Samsung "Gift with Purchase" Promotion

saajan_12

Surely its the initial contract that matters, ie phone + earbuds in exchange for £1000. How Samsung choose to write up the invoice is in their sole control and can't reasonably be used to alter the consumer's rights. Otherwise what's to stop them invoicing it as "£1000 charger, free phone + free headphones". Then send a gold standard charger and they are golden. 

A reasonable interpretation of that original contract might attribute the value as £1000 for the bundle, so any refund must be for all or nothing. Or it could be a % attribution based on the relative RRPs of the items so if the phone was £1000 and headphones £150 given free, then the phone is treated as 87% ie £870 and headphones as 13% ie £130. Or something else  I can't think of, but I can't see how £0 value is reasonable because of Samsung's unilateral invoicing choice. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

btr2 said:

Update!
because if they had, they would have seen the dates as given in my original post. Reply sent, requesting replacement.

Whilst I understand that you want your free buds replaced, please be advised that replacement is possible if the issue starts within 30 days from delivery date. If it is beyond 30 days, the unit can only be repaired.

The issue is you have 2 options under consumer rights,

1) within 30 days reject for a full refund (which would be best to reject both phone + headphones due to the so-called free element) 

2) at any time really, seek the right to a repair or replacement, however you can't insist upon one if it is disproportionate to the other. Now that's very subjective and as I think you said these no doubt cost peanuts to make, and indeed it may even cost them more to mess about repairing, but, unless you are going to tell Samsung a replacement isn't disproportionate to a repair, ask them why they feel otherwise and have any hope of CS even understanding what it means, I think you are better off accepting their repair OP.  

btr2

Thought I'd pop in to give an update.

After my reply to their email that I could receive a replacement only if the item was reported faulty within 30 days of receipt (which it was), I never received a reply back. I sent a follow up reply to ask for an acknowledgement 4 days later. I never received a reply to that either.

It has now been 24 hours since I used their 'email the CEO' service (can't hurt I guess, and they state they will acknowledge the email within 24 hours). I have not received a reply.

So it looks like they win. Any further steps I take will not be worth the value of the item, such as small claims court (this is a complex legal issue, and there is no clear answer on what exactly to 'claim' for).

There is nothing stopping any company bundling a faulty product with another, as they know that if they just go quiet, and the value is 'low', nothing will happen.

Thank you for your help anyway.

Okell

@btr2 -  Apolgies if I've missed this, but what remedy are you looking for?

 -   do you want the earbuds replaced, or

 -   do you want the earbuds repaired, or

 -   do you want to reject the earbuds for a "refund", or

 -   do you want to reject both the 'phone and the earbuds for a refund?

sheramber

The OP stated

Thanks @RefluentBeans,

Refund or replacement (I like the headphones when they work).

Samsung are only prepared to repair.

Money_Grabber13579

HillStreetBlues said:

RefluentBeans said:

HillStreetBlues said:

RefluentBeans said:

No they wouldn’t. If the consumer is asking for money, they need to say why they are entitled to that money - it’s not on Samsung to prove how much it’s worth to them. In reality, the headphones cost Samsung what £50 landed cost, if that? 

I really do not see any path where you can isolate the headphones. They’re not on the invoice at all, and so you can’t say how much they’re worth to Samsung. 

This is a legal grey area, with the only (reliable) sources being legal journals used in teaching (and hidden behind pay walls). The OP has a better chance to reject the whole order saying it’s bundled. 

It's not really a grey area, it's breach of contract, as the "free" item as been used to induced the contact.
So it's how the breach is rectified.
I agree with rejecting the whole order, as that would be the simplest.
As the first part, not really understating as a person would claim the £159 the headphones are selling for, as that was  the intensive.  So Samsung would have to then state their figure on what they believe it's worth. If they cost Samsung £50, they would be admitting there is a £109 mark up.

It is a grey area. I don’t disagree that it is a breach of contract, so the contract, the whole contract, can be withdrawn by the consumer. The value of the headphones in the contract is nil. They are a gift. Any refund of just the headphones is going to be that. You can’t claim the headphones at full RRP as the value. The value is whatever the value is stated in the contract - so nil. 

Reject the whole order OP. Going after just headphones is a waste of time, and will likely just get you a 100% refund of nothing, as that is the value of a free gift. 

If the phone that broke OP and kept the headphones as they have zero value, there is no way a full refund would be issued. If they weren't returned the the cost of  headphones would be deducted.

On the flip side, I bought a product from Argos that came with a free Google speaker. The underlying product was faulty so I took it back, thinking they would replace it for me. They refused and insisted on giving me a refund instead. They didn’t ask for the Google speaker back, which was just as well because I hadn’t taken it with me (thinking I would just walk out with a replacement).