Child's bike - Warranty issues?

superleeds27

I'll try to keep this brief.

Bike was purchased in November from E-Bikes Outlet as an Xmas present, the bike was brand new and boxed.

Over the weekend, the pedal on one side has fallen off, the thread on the plastic pedal has basically gone, and it's gone on the pedal arm too - so it won't screw back on.

Contacted E-Bikes Outlet who have basically said that the bike only came with a 6 month warranty (The warranty terms aren't stated anywhere on the website, hindsight, if we knew it was 6 months we would have gone elsewhere) therefore it's not covered. Their non outlet website specifies all purchases are covered for a year.

They have said we can purchase replacement parts for £24.99.

It feels a little off having to cough up £25 on something that's not had much use and cost £135 to start with, I'd expect it to be lasting longer than 6 and a half months before it started to fall to bits!

What's everyone's thoughts on this one?

DullGreyGuy

superleeds27 said:

I'll try to keep this brief.

Bike was purchased in November from E-Bikes Outlet as an Xmas present, the bike was brand new and boxed.

Over the weekend, the pedal on one side has fallen off, the thread on the plastic pedal has basically gone, and it's gone on the pedal arm too - so it won't screw back on.

Contacted E-Bikes Outlet who have basically said that the bike only came with a 6 month warranty (The warranty terms aren't stated anywhere on the website, hindsight, if we knew it was 6 months we would have gone elsewhere) therefore it's not covered. Their non outlet website specifies all purchases are covered for a year.

They have said we can purchase replacement parts for £24.99.

It feels a little off having to cough up £25 on something that's not had much use and cost £135 to start with, I'd expect it to be lasting longer than 6 and a half months before it started to fall to bits!

What's everyone's thoughts on this one?

Irrespective of the warranty you still have consumer rights to expect goods to be defect free and of reasonable durability. As the item is over 6 months old however the onus is on you to prove that it was inherently faulty and/or non-durable considering the price, description etc. 

What does the site say about it being an "outlet"? Just old models or also reconditioned stock or? 

In the first instance you can acknowledge the warranty situation however state that you are asking them to consider it under the Consumer Rights Act instead. Technically they can require you to provide evidence, normally in the form of a report, but many retailers prefer to avoid the cost so will inspect it themselves. Obviously if you do commission a report and it states actually its fair wear or they can see signs its been dropped on the peddle and thats caused the problem etc then its your own cost to carry. 

Is the pedal arm not metal? surprised with a plastic pedal its manage to strip a metal arm's thread. Have you looked online for a replacement pedal and how much that would be?

flaneurs_lobster

A bike for £135 would really only be a child's toy. Unless it's only been ridden around the living room I'd not be surprised that bits have started to fail.

Ergates

In terms of getting a "report" - if you take the bike to a local bicycle repair shop, then they should be able to do this for you.

As DullGreyGuy says - it seems unlikely that a plastic pedal thread could strip a metal one.   Are you sure it's not just gummed up with the stripped off plastic?

Also - I've never seen a pedal with a plastic thread before - even on a kids bike.  That sounds like astoundingly bad design!

molerat

When was the last time the pedal was checked for tightness ? Checking them should be part of the regular maintenance and especially checked within a few weeks of the bike being first used.  They don't just fall off, they gradually become loose so it is generally down to lack of maintenance when they do fall off.

superleeds27

DullGreyGuy said:

superleeds27 said:

I'll try to keep this brief.

Bike was purchased in November from E-Bikes Outlet as an Xmas present, the bike was brand new and boxed.

Over the weekend, the pedal on one side has fallen off, the thread on the plastic pedal has basically gone, and it's gone on the pedal arm too - so it won't screw back on.

Contacted E-Bikes Outlet who have basically said that the bike only came with a 6 month warranty (The warranty terms aren't stated anywhere on the website, hindsight, if we knew it was 6 months we would have gone elsewhere) therefore it's not covered. Their non outlet website specifies all purchases are covered for a year.

They have said we can purchase replacement parts for £24.99.

It feels a little off having to cough up £25 on something that's not had much use and cost £135 to start with, I'd expect it to be lasting longer than 6 and a half months before it started to fall to bits!

What's everyone's thoughts on this one?

Irrespective of the warranty you still have consumer rights to expect goods to be defect free and of reasonable durability. As the item is over 6 months old however the onus is on you to prove that it was inherently faulty and/or non-durable considering the price, description etc. 

What does the site say about it being an "outlet"? Just old models or also reconditioned stock or? 

In the first instance you can acknowledge the warranty situation however state that you are asking them to consider it under the Consumer Rights Act instead. Technically they can require you to provide evidence, normally in the form of a report, but many retailers prefer to avoid the cost so will inspect it themselves. Obviously if you do commission a report and it states actually its fair wear or they can see signs its been dropped on the peddle and thats caused the problem etc then its your own cost to carry. 

Is the pedal arm not metal? surprised with a plastic pedal its manage to strip a metal arm's thread. Have you looked online for a replacement pedal and how much that would be?

The site doesn't say a lot really - https://outlet.e-bikesdirect.co.uk/ - the bike is listed as brand new - https://outlet.e-bikesdirect.co.uk/bikes/kids-bikes/kids-kids-bikes/dino-flash-kids-16-wheel-bike-red-yellow/


I've not seen it in person, but judging by the photos the metal does look to be a bit of a mess!

The pedal arm is metal.
Not looked online as yet

superleeds27

Ergates said:

In terms of getting a "report" - if you take the bike to a local bicycle repair shop, then they should be able to do this for you.

As DullGreyGuy says - it seems unlikely that a plastic pedal thread could strip a metal one.   Are you sure it's not just gummed up with the stripped off plastic?

Also - I've never seen a pedal with a plastic thread before - even on a kids bike.  That sounds like astoundingly bad design!

The pedal arm is metal.

The thread on the pedal has gone, and it looks like it's made a mess of the metal arm thread too

Mr.Generous

Pedals are reverse thread, they screw on the way you would expect them to be removed. No way a plastic thread has damaged a metal one, try screwing it back on with a left hand turn if facing it.

Alderbank

Mr.Generous said:

Pedals are reverse thread, they screw on the way you would expect them to be removed. No way a plastic thread has damaged a metal one, try screwing it back on with a left hand turn if facing it.

You're half right!

Bike pedals are indeed reverse threaded which means the left and right pedals unscrew in opposite directions. The right pedal unscrews counter-clockwise, while the left pedal unscrews clockwise, when facing the crank arm. 

Ergates

molerat said:

When was the last time the pedal was checked for tightness ? Checking them should be part of the regular maintenance and especially checked within a few weeks of the bike being first used.  They don't just fall off, they gradually become loose so it is generally down to lack of maintenance when they do fall off.

They do when the threads are made of plastic and are stripped off.