It is not fit for purpose
That’s a legitimate claim as long as you are using the item for the purpose for which it was intended. This is the principle of fitness for purpose. There is no point claiming that paint thinner has had adverse effects if it is not being used as paint thinner! Similarly, if you are commissioning the manufacture of a product and do not specify the purposes for which it will be used you will have no recourse if it fails to live up to your expectations.
Your Statutory Rights
- How do you measure quality?
- How long should it last?
- Is the guarantee worth the paper it’s written on?
- I bought it from a bloke down the pub
- Rights when knowingly buying damaged goods
Common Complaints
- They say I’ve taken ownership so it’s my responsibility
- Do shops have to give me my money back?
- The shop doesn’t want to know, they say it is the manufacturer’s responsibility.
- It’s second hand – do I have any rights?
And if your statutory rights are broken
Related posts:
With regards to ‘not fit for purpose’, I purchased a laptop almost a year ago which works fine, however ever since I started using it, it has given me electric shocks and a tingling sensation when touching the brushed aluminium. The company in question has stated that they are aware of the problem via a forum post on their website (though there is no official recall/notification etc or any independent contact from them about it). My question is, can I claim a refund/replacement for the laptop being unfit for purpose, given that it is running electrical current through you when you use it?! (If not, would any other section of the Sale of Goods act apply?) Also, given that it was 12 months ago (I only saw the company’s post about it today) do you think I would face any difficulties arranging this with them given the situation has been going on for quite some time?
Many thanks for your time and expertise.
Fiendish, I don’t think this would constitute ‘unfit for purpose’ under the s.14 definition of Sale of Goods. Lots of items with brushed steel do give off static, which isn’t unacceptable. Although if there are safety risks due to electric shock, S14 may still apply. With anything, it’s always best to raise the issue as soon as it becomes an issue, to prevent the supplier from claiming wear and tear. You must send the item back to the supplier for assessment, and if found to be faulty they will repair, or replace if a repair is impossible. If they replace, they do not have to give you a new laptop, to take account of the use you’ve already had.
Due to the smell of gas in our house we called out a plumber who indeed confirmed we had a gas leak. The leak was found to be coming from inside the range cooker we purchased new only 18 month previously. The plumber could not however find the exact location of the leak within the cooker due to the way in which the cooker had been built. He recommended that I cease using the cooker as he did not feel that it could be repaired sufficiently and would be safer to stop using it all together. I contacted the manufacturer who said due to the year being up on the guarantee they would charge us an £88 call out fee to check indeed that it was faulty and would not replace the cooker even though now after 18 months it has been seen to be not fit for purpose or safe by a reliable plumber. Do we in fact having any rights in this matter to have a replacement for this cooker.
Steve, retailers and manufacturers always refer to the warranty as a way of getting out of their statutory obligations. What you have been told is incorrect, and the warranty is irrelevant. You will still have protection under Sale of Goods legislation long after the warranty has expired. For more on this see:
http://whatconsumer.co.uk/how-long-should-it-last/
and:
http://whatconsumer.co.uk/and-if-my-statutory-rights-are-breached/
I purchased a new motorbike last March. Since that time its been back to the dealers 5 times.The first 4 were for the same fault ( a persistent oil leak) . It is now back again with a major failure of an engine component. Its 1 year old and covered 2000 miles does this constitute not fit for purpose and if so can I reject it?
I recently bought an amplifier on the 13th Febuary 2009. I had used it twice and now it has stopped working. i have tried to contact the company to get it sent back and to get a refund but they tell me that as i am out of the 28 day return policy, I am not entitled to a return/refund. I was also told that i have to get an engineer to look at it at my own expense to make sure it isn’t damaged due to misuse. is this right? can they do this? am i not entitled to a refund?
I purchased some ski boots in December from a shop whose expertise I relied upon for achieving the correct fit. I took their guidance on size and the style that was best for me. I have just got back from a skiing trip where I used them for the first time. After the first week I started having real problems controlling my skis and fell a lot. I went to a local boot fitter in the resort where I found out that I had been sold boots which were 2 sizes too big and which were dangerous. He talked through how to check if the boots are the correct size. The shop I bought my boots from did not perform any of the same checks to fit my boots for me. I was advised to hire some smaller boots for the rest of the holiday as he considered that my boots would be dangerous for me to use. I hired some (from a separate retailer) and I felt in control again. I have since had a second opinion back home and have been told again that my boots are far too big. It is now April however I have only just had the opportunity to use them due to the ability to get away on holiday. Where do I stand?
Paul, The fact that it has gone wrong 5 times in the last year would give you good grounds for rejecting the item claiming loss of faith in the product. However, you may have to threaten legal action to enforce this and any refund would take into account of any use you have had of the bike over the last year. If the bike has suffered a major fault which has rendered it unroadworthy and will take considerable time to fix, you could probably request a replacement. If not and it can be repaired relatively quickly and easily you will have to accept a repair in the first instance.
Peter, Under Sale of Goods you are entitled to a repair. if this cannot be done they must replace the item. If neither can be done, they will be obliged to give you a refund, but you cannot insist on one in the first instance. The warranty is irrelevant. Because you are still in the first 6 months of ownership, you do not have to prove a thing – therefore what they are telling you is rubbish. Send the item back and but request that they pay for it and insist the item is sent back to you in full working order within reasonable time. See: http://whatconsumer.co.uk/returning-damaged-or-faulty-goods/ for more on this
Hi
I purchased a videogame game from Argos yesterday after work. I got home and played it for about 20mins. After 20mins I developed a headache and felt extremely nauseous. So, I stopped playing due to the motion sickness and spent the rest of the evening recovering in bed. The next day I took it to another argos closer to my work, explained the issue and wondered if they could replace the game and I would pay the difference. The manager flatly said no and that was it. After checking their website it does say yes videogames are exempt from the 30 day money back guarantee, but this does not affect your statuatory rights. Am I right in assuming because this games graphics and/or motion in game make me nauseous i should be able to replace it because its not fit for its purpose? ie I play the game because I enjoy it, not the opposite?
Mark, I’m afraid that unless there is a fault wih the game, which is causing the symptoms you mention, you cannot claim the game is unfit for purpose, and Argos are under no legal obligation to take it back. Manufacturers can’t be held responsible for proucts which have adverse affects on some people unless they can prove to be unsafe in some way (i.e toxic).
Matt, the law is very clear on this. If you buy something on the specific guidance of a specialist, and the goods then prove to be ill-advised then you have a good claim, not just for full refund but for damages also. You must first prove however that the person who advised you was’t just a salesperson, but a specialist acting in a professional capacity, and that you relied on the information given.
Catriona,
Thanks very much for your advice, that is very good to know. Is the time between buying them and being able to use them an issue? I bought the ski boots in December for Christmas but wasn’t able to use them until April due to the ability to get away skiing. The shop is closed at the moment as they are away skiing but it is a specialist ski shop and therefore I would guess that it should not be too difficult to prove that they are professionals acting in a professional capacity.
Matt, the time frame wouldn’t be an issue, although as a general rule of thumb it’s always better to pursue matters within the first 6 months. You would still need to have proof of purchase to prove a contract of sale existed.
I bought a dell laptop (studio 1537) straight from dell at the beginning of december ‘08. The warranty that came with it lasted a year. My laptop started to play up slightly before my warranty ran out and dell tried to charge me £30 to tighten 4 screws on the hinges. when the engineer was putting my laptop back together he broke my wifi card which they replaced after many arguments and over 10 quids worth of calls.
With in the last week or so my laptop was really slow, so I thought I would format the hard drive and reinstall windows 7. I inserted the disc and then the optical disc drive didn’t work. I phoned dell, again, and was taken to a foreign call centre. All they want to do is sell me another warranty!
Would my laptop be covered under this law?
Thanks
Josh
Hi Josh,
You need to tell Dell that the laptop is not of satisfactory quality and as the retailer, I assume, they are liable under the Sale of Goods Act. It is reasonable to expect a laptop to last longer than this. They are well within their right to ask for an engineer’s report to prove that it has an inherent fault and hasn’t been misused etc.
Tony
I have got a iPhone 3GS and I have had problems with it since I got it in december. It only lets me get certain phone calls and picks a chooses which ones I get. I rang Orange on 1st Feb and they said that it was my phone. they got me to try a few things and then put me through to Apple who kindly replaced my phone. I have had my new phone for a week now and the problem is still happening. I am missing important phone calls. I have been on the phone to Orange 5 times in the last two days and they keep putting me through to different people. Is there anything legal I can quote that can get them to give me a normal phone or cancel my contract? I have been with orange for 5 years and never had a problem.
Thanks
It is strange that you have had the same problem with two different phones . I have an Iphone 3GS with O2 and it is fine. Is it a problem with reception?
Hi Lizzie
I suggest first checking the iPhone forums as there are numerous queries about this sort of issue. The obvious suggestion is to check that you have ‘enable 3G’ switched off (look under settings / general / network on your phone) as the 3G reception can be very weak.
If this corrects the signal then it is simply that you are in an area where 3G is poor (which makes web access faster). If not, go to the iPhone forums as it is likely not a fault witht he phoen as such.
Thanks
I purchased a bed frame via ebay in september (comes with 12 month warranty), when it arrived there was a dowel missing which we managed to then get from the seller as their shop was close by.
however it did make the bed frame slightly loose.
the footboard has now cracked and has made the frame really unstable.
this is just from normal usage-sleeping (ive just had a baby so it hasnt seen much ahem “action” so cant even blame that!!)
i got intouch with them two week ago and never got a call back so i rang again two days ago and they told me they dont stock that bed anymore and dont have any replacement parts that they know off but would check and call me back which they havent yet.
to me the bed was not fit for purpose seen as it broke from normal usage but also what are my rights seen as they dont have this item anymore?
when should i start “threatening” them with my rights etc seen as they dont seem to want to do much.
thanks
Hello i purches a pc from argos on sunday… its except from the 30 day money back garnatee…
I got it home as it states it has a gameing grahpics card in the pc… when i installed my games it says it does not meet the minimum requiremnts
I have spoken to my local argos manager he is refusing to accept it back unless an enginerr has looked at it, Yet when i have called argos customer support they said yes take it back for a refund…
What are my rights?
Your statutory rights have been breached and the PC is not as described – get the manager to phone customer service.
I have a television that was found to be sold unfit for purpose and trading standars were involved. The TV is three years old but cost £1200 when new. The company concerned have offered me a different TV but it does not have the same features and costs £500 but is of no use to me without the features I currently have.
Can I ask for a refund? if so what would be reasonable considering I have had three years use.
I purchased a infant car seat in Sept 09 after checking on the manufacturers website that it was suitable for my car, which it stated it was. I purchased the seat and isofix base from an internet retailer. When I received the seat and base and baby arrived I asked a local Halfords to just double check I had fitted it correctly, they said it was although it looked like baby was sitting at quite a steep position (rather than lying flatter) but that it should be ok.
As my baby has got older her head is starting to fall forward so that it is resting on her chest and the side impact protectors are having no effect what so ever as her head is so far forward that her head just falls from side to side as we go round bends and just generally does not look very safe. She is only 4 months old and average weight so the seat should still be suitable for her for at least another 6 months.
I’ve checked how other friends babies are in their car seats (including when they’re fitted in my car) and they definitely do not have this problem and one of us now has to sit in the back of the car to keep propping her head back up and currently my only solution would be to purchase another seat that fits my car correctly and safely supports her head and spend another £200 on a seat for approx 6 months usage before buying the next seat that faces forward.
I have contacted the manufacturer and they have advised me to contact the place I purchased it from or not use the car seat base (which I’ve tried and makes no difference), but I’m not sure if I have any rights to return it as the retailer gave me no advise on whether it would be suitable for my car as this information was available on the manufacturers website and don’t really know what to do.