faulty item - must be returned overseas at my own expense

bigalk · 15-05-2014 10:53AM #1

hi all,

bought a staple gun recently and it broke down within a couple of months. i brought it back to the seller and he said that while it was covered under warranty, BUT the manufacturer only fixes items in the UK. that it would cost them about €30 to send the items back and another €30 to get it returned to Ireland. He said that the manufacturer wont cover my costs on shipping.

as far as i am aware the EU has legislation that says that they cant ask me to ship the item back to another country unless they cover the costs. (For example - what if i had to return these to Finland or Romania - what would the cost be then? more than the cost of the item im sure).

I would be very greatful if somone could clarify this for me and hopefully point me to the relevant legislation so i can pass it to the seller.

Thanks,
Al

foggy_lad · 15-05-2014 11:01AM

Where did you buy the Staple gun? if you bought it from a bricks and mortar shop you must return it to the shop and they are obliged to repair replace or refund. If bought online then you return it to the online store and they should refund your postage costs as well as doing a repair or replacement or refund.

The retailer is not allowed to pass on their obligations to anyone else not even the manufacturer.

The relevant legislation is the Sale of Goods Act

bigalk · 15-05-2014 11:17AM

hi foggy,

Do you know (before i spend hours reading) if the SOG act covers intra eu, or do i need to look to EU legislation for that?
thanks for the repsonse
al

foggy_lad · 15-05-2014 12:00PM

For items bought in the EU you have recourse through the European small claims proceedure. but you should first try to arrange redress through the retailer. The retailer should cover all postage costs for faulty items but for change of mind returns the customer would be liable for return postage.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/consumer_affairs/consumer_protection/consumer_rights/consumer_rights_and_cross_border_shopping_in_the_european_union.html

http://www.eccireland.ie/#

http://www.courts.ie/Courts.ie/library3.nsf/pagecurrent/BE71CDF8FCA10C8C80257559005F5C59?opendocument

dudara · 15-05-2014 12:14PM

Did you buy the staple gun in Ireland? That is the key question.

bigalk · 15-05-2014 01:41PM

yes the staple gun was bought in ireland, from a bricks and mortar store.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 15-05-2014 01:49PM

bigalk wrote: »

yes the staple gun was bought in ireland, from a bricks and mortar store.

Then you deal with the store and not the manufacturer, regardless of what they may try to tell you.

seagull · 15-05-2014 04:39PM

Your contract is with the store, and it's their responsibility to get the item back to the OK for repair. If it's going to cost €60 just to get it to and from the manufacturer, he might well just replace the one you have.

foggy_lad · 15-05-2014 10:18PM

bigalk wrote: »

yes the staple gun was bought in ireland, from a bricks and mortar store.

You can and should deal exclusively with the shop where you bought the item. They are obliged by law to offer to repair replace or refund.

mdebets · 15-05-2014 10:39PM

One more point that is important to know.
Did you buy it as a private person for your personal use, or as part of a business or a trade.
The above mentioned rights only apply to private buyers, not to business buyers.

Shane-KornSpace · 16-05-2014 06:12AM

Having a similar issue guys.
Got an Xbox One in Xtravision in November gone.
The headset had cropped out on me. The store manager informed me that after the first 28 days have BT, it'd up to me to return it to Microsoft in Czech Republic (I think) at my own expense.
The headsets would only be of about 20-30euro in value.

He said that he can't take the headset because Microsoft won't reimburse the store since 28 days have passed.
Any advice?

Saucy McKetchup · 16-05-2014 06:20AM

Shane-KornSpace wrote: »

Having a similar issue guys.
Got an Xbox One in Xtravision in November gone.
The headset had cropped out on me. The store manager informed me that after the first 28 days have BT, it'd up to me to return it to Microsoft in Czech Republic (I think) at my own expense.
The headsets would only be of about 20-30euro in value.

He said that he can't take the headset because Microsoft won't reimburse the store since 28 days have passed.
Any advice?

He's lying to you,

http://www.consumerhelp.ie/faulty-goods

Print out this page and bring it into him to remind him of his rights

Shane-KornSpace · 16-05-2014 06:26AM

Saucy McKetchup wrote: »

He's lying to you,

http://www.consumerhelp.ie/faulty-goods

Print out this page and bring it into him to remind him of his rights

I'll be making a trip in to them

bigalk · 16-05-2014 09:39AM

mdebets wrote: »

One more point that is important to know.
Did you buy it as a private person for your personal use, or as part of a business or a trade.
The above mentioned rights only apply to private buyers, not to business buyers.

thankd for all the responses and info. this may be the key point here - it was bought in a business to business manner. can anyone shed any additional light on this?

mdebets · 16-05-2014 09:49AM

bigalk wrote: »

thankd for all the responses and info. this may be the key point here - it was bought in a business to business manner. can anyone shed any additional light on this?

Than your normal consumer rights don't apply (they are only for a business to consumer transaction) and whatever the T&Cs of the shop say are what you have to follow.

skelligs · 16-05-2014 10:45AM

bigalk wrote: »

thankd for all the responses and info. this may be the key point here - it was bought in a business to business manner. can anyone shed any additional light on this?

I was just going to ask that - totally different rules apply, but still if a company is selling something here, they should have a repair system in place.

Also €30 to send an item to the UK is ridiculous - even sending as a trackable small package by an post is €10.75 (assuming its under 2kg)

foggy_lad · 18-05-2014 01:01PM

Shane-KornSpace wrote: »

Having a similar issue guys.
Got an Xbox One in Xtravision in November gone.
The headset had cropped out on me. The store manager informed me that after the first 28 days have BT, it'd up to me to return it to Microsoft in Czech Republic (I think) at my own expense.
The headsets would only be of about 20-30euro in value.

He said that he can't take the headset because Microsoft won't reimburse the store since 28 days have passed.
Any advice?

They are lying to you as said, You can and should deal only with them especially if they are handier than posting off stuff to the Cheque republic etc

bigalk wrote: »

thankd for all the responses and info. this may be the key point here - it was bought in a business to business manner. can anyone shed any additional light on this?

The Small Claims Court deals with businesses now up to a certain value so the OP should be covered.

http://www.courts.ie/Courts.ie/library3.nsf/pagecurrent/781D7D5227918A618025715C004CAEF3?opendocument

Type of claims dealt with

(a) a claim for goods or services bought for private use from someone selling them in the course of a business (consumer claims)

(b) a claim for goods or services bought for business use from someone selling them in the course of a business (business claims)

(c) a claim for minor damage to property (but excluding personal injuries)

(d) a claim for the non-return of a rent deposit for certain kinds of rented properties. For example, a holiday home or a room / flat in a premises where the owner also lives provided that a claim does not exceed €2,000.

faulty item - must be returned overseas at my own expense

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