A little help please, Sale of Goods Act UK

Gazza22

Hi,

If anybody knows the UK sale of goods & supply of services act, some help would be appreciated. I bought an item from a company based in the UK and when it arrived, it was faulty.

I have returned the item to them and after chasing an update over the past week, they have now told me they are in contact with the manufacturer who has advised the company to forward the item to them. I got an email this morning advising me that they are mailing the item to the manufacturer and asking that the manufacturer send a replacement directly to me.

The trouble with this order has been ongoing now for a number of weeks and i want to nail these guys. Is the UK law similar to here, where i can demand a replacement be sent to me from the company and not the manufacturer?

Thanks

whippet

Gazza22 wrote: »

Hi,

The trouble with this order has been ongoing now for a number of weeks and i want to nail these guys. Is the UK law similar to here, where i can demand a replacement be sent to me from the company and not the manufacturer?

Thanks

I would imagine as long as the company you ordered the goods off supply you with a replacement they have fulfilled their obligations. It matters nothing to you if this is supplied by the retailer or the manufactor as long as you receive it from who you bought it from.

If the retailer does not have another one in stock he will have to go to his supplier to receive a replacement.

Of course this should all be done within a reasonable time frame, but I would say it is none of your business who supplies the replacement as long as you get it and the retailer organises it.

As for wanting to ‘nail’ somebody, consumer heros who act all high and mighty tend to be lower on a business’ scale of priorities in reality, nobody likes to do business with someone who is a pain in the arse.

tomsav

You are protected under European directives etc. See http://www.ecic.ie/

Gazza22

whippet wrote: »

I would imagine as long as the company you ordered the goods off supply you with a replacement they have fulfilled their obligations. It matters nothing to you if this is supplied by the retailer or the manufactor as long as you receive it from who you bought it from.

If the retailer does not have another one in stock he will have to go to his supplier to receive a replacement.

Of course this should all be done within a reasonable time frame, but I would say it is none of your business who supplies the replacement as long as you get it and the retailer organises it.

As for wanting to ‘nail’ somebody, consumer heros who act all high and mighty tend to be lower on a business’ scale of priorities in reality, nobody likes to do business with someone who is a pain in the arse.

I know that, don't get me wrong i haven't been rude to them in anyway. All my correspondance has been professional and to the point. But yes i do want to 'nail' them, literally , as on the flip side no consumer likes to do business with somebody who is a pain in the arse.

Thanks for the information above, it's appreciated. If it was possible to demand a replacement directly from them, to be honest i would to be awkward and do just that. As i know they have more stock.

A little history.

I ordered the item, delivery was estimated at 5 business days. Two weeks later i had still not received the item. No courtesy email to advise me of the delay, nothing. I mailed them to ask what was happening and they apologised and said i should receive it in the next few days. I received it the following week.

The item was faulty. I asked them for a returns address and sent it back. Over a week went by after they had received it and again no corresponance to advise me of the situation, the only reason i knew that even had the item was through An Post tracking. Now i have to wait for them to mail the item to the manufacturer and thus placing it in the manufacturers hands, so who knows how long is it going to take now for the replacement to arrive.

I'll excuse myself for being a "consumer hero", as on this occasion, i am dealing with a company that offers an extremely poor service and their communication skills leave a lot to be desired.

babaloushka

Why not ask for a refund and buy elsewhere? Even if the item wasn't faulty, you're entitled to a refund under the 7 day cooling off clause.

wmpdd3

details here:

http://www.out-law.com/page-430

thefeatheredcat

You can also try these links for more information that may be useful:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/Yourrightsandresponsibilities/DG_10015892



http://www.bbc.co.uk/watchdog/consumer_advice/

Gazza22

Thanks everyone. One last question, this seems to be bit of a grey area and i cannot find any definitive information online.

Is the supplier obliged to refund me the return postage cost? Are there any regs governing this?

babaloushka

Gazza22 wrote: »

Thanks everyone. One last question, this seems to be bit of a grey area and i cannot find any definitive information online.

Is the supplier obliged to refund me the return postage cost? Are there any regs governing this?

AFAIK, that really IS a grey area and I've seen it brought up many times in UK magazines with different answers given. My understanding is that if the item is faulty, any money that you have paid out is refunded, including return postage (in UK law at least). If the item was simply unwanted under the 7 day clause of distance selling, the seller can insert a clause in the terms and conditions that MIGHT negate getting the return postage back. Check the T&Cs on the site where you purchased to see what they say, but as I said, if the item is faulty they are stepping outside the law in refusing you the return postage.