Vacuum replaced with one of lesser value

apothocary

I’ll keep this economic.

We bought an iRobot S9+ 18 months ago. It was £1499 (although we paid less as it was in a Black Friday sale). We liked it for several reasons, but mainly it was their flagship model. Jump in at the deep-end!
It has had issues though and after raising the last one, iRobot deemed it fit to replace the whole unit. Sounds good. Only, they told us they no longer make the S9+ and will be replacing it with a J9+ (a newer model, but one that sells for £749 on their website in the current sale)

We quickly replied saying this is obviously unfair (given it’s half the value of the S9+) and rejected the offer. The J9+ arrived the next day, unannounced.

We complained and, after looking at their website, discovered that their new flagship model has now become what they call the “Combo J9+” — a unit selling for £1049 in the current sale. We suggested a middle ground by accepting this model instead. It’s still not worth as much as the S9+, but it’s a flagship model for a flagship model.

After a week of waiting, they have just replied this morning saying no.

What’s everyone’s thoughts here?

LightFlare

I would say it depends on what the particular features of the different models are

BoGoF

You weren't entitled to a brand new like for like replacement. Any replacement 'value' should reflect the 18 months you had from the original. So realiastically how much is an 18 month old appliance that cost £1499 worth now? 

apothocary

BoGoF said:

You weren't entitled to a brand new like for like replacement. Any replacement 'value' should reflect the 18 months you had from the original. So realiastically how much is an 18 month old appliance that cost £1499 worth now? 

Interestingly, the S9+ is still listed on their website as in-stock and selling for £1299.
If a like-for-like replacement cannot be provided, what good is a warranty?

MorningcoffeeIV

Compare the spec of the models.  Previous selling prices can't be used to compare models, especially when you're comparing sale with non-sale prices for some reason.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

BoGoF said:

You weren't entitled to a brand new like for like replacement. Any replacement 'value' should reflect the 18 months you had from the original. So realiastically how much is an 18 month old appliance that cost £1499 worth now? 

Guidance notes suggest (usually) otherwise:

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/notes/division/3/1/3/4/5

Right to repair or replacement

132.This section details a consumer’s right to insist on repair or replacement of faulty goods, the cost of which must be borne by the trader. This includes the trader bearing any costs involved in the removal of an installed item and reinstallation of a replacement. A replacement would usually need to be identical, that is of the same make and model and if the goods were bought new then the replacement would need to be new.

That said OP it is best to compare on features. You can't insist on a replacement if it's "impossible" (whilst noting they could possibly source another iRobot S9+ from somewhere else) and also if they refuse to do anything then you are looking at a refund minus 18 months use.

I'm not sure what the lifespan is (I'd expect a blooming long time from a £1499 vacuum!), certainly more than 3 years (based on it packing up after 18 months and you effectively getting half your money back) so rejecting their replacement and exercising the final right to reject and then buying a J9+ would probably put you quids in on their current offer of a J9+.

Worth noting you need to make certain they aren't replacing under warranty, if they are they need to meet the terms of the warranty but if you insist upon a consumer rights route they can in turn can insist you show the goods did not conform (i.e have a problem rather than user error/misuse) which is probably achievable but this all becomes a question of headache. 

I'd expect a company trying to sell £1500 vacuum cleaners to seek to have a very decent image to attract a certain type of customer so hopefully you can come to an arrangement rather than relying on rights but I wouldn't be happy with their J9+ replacement either, I think it's a bum deal  . 

Edited to add, I note it was a Black Friday price, figures and lifespan might vary depending upon what you actually paid.

redped

apothocary said:

We bought an iRobot S9+ 18 months ago. It was £1499 (although we paid less as it was in a Black Friday sale).

Only, they told us they ... will be replacing it with a J9+ (a newer model, but one that sells for £749 on their website in the current sale)

We quickly replied saying this is obviously unfair (given it’s half the value of the S9+)

You paid less than £1499, so how can you say one priced at £749 is half the value?  Your comparison is flawed, so how much did you actually pay?

born_again

BoGoF said:

You weren't entitled to a brand new like for like replacement. Any replacement 'value' should reflect the 18 months you had from the original. So realiastically how much is an 18 month old appliance that cost £1499 worth now? 

Especially the OP mention £1499 was full price & missed stating what they actually paid in Black Friday deal.

TELLIT01

It would be interesting to know how much the iRobot S9+ was selling for immediately before it was removed from the model range.  That would be a more accurate assessment of its value.

km1500

the price is irrelevant it is the spec that counts

MattMattMattUK

km1500 said:

the price is irrelevant it is the spec that counts

The S9+ and the J9+ seem to be equivalent in specs, the J9+ Combo that the OP now wants also includes the built in mop function, so the model they are demanding is actually a higher spec product that they had purchased. 

TELLIT01 said:

It would be interesting to know how much the iRobot S9+ was selling for immediately before it was removed from the model range.  That would be a more accurate assessment of its value.

I cannot tell you just before, but Wayback Machine had it at £1,299 on 14/06/23 and it was still in stock and for sale at that point. On Amazon, who own iRobot, it went as low as £679 (Sold by iRobot) before it was discontinued and seemed to hover around £700 for significant chunks of the second half of 2023.