O2 store policy V Consumer rights

keys101

I will try and keep this as short and sweet as possible.

I am a bill pay customer with O2, lost my phone in January, wasn't due an upgrade so had to buy a prepay phone. Went for the Sumsung galaxy for about 100euro. Worked fine until about late June, then some faults started happening. Dropped the phone into the store I bought it from. Sent away for repair and got it back a week later. Told it was software problems. Grand.

Phone is still not working properly.

I popped into the O2 shop about 10 days ago, looking for refund as consumer rights say that repair must be permanent. I was told by the guy in the store that o2 policy is to send it back for a second repair. And o2 store policy is that if the fault occurs within 30 days of purchase then a refund can be given. If a fault occurs outside the first 30 days of purchase then the same fault must occur 3 times in 90 days before a refund be given.

I contacted the NCA just to be sure and they say that a refund can be sought under the sale of goods and supply of services act 1980.

I contacted o2 via email last Monday(23rd) stating the o2 store's response and the NCA response and it took til this morning to get a definitive answer that they will not be giving me refund. The only thing they will offer is another repair, and if they cant repair it a new handset.

Has anybody had any experiences like this before with o2?

Is my only option now the small claims court?

Thanks

cookie1977

plenty have experienced similar situations. Your rights under the law state a repair, replacement or refund. If it's a repair it should be permanent. You may have to go to the small claims court to sort it out.

You've got to force the issue with these companies to get your rights unfortunately. They're just hoping you'll cave and give up and accept their "policy".

Let us know how you get on.

foggy_lad

Most mobile phone shops operate this same or very similar policies. the shops are effectively denying customers theiy rights.

You should start the small claims court process as most of these awful shops cave in after a letter from the courts asking for their side of the story and they cant tell the court they are insisting on almost endless repairs when all repairs are supposed to be permenant!

you could try going back into the shop when it is busy and insisting on them replacing or refunding as you are entitled to but remember the staff are either going to just stand there staring blankly at you or will debate it with you repeating their shop policy over and over like a mantra!

keys101

Small claims it is so!

I'm definitely not letting this one go.

Its a joke how these shops can just ignore consumer rights but clearly enough people don't follow through on stuff like this and let them off, otherwise the phone shops would have very different policies.

Thanks for the quick replies.

daheff

i'd also send a letter to your local TD (find the one looking for publicity). Theres always a public representative who wants to make a name for themselves publicly fighting big business who are breaking the law.

cookie1977

keys101 wrote: »

Small claims it is so!

I'm definitely not letting this one go.

Its a joke how these shops can just ignore consumer rights but clearly enough people don't follow through on stuff like this and let them off, otherwise the phone shops would have very different policies.

Thanks for the quick replies.

Exactly that's it. For everyone of you who come on here to query your rights there's a ton of people who the networks (and other companies) have fobbed off with the "Store Policy" line blah blah blah.

BostonB

I refused to take my phone back after the 2nd repair with O2. The phone was given back as fully tested but the home button didn't work so they couldn't have tested it. Took 4~5 months to get a refund, including the messing with repairs. Next time I'll just go the small claims court.

TBH the phone repair companies are abysmal and the operators policies are a shambles in this country. I'd also check if the moisture indicator is triggered on any phone before leaving it in, as its a get out of jail (warranty) card for all them.

Most of the prepay phones are cheaper, sim free from online shops. So it makes little sense to buy from the local stores anyway.

keys101

BostonB wrote: »

I refused to take my phone back after the 2nd repair with O2. The phone was given back as fully tested but the home button didn't work so they couldn't have tested it. Took 4~5 months to get a refund, including the messing with repairs. Next time I'll just go the small claims court.

TBH the phone repair companies are abysmal and the operators policies are a shambles in this country. I'd also check if the moisture indicator is triggered on any phone before leaving it in, as its a get out of jail (warranty) card for all them.

Most of the prepay phones are cheaper, sim free from online shops. So it makes little sense to buy from the local stores anyway.

Well they stressed it quite a bit that if I was to leave it in they would make sure to push the repair through as quickly as possible.

But I'm clearly not excepting that.

The reason I purchased to phone from a shop and not online was because I assumed it would be easier to sort any problems with an actual store as opposed to a website, that's clearly not the case though.

foggy_lad

keys101 wrote: »

Well they stressed it quite a bit that if I was to leave it in they would make sure to push the repair through as quickly as possible.

But I'm clearly not excepting that.

The reason I purchased to phone from a shop and not online was because I assumed it would be easier to sort any problems with an actual store as opposed to a website, that's clearly not the case though.

They would have stressed anything to get you to agree and get you out of their sight!

BostonB

TBH in my experience O2 aren't interested in helping you, they follow their process to the letter, regardless how it inconveniences their customer or makes no financial sense. Incidentally they tried to fob me off with the value of my phone, against another one. I didn't accept that either.

Reminds me of talking to Dell support who insisted I need to do a software update on a laptop where the touchpad button had physically fallen off.

Procrastastudy

Just bear in mind the repair has to be permanent but within a reasonable time. Lets say you drop something in it comes back a day later and its still not fixed. If it had to go away for another day that can be interpreted as a reasonable time.

Software is also a dodgy one. That said SmCC is only going to cost you €25 so it's up to you - just be aware of the shades of grey and that these companies will have run their policies by the odd legal professional.

Our man in Havana

GCDLawstudent wrote: »

Just bear in mind the repair has to be permanent but within a reasonable time. Lets say you drop something in it comes back a day later and its still not fixed. If it had to go away for another day that can be interpreted as a reasonable time.

Software is also a dodgy one. That said SmCC is only going to cost you €25 so it's up to you - just be aware of the shades of grey and that these companies will have run their policies by the odd legal professional.

They mustn't be very good ones.

Procrastastudy

As Our Man has reminded me Thats an opinion from working as a retail manager not from 6 months of reading just enough to get though exams and staring at 18 year old girls.

cookie1977

GCDLawstudent wrote: »

...just be aware of the shades of grey and that these companies will have run their policies by the odd legal professional.

I think you're giving them way too much credit. They'd rather rely on the credulity of their customers.

Procrastastudy

Sorry to keep posting - there will definitely be an element of 'what we can get away with' I'm not condoning it either. I just don't want to see the OP think the SmCC is a given outcome.

cookie1977

GCDLawstudent wrote: »

Sorry to keep posting - there will definitely be an element of 'what we can get away with' I'm not condoning it either. I just don't want to see the OP think the SmCC is a given outcome.

If it's as the OP has said then I'd put money on it not ending up their once O2 get notification of the proceedings.

Procrastastudy

cookie1977 wrote: »

If it's as the OP has said then I'd put money on it not ending up their once O2 get notification of the proceedings.

€25?

You're probably right in all honesty.

Our man in Havana

It would cost o2 far more to defend an action. Also they cannot get their costs back even if they win.

Hence it is easier for them to pay up rather than risk a pasting in court.

cookie1977

Lots of examples out there of them settling at the last minute:
http://community.o2online.ie/t5/General-Banter/o2-Policy/td-p/377518
http://community.o2online.ie/t5/Other/O2-won-t-replace-my-phone/td-p/88135/page/3

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=64165068#post64165068

keys101

cookie1977 wrote: »

If it's as the OP has said then I'd put money on it not ending up their once O2 get notification of the proceedings.

It is as I said, just a hell of a lot longer!

When I sent the original email on Monday of last week. I had no contact back at all, O2 say an email response is usually 48 hours. So on Friday I went onto the online chat section and one of the girls(who was quite helpful),she seemed to move it along a bit. Which is all she could do.

Since then there's been emails back and forth from a customer care agent.But all saying pretty much the same thing. No refund, free repair.

To GCDLawstudent, they never specified a time frame for repair, just that when I drop it in they will speed it up with their phone menders internally.

I would obviously rather not have to go to the SmCC but I don't see any alternative.

The strange thing is had they given me a refund when requested I would have probably just bought a new phone from them there and then, and the phone I would have bought was a good bit dearer than the one in question. Also my contracts up in a couple of months but really doubt I'll be renewing after this!

foggy_lad

Tell them that their attitude towards your statutory rights has lost them a customer and request they release you from contract without penalty as they are failing to provide customer care for products bought from them.