Faulty TV kept for repairs for more than a month

RogerBareford

sheramber said:

RogerBareford said:

I think you have missed the part in the OP where they said that it would be 2-3 days to replace the screen but when they actually had it and looked at it they found there were 2 other components that needed replacing that they are now waiting on. So it wasn't LG lying they just gave that estimate based on it just being the screen that required replacing.

But personally, if an elderly relative of mine had a TV that broke and had no spare one i would be letting them borrow one from my spare room right away before the engineer even came to visit. I certainly wouldn't be letting them be 6 weeks without a TV before even considering this!.

Not everybody has a tv in their spare room.

But did you miss  I have already sorted him out with a second hand temporary replacement ?

They may not have a TV in their spare room, but i still wouldn't take anywhere near 6 weeks to sort out one they could use in the time being.

Yes i realise they have sorted one now, i'm referring to the 6 weeks before they didn't bother sorting one.

(If your questioning where i got the 6 weeks figure from, i'm referring to the two posts from the first page where they said it was 6 weeks and they were still only in the process of sorting out a replacement.)

burningjane said:

powerful_Rogue said:

burningjane said:

powerful_Rogue said:

Argos don't do repairs. The option would have been as has happend, deal with LG, or get argos to deal with LG which would have took longer.

No compensation is due for TV licence/BT subscription.

The repair must be carried out withing a resonable time and without significant inconvenience.

When in December was the TV purchased and when was the fault reported?

Fair enough, but isn't it Argos who would have to provide the refund as that is who he paid ?
The TV was purchased in June 2021 and the fault was reported to LG on 4th November. I don't think 6 weeks is a reasonable time and is definitely inconvenient!

After 30 days he's not entitled to an automatic refund. I'm guessing you mean 16 rather then 6.

Significant inconvience - As in, 4 weeks without a TV might not be, 4 weeks without a fridge would be.

No I mean 6 ... it has been 6 weeks since he reported the fault to LG. How long is "a reasonable time" to carry out the repair?

He is elderly, lives on his own and is vulnerable because of Covid, trust me for him it is a significant inconvenience.

burningjane said:

powerful_Rogue said:

No idea i'm afriad, that would be for a court to decide if you took it that far. Have you looked on freecycle/facebook market place for free/very cheap TV to see your dad for the time being?

Yes I'm already sorting him out a replacement but I posted this on a Consumer Rights forum to get some advice on, well, his Consumer Rights

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

LaHostessAvecLaMostess said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

HeinzVarieties said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

HeinzVarieties said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

The problem is that Argos has mislead your father about his consumer rights.

It doesn’t matter who the so called warranty is with, Argos have the contract and should sort out repairs or contact the manufacturer, as their agent to carry our repairs, on behalf on the customer.

If it has been less than 6 months (not sure what date in June) I’d go back to Argos for a full refund.

The repair time is excessive given the purchaser’s situation.

If it has just ticked over the 6 month mark Argos can impose a reduction. 

OP your father would be exercising his final right to reject as the goods did not conform to the contract and although a repair or replacement was requested the retailer has failed to do so within a reasonable time or without significant inconvenience. 

The 6 months will be from the time your father tells Argos he is exercising this right.

They will probably fob you off so it’s best to Google ‘CEO email’ and search that site for Argos and Sainsburys (who own Argos) and cc both those in as well as customer service. 

I’m on my phone so can’t quote the relevant bits but the final right to reject is detailed at the link.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/24/enacted

What about the OP's father's situation makes this unreasonable vs anyone else?  A TV is of equal value to everyone (i.e. purely entertainment and thus not very important)

Why should they refund over anyone else?

A reasonable time should surely take into account the current market conditions as well as the consumers needs, right?

Or is this one of these endless arguments where you don't think about things reasonably and draw everyone into another endless argument?

Whilst market conditions may be of consideration the legislation has been written to allow the consumer seek an alternative remedy when the repair or replacement can not be performed within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience. 

I don't think 6 weeks is reasonable, particularly having been told the repair would take 2-3 days, your opinion may different and neither of our opinions matter really as ultimately what is reasonable would be decided on the balance of probability via the small claims process (which to be fair would most likely take longer than the repair). 

That doesn't prevent the purchaser from approaching the retailer to express their opinion of the time being unreasonable and request an alternative remedy. 

The situation isn't one of age or ability, simply that the purchaser has replaced the goods themselves implying the wait has been inconvenient enough for them to go such expense (again in their opinion).  

So if market considerations are a consideration then they need to be taken into account.  Is it unreasonable during a global pandemic, with massive chip shortages, to take longer to fix a TV than normal?  I'd argue yes, it is reasonable to do so.

I don't see that it's going to be particularly helpful for the OP's friend to exercise their consumer rights here when

a) it's possible a judge will see any delay under current conditions to be "reasonable"
b) it'll take longer than they're reasonably going to take to fix it for the case to be seen by a judge anyway.

If, on the very rare chance, they take the best part of a year to fix it, going to court might help, but in any realistic scenario, it's not going to help at all and will cost the OP's friend more than letting them get on with it.

I replied yesterday to say our opinions on "reasonable" don't count for much and also noted that going down the small claims route will likely take longer than any repair.

But can we go back to the OP for just a minute and highlight the part where LG said it would take 2-3 days.

Has this chip shortage and global pandemic popped up in the last 6 weeks? 

Is it beyond the scope of imagination that a global company like LG could have a system that advises what parts they actually have in stock and to tell the customer they are short on parts for the TV and the repair may take 6 weeks plus? Or even to just advise the customer due to current market conditions repairs can take a long time?

I fail to see why it's accepted that someone is told their repair will take a couple of days and the company then sticks their goods in a corner for weeks on end waiting for parts.

Is it reasonable for national companies to mislead people about their rights and fob them off to the manufacturer in an attempt to absolve themselves of their responsibilities leaving the customer to deal with a company who can quote warranty terms when the they complain and leaving a grey area on failed repairs and the right to reject? 

If Argos had complied with their obligation to provide a remedy the purchaser would have a clearer line of events and be a better position to exercise their rights. If LG had been honest from the start about extended repair times the OP may have purchased his father a replacement TV straight away so he didn't have to be without one for so long. 

These companies work on the basis that people don't know their rights and will accept what they are told, people who have a bit of knowledge and push back with the relevant legislation are more likely to see a result. I would rather tell people looking for help this is what covers your situation in the chance they get a resolve than say tough luck, suck it up.

What difference would that make when you're telling people "it's not reasonable for the repair to take that long"? Do repair terms suddenly become more reasonable if the customer is told they'll take longer than they're expecting?  Perhaps LG could say the repair will take a million years and that's fine and dandy because at least they were told how long it'll take.

But LG is not the OP's contact anyway, they've taken it to the retailer, Argos, so what LG say is irrelevant.

But none of that addresses the core point that the law that you have a habit of spouting, verbatim, says the repair has to be done in a reasonable amount of time, which it is under current circumstances.

But it's fine for you to continue "spouting" your opinion after we've established neither of our opinions are worth much.

burningjane

Thought I would give an update.. I put together an email based on the_lunatic_is_in_my_head's first post for my dad to send to Argos, saying he was exercising his right to reject the goods under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 as the repair was not completed within a reasonable time, with the CEO of Sainsbury's in copy. A couple of days later he got a reply from someone from the executive office, apologising and asking him to return the TV to a store. We asked the repair company to return the TV, took the TV back to Argos where they gave him a full refund. LG also called him after we asked for the TV back and said they would send him an uplift approval but Argos gave him the refund without it. So thank you very much for that advice

And just to clarify: we had already sorted out a replacement TV, kindly lent by his neighbour, way before I posted but it was much lower quality and it wasn't a Smart TV so he couldn't access all the programs/services he wanted. I didn't mention it in the OP because all I really wanted was advice on how to get his money back. In my opinion, no one should have to be without something they just bought for almost 2 months, regardless of what it is or how "essential" it is.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

burningjane said:

Thought I would give an update.. I put together an email based on the_lunatic_is_in_my_head's first post for my dad to send to Argos, saying he was exercising his right to reject the goods under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 as the repair was not completed within a reasonable time, with the CEO of Sainsbury's in copy. A couple of days later he got a reply from someone from the executive office, apologising and asking him to return the TV to a store. We asked the repair company to return the TV, took the TV back to Argos where they gave him a full refund. LG also called him after we asked for the TV back and said they would send him an uplift approval but Argos gave him the refund without it. So thank you very much for that advice

And just to clarify: we had already sorted out a replacement TV, kindly lent by his neighbour, way before I posted but it was much lower quality and it wasn't a Smart TV so he couldn't access all the programs/services he wanted. I didn't mention it in the OP because all I really wanted was advice on how to get his money back. In my opinion, no one should have to be without something they just bought for almost 2 months, regardless of what it is or how "essential" it is.

Thanks for taking the time to let us know, glad to hear you was able to get it sorted out  

maisie_cat

We had a recent electrical failure, item bought via John Lewis, item was in warranty and returned to a manufacturer repair centre.
We got it back 5 weeks later and the paperwork inside suggested that it had sat waiting to get on a bench for 4 of those weeks.
My feeling is that with people still needing to isolate with Covid, there are staff shortages and they are dealing with "essential" items rather than TVs and coffee machines.

marchwitty

Jane I'm having the same problem.  It was "repaired at LG".  Since a text message to say it was going to be delivery back to me on 16th December, as their turnaround is 14 days.  I thought fantastic!  On the day of delivery I had a text message from the courier company to say there was a problem in their warehouse.  I have repeatedly called LG customer service, which is an utter waste of time, then I escalated it, only for everyone to tell me they were going to call me back.  I'm still waiting for that call back, I've called them every day and had to spend over 30 minutes waiting to speak to someone, only to be fobbed off again.  Fortunately I'm retired and can waste my time (sarcasm intended)!  Only to  be told it's under investigation and a replacement takes 28 days, so with Christmas and New Year that will be the end of January, if that ever comes to fruition.  It was an out of warranty repair and I had to pay £60.  What are my comsumer rights with reference to this debacle.  BTW the TV was only 2 years old.

marchwitty

 The TV is/was two years old and after paying £60 and told there would be a 14 day turnaround. I received a text message from LG saying my TV would be delivered to me on 16th December.  I thought fantastic!  On the day of delivery I had a text message from the courier company to say there was a problem in their warehouse.  I have repeatedly called LG customer service, which is an utter waste of time, then I escalated it, only for everyone to tell me they were going to call me back.  I'm still waiting for that call back. I've called them every day and had to spend over 30 minutes waiting to speak to someone, only to be fobbed off again.  Fortunately I'm retired and can waste my time (sarcasm intended)!  Only to  be told it's under investigation and a replacement takes 28 days, so with Christmas and New Year that will be the end of January, if that ever comes to fruition. What are my comsumer rights with reference to this debacle. 

Manxman_in_exile

@burningjane -  thanks for the update and congratulations to you and your dad on getting it sorted out.  6 weeks was never a reasonable length of time and I'm surprised so many people thought it was.

I'm sure @HeinzVarieties and @LaHostessAvecLaMostess would like to pass on their congratulations too, but unfortunately they have gone the same way as that user's other trolling sock-puppets and have been banned.  (Although I think they've already returned in another guise... )