Fit for purpose and as described

Thoie

I bought an electrical item over Christmas. I had one very specific technical requirement. The salesman said I was limited to a choice of a few items that met that requirement. I selected one, and asked him to confirm during checkout that this met my requirement - he confirmed.

It transpires that the item I bought does not have the feature that I requested, though it works perfectly fine in the ways it was designed for.

Given that it works, but just doesn't do what I want it to, is it fit for purpose? I'm looking at 14.4 of the Sale of Goods Act:

where the seller sells goods in the course of a business and the buyer, expressly or by implication, makes known to the seller any particular purpose for which the goods are being bought, there is an implied condition that the goods supplied under the contract are reasonably fit for that purpose, whether or not that is a purpose for which such goods are commonly supplied, except where the circumstances show that the buyer does not rely, or that it is unreasonable for him to rely, on the seller's skill or judgement.

My reading would be that I made it very clear what my requirements were, and therefore it's not fit for purpose. Would that be an accurate reading?

smelltheglove

In my view the item would be fit for its purpose although this is not including the specifics you requested from the seller so you would be entitled to an exchange. Although I could not say if law is on your side, in my experience in retail previously, working in various positions from sales assitant, customer care and management, I would never have denied an exchange in such cicumstances.

drunkmonkey

Shouldn't be any problem with an exchange / refund but do it sooner rather than later. I hope you still have the box and the item is not damaged in any way;)

Kensington

If you asked and were told by the salesperson prior to buying the product that the product you were buying off them did one specific function you required it to do, and it does not do this, then no, it is not fit for the purpose for which you requested it be used for - even if it works perfectly fine for what it was intended for by the manufacturer.

That is not to be mixed up, however, with a case where you go straight into a shop, pick up an item without consulting anyone, buy it and walk out only to discover later that it isn't fit for the purpose you intended it to be used for. In this case, you have absolutely no comeback whatsoever as you just didn't bother researching what you were buying beforehand.

Think of it this way:
You go into your local DIY shop and specifically ask an assistant for exterior electrical cable.
The person gives you cable which is only suitable for indoor use, but believing what you were told to be correct, you buy it.

Is the cable fit for purpose? Yes - it will carry electrical current through it.
Is it fit for the purpose you required? No - it's not safe to use it outdoors!
Under the law, you were sold something unfit for purpose so your consumer rights re: Repair, Replace, Refund fully support you.

But on the other hand, say you go down to the local DIY shop, walk straight in, pick up the first reel of electrical cable you find, buy it and head off home. You later discover that the cable is for indoor use only.

Is the cable fit for purpose? Yes - again, it will carry electrical current through it.
Is it fit for the purpose you required? No but, in this case this is down purely to your error and hence you have no comeback whatsoever under consumer legislation. You went ahead and bought the item, happy with what information information was available to you, and so as far as the contract between you and the shop is concerned, the shop sold you indoor cable, and the cable is perfectly fit for this purpose.


Depending on where you've bought the product, they may accept it back straightaway without quibble, if they're anyway decent. However, if they refuse to do so then you're stuck in a situation where it's your words against theirs. If you scenario genuinely does fit the first one above, then the law is on your side. Best bet is to return to the shop ASAP and explain your case politely and calmly

Thoie

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Shouldn't be any problem with an exchange / refund but do it sooner rather than later. I hope you still have the box and the item is not damaged in any way;)

Nah, it's all perfect, the issue is that I'm not going to be able to get anywhere near there for over a month, and the original salesman seems to have disappeared (according to a phone conversation). They have a branch near where I am, but the shops don't seem to talk to each other. I'm to phone back tomorrow to talk to a manager. I'm not pulling out Acts etc. yet - just trying to get my facts right in case I need them later.

drunkmonkey

Thoie wrote: »

Nah, it's all perfect, the issue is that I'm not going to be able to get anywhere near there for over a month

ever heard of an post? Talk to the shop explain you can't get to them and can you post it back, they shouldn't have a problem with it. Leave it for a month and they will have a problem.

dudara

It is my understanding that you are covered by consumer law in this situation. This is because you specifically sought confirmation from the salesman that the item in question would meet your requirements.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

Thoie

drunkmonkey wrote: »

ever heard of an post? Talk to the shop explain you can't get to them and can you post it back, they shouldn't have a problem with it. Leave it for a month and they will have a problem.

Well yes, if they accept it (by courier, I'm not trusting An Post at the moment), fine, but some retailers are finicky about refunds without the card present. Any machine I've used you can refund, card not present, no problem, but a lot of stores seem to want the card.

smelltheglove

Thoie wrote: »

Well yes, if they accept it (by courier, I'm not trusting An Post at the moment), fine, but some retailers are finicky about refunds without the card present. Any machine I've used you can refund, card not present, no problem, but a lot of stores seem to want the card.

You could request store credit or vouchers so you can use them in the store closest to you. Ensure they will foot the courier bill. If it is a diy store they should have cheap enough couriers they use regular anyway.

Thoie

No real news - I've spoken to what seems like half their staff since my last post. I suggested that I could courier it to them, but they won't issue any refunds or credit notes without my credit card being present, which is extremely tedious. I'm not really in the mood for them to have both my item AND my money for a month. Original salesman has miraculously reappeared, so that's useful at least. Semi considering adding a local relative as an authorised user on my credit card (which would then have the same number as my card) and getting them to return it, but I suspect by the time a new CC is issued (including postal delays in sending the form to the relative for signing) it could nearly be the end of the month anyway.

smelltheglove

Thoie wrote: »

No real news - I've spoken to what seems like half their staff since my last post. I suggested that I could courier it to them, but they won't issue any refunds or credit notes without my credit card being present, which is extremely tedious. I'm not really in the mood for them to have both my item AND my money for a month. Original salesman has miraculously reappeared, so that's useful at least. Semi considering adding a local relative as an authorised user on my credit card (which would then have the same number as my card) and getting them to return it, but I suspect by the time a new CC is issued (including postal delays in sending the form to the relative for signing) it could nearly be the end of the month anyway.

I dont think it would have the same card number, I had a card on my husbands account and they were both different numbers.

Is there a head office tot his store?

Thoie

smelltheglove wrote: »

I dont think it would have the same card number, I had a card on my husbands account and they were both different numbers.

Is there a head office tot his store?

Poot - girl in the bank said she thought they'd have the same number. I'll scrap that idea for now.

There is a head office (have the phone number and address already noted ), but I'll give them a few days before escalating things - there are some genuine reasons at the moment why the manager might be out for a few days (poor driving conditions/colds and stomach bugs doing the rounds).

ch750536

I had the same issue where a supermarket retailer couldn't tell me anything about the product and refused to open it to let me read the manual.

Before buying it I stated that if it did not meet my needs which were **** then I would be returning it as it is not fit for purpose.

I bought it, opened it at the till, read the manual, asked for a refund.

Was a class moment.