Currys Sony laptop repaired, still not fixed, refund?

[bellebob]

Hello all,

I bought a Sony laptop from Currys last April, it developed 3 faults so went in to Sony to be repaired. I got it back yesterday and 2 of the 3 faults are still there. Am I now entitled to a refund or an exchange?

Thanks

B

[karen654321]

Hiya, i had a similiar problem with a tv from currys. I did end up getting a replacement from them. It said somewhere in the contract if the item wasnt fixed withing so long that i would get a refund or replacement.

Have you still got the paperwork from when you bought it?

thanks

karen

[ForestChav]

What were the faults and what was the report from Sony? Did you send it back to Sony yourself, did Currys tell you to, or did Currys send it back?

[bellebob]

Karen: I do still have all the paperwork.

ForestChav: The faults were 1. dvd player not working, 2. internet intermittently dropping out, 3. screen keeps going pink

Fault one was fixed, faults 2 and 3 were not. Within one hour of having the machine back the whole screen went pink again.

Originally a Currys tech guy tried to fix it, he couldn't, so he rang sony for me and we organised for them to pick it up from my house and have it sent back to me.

I have also spent approximately 2 hours on the phone to sony to try and get it fixed before they picked it up. The sony guy said that the screen needed replacing, which obviously they didn't do.

I'm a little unsure of Currys policy, I know they have an agreement with Sony that they repair rather than replace, but I've had a repair and it was unsuccessful.
Does this now mean I can state my 'goods sold not fit for the purpose for which they were sold for' bit?

Help much appreciated

B

[ForestChav]

Originally Posted by bellebob

ForestChav: The faults were 1. dvd player not working, 2. internet intermittently dropping out, 3. screen keeps going pink

Fault one was fixed, faults 2 and 3 were not. Within one hour of having the machine back the whole screen went pink again.

The sony guy said that the screen needed replacing, which obviously they didn't do.

It might well be that they couldn't reproduce the faults in the workshop. Or maybe the screen going pink is down to a loose connection on one of the cables that unseated itself in transit. Maybe they did change the screen and that didn't fix it.

As for the internet dropping out, then my internet hasn't dropped out :o so that has to be either something on the laptop or the connection itself, how does it connect? Wireless? Dialup? ADSL? In fairness that might not be a Sony issue.

Looking from a purely legal perspective the seller is required to replace or repair the goods if they were faulty at purchase. Any repair offered must be carried out with appropriate skill and must not cause the buyer undue inconvenience. As the goods are over six months old the onus is on the buyer to prove that the fault was present when the item was bought (note, not the same as proving there is a fault!).

Taking all of this into context:
- From a technical perspective it is probable that they couldn't reproduce the faults. This is quite common when taking a laptop from one environment to another eg the internet connection problem which might not be the laptop, if they aren't seeing it on your setup then as these things are often a combination of more than one factor then if that factor changes...
- They might need to try more than one thing to see if that works before moving on to another.
- Really, you should give them a finite number of repairs to resolve it. Whilst one does mean you are possibly legally entitled to claim a replacement under SOGA, Currys will probably use their own 28 days policy (if an issue is ongoing for 28 days you can ask for a replacement) - personally I think that's reasonable.

I'd get Sony (via Currys) to take it back, to make Currys aware the repair still hasn't resolved it. Ideally the retailer should be dealing with this though.

If it's not fixed after the 2nd attempt request a replacement.

[bellebob]

ForestChav: thanks for your reply.

Luckily the tech guy at Currys has seen the screen go pink, so I do have back-up there if I want to go and talk to them about it, but I'd rather wait to know what I'm entitled to before I go down there and start demanding things.

The internet is on a wireless network with another pc and another mac which are both fine. I don't know if it is Sony's problem this one, but as the other two are fine I think it might be.

I'm more concerned about the screen really, this definitely is their problem and one I NEED fixing. I think you are right, rather than get stressed in Curry's today I will ring Sony on Monday and see what they have to say and take it from there.

Curry's won't take the laptop and send it to Sony, they say I have to do it myself.

I do see what you mean about "As the goods are over six months old the onus is on the buyer to prove that the fault was present when the item was bought (note, not the same as proving there is a fault!)." But I feel like I'm in a grey area with this one.

The only good thing that has come of this is that I will never make the mistake again of buying anything from them!!

[ForestChav]

Well firstly it isn't really Currys' fault they sold you a faulty laptop made by Sony, but it is their responsibility to sort.

To be honest, I would take it to Currys and insist that because your contract is with them, it is they who should contact sony and send it back and not you.

The fact an employee has seen the fault kinda helps but otherwise they aren't in the loop, if you send it to Sony, and Sony will only repair it not replace it.

As for your internet I would suggest trying it on a different network - often the cards do function fine but other environmental factors cause the connection to drop (especially other devices in 2.4 GHz like cordless phones, microwave ovens) or just slight incompatibilities with the different makes of kit, bugs on the router software (what make is it?), etc etc. In other words, not really possible to pinpoint, but the cards rarely fail so that's not especially likely to be a sony problem even if other machines are unaffected (if the card has failed, which I seriously doubt, because they don't pick up any networks at all if they have!).

Your screen is clearly warranty problem unless there is evidence of misuse. I presume Sony were made aware of all three issues? Was the machine sent back with a service report? If you do decide to pursue it with Sony directly rather than via Currys I suggest you write or type out a description of the two problems and steps you need to take to reproduce them (as fully as you can), print it out and seat the paper on the keyboard before you close the laptop. That way when they open the machine they will see it and it will help them reproduce the fault - if they can't reproduce it they can't fix it. Their engineers may be skilled but they aren't psychic.

[bellebob]

Currys have insisted that they will not send it to Sony, that I should do it myself.

I'm quite computer literate and have been through many things with the computer to try and solve the internet problem, and the Sony guys have also taken me through several stages on the phone before telling me they think it's the card. I think if we can get the screen sorted then I'll try it on a different network, that's a great idea.

I did write a full list of the faults and laid it on the keyboard before shutting the computer when I sent it to them. I do understand that it is difficult for them to re-produce faults though. The report that they sent back saying what they have done to the computer is totally illegible, so I do need to speak to Sony on Monday morning to establish exactly what they did.

Do you think I should I be pressing Sony for an exchange/refund rather than Currys? I just automatically assumed it would be Currys as they were the ones who sold it to me?

[ForestChav]

Well Currys are feeding you BS then because as the retailer under SOGA the law states it is their responsibility to deal with it, not yours. If you don't want to deal with Sony, legally they are obliged to.

My guess is Sony can't offer you anything other than a repair, which is why you need to be making Currys do all this for you, not doing it yourself.

As you said, it was Currys who sold it to you. You have a contract with them to supply you with goods of merchantable quality which are fit for purpose, as they have developed a fault they are in breach of this contract and it is their responsibility to rectify this. Yes, sure, they will just send it back to Sony... but they should be doing it, not you.

On the other note about the illegible report, then I would definitely contact them, their systems would most likely show what had been done anyway.

[bellebob]

Great, that's what I thought. I'll call Sony first on Monday, and then deal with Currys according to the Sony report.

Thanks for all your help ForestChav.

B

[DEMO]

ive had similar problem with pworld (business section).

i bought a sony laptop for my business, which went faulty around 6 months later. it took SEVEN months to sort out, even though i had coverplan, and the business section T&C's stated a replacement or vouchers if not fixed within 4 weeks. 7 months is nowhere near 4 weeks, and that was only because i constantly 'nagged' at them to resolve the issue via phone calls/letters etc. Eventually they sent me vouchers.

so id say keep arguing your case.... and dont let them fob you off!

ive got my own problem from this, (maybe you could help me?) see link here
http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk...dixons-gp.html

..im not stealing your thread, just a similar problem to yours, so maybe some one could shed some light n my situation also, and in turn could help you?

[bellebob]

Hi DEMO

I was told by Sony that to fix the screen I would have to wait until a driver appeared on the site. I was told this might appear in 6 weeks, 6 months or maybe a year. I did a lot of ringing around to Trading Standards etc.. and eventually managed to get a manager from the store that I bought it from on the phone and he agreed to exchange the unit.

When I went to the store the customer service was just disgusting, I won't even go into it here. Luckily there was one decent guy who swopped it for a macbook that I wanted from PCWorld next door. It was £100 more and I told them I wasn't paying a penny for it and they agreed.

PCWorld went a bit mental at them agreeing to give me the macbook but eventually they let it go. Silly thing is they didn't even ring Sony to confirm the fault, they didn't even look in the box I could have put a brick in there for all they cared.

With regard to your case, I would get on the phone to your local trading standards, they are an absolute gem. If they can't help go to citizens advice.

Currys - NEVER AGAIN!

[todd58]

currys were your point of sale they are your first contact point and duly bound for the first year of warranty to undertake repairs or replace any purchase found faulty due to manufacturing .you are required to return the item to the point of sale store they then return to main agent (sony)if all else fail try cab

good luck

[gyzmo]

Currys did this becasue they knew they were in the wrong not to provide a replacement if the repair is too inconvenient. If Trading Standards were involved, the they were probably told to replace.

[ForestChav]

The buyer has to prove the inconvenience though, if required. AIUI, saying it would be too inconvenient isnt enough.