Faulty iPhone bought on Ebay

dry_ice

Hi,

I bought an iPhone SE on eBay 2 years ago [from a company called supersonic_gadgets], and it stopped working. 
After going to a couple of Apple stores and speaking to senior service people on the phone, they claimed that the motherboard is buggered, and it'd cost more to repair than is worth it.

Apple said "It should last a lot longer than that" and other things along those lines. I've also had many Apple products and they've been fine, but am generally happy to replace after about 4-5 years. 

2 years just isn't good enough. 

I contacted the eBay seller. Twice. No reply. I chatted online to eBay, who took absolutely no responsibility and wouldn't chase the seller for me, saying they're "Just a platform". [However the seller still seems to be active and I've found their address, so that might be useful.]


Apple offered me a reconditioned phone for £310 (I paid 380 I think, but via the apple store it's like 480), with a 90 day warranty! I laughed. The guy in the shop said "It's an electronic device, they just fail sometimes", whilst also saying he had a 2018 iPad and it's still fine... 

I know 2 years is maybe a 'reasonable length of time' to some people, but it's not for me. It's also the fact Apple can't repair it easily. 

What can I do? Do I go to back to the eBay seller?

Thanks,
P.

Aylesbury_Duck

Your rights lie solely with the seller, so yes.  They're entitled to ask you for an independent report which suggests or proves a problem inherent at the time of purchase.  If you have that in writing from your Apple store visit, then contact the seller.  The seller should then choose whether to replace (with a handset of similar age), repair, or refund, with the refund reduced to reflect use to date.

Mr.Generous

As long as the independent report doesn't say the board is faulty but don't know the reason - impact damage? Water damage? or finds the cause and states it's one of the above or user error. How much is an experts report?

dry_ice

Why "at the time of purchase"? 

It's about developing a problem later on...

Aylesbury_Duck

dry_ice said:

Why "at the time of purchase"? 

It's about developing a problem later on...

Yes, but your argument is that it's failed prematurely, which was the result of a manufacturing flaw or mishandling before sale, for example.  In other words, something that was there at the time of purchase but wouldn't be apparent.  Not the fault, but the root cause of it.

If it's not that, then by implication, premature failure has arisen from your use of it, which would result in you having no recourse with the seller.

dry_ice

Prematurely, as in far too soon for a decent 'lifetime'. 

It should withstand some wear & tear and last longer than what it has. Kind of impossible to ascertain whether the fault was there from the start or developed later on. 

Aylesbury_Duck

dry_ice said:

Prematurely, as in far too soon for a decent 'lifetime'. 

It should withstand some wear & tear and last longer than what it has. Kind of impossible to ascertain whether the fault was there from the start or developed later on. 

Nevertheless, the seller can ask you to provide reasonable evidence of that before they're obliged to do anything.  After six months the onus is on you to demonstrate a fault that can be described as inherent.  That usually means an independent inspection, the cost of which you bear but which should be refunded if you are able to use it to secure a resolution.

The other thing about 'lifetime' is that it's not really definable in this sense.  Someone occasionally using their phone for calls and texts might get many years' use out of a handset someone else wears out in a year because they're constantly on it, charging it all the time, etc.

DullGreyGuy

When you bought it 2 years ago, was it sold as brand new or secondhand/reconditioned?

tightauldgit

The only rights you would have would be with the original seller so that's what you would have to pursue. If they aren't being co-operative then you'd have to look at the court to enforce your rights. As others have said it would be up to you to demonstrate that the fault was inherent rather than user-caused and you'd probably be looking at best to get about a third of what you paid for the device back (since you've already had 2 years usage on what's probably a 3 year lifespan at best) possibly less. Up to you if you think it's worth the hassle or you just eat this one as bad luck.

born_again

https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/09641765

dry_ice

Okay thanks everyone.