returning pre-pay mobile phone for refund after opening box?

Andy From Sligo

hi all - how does the customer stand after buying pre-pay mobile phone , opening box, setting it up, trying it out and not liking it - does the customer have any rights at all to getting a refund? - any kind of cooling off period on these kind of things?

The shops normally say they will refund as long as 'the box is not opened and the item not used at all' dont they? - but then how you supposed to know you like a phone unless you have had it in your hand working (for an hour or so, not just quickly in a shop) and you can read a thousand reviews on it but it still different story when you physically have it and give it a test.

if I cannot get a refund it wasnt an expensive phone at the end of the day (which is a good job) but if I could get a refund on it, it would be ideal.

I have often wondered what happens in this situation if someone buys a phone brand new and although its grand and theres not a problem with it say if it just doesnt suit their needs after physically trying it out, how do they stand returning it - I have heard a lot of things come with a cooling off period but I never know what the score is with things like Mobile phones and the like.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Classed as a change of mind, so no redress by entitlement.

Zillah

I have only ever heard of a cooling off period for when you buy something online - that's EU law. Pretty sure the only way you can get a refund in this circumstance is if they provide it out of the goodness of their heart.

There is no redress just because you decided you don't like it.

Sleeper12

Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day no quibble return

theteal

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day no quibble return

For used phones? I'm highly doubtful of that.

OP, it's a change of mind, they won't take it back if it's not faulty.

Cooling off periods are for contracts.

Andy From Sligo

Thanks all for the replies so far. Pretty much what I expected to be honest, Not to worry then, just have to put it down to one of those things in life

Sleeper12

theteal wrote:

For used phones? I'm highly doubtful of that.

Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day step back & phone exchange. Why anyone would shop anywhere else is beyond me. I've been buying phones from them for close to 20 years.
You might save 10 or 20 euro but no one else (that I know of) will take a phone back in the first 30 days quibble free.

Phone has to be working when you return it

Andy From Sligo

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day step back & phone exchange. Why anyone would shop anywhere else is beyond me. I've been buying phones from them for close to 20 years.
You might save 10 or 20 euro but no one else (that I know of) will take a phone back in the first 30 days quibble free.

Phone has to be working when you return it

thats a very good idea - to be honest that would be a good feature to stand out from your competitors to offer that service.

I wonder what they do clean it up (from all fingermarks etc) and re-package/re-box it and sell it up as new again?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day step back & phone exchange. Why anyone would shop anywhere else is beyond me. I've been buying phones from them for close to 20 years.
You might save 10 or 20 euro but no one else (that I know of) will take a phone back in the first 30 days quibble free.

Phone has to be working when you return it

One reason not to buy a phone from them - repackaged returns.

Sleeper12

Arianna Unsightly Ammunition wrote:

One reason not to buy a phone from them - repackaged returns.

Never heard of it refurbished phones?

hdowney

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Never heard of it refurbished phones?

So what do you think they do with all the phones they allow returned within the 30 days then? Write them off.

Can’t say I’d be happy with a reboxed phone.

L1011

hdowney wrote: »

So what do you think they do with all the phones they allow returned within the 30 days then? Write them off.

Can’t say I’d be happy with a reboxed phone.

Resell as refurbished is the most likely outcome. Writing off loss as customer service isn't that uncommon; Argos before their recent takeover did it all the time.

awec

Sleeper12 wrote: »

Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day step back & phone exchange. Why anyone would shop anywhere else is beyond me. I've been buying phones from them for close to 20 years.
You might save 10 or 20 euro but no one else (that I know of) will take a phone back in the first 30 days quibble free.

Phone has to be working when you return it

I'm pretty sure Apple do.

Sleeper12

hdowney wrote:

So what do you think they do with all the phones they allow returned within the 30 days then? Write them off.

Sold as refurbished I am guessing

hdowney wrote:

Can’t say I’d be happy with a reboxed phone.

If you buy a phone on contract you have a 14 day cooling off period. This is all shops and any phone bought online on contract or prepay also have a 14 day cooling off period. You could return your used product in a opened box. Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day but everyone else has to by laws offer a 14 day.

Odds are you already have bought a reboxed phone

Andy From Sligo

yeah, strange that - I bought a 'new' phone from CPW years ago and when I got it out of the box I thought to myself 'this looks like its been out before' but the box was all done up in cellophane and looked brand spanking new and had one of those stickers that said security seal dont accept this phone if seal is broken ... and it wasnt , it was intact. It was OK I just had my suspicions. But i never followed up on it

Andy From Sligo

the said phone I wanted to return yesterday I 80% didnt like it ... today after clearing cache and restarting phone and having more of a play I 80% like it now haha

If I keep it (which it looking like I will now) I will try and root it and get rid of bloatware/preinstalled bullshyte the manufacturer loaded and it might even make it even more enjoyable to use - feck whatsapp and instagram and shyte like that , what 52 year old like me wants to use dem - but it looks to me at the moment they have built it into the system of the phone instead of user apps, so I will have to root the phone to remove them

Vic_08

L1011 wrote: »

Resell as refurbished is the most likely outcome. Writing off loss as customer service isn't that uncommon; Argos before their recent takeover did it all the time.

Resell as new without telling the customer they are re-boxed returns is not unusual in many places including Argos.

AngryLips

Sleeper12 wrote: »

If you buy a phone on contract you have a 14 day cooling off period. This is all shops and any phone bought online on contract or prepay also have a 14 day cooling off period. You could return your used product in a opened box. Carphone warehouse offers a 30 day but everyone else has to by laws offer a 14 day.

You have a 14 day cool off on the contract, but not the handset if unboxed. If you had opened that handset within those 14 days then you would still be on the hook for the cost of that handset. Your alternative is to pay outright for the phone if it's not in a resalable condition, in order to get out of the contract.

Of course, if the phone was bought with Vodafone or Eir as a brand new customer, then you could avail of their 30 day no quibble network guarantee.

Sleeper12

AngryLips wrote:

You have a 14 day cool off on the contract, but not the handset if unboxed. If you had opened that handset within those 14 days then you would still be on the hook for the cost of that handset. Your alternative is to pay outright for the phone if it's not in a resalable condition, in order to get out of the contract.

The phone is part of the contract. It is subsidised and they only recoup the cost of the phone over the duration of the contract. The phone is covered by the 14 day cooling off period. Obviously the phone can't have any marks but this is the case with the 30 day no quibble promise too

AngryLips

Sleeper12 wrote: »

The phone is part of the contract. It is subsidised and they only recoup the cost of the phone over the duration of the contract. The phone is covered by the 14 day cooling off period. Obviously the phone can't have any marks but this is the case with the 30 day no quibble promise too

Try going into a phone store with an already opened contracted handset and see if they agree with you there

Sleeper12

AngryLips wrote:

Try going into a phone store with an already opened contracted handset and see if they agree with you there

They don't have to agree with you. Irish law agrees with you

You get Vodafone broadband & cancel within the 14 day cooling off period. They take back the modem you've been using for the last 10 days because it's part of the contract.

AngryLips

Sleeper12 wrote: »

They don't have to agree with you. Irish law agrees with you

You get Vodafone broadband & cancel within the 14 day cooling off period. They take back the modem you've been using for the last 10 days because it's part of the contract.

Mobile broadband cooling off periods exist with the networks because they can't be sure that the coverage will extend to where you want to use it. However, they don't take that viewpoint on mobile phones, except where you're covered by network guarantees.

Sleeper12

AngryLips wrote:

Mobile broadband cooling off periods exist with the networks because they can't be sure that the coverage will extend to where you want to use it. However, they don't take that viewpoint on mobile phones, except where you're covered by network guarantees.

Cooling off period is for any contract. Even insurance, electric, gas etc. It has nothing to do with coverage.

You are missing the point. If you cancel your mobile phone contract within the 14 day cooling off period they won't let you keep the phone. They will demand it back. So long as the phone is unmarked they will take the phone back in the same way they will under the 30 day no quibble.

If the phone is part of the contract then they have to take it back.

theteal

AngryLips wrote: »

Try going into a phone store with an already opened contracted handset and see if they agree with you there

He's not making it up. Granted it's been nearly a decade since I worked in the business but we used to take phones back for the occasion cooling off cancellation