Faulty HP Laptop

LPChamberlain

My HP Laptop developed a fault within 4 months of purchase, I contacted HP Tech support & we attempted a repair 'virtually' changing BIOS system amongst other things, this appeared to resolve the problem. Unfortunately 3 weeks later the same problem reoccurred. I contacted HP support, quoting the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and asked for a refund, they are refusing and insisting I send the laptop for repair with no guarantee of return date, just assurances it would be dealt with asap. I pointed out to them that a clause within the Act ‘without major inconvenience to you’  means I can refuse this option as it would indeed be a major inconvenience for me, particularly as they are also refusing to lend me a laptop whilst mine is in for repair. We have arrived at an impasse with HP refusing to comply with the legislation and continually quoting 'company policy' 
What other options do I have? I have tried to find contact details for their Head Office here in the UK (Customer support is an Indian Call centre) but to no avail        

SiliconChip

The first question has to be did you buy the laptop direct from HP? If you did then see below, if not then your consumer rights are with whoever sold it to you, and your only rights with HP are whatever their warraty terms and conditions say.

The first result of a simple search comes up with the following details for HP offices in the UK, including their head office on Reading.

https://www.hp.com/gb-en/contact-hp/office-locations.html

Okell

As above.  Your rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 can only be enforced against the company who sold it to you, and not the manufacturer.

The seller is only allowed a single attempt either to repair it or replace it.  If that attempt fails you can reject the item for a refund.  If that is within 6 months of purchase you are entitled to a full refund.  If after 6 months the seller can deduct an amount to reflect the use you have had of the item.

So did you buy it from HP or someone else?

(Top tip:  if you want to rely on your consumer rights under statute, your first port of call must always be the seller, not the manufacturer)

tightauldgit

LPChamberlain said:

My HP Laptop developed a fault within 4 months of purchase, I contacted HP Tech support & we attempted a repair 'virtually' changing BIOS system amongst other things, this appeared to resolve the problem. Unfortunately 3 weeks later the same problem reoccurred. I contacted HP support, quoting the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and asked for a refund, they are refusing and insisting I send the laptop for repair with no guarantee of return date, just assurances it would be dealt with asap. I pointed out to them that a clause within the Act ‘without major inconvenience to you’  means I can refuse this option as it would indeed be a major inconvenience for me, particularly as they are also refusing to lend me a laptop whilst mine is in for repair. We have arrived at an impasse with HP refusing to comply with the legislation and continually quoting 'company policy' 
What other options do I have? I have tried to find contact details for their Head Office here in the UK (Customer support is an Indian Call centre) but to no avail        

Did you buy direct from HP? If not that might be the source of the confusion. 

if the laptop isn't working I fail though to see how returning it to the manufacturer could be classed as a significant inconvenience, I think anyone trying to take that argument to a court would be laughed at. 

If it's beyond 30 days then you have to give them one attempt to repair or replace the item before you can insist on a refund. 

If you bought direct from HP your options would appear to be a) return it to HP for a repair b) spend significant time and effort chasing your tail on other remedies before realising you would have been faster and easier taking option a. 

LPChamberlain

Thank you for your responses. I bought it directly from HP via their online store, which one would have thought would make it easier to resolve. 

RefluentBeans

tightauldgit said:

LPChamberlain said:

My HP Laptop developed a fault within 4 months of purchase, I contacted HP Tech support & we attempted a repair 'virtually' changing BIOS system amongst other things, this appeared to resolve the problem. Unfortunately 3 weeks later the same problem reoccurred. I contacted HP support, quoting the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and asked for a refund, they are refusing and insisting I send the laptop for repair with no guarantee of return date, just assurances it would be dealt with asap. I pointed out to them that a clause within the Act ‘without major inconvenience to you’  means I can refuse this option as it would indeed be a major inconvenience for me, particularly as they are also refusing to lend me a laptop whilst mine is in for repair. We have arrived at an impasse with HP refusing to comply with the legislation and continually quoting 'company policy' 
What other options do I have? I have tried to find contact details for their Head Office here in the UK (Customer support is an Indian Call centre) but to no avail        

Did you buy direct from HP? If not that might be the source of the confusion. 

if the laptop isn't working I fail though to see how returning it to the manufacturer could be classed as a significant inconvenience, I think anyone trying to take that argument to a court would be laughed at. 

If it's beyond 30 days then you have to give them one attempt to repair or replace the item before you can insist on a refund. 

If you bought direct from HP your options would appear to be a) return it to HP for a repair b) spend significant time and effort chasing your tail on other remedies before realising you would have been faster and easier taking option a. 

Agree with this - I would argue virtual assistance to reset the bios is more troubleshooting that an attempt to repair. So personally I would let them look at the laptop and see if it’s repairable/replaceable. 

Not sure you can insist that they refund you otherwise in all honesty. 

Okell

LPChamberlain said:

Thank you for your responses. I bought it directly from HP via their online store, which one would have thought would make it easier to resolve. 

OK.  So assuming the HP Tech Support you contacted was a department of the seller, see my earlier post at 2:34pm.

Go back to the seller and tell them that because the original fault manifested itself within 6 months then under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (legislation.gov.uk) the fault is deemed to have been present at purchase - unless the seller can establish otherwise.  See s19(14) & (15).

The seller is then allowed one single attempt to either repair or replace the faulty item.  If that one attempt fails they are not allowed any more attempts and the consumer (you) is entitled to demand a refund.  See s24(5)(a).

If this all happens within 6 months of purchase you are entitled to a full refund.  If after 6 months the seller is allowed to deduct an amount from the refund to reflect the use you have had of the laptop.  See s24(8) & (10).

Tell them the above.

RefluentBeans

Okell said:

LPChamberlain said:

Thank you for your responses. I bought it directly from HP via their online store, which one would have thought would make it easier to resolve. 

OK.  So assuming the HP Tech Support you contacted was a department of the seller, see my earlier post at 2:34pm.

Go back to the seller and tell them that because the original fault manifested itself within 6 months then under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (legislation.gov.uk) the fault is deemed to have been present at purchase - unless the seller can establish otherwise.  See s19(14) & (15).

The seller is then allowed one single attempt to either repair or replace the faulty item.  If that one attempt fails they are not allowed any more attempts and the consumer (you) is entitled to demand a refund.  See s24(5)(a).

If this all happens within 6 months of purchase you are entitled to a full refund.  If after 6 months the seller is allowed to deduct an amount from the refund to reflect the use you have had of the laptop.  See s24(8) & (10).

Tell them the above.

Don’t think HP have an issue with that - but the OP wants it done ‘without convenience to [the OP]’. 

HP haven’t said how long the repair will take (as they haven’t actually examined the product yet, so have ruled out software issues but not hardware issues). 

Because HP can’t given an estimate without examining the product, the OP appears to want a refund, as this is too inconvenient for them. HP also aren’t sending out a replacement laptop for temporary use (something I don’t think I’ve ever seen). 

OP isn’t entitled to a refund at this stage. If they don’t allow HP to attempt a repair then they aren’t going to get a refund. As annoying as it is OP - just send it off. If it’s mission critical that you have a laptop or computer, then you should have a backup anyway. Otherwise it’s a mild inconvenience to go without something for a week whilst they repair it for you. 

RefluentBeans

I don’t think sending off for a repair is a major inconvenience, and that’s going to lead to just wasting more time for you. If it was, any repair would be a ‘major inconvenience’. If the laptop is absolutely necessary for you to work, then you should have another option to use if it goes down. They are entitled to look at the product and determine what the fault is and remedy it. 

Could ask if they can examine the laptop at your home, but often that’s only an option for those that have paid for the extended warranty or premium support. They may make an exception though - but you’re not (yet) entitled to a refund. And if you refuse to let them repair the laptop, they won’t have to refund you. Could of course take them to court if you feel you have a compelling case. But if you think repairs are slow, wait til you see the court system! 

Okell

@RefluentBeans -  for clarification for the OP, you're saying that what the OP has termed "an attempted repair" by HP Tech support over the 'phone wouldn't count as a "first repair" under the Consumer Rights Act, yes?

If so you might be right and I might be wrong...   

RefluentBeans

Okell said:

@RefluentBeans -  for clarification for the OP, you're saying that what the OP has termed "an attempted repair" by HP Tech support over the 'phone wouldn't count as a "first repair" under the Consumer Rights Act, yes?

If so you might be right and I might be wrong...   

I’d say it’s a more technical ‘turn it off and on again’. I think it’d likely be a diagnostic not an attempted repair. Changing the bios is as simple as pressing F12 on startup and entering a settings program. Lots of options in there and can do some proper damage to your system by wrongly applying settings, but I wouldn’t consider it a repair. It’s the same as just applying a different setting from the control panel. 

I think the only option is to send it away or ask HP to come to the OP but if the engineer comes to the OP it’s highly unlikely they’ll be carrying the specific part anyway and instead would need to send off for it (or send the laptop off to a central repair location). I also don’t think that constitutes the ‘major inconvenience’ term in the CRA.