Three saying they are not responsible for Phone they sold

BossHogg

I got a PAYG phone (HONOR Magiv V2) from three back in Feb, and paid for it fully, plus a PAYG SIM.
The screen went faulty (stuck pixels), and was reported on 22nd Aug.
Three said to contact HONOR, to arrange repair, so I did that through their app on phone. Got response saying their repairer SBE would be in touch to arrange collection for repair, then nothing. 4th Sep chased Honor & SBE, seems repair was not passed on, so had to report direct to SBE website, and able to send off for repair. 
SBE got it on 11th and diagnosed faulty screen & loud speaker (?), but since then been stuck in status of 'Awaiting Parts'.

Wondering what is acceptable timeframe. Tried contacting Three as retailer and their Cust Svc says "We are network provider and any issues with phone the warranty is covered by the phone manufacturer. We only provide phone on contract, repair and replacement is taken care of by manufacturer.".

I pointed out its not on contract, so they are retailer and have responsibilities, but came back with:
"I understand your concern, the phone purchased either outright or on contract, the warranty is covered by the manufacturer."

Surely they cannot sell these expensive devises and then just have no consumer responsibility?

Alderbank

They don't seem to have said they have no consumer responsibility. They have said that any issues with phone the warranty is covered by the phone manufacturer and that seems to be happening, albeit a little slower than you would like.

Manufacturer's warranty is not the same as your statutory consumer rights. As the phone is little more than 6 months old, Three are assuming that you are seeking a repair under warranty. Are you?

If you do not want this to be dealt with under warranty but pursue a claim under the Consumer Rights Act instead you need to make that clear to them. Honor's UK repair agent SBE would probably still be used by Three to carry out any repair but as you are aware the responsibility lies with the seller.

We can't advise about the warranty because we can't read it from here. Often a warranty will give a better and quicker outcome (for the short time while it lasts) than a civil claim, but accepting the warranty does not affect your statutory rights in any way so you can always fall back on them.

Folding screens are notorious for problems. Having to wait for parts for one for a couple of weeks since mid September is frustrating but might not be unreasonable. However if they can't fix it in a reasonable time or it fails again you have your statutory rights to go to.