Lack of protection with (all) eBay trades?

Telegraph_Sam

I might just repeat myself. What the situation is at the time of the sale, when eBay regs etc apply, strikes me as different from the situation when one's washing machine, dehumidifier .. develops a fault after a few months' service. There are probably relatively few objectionable characters like myself who try to get the seller to spell everything out in writing before making the purchase. Certainly in my experience the sellers have not been particularly forthcoming when I have asked about guarantees and warranties and I reckon this is a grey area.

tightauldgit

The problem is that what strikes you doesn't actually seem to be the way things are in reality. 

Even if a seller put in big letters on their listing WE DON'T HONOUR THE CONSUMER RIGHTS ACT then it wouldn't make any difference because they would still have to if they are a UK business selling to UK consumers. You can't contract out of those rights.

Can sellers act unscrupulously and deny your rights? Certainly they can try to. But as we see on this forum everyday so can Amazon, Nike, GAP, Asos, and every other retailer when they want to. And the routes to enforce your rights with Amazon are no different or easier than with random Ebay seller X.  

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Telegraph_Sam said:

There are probably relatively few objectionable characters like myself who try to get the seller to spell everything out in writing before making the purchase. 

That's the beauty of consumer rights, they don't need to written, they simply apply regardless  

Telegraph_Sam

Having these legal rights in theory is one thing, enforcing them is another. Amazon and other companies with a brand reputation to protect are I believe more likely to give and abide by a warranty, whereas there seems to be an unwritten rule that purchases from your eBay "trader" (many in the Far East) are arm's length, take it as seen, and the seller just ignores any commitment.  Understandable if he has a job lot in his warehouse and once this has been sold that is the end of his interest.

powerful_Rogue

Telegraph_Sam said:

Having these legal rights in theory is one thing, enforcing them is another. Amazon and other companies with a brand reputation to protect are I believe more likely to give and abide by a warranty, whereas there seems to be an unwritten rule that purchases from your eBay "trader" (many in the Far East) are arm's length, take it as seen, and the seller just ignores any commitment.  Understandable if he has a job lot in his warehouse and once this has been sold that is the end of his interest.

Unless an item states it comes with a warranty, presume it doesn't. There is no obligation for a warranty to be offered.

born_again

Telegraph_Sam said:

Having these legal rights in theory is one thing, enforcing them is another. Amazon and other companies with a brand reputation to protect are I believe more likely to give and abide by a warranty, whereas there seems to be an unwritten rule that purchases from your eBay "trader" (many in the Far East) are arm's length, take it as seen, and the seller just ignores any commitment.  Understandable if he has a job lot in his warehouse and once this has been sold that is the end of his interest.

Well unless it is a Amazon product. They do not provide a warranty.
Which is over & above your consumer rights. Buying from a company out of the UK is a different ball game as you are working from their consumer rights.
You can not expect any 3rd party platform to enforce UK consumer regulations on foreign based companies.

soolin

Please note this is a 16 month old thread that has been resurrected. 

powerful_Rogue

soolin said:

Please note this is a 16 month old thread that has been resurrected. 

By the original poster.

Ergates

Telegraph_Sam said:

Having these legal rights in theory is one thing, enforcing them is another. Amazon and other companies with a brand reputation to protect are I believe more likely to give and abide by a warranty, whereas there seems to be an unwritten rule that purchases from your eBay "trader" (many in the Far East) are arm's length, take it as seen, and the seller just ignores any commitment.  Understandable if he has a job lot in his warehouse and once this has been sold that is the end of his interest.

A person based in the Far East selling goods online isn't bound by UK consumer laws at all.  In theory they'd be bound by whatever consumer protection laws exist in their home country - but good luck getting those enforced.

Telegraph_Sam

This seems to be a grey area -  if for example the goods are supplied from a UK warehouse. My gut feel is to assume that in practice if I buy an eBay item there is no warranty unless specifically stated. I'm surprised that this caveat emptor condition doesn't seem to feature in consumer finance programmes