Can I demand a replacement under warranty if older than 12 months?

Rokkster

My Panasonic 37" Plasma is just about to go back for repairs for the third time. It's about two years old, but came with a three year warranty. The first time it went wrong (PSU) it was with the repair centre for eight weeks. The second time six weeks (even though they admitted they just pushed some leads around and it sat with them for most of those six!). Now it's gone down again and frankly I've had enough. So as the unit is still within warranty is it reasonable to ask for a replacement as clearly this issue is not being resolved by the technicians?

Adam

superscaper

Depends on the terms of the warranty. If you want to start demanding things that aren't necessarily in the terms of their warranty then you need to be directing it to the retailer not the manufacturer. The sale of goods act only applies to the contract of sale between the buyer and the retailer/seller. It would be reasonable to me to get a replacement but if you need to use legal force in the end then Panasonic are only relevant if they've broken their warranty terms in some way.

wonka

superscaper is correct - check the T&Cs of the warranty to find out the level of cover. I suspect it only covers you for repair, not for replacement.

If the warranty doesn't help you then you are also covered under the sale of goods act, for up to 6 years after purchase (depending on the device, but a TV should be expected to last 6 years).

However, the Sale of Goods act will only cover you for repair costs, I think it's only within the first month of purchase that you are entitled to demand a refund or replacement if the device is not fit for purpose.

sleep2much

With thing like this going on you can understand why so many plasmas get "accidently" screen damaged and become insurance write-offs, just take a look at ebay under faulty tv's, they're nearly all screen damaged write-offs, I even saw one cheeky devil advertising one as a good insurance claim in the making.

superscaper

sleep2much wrote: »

With thing like this going on you can understand why so many plasmas get "accidently" screen damaged and become insurance write-offs, just take a look at ebay under faulty tv's, they're nearly all screen damaged write-offs, I even saw one cheeky devil advertising one as a good insurance claim in the making.

Considering some posts I've seen on here I wouldn't be surprised if it was mostly down to incorrect handling of the TV by couriers. Plasma is a pretty well run-in technology coming up to ninth generation displays, so the technology itself is quite reliable. But if its damaged by couriers quite often and retailers make a hassle of the sale of goods act (as they always do) and damage isn't covered by warranty only inherent faults then it's understandable people try to cliam on insurance but then that's fraud and another matter altogether.

sleep2much

Another thing I never knew about plasma T.V.'s is that they need to be transported upright, and when in use can only be tilted a few degrees max, great things that they are, they are still quite delicate.

superscaper

sleep2much wrote: »

Another thing I never knew about plasma T.V.'s is that they need to be transported upright, and when in use can only be tilted a few degrees max, great things that they are, they are still quite delicate.

Exactly what I was getting at. It seems some couriers ignore the packaging warning and deliver them horizontal, putting so much pressure on the screen it causes permanent damage if not a complete break in the screen.