PCWorld/Currys faulty returns policy

[mattd]

Hello chaps,

Bought a camera for the misses at Christmas and today it stopped working - no problem thinks I as it's only 3 months old and I got it from Currys / PC World and I still have the receipt.

But, oh no - it's not that easy.....the period at which you can return an item for a refund or replacement is 28 days.

So they will only "repair" the item (which takes 2 weeks)

Now, correct me if I'm wrong but I thought I was entitled to have refund or replacement and that under the Sales Act I don't have to accept a repair service

I told this to the "manager" and I was told that they are forfilling their obligation by offering a warranty repair service with Samsung.

Now, I bought the camera from them, not Samsung so in my mind the buck stops with them for a refund or replacement

Argh....I know it's my own fault for shopping there, but it was the only place that stocked the camera she wanted.

PC World and Currys - no wonder you're loosing money
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Professional Hobo

[Poseidon]

Which part of the sales of goods act are they in breach of? As far as I'm aware, a warranty from a manufacturer entitles you to a repair. If that takes 2 weeks then so be it. It's not as if they're refusing to sort your problem, it's just that you've got the hump because they wont give you a shiny new camera in exchange for your 3 months old one.

As for it being their fault... Samsung made the product, samsung tested the product, samsung boxed the product, samsung shipped the product to currys/pcworld. All pcworld did was distribute it to a store and sell it to you. The fact curries are offering to repair it for you and bill samsung under the warranty themselves would suggest to me that they're doing you a favour. If you'd bought it from a dealer that doesn't have repair centres, you'd be on the phone for hours trying to arrange a courier to collect you camera, inevitably they would only be able to collect office hours mon-fri, which would mean a whole day waiting in, then you'd have to wait up to 4 weeks before waiting in for another day to sign for it on return.

Patience is a virtue. Chill out man! Despite common opinion, not everything is instantaneous in our society.
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1977 Honda CG125
2002 Ducati Monster S4 (currently restoring)

[Poseidon]

In fact, don't they offer a 10/15quid instant replacement cover, specifically designed to give you a replacement should a fault occur after 28days? Normally it's valid for like 3 years or summat. I took it out on my DVD recorder. 18months after I bought it, it went faulty, took it back and got a brand spanker to replace it!

You should've taken that!
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1977 Honda CG125
2002 Ducati Monster S4 (currently restoring)

[Ingah]

https://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/after_you_buy/know-your-rights/SGAknowyourrights/
"When can I get a refund? When will I be entitled to only a repair or replacement?

If you are returning goods that are not of satisfactory quality or not as described and you inform the trader of the problem within a reasonable period of time, you may be entitled to full refund. If you have had some use from the goods or have had them for a while before you take them back you could ask for a repair or a replacement item. You, as the consumer, have the option of which solution you would like, however you must not require the trader to repair or replace the goods if this would be too costly, as compared to another remedy.
[ Note that DSG more than likely use the latter part of this sentence as their cop out. ]

If a repair or replacement is not possible for the trader to provide, then you may be entitled to a reduction in the price of the goods to reflect the use up to that point or a refund. These remedies exist alongside the remedies available to you under the general law to terminate the contract for breach of condition and obtain a full refund.

Any remedy that is carried out by the trader must be carried to be within a reasonable time for the consumer and without causing significant inconvenience.

Who do I claim a refund, repair or replacement from?

Your contract is with the trader and not the manufacturer and you should always go back to them to make a claim under the Sale of Goods Act. However if you have paid for goods using a credit agreement like a Hire Purchase Agreement then your rights are different and you should call Consumer Direct for further advice.

If you have paid over £100 for your goods via credit card you can hold both the trader and the credit card company liable for any breach of contract under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. The credit card is jointly and severable liable which means that you don’t have to go to the trader first to make your claim, however in practical terms speaking to the trader may be the quickest way to get your problem resolved. To write a letter to your credit card company claiming a refund for faulty goods click here for a template."

That said, i know how hardheaded the DSG group is over this, so good luck.
Note: Warranties do not in ANY way affect these basic consumer rights - they can only be "in addition to".
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-- Ingah

[Ingah]

[Phoenix]

You can say that PC World is nothing more than an outlet for Samsung goods but you're forgetting the huge profit they make on each sale, with the profit making they have to share the responsibilities for after sales support. You have to read the warranty/guarantee very carefully, usually in it you can find out exactly what responsibilities the vendor has and what is considered acceptable, it's your contract with them effectively.

I had a Casio digital camera which I bought from Argos, after just over 2 years it went faulty, the warranty had expired. I took it to Argos and they gave me a full value voucher there and then, £75 for a camera I bought over 2 years ago at the same price. One of the reasons I went with Argos is because I know they have a habit of submitting to customer service requests to maintain their reputation. However, say you're going on holiday next week and therefore won't have a camera to use because yours is now broken after 3 months, 2 week repair is no good to you so you are entitled to a more reasonable offer, most likely a replacement, I imagine the same model is still sold.

[0ddball]

Somewhere with good customer service like Asda/Argos etc will usually just refund you or give you a replacement if they have one in stock.

Getting a refund or even decent service from any of that group of scam artists (pc world, currys, comet and whoever else, they are all the same scummy company) is nigh on impossible.

I'm not sure on your legal position but i have a feeling you're about to learn a lesson. I did and i'll never ever buy there again, even if i pay more elsewhere.
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ZXR750L

[Ingah]

Just to add: PCWorld/Currys/Dixons (i.e. the DSG group) have been doing this for years.
Read here when someone battled them, and i think won in the end: https://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/forums/index.cfm?action=showthread&threadid=222541&forumid=2
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-- Ingah

[Ingah]

[JonB]

Another for Argos, had a home phone that developed a fault, was 11 months old so still within 12 months warranty. No questions asked for a refund there and then. Was so happy with the service, I spent a little bit more on my next phone with them.

Also, can't understand why a company wouldn't do this, surely they can claim back the cost from the manufacturer?!
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[Ingah]

[Poseidon]

[mattd]

[Raffles]

[Ingah]

[lihp]

I do quite a bit of professional Photography.

I had a £3000 Digital SLR go faulty about 6 weeks old, I still had to send it to the manufacturer myself, and wait for repair.

Though as a professional photog they are done quicker than normal with hire cameras available. But other camera equipment that I've sent out for repair normally takes a week or so for a straightforward fix.

Infact, before Nikon allowed you to calibrate lenses to to the body yourself in menus, I was regularly sending 8k+ worth of BRAND NEW equipment back to the manufacturer to have calibrated with each other.

When you drop the camera off with PCWorld/Curry's they will send it to Samsung for you, and will cover postage, and then you pick it up from the store, saving you convenience. They could quite easily just direct you to Samsung site, and tell you to sort it yourself.

[lihp]

[MarJay]

As far as the sale of goods act is concerned the contract of sale is with the shop that sold the item, not the manufacturer.

Therefore any action taken to sort the problem should be taken by the shop. If the shop sends it back to the manufacturer for repair then fair enough.

If the repair is not of satisfactory quality, then you may demand a replacement or refund, but unfortunately you do need to give them the opportunity to sort the problem out first before you do that.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Phoenix]

Indeed, PhilDawson, you gave whichever shop you bought your kit from £3000 and they turned you to the manufacturer when you needed after sales assistance. You think that's acceptable (not to mention legal), how much do you think that kit would cost direct from the manufacturer? Probably about £1200 maybe, you pay the distributor a huge wedge more because they are supplying you with after care and putting stuff in a shop for you to look at, they aren't just a middle man passing a package along and nothing more With £3k to spend on kit i'd have thought you'd be a bit more savvy.

[Al]

I wouldn't have thought you would get the item much cheaper from the manufacturer, Currys, Comet ect do because they probably order 20,000 every order.

When my Samsung oven went wrong (3 months old) I phoned up Samsung and they set out an engineer (sub contractor) within a few days to fix it. I know I could have probably gone though Currys under the sale of goods act or whatever but why would I bother when it has a two year manufacturer guarantee and they are going to be the ones fixing it anyway.
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Yamaha FZR400RR 3tj
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[iooi]

[Phoenix]

[lihp]

[JonB]

[Fortuna]