out of warranty COACH handbag given as a gift falling apart

pathris

Hi, 
I received a Coach bag as a gift in Jan 2019, valued at £350. 
The bag exterior leather and handles are in immaculate condition. The interior lining, made of cheap material,despite Coach's all -leather claims is crumbling and flaking, This has rendered the bag unusable, as the peeling sticks to anything placed inside. The bag has been barely used and has been kept in a dust bag on a shelf with other bags that have not experienced any issues. Despite being well looked after, the interior damage is clearly result from the poor - quality material used by the company.  
When I contacted Coach earlier this year, I was initially told the bag couldn't be repaired. After persistent follow - ups, they offered a repair for £250, nearly the original price. 
Despite the 1 year warranty this damage is not due to wear and tear but the poor - quality interior material misleading marked as leather. 

I am not sure if I can do anything other than pay the repair cost to this reputable company claiming that their bags are crafted to last but instead fails on the durability and quality.
Any advice is welcome. 

Alderbank

Anything the manufacturer offers you is merely a goodwill gesture. As you say, they haven't offered much. However there is no legal requirement to offer you anything at all because you have no contract with them (or anyone else).

But the original purchaser, who bought it and kindly gifted it to you, does have a contract with the store where they got it. That could have been Coach themselves or a retailer such as John Lewis or Harvey Nicks.

I'm sure the person who gifted the bag to you will be sorry that it has been such a disappointment. They do have consumer rights under the Consumer Rights Act and should go back to where they bought it and complain.

Voyager2002

Alderbank said:

I'm sure the person who gifted the bag to you will be sorry that it has been such a disappointment. They do have consumer rights under the Consumer Rights Act and should go back to where they bought it and complain.

More specifically, there is an obligation to put right anything that results from a defect in manufacture.

TELLIT01

The bag is over 5 years old so proving the problem is down to defective materials and not how it was stored may be problematic.  The fact that other bags haven't deteriorated in the same way is really meaningless.

subjecttocontract

Are you sure it's not a copy of the genuine bag ?

DullGreyGuy

pathris said:

Hi, 
I received a Coach bag as a gift in Jan 2019, valued at £350. 
The bag exterior leather and handles are in immaculate condition. The interior lining, made of cheap material,despite Coach's all -leather claims is crumbling and flaking, This has rendered the bag unusable, as the peeling sticks to anything placed inside. The bag has been barely used and has been kept in a dust bag on a shelf with other bags that have not experienced any issues. Despite being well looked after, the interior damage is clearly result from the poor - quality material used by the company.  
When I contacted Coach earlier this year, I was initially told the bag couldn't be repaired. After persistent follow - ups, they offered a repair for £250, nearly the original price. 
Despite the 1 year warranty this damage is not due to wear and tear but the poor - quality interior material misleading marked as leather. 

I am not sure if I can do anything other than pay the repair cost to this reputable company claiming that their bags are crafted to last but instead fails on the durability and quality.
Any advice is welcome. 

You aren't the purchaser and so have no statutory rights as they exist between the buyer and the seller. Other than for things that cause personal injury there is no statutory liability of manufacturers and warranties can be as complete or partial as they want. 

Do you know where the bag was bought from? Coach are fairly active in the "outlet" space and the majority of goods sold there (by all retailers) are made explicitly for the outlet market to that price point even if the basic design is the same as a retail model. It's shocking that nothing has ever been done about it as countless investigations have all concluded their false advertising (not just Coach, many of the brands there). 

Certainly worth looking getting alternative quotes on replacing the lining but its not a small job to do and so won't be massively cheaper unless there is some form of new customer discount. 

pathris

TELLIT01 said:

The bag is over 5 years old so proving the problem is down to defective materials and not how it was stored may be problematic.  The fact that other bags haven't deteriorated in the same way is really meaningless.

 All my bags, from inexpensive market purchases to luxury brands, are stored in a closet with no direct sunlight, no excess humidity, and not in boxes to allow them to air out. If the Coach bag required special storage due to their interior material, that should have been clearly specified.

Hoenir

pathris said:

I received a Coach bag as a gift in Jan 2019, valued at £350. 

"Brands" are well known for marking up their prices to premium levels. Price paid doesn't necessarily equate to premium quality though. 

pathris

It is genuine bag. They inspected thoroughly as a first step. It is not from the outlet as they have different logo.  Also the retail assistant in one of the store mentioned they have seen this issue before and stated it is not reparable. Only after persistent efforts they offered to repair it for the quoted price or remove the middle compartment, which is not viable solution as it will compromise the bag's shape.

sheramber

As explained, If you wish this to be pursued with the retailer then uou need to refer it back to whoever purchased the bag.

Only the original purchaser has any Consumer Rights.

Okell

pathris said:

... When I contacted Coach earlier this year, I was initially told the bag couldn't be repaired. After persistent follow - ups, they offered a repair for £250, nearly the original price... 

pathris said:

It is genuine bag. They inspected thoroughly as a first step. It is not from the outlet as they have different logo.  Also the retail assistant in one of the store mentioned they have seen this issue before and stated it is not reparable. Only after persistent efforts they offered to repair it for the quoted price or remove the middle compartment, which is not viable solution as it will compromise the bag's shape.

As others have already said, neither you nor the person who bought the gift have any legal rights against Coach - unless it was bought directly from Coach.

The only legal rights anyone has are against the retailer.  And you have no rights because you didn't buy it - only the person who bought it has rights.

After 6 months after purchase (1) the onus is on the purchaser to "prove" that the bag did not "conform to contract" on the date of purchase, and (2) the retailer is entitled to deduct an amount from any refund to refelct the "use" you have had of the bag.

After five and a half years (1) will be very difficult to prove and any deduction for "use" under (2) is likely to be significant.