Magnet Kitchen -split cabinets

SuzyVB

Hi there, I would just like a bit of advice. After having a kitchen fitted by Magnet in August 2019, we noticed in March 2020 that we had cracks appearing in the paintwork of the cupboards and reported this (obviously during the pandemic). After much too-ing and fro-ing with Magnet, they sent us this response this morning:

I have sent all photos to our Quality Assurance Team and they advised me that “the issues raised are caused by excessive moisture ingress which will have been from either spillages and or cleaning. In either case there has been excess moisture where it has not been removed. When moisture is left for prolonged periods of time it will eventually penetrate the surface/ joints and this in turn causes the core material to swell and the wrap to bubble. All frontals, panels and trims are moisture resistant. They are not waterproof, so they require drying when they get wet. Failure to do this will eventually result in the failure of the product and this is not covered under the terms of the product guarantees” We value all of our customers so highly & would like to help them as much as we can.We are willing to arrange for a company to come out & paint your panels. This does involve a cost & we are willing to take the majority of it but you will need to pay some % of it.I know this may not be the result you would have hoped for but considering all circumstance this is the best solution I can offer you.

We are not satisfied with this response, (in my mind the paint finish is obviously inappropriate for a kitchen setting) but I would like to find out how what our rights are as consumers so that we could confidently challenge this decision. I'd love some top tips!

Many thanks

Suzy

 

SaverRate

Have they stated the percentage you need to pay? If not go back and offer 0.01% 

pinkshoes

Cupboards that crack if water gets spilt on them?!?!? That sounds a little like not fit for purpose if you ask me!

Can you post a picture of the cracks? If it is happening on several cupboards then the odds of you spilling liquid all over many doors is unlikely. Did they come with any instructions on care??

I would be considering getting an independent report to show they were inherently faulty. 

maisie_cat

If water is spilt on plastic wrapped MDF and it isn't wiped off immediately the water will ingress somewhere and make the MDF expand. That will cause the plastic wrap to crack, we had this with a Howdens kitchen we inherited that had water sitting while the house was empty.
From my experience it happens less with chipboard and a real wood painted/varnished cabinet will recover, if it is in fact painted it's easy to fix.
We had a under sink leak on a solid wood cabinet in our last house and all we had to do was sand and re-varnish.
The only other thing I can think of is if any of the components were cut down to make them fit, the exposed MDF would need to be protected especially if against a wall and therefore potentially exposed to damp, we've had that one too as we have sloped walls here.
Best thing would be to get an expert to report whether the seams are faulty in any way and therefore incapable of protecting the core in normal use.