Lawnmower drive shaft snapped - what are my rights?

chrisotherwise

In April 2022 I bought a Mountfield rotary lawnmower to replace our ageing ATCO. The ATCO lasted out the season so I only started using the new mower a few weeks ago.

Fourth mow of the season (today), the mower started rattling then with a loud bang the blade flew off. The entire drive shaft has sheared off. There is also a big gash in the inside of the casing where the blade has hit. The mower is clearly wrecked and will probably need a new engine.

So the problems I have now are:

• The mower is over a year old. Even though I only started using it from new a few weeks ago.
• The manufacturer will probably claim that I hit something. I really didn't, but that won't stop them and I have no way of proving otherwise. Having said that, I've hit things in the past with other mowers and what happens is that the blade boss breaks off (held on by 2 pins). In this case it was the entire drive shaft, and the blade clearly hit the interior of the hood.
• It does come with a warranty (5 year) but only effective if you register the product within 30 days of purchase - which I didn't as I didn't even open the box till this year.

Any advice on how to deal with this one? Contact the retailer? Manufacturer? Do I have a case under the sale of goods act as the mower was not fit for purpose? Or will they fight me with "damaged it yourself"...? 

Many thanks for any help/suggestions.

SpudGunPaul

Your consumer rights are with the retailer, given its over six months since you purchased the mower it's down to you to prove the fault existed when you bought it. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Hello OP

First step is to contact the retailer as your rights lie with them, they can if they wish request you show the issue occurred due a problem with the goods (rather than issue/user error). 

Who was the retailer and how much was the mower? 

chrisotherwise

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

Who was the retailer and how much was the mower? 

Bought from https://oakleysgardenmachinery.co.uk/ for £499. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Always worth contacting the retailer first, if they say you should show there was a problem (or say it's not their problem to fix) then you'd be looking at an independent inspection, which might be tricky with a lawn mower but not impossible, with something in writing to hopefully say why the issue has occurred (typically it's durability so some part of the mower wasn't build to a good standard causing it to fail) or at the least to say the issue wasn't caused by yourself. 

If the retailer still refuses to help you'd have to send a letter before action and then consider small claims, hopefully it wouldn't come to that. 

Nothing to stop you contacting the manufacturer either but no consumer rights with them, just what they may, or may not, offer as a warranty or such. 

I've not heard of that company so can't say much, had it been Screwfix or the like I would have suggested contacting head office, they look like a smaller company, which may benefit you if they have good customer service as many smaller businesses do  

chrisotherwise

Thank you! and fingers crossed. 

TELLIT01

Trustpilot reviews are mixed, but predominantly OK.  There is nothing to lose by trying to speak to them.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

chrisotherwise said:

Thank you! and fingers crossed. 

No trouble, pop back if you need more advice down the line  

macman

The retailer or manufacturer warranty starts from date of purchase, not the date of first use-which would be impossible to prove anyway. As such, you are now reliant on your statutory rights under CRA 2015 with the retailer.