RMA my TV+

[CBers]

I called to create an RMA for my TV+ the other week and was on hold for less than 2 minutes, and the whole call took about 6 - brilliant

Having issues with the RMA people now though, as they want the original receipt as proof of purchase, but I bought from an EBay seller so don't have it, so they're gonna charge me for the repair.

I keep saying that as the TV+ was only releeased in February 2008, it is still within the initial 12-month warranty, so irrespective of where, or how I purchased it, they should repair it FOC !!

Still awaiting them to come back to me.

[warris]

Quite simply they MUST repair it under the warranty. Under the law Sale of Goods Act 1979. Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994. The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002. You do not have to produce a receipt - the following is quoted from the governments web site.
http://www.berr.gov.uk/whatwedo/consume ... 38311.html

Q7. Do I have to produce a receipt to claim my rights?

No. In fact the trader doesn't have to give you a receipt in the first place so it would be unfair to say that you had to produce one. However, it might not be unreasonable for the shop to want some proof of purchase, so look to see if you have a cheque stub, bank statement, credit card slip etc., and this should be sufficient.

Just because Archos are a French Company doesn't mean they are outside the UK law. The have to repair it completely free of charge and that includes, postage costs and any out of pocket expenses. In fact you have up to 6 years (in England & Wales) to claim a repair if you can prove the goods where faulty from the outset. Your actual claim is with the seller not the manufacturer but as the manufacturer issued the warranty you are entitled to claim from them. Best of luck Cbers, if the worst comes to the worst take out a claim in the small claims court. I have done it with several big manufacturers in the past its a hassle, but worth it, although the consumer protection is now much stronger in favour of the customer.

[mitchelln]

Hehe. People here are becoming quite the expert on consumer rights!

Actually, perhaps we should have a Consumer Advice forum here. Useful information like this could go there.

[mitchelln]

In fact I have done this

Warris, could you post your useful information there?

Thanks!

[CBers]

Quite simply they MUST repair it under the warranty. Under the law Sale of Goods Act 1979. Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994. The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002. You do not have to produce a receipt - the following is quoted from the governments web site.
http://www.berr.gov.uk/whatwedo/consume ... 38311.html

Q7. Do I have to produce a receipt to claim my rights?

No. In fact the trader doesn't have to give you a receipt in the first place so it would be unfair to say that you had to produce one. However, it might not be unreasonable for the shop to want some proof of purchase, so look to see if you have a cheque stub, bank statement, credit card slip etc., and this should be sufficient.

Just because Archos are a French Company doesn't mean they are outside the UK law. The have to repair it completely free of charge and that includes, postage costs and any out of pocket expenses. In fact you have up to 6 years (in England & Wales) to claim a repair if you can prove the goods where faulty from the outset. Your actual claim is with the seller not the manufacturer but as the manufacturer issued the warranty you are entitled to claim from them. Best of luck Cbers, if the worst comes to the worst take out a claim in the small claims court. I have done it with several big manufacturers in the past its a hassle, but worth it, although the consumer protection is now much stronger in favour of the customer.

Cheers Warris - I may include your words in my next email to Archos !!

I have a eBay/Paypal receipt, and seeing as it was only released in February of this year, it's still within the initial 12 months !!

[bainsyboy]

Whats up your tv+ then CBERS?

[CBers]

Whats up your tv+ then CBERS?

When using the HDMI output there is gradual picture break-up.

It's fine via any other connection !!

[CBers]

Quite simply they MUST repair it under the warranty. Under the law Sale of Goods Act 1979. Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994. The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002. You do not have to produce a receipt - the following is quoted from the governments web site.
http://www.berr.gov.uk/whatwedo/consume ... 38311.html

Q7. Do I have to produce a receipt to claim my rights?

No. In fact the trader doesn't have to give you a receipt in the first place so it would be unfair to say that you had to produce one. However, it might not be unreasonable for the shop to want some proof of purchase, so look to see if you have a cheque stub, bank statement, credit card slip etc., and this should be sufficient.

Just because Archos are a French Company doesn't mean they are outside the UK law. The have to repair it completely free of charge and that includes, postage costs and any out of pocket expenses. In fact you have up to 6 years (in England & Wales) to claim a repair if you can prove the goods where faulty from the outset. Your actual claim is with the seller not the manufacturer but as the manufacturer issued the warranty you are entitled to claim from them. Best of luck Cbers, if the worst comes to the worst take out a claim in the small claims court. I have done it with several big manufacturers in the past its a hassle, but worth it, although the consumer protection is now much stronger in favour of the customer.

They are still insisting on a receipt, otherwise it'll be a charged for repair.

I bought the TV+ off of someone else, so how does the law stand on that ??

Surely Archos must still have to honour the warranty irrespective of where, or whom I bought it from ??

[warris]

If you have proof of purchase, and you purchased the item as new then they quite simply must honor the warranty. It forms part of your contract of sale. If you purchased it secondhand they may dispute it if the item has been tampered with, understandable if someone has opened up the box and poked around inside.

Refusing to honor the warranty is a breach of the regulations, but they are within their rights to ask for proof of purchase - a paypal receipt, creditcard bill anything will suffice.

This however is not a barrier to a repair under warranty, especialy as the model hasnt been on sale for more that the period of the warranty. It is therefore still within the warranty period !. As far as I can tell if you purchased the item as new they dont have any choice but to honor the warranty. If they refuse on grounds of a lack of receipt they are trying to wriggle out of it. Having said that I suspect this is probably someone at Archos not being fully aware of the regulations and asking for what they have been told rather than refusing a repair. I would insist on speaking to a senior manager or infact writing to them and pointing out the error of their ways.

What do you do if they still refuse? You have 2 options. Pay up if you dont want the hassle, but in doing so you may forfit your rights to any future repairs under the warranty, or a small claims court action. In my experence a small claims works wonders - most disreputable companies will try and wriggle out of things until a court summons arrives then they know youre serious usually they pay up if they are solvent (including court costs). A quick word with your local trading standards department can also glean some very good advice. They have lots of data on national as well as local companies.

We are very lucky in the UK that our consumer laws are so very good. To sum it up if the goods dont comply with the advertised useage, are not fit for the intended purpose, are of an unacceptable quality considering the price, then you are entitled to a refund, repair or replacement. Not withstanding any warranty issued.

[warris]

One other thought. This is hypothetical but assuming you bought an item in good faith that subsequently turned out to be stolen goods then any warranty or indeed any claim at all on the goods would be invalid as you would not be the owner of the goods.

[CBers]

Cheers Warris, much appreciated.

As I bought it "second-hand" (from eBay) I wasn't sure how I stood legally.

I have the Paypal receipt so at least they can see I bought it off of someone else.

If it turns out to be stolen (!!) then I'll claim the monies back from eBay/Paypal.

OK, so I'm gonna send it in for repair - I have a replacement one now anyway, which works just fine !!

Thanks again for your help.

[CBers]

Well, looks like my TV+ will finally get repaired this week.

Archos RMA have only had it 3 weeks !!

[kevin]

We are very lucky in the UK that our consumer laws are so very good. To sum it up if the goods dont comply with the advertised useage, are not fit for the intended purpose, are of an unacceptable quality considering the price, then you are entitled to a refund, repair or replacement. Not withstanding any warranty issued.

But not from Archos, if you bought from eBay. In such a circumstance you have a contract of sale with the seller of the item, but you don't have any contractual relationship with Archos. Archos might (perhaps) have contracted with the original purchaser to perform repairs FOC for a certain time, and Archos might have a legal obligation to the _original_ purchaser under that persons's national law, or perhaps under EC law. But if you bought from someone other than Archos, you'd need to show that the rights in the original contract with Archos have been transferred to you. In practice this is very difficult because such an agreement will not be implied into a contract, and most eBay purchases are not accompanied by detailed contracts of sale.

Some manufacturers will honour warranty agreements with people other than the original purchaser because it's good PR to do so. But I'm not sure that they can be legally compelled to. If you buy direct from Archos, or from an agent for Archos, then that's a different matter.

Incidentally, if you buy goods at auction, then you might not be entitled to the additional protection in the Sales of Goods Acts that applies specifically to consumer contracts. The complication is that it is not clear whether eBay transactions actually constitute a public auction within the scope of UK or EC law. The case-law is rather sketchy on this point.

[warris]

@Kevin

Thanks for the clarification, seems like your law degree was worth it after all, I sincerely hope you wont be asking for that refund! Loved the dialogue with Mr C, if any one needed to get a refund its that chap who seems to be an "expert" on everything.

Regards
Warris