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Sale of Goods Act and mobiles

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Sale of Goods Act and mobiles 05/11/2011 at 11:25 #22505
GeoffM
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2½ year old IPhone 3GS, WiFi signal very poor. It seems to be a common problem and seems to be either a faulty aerial or a loose connector. Both could allegedly be fixed by opening the phone and doing it yourself; however, if I do that sort of thing, parts like springs tend to explode and embed themselves in ceilings and soft furnishings. It's certainly not covered by any extended warranty (I prefer the Sale of Goods Act and have beaten Comet into submission over it) but 2½ years might be pushing it a little. Has anybody here successfully used the Act to claim off the retailer (in this case Carphone Warehouse) for a faulty phone this old? If it was younger I'd have no hesitation about enforcing my rights.
SimSig Boss
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Re: Sale of Goods Act and mobiles 05/11/2011 at 13:39 #22508
Peter Bennet
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Essentially it's a matter of interpreting the words "reasonable time" which has no Statutory meaning save that The Statute of Limitations Act 1980 may set a maximum time (normally 6 years) Section 2 seems most relevant [Tort] without reading it fully.

I believe the courts tend to look at the matter in terms of how much the thing cost and the quality of the original product so for a basic £15 PAYG a reasonable time might be a 6 months but a £300 IPhone it might be 2- (just to illustrate the point).


Peter

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Re: Sale of Goods Act and mobiles 05/11/2011 at 20:26 #22529
UKTrainMan
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Whilst I was trying to find a link to share with you for Consumer Direct (who I was going to recommend you contact as they have been very useful to me previously), I found this page which, near the bottom, has the following paragraph

Quote:
If you bought your item over six months ago, you may have to prove the fault was not caused by accidental damage or wear and tear. You can do this by getting a second opinion from an independent expert (see link below).

- Getting an independent expert

- Making a complaint - what to do first
.

I've also just found this other page covering mobile phones.

I really would recommend Consumer Direct - I can't recall ever having a bad experience with them and they always seem very knowledgeable so ask them and see what they say.

Any views and / or opinions expressed by myself are from me personally and do not represent those of any company I either work for or am a consultant for.
Last edited: 05/11/2011 at 20:27 by UKTrainMan
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Re: Sale of Goods Act and mobiles 05/11/2011 at 20:32 #22530
headshot119
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" said:
Essentially it's a matter of interpreting the words "reasonable time" which has no Statutory meaning save that The Statute of Limitations Act 1980 may set a maximum time (normally 6 years) Section 2 seems most relevant [Tort] without reading it fully.

I believe the courts tend to look at the matter in terms of how much the thing cost and the quality of the original product so for a basic £15 PAYG a reasonable time might be a 6 months but a £300 IPhone it might be 2- (just to illustrate the point).


Peter
I am led to believe through work that for the 6 year limit set under the statute of limitations act 1980 you have to prove the defect occurred at the point of manufacture. Though I'm happy to be corrected.

"Passengers for New Lane, should be seated in the rear coach of the train " - Opinions are my own and not those of my employer
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Re: Sale of Goods Act and mobiles 05/11/2011 at 21:27 #22538
GeoffM
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" said:
I believe the courts tend to look at the matter in terms of how much the thing cost and the quality of the original product so for a basic £15 PAYG a reasonable time might be a 6 months but a £300 IPhone it might be 2- (just to illustrate the point).
Yes, that's the gist of my question really - what's a reasonable length for an IPhone, which I think are around £500-600 if you were able to buy brand new without a contract.

" said:
I really would recommend Consumer Direct - I can't recall ever having a bad experience with them and they always seem very knowledgeable so ask them and see what they say.
I used them when I took Comet to the cleaners over my washing machine which was 18 months old and not drying at all. Comet tried everything (illegal) to get out of it but ultimately they had to adhere to the law and fix it. I ended up paying about £50 I think, which was still more than I should have paid, but it was a considerable climb down from the £350 Comet would have gotten had I not fought. I would certainly recommend them to anybody too, even though they work from scripts - it's free.

" said:
I am led to believe through work that for the 6 year limit set under the statute of limitations act 1980 you have to prove the defect occurred at the point of manufacture. Though I'm happy to be corrected.
No, that's the six month limit. Beyond that it's up to the consumer to prove it was not worthy but the retailer is still liable for up to six years. The problem is that six years depends on the item, so my heavy mechanical washing machine would not reasonably last that long but a simple electronic calculator might. The latter is a poor example because of the price but they do tend to last a long time.

Going back to my original post, how long is reasonable for an iPhone to last?

Oddly, on the various forums about iPhone Wifi problems, nobody I've seen has mentioned trying to get it fixed under SoGA, only under warranty.

SimSig Boss
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