Author Topic: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.  (Read 4528 times)

Offline AngusMcCoatup

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #27 on: Wednesday 12 December 18 20:37 GMT (UK) »
Just a couple of comments for what it is worth, feel free to ignore if you like.

The Sale of Goods Act has been replaced by The Consumer Rights Act 2015 so if you intend on going down the legal route, make you know which current act you are referencing. Edit: OK, I see you bought the TV before the Consumer Rights Act came into force.

"12 years is a reasonable life expectancy for a television" - maybe in the CRT days but in the current throw-away society today, you'd be very lucky to get that. However having said that, an item should last a reasonable amount of time after purchase and to find it failing after just three years is not acceptable. I would say getting six years out of an LCD/LED TV these days is quite acceptable although they should go on for longer than that.

I think the offer of £55 is not on though. If it was me I'd ask for about £140 and see where they go from there - that's just under half the value of the TV when new and you have had around "half" of its life out of it. Plus they're just offering a credit voucher meaning you still need to spend any refund with them - I'd prefer a refund to source so you can go spend it where you like.

If you want the moral victory and go down the small claims court route, then go ahead but be prepared that you might not get the outcome you want and if it begins to draw out, is it all worth the effort for just £55?

Offline Mart 'n' Al

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #28 on: Wednesday 12 December 18 23:09 GMT (UK) »
Recent correspondence with Amazon.  Their latest response far below, and my reply here.

Dear Amazon

I will start the Small Claims Procedure as previously advised at 5pm on Monday.

I have already explained that an LED screen is expected to be good for in excess of 50,000 hours and that TVs these days are likely to be technically obsolete before they fail.  I have already asked several days ago if you wanted written confirmation of this from a TV engineer.  I received no reply.  The company I dealt with almost laughed at me when I said that it had failed after such a short time and that I needed their report.  They didn't understand why I was having this problem in getting the TV replaced as it must have been faulty, or poorly assembled, but not immediately obvious.  It was suggested that one or more sub-standard components failed.

I have already stated twice that I decline the offer of £55.  I have tried to negotiate a satisfactory settlement on several occasions.  Amazon refused to liaise with the mediation company I appointed, so I am quite happy to rely on a decision to be made by the Small Claims Court.  I think I will only need my interpretation of the law to be seen by someone who has bought a TV in the last few years and will find the statement by Amazon that it should only last three years to be absurd.  I also note that there was no reply to, nor acknowledgement of, my request for a Deadlock Letter.

I realise that the law isn't clear in this matter, but I am going to let someone else make that decision for us.  This matter is now out of my hands.

Martin Watson


> Message From Executive Customer Relations
>
> Dear Mr Watson,
>
> I am from Amazons Executive Customer Relations.
>
> I am sorry to hear that the TV became faulty after 3 years of use. I have checked your previous correspondence and I understand that you have requested for a credit refund of £225.00 multiple times in your previous emails. I can see that the Consumer Rights Act 2015 indicates that customers may make a claim in respect of defective goods for a maximum period of 6 years. This doesn't imply that an item has a warranty of six years respectively, but permits an individual to make a claim under certain circumstances within that time period.
>
> While Amazon doesn't provide the warranty for this item, we honour our obligations under the Consumer Rights Act, which grants recourse against a seller of goods if those goods were defective at the time of purchase (i.e. if there was an inherent fault in the goods). This may include, in certain circumstances, repair, refund or replacement, but only to the extent that doing so is not disproportionate to the value of the goods, having regard to the use the customer has already had of the goods and the nature of the goods. In addition, in order to be entitled to any repair, refund or replacement 6 months or more after purchase of goods, you must be able to provide evidence that the product was defective at the time of purchase.
>
> For more information on your statutory rights, please contact your local Trading Standards Office.
>
> I see that you made your purchase approximately 39 months ago and have used it successfully and reported no fault with the product until now. As a result, we aren't able to offer you a repair, replacement or refund of the replacement value. However, as a measure of goodwill in this particular instance, we would like to offer you £55.00 to your gift certificate balance. You can use this towards a future order on the Amazon.co.uk website. Please confirm if you wish to accept this and I will make the appropriate arrangements.
>
> Unfortunately, we won't be able to assist any further on this issue, but we'll be more than happy to provide any help you may need in the future.

Online Rena

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #29 on: Thursday 13 December 18 03:09 GMT (UK) »
I think I'd be doing a bit of research, such as looking to see if A-z-n is still selling TVs manufactured by that particular company - if not then I'd be suspicious.

Also I'd be surfing to see if the particular make/model of your TV has caused problems for other buyers.

Additionally, I don't know whether I was conned or not but a short while ago I had cause to have the repairman to my TV.  He immediately said it was a Sky satellite dish problem - apparently they'd brought out a new configuration (or some such). I pointed out that I didn't have Sky TV but did have a dish for TV reception, as my original ordinary aerial was receiving disturbed signals due to a new nearby windfarm.  The new dish was installed and the TV reception is back to normal.

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Offline barryd

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #30 on: Thursday 13 December 18 04:02 GMT (UK) »
MedPat

ASDA - Walmart - good companies. Some of the others are hardly surviving. Some will be totally out of business. When is the question? The answer is when the announcement comes that they are closing down stores and laying off employees.





Offline Mart 'n' Al

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #31 on: Saturday 15 December 18 16:22 GMT (UK) »
Final update. Yesterday I got cold feet and decided I didn't want to risk losing and  getting costs awarded against me so I reluctantly accepted the offer of £55. I'm very disappointed but it was a victory for my very reluctant common sense over my natural tenacity and obsession. 

Thank you all for your comments suggestions and support.

Martin

Offline mazi

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #32 on: Saturday 15 December 18 17:19 GMT (UK) »
Amazon are offering a 65 inch LG oled  for a mere £1989, add a few hundred for a sound system and you are away.  ;D ;D ;D ;D

Mike

Offline Guy Etchells

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #33 on: Sunday 16 December 18 07:09 GMT (UK) »
Final update. Yesterday I got cold feet and decided I didn't want to risk losing and  getting costs awarded against me so I reluctantly accepted the offer of £55. I'm very disappointed but it was a victory for my very reluctant common sense over my natural tenacity and obsession. 

Thank you all for your comments suggestions and support.

Martin

Martin, I have only just read this thread and from the letter you wrote (answer 29) I am not surprised they have refused a repair or refund.

Consider this-

(From their eyes) The TV has been used for over 3 years, that is a possible minimum of 26280 hours use (it is up to you to prove less use).
It had worked perfectly well for those 3 years therefore it was not faulty when purchased.

(You claim) “an LED screen is expected to be good for in excess of 50,000 hours” Did the screen fail (I.E. the LEDs fail to light/change state etc.)? You mention in you initial post “stripes across the screen” They could be caused by the other electronics in the TV rather than the screen.

You have not (from what I can see) offered the company any proof to back up your claims, but have simply mentioned comments, opinions and suggestions.

To back up your claim after so many years you would really have to have a detailed engineer's report specifying the exact fault and the component(s) that failed. You have not even mentioned whether they have actually examined the TV itself or have made the comments based on your description of the fault to them.

It seems to me the company have been generous offering you £55 as a goodwill gesture as many High Street companies would have offered nothing.

Though it is possible to make claims after a number of years the onus is on the claimant to prove the fault was present at the time of purchase by the use of expert reports rather than comments and suggestions.
Sorry if this sounds harsh.

Cheers
Guy
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Offline Mowsehowse

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #34 on: Sunday 16 December 18 09:12 GMT (UK) »
For what it is worth....
My husband is an electrical engineer, having started along that road by training as a TV repairer.

He says these days ALL electrical equipment has "built in obsolescence", that is, everything is designed and built to fail after an "appropriate" period, often around 3 years.  :(

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Offline Maiden Stone

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Re: Getting an expensive out of warranty item repaired or replaced.
« Reply #35 on: Sunday 16 December 18 16:43 GMT (UK) »
For what it is worth....
My husband is an electrical engineer, having started along that road by training as a TV repairer.

He says these days ALL electrical equipment has "built in obsolescence", that is, everything is designed and built to fail after an "appropriate" period, often around 3 years.  :(

Typical of our throwaway society.
My present TV, (2012), cost much less than either of the 2 sets which I bought around 1990. Those lasted 20 years. On the other hand, my first TV, black & white portable, had to be repaired aged 2. It had been carted around 3 or 4 lodgings during those 2 years.   
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