The shop doesn’t want to know - they say it’s the manufacturer’s responsibility
The Sale of Goods Act makes reference to ‘the seller’, this is the shop, the retailer, or the individual you bought it from, and is who you made the contract with. It is not the manufacturer, and don’t let the shop tell you otherwise! If there is an obvious fault with the item at any time within the first 6 months and it has not been caused by wear and tear or misuse, your first port of call must be the shop you bought it from. They have the responsibility to put the matter right, and should not evade this responsibility by referring you to the manufacturer in the context of a guarantee or warranty. Even after this 6 month period, if the item breaks down prematurely , you should always go back to the shop or retailer in the first instance.
Your statutory rights under the Sale of Goods Act take precedence over and above any warranty or guarantee you may have with either the retailer or manufacturer. It is misleading for a shop to tell you they can do nothing simply because their warranty or guarantee has run out, because you will still have your statutory rights. See our section on guarantees and extended warranties for more info.
Common Complaints
- They say I’ve taken ownership so it’s my responsibility
- Do shops have to give me my money back?
- It’s second hand – do I have any rights?
Comment by Ben on 24 September 2008:
Hi
I see that you frequently state “within six months” to take something back to the seller if it needs repair. What about after six months but within a contract?
I was provided with a “free” phone (Motorola Razr V8) when I signed an 18 month contract with Orange. Just after the first six months the keys started to wear out and require great care to use effectively. Now after eight it’s getting almost impossible to use at all. I don’t do much texting, as Orange’s records will show, so the keys have had no unusual stress, arguably much less than average expectation.
Orange insist that this is now the manufacturer’s problem and I should take it up with them. My view is that I have an eighteen month contract with Orange and the hardware they have provided me with is not going anywhere near that distance, so it is for them to fulfil their contract by handling inadequacies in the equipment which they promoted and provided.
Should I cave in and go to the manufacturer? At the current rate I expect to spend around £800 on this contract over the 18 months, and I feel Orange owes me a standard of service for that.
Orange have also told me that they have not had problems with the keypad of this model. A quick search of online forums shows that this problem is in fact common. Orange not being aware is unlikely at best.
I feel I’m being bullied into shutting up. I can’t reconcile this with Orange’s Code of Practice: “We will deliver quality, value and excellent service to you. We will deliver quality and value for money, and always endeavour to put customers first.”
Can you let me know what my rights are here? And/or the most sensible course of action!
Thanks
Ben
Comment by Catriona on 24 September 2008:
Ben - the 6 month rule is that anything occuring within that time renders it automatically the liability of the retailer. After this time you may find yourself having to prove it wasn’t wear and tear. Although as you say, your phone bill can vouch for the amount of texting you do. Who did you buy the phone from? Because it is the seller you should be contacting to sort out the problem for you, not the manufacturer. Do not be directed to the manufacturer at any stage. If you bought from Orange then they need to fix this for you within reasonable time or provide you with a new phone (section 48B Sale of Goods). If you can demonstrate the problem clearly to them, the next course of action should be to ‘make time of the essence’ by requesting that they take action to rectify this problem to your satisfacton within 7 days, or you can claim breach of contract on their part (seciton 14) and entitlement on your part to terminate the contract. This is your statutory right.