranty in addition, then they can impose whatever conditions they like.

WeAreGhosts

What do I do now the retailer (a small business) is ignoring me?

JHW1942

WeAreGhosts said:

What do I do now the retailer (a small business) is ignoring me?

Two choices: give it up as a lost cause, or commision your own inspection of the chimenea.  If the fault is deemed to be an inherent one rather than wear and tear or misuse, you send the retailer a letter demanding action under your consumer rights.

JJ_Egan

To make that clear you claim under the law  not the warranty .

Not sure who covers chimena inspection though , a potter ??

WeAreGhosts

When I say chiminea, it's a metal one, not pot. Also I don't drive so getting to an 'expert' is impossible.
Retailer now seems to think that because I didn't fill in the warranty then nothing applies, as I was 'offered extra protection but didn't take the opportunity.' Banging my head against a brick wall now. Don't want to write off over £100. It's only been used a handful of times.

Flight3287462

WeAreGhosts said:

When I say chiminea, it's a metal one, not pot.

If it was left outside all winter with wet ash on the base that certainly won't have helped it.

WeAreGhosts

Hunyani_Flight_825 said:

WeAreGhosts said:

When I say chiminea, it's a metal one, not pot.

If it was left outside all winter with wet ash on the base that certainly won't have helped it.

It was cleaned and undercover all winter.

Aylesbury_Duck

WeAreGhosts said:

When I say chiminea, it's a metal one, not pot. Also I don't drive so getting to an 'expert' is impossible.
Retailer now seems to think that because I didn't fill in the warranty then nothing applies, as I was 'offered extra protection but didn't take the opportunity.' Banging my head against a brick wall now. Don't want to write off over £100. It's only been used a handful of times.

If you needed to complete warranty paperwork to enable the warranty, and you didn't, then you don't have a warranty I'm afraid.  That leaves the consumer rights route via the retailer, but that will involve you having to arrange an inspection.