Out of warranty

seklly

I'm looking for some advice on an old topic to do with an Archos 5 Internet Media Device which i bought 15 months ago from an online mp3 company based in the UK which has recently developed a faulty touchscreen rendering it useless.

I've had some correspondence with them looking to resolve the issue but they are saying it's a manufacturers problem seeing as the 12 month warranty has expired.

Anyway i thought i'd post up the details of our correspondence which also highlights my problems and see if anyone had some advice or could point me in the right direction? (Apologies if it's a bit long!)

Firstly a RMA request:
The touch screen on my Archos 5 isn't working properly. I've tried updating the firmware but there's no change, i've also tried resetting the unit and re-calibrating the screen and this sometimes works for a while but the screen becomes unresponsive. The only way i can use it now is in combination with the DVR Station.

Response:
Please contact the Archos technical support department by telephoning 02380 711779. Archos should be able to offer an out of warranty repair as the Archos 5 is now outside the one year manufacturer

My E-mail:
Dear Sir/Madam

I purchased an Archos 5 120GB media tablet from yourselves in December 2009, the Archos media tablet has now developed a fault. After previous correspondence you indicate that the item is out of warranty and you are not responsible. It is my understanding that a warranty is in addition to my statutory rights, and not a replacement of them; therefore you the retailer are still liable for any faults with the product.

When goods are purchased in the UK they must be made of a satisfactory quality, which requires them to last a reasonable amount of time, for which a reasonable person could expect under reasonable use. 15 months is certainly not a reasonable lifetime for a media tablet, for which many people can expect to last for at least 3 years, the product is therefore not of a satisfactory quality outlined in the Sales of Goods act 1979 (As amended) s.14.

Due to this and as part of my statutory rights I require a replacement or repair within a reasonable time, without significant inconvenience. This is part of the resolution the Sales of Goods act S48B outlays. Should neither of these be possible then I would require a refund of the product as outlined in S48C.

I expect a positive response within 7 days, otherwise I will have no alternative but to consider legal action and reporting you to trading standards for a failure to uphold my legal statutory rights.

Yours Faithfully

xxxxx xxxxx

And their response:
Hi xxxxx,

Thank you for your email. Electronic products are provided with a one year warranty whereby if the unit fails within this period you are entitled to a repair or replacement. However, after the warranty period expires the unit is no longer covered meaning that any repairs to a unit which the manufacturer carries out would be a charged service.

This do not infringe your statutory rights as the sales of goods act states that a refund is only applicable if the goods were knowingly miss-sold or if an inherent fault is present. Moreover, after six months it is the customers responsibility, not the sellers, to provide evidence that the goods were knowingly miss-sold or an inherent fault is present.

Furthermore, you agreed to the warranty period, laid out in the documentation provided with the unit, when you decided to keep the product after the appraisal period laid out within the Distance Selling Regulations.

We understand that you may wish to pursue this matter further, and we will be more than happy to provide any information requested from a regulating body. However, we are sorry to say that as your unit is outside of the agreed one year warranty it is no longer covered against faults and you will need to contact Archos directly to arrange for an out of warranty repair.

Kind regards,
xxxxx xxxxx (Sales Supervisor)

So any ideas? And thanks for taking the time to read!!

IrishTonyO

They are correct you need to be talking to Archos not the reseller once the 12 month warranty is up.

RangeR

IrishTonyO wrote: »

They are correct you need to be talking to Archos not the reseller once the 12 month warranty is up.

That is certainly not my understanding of the law. But I'm sure someone more knowledgeable than I will be along soon.

axer

IrishTonyO wrote: »

They are correct you need to be talking to Archos not the reseller once the 12 month warranty is up.

Not true. The contract is with the seller not the manufacturer. The fact is the seller sold you a product that lasted only 15 months thus as long as the product was not abused or mis-used then there was an inherent fault in the product all along which eventually caused a failure.

Agreeing to the warranty period means nothing as it conveys additional rights - it does not limit your statutory rights in any way.

The distances selling act has nothing to do with appraisal of the product with regards faults.

I believe they are correct that you will have to prove that the item had an inherent fault since 6 months have passed since your purchased it. That part of law doesn't exist in the Irish version of that act.

I get the impression from their reply that they have no intention of remedying this breach of contract thus you are better off maybe giving them one more email/letter stating your rights and then make a claim via the small claims court. You will have to find some sort of expert though to write a report which might cost you.

IrishTonyO

In the UK the period is 6 years under consumer law, however as far as I am aware that is for any inherent flaw as in a flaw that has been there from the start, but I could be wrong.

Elessar

Hi OP,

I would advise you to contact the European consumer center who can advise you what you can do. The laws in the UK are similar but still different to Ireland.

Agreeing to warranty doesn't mean anything, and as another poster said, does not limit your statutory rights. If worst comes to worst, you can initiate a European small claims court process right here in Ireland, which will be valid in the UK.

Contact the ECC first and then reply to the company with the facts on UK/european law when you get them.

seklly

Thanks for the replies, i think my main problem will be proving there is an inherent fault.

It turns out it actually isn't the touchscreen that is broken as when i plug the unit into it's DVR Station the screen works perfectly and for a short time after i take it out but it always seems to degrade to the point where it is completely unresponsive, surely this must be a flaw with the machine and not wear and tear etc.?

I have e-mailed the manufacturer to ask if they have experienced any problems with their units along the same lines as me but would they be likely to admit to this?!

When i hear back from the manufacturer i will try the retailer and if i still can't resolve the issue go to the European Consumer Center, thanks for the link.

jor el

You don't have to prove there is an inherent problem with the product in general, the fact that your one is broken is enough for you. They need to repair, replace or refund you the cost, as long as the damage was not caused by you.

You should still be dealing with the seller, and not the manufacturer, though you can chose to deal with them if you like. Your contract was with the shop that sold it, and it does not end after 12 months.

axer

jor el wrote: »

You don't have to prove there is an inherent problem with the product in general, the fact that your one is broken is enough for you. They need to repair, replace or refund you the cost, as long as the damage was not caused by you.

You should still be dealing with the seller, and not the manufacturer, though you can chose to deal with them if you like. Your contract was with the shop that sold it, and it does not end after 12 months.

I believe in the sale of goods act in the UK you do have to prove an inherent fault after 6 months.

tinkerbell

I had a problem with my Archos too, it was still within waranty but I just contacted Archos directly rather than the shop it was bought from. They said to send it back it them and they fixed it.