Software return

[patdavies]

But your contract is with the retailer.

It's the same as when you have a piece of hardware that is faulty, there is a tendency to try to fob you off with "you need to send it back to the manufacturer"

[petrolhead]

that cracks me up. If you WERE of the mind to buy the software, copy it, then return it for a refund surely you would just download it off a P2P site and cut out the middleman. Most, not all but most PC world staff i`ve dealt with are fairly clueless apart from the basics, they just rely on BS and fake banter, some good deals on laptops sometimes though. The thing is if pc world had knowledgable staff who really knew PCs and IT inside and out the prices would go up as their wage bill would be horrendous. Most people who have the necesarry skills wouldn`t work for the wages pcworld pay just now, so they get the BS merchants or the part timers who are studying for the proper IT jobs, plenty of enthusiasm but not enough real-world experience yet.
If you want a laugh go to pc world with a wad of cash, tell them youll buy an expensive laptop there and then if the unistall for you that godawful norton antivirus/internet security trial crap they come preinstalled with. I had 4 of them scrathing their heads saying it cant be done.

[kennyc5150]

The issue seems to be that "the software" is faulty...if that were the case the software (being the only common feature if installed on various systems) would fail to run as expected.
If the software works on other pc's, you could therefore assume that the software itself is in fact fault free.
If it works on other systems but not on YOUR system, then logic would indicate that it may well be YOUR system, YOUR windows install or an incompatability with any of the other applications or drivers on YOUR system.
PS not sticking up for PCW, just using the most logical, fault finding i can.
as this is the route i went down MANY times.if it didnt work on other systems then offer the refund coz it aint worth the argument!

[StudentInDebt]

How does the Sale of Goods and Serivces Act cover sealed software? Does it make a special exemption to the "Must be fit for purpose and free of defects" rule?

Surely if the software doesn't work on your machine then you can get a refund regardless of the state of the packaging?

[blitz]

You should be able to compare the system requirments on the box, with the specification on your own computer. If it doesn't work then they are providing misleading information (it doesn't working on something that it should), and breaks the contract.
If it doesn't work on a system that isn't listed on the back then its your own fault, and won't be entitiled to a refund, as its your responsibility to check, and you in a sense, are given information about a 'defect' which exempts you from refund under the SOGA.

Though I assume if you want your money back, within a reasonable amount of time, its up to you to show that it doesn't work on the compatable system. (Full refund the burden is on you, repair/replacment within 6 months burden is on the retailer, after 6 months burden is back on you)

[JonCris]

Any 'goods' however sold are subject to the Sale of Goods Act & MUST be 'fit for purpose' There is no opt out such as 'reduced' 'sold as seen' 'shop soiled' 'display model' etc.

If the information you require is not available at 'point of display' then you have a claim

If your 1st sight of the packing box is when your en route to the checkout then it won't matter what is written on it or indeed what is inside it won't negate your rights under the act. If you have been told it will do something which it won't again you have a claim.

[Whisperwolf]

Can I just say, with reference to the original posting, which talked about software to copy DVDs, a little point about that.

Region 0 DVDs - that is, ones authored by home PCs, have no Content Scrambling System (CSS) and can be copied by virtually anything; Nero Burning Rom is a classic example.

Now, professionally authored DVDs, which are region limited, protect their content with CSS to prevent Piracy. Nero will tell you with an onscreen dialogue box "Sorry this is copyright protected - I ain't copying it" that it's found CSS and will terminate at that point. Other, less well written software, may simply report a sense error and stop, or worse crash altogether.

This doesn't mean the software is faulty.

Copying DVDs is not illegal. Decrypting CSS however IS illegal, and since you would have to decrypt the CSS on a professionally authored DVD in order to be able to copy it, this is where the offense lies when one copies a professionally produced DVD. For this reason, some of the cheaper copying software which doesn't ship with CSS won't understand CSS protected disks, and may crash. Again, not because of a fault, because the CSS is doing what it is intended to do - stopping the copying of intellect-copyrighted material.

If the software you bought is purely for copying DVDs you have authored (i.e. it doesn't come with CSS decryption software) and you try to use it on a CD someone else has authored which DOES use CSS, then the software is fit for purpose specifically if it WON'T copy the disk. You can't return it as unfit for this reason. You would most likely have to justify what disk you couldn't copy before you could satisfy the shop that the product was faulty.

As a side note it should be observed that an author of a De-CSS program was unsuccessfully prosecuted, but use of his program to circumvent legitimate copyright protection remains a criminal offense, even if combined with a copying program unrelated to it.

[Nukey]

Also, just on one small point, faulty could also include manufacturing issues. Sometimes the data print on the disc can become warped, which causes reading issues. Seen that a few times from where I used to work. Just a thought

[Zamzara]

Originally Posted by yellowplum

Exactly, being that the software doesn't work on your machine doesn't mean it wont work in a stores machine - therefore you have not proved the item is faulty.

Hence why stores do not take open box software as a return, and why you obtain your refund from the manufacturer directly. READ YOUR EULA!

The item is faulty if it doesn't work as advertised on the box. If it claims to work on a certain operating system with certain specs, then it must work on all such machines.

The EULA is irrelevant since it is not incorporated into the sales contract before purchase, and even if it were it could not exclude rights under the Sale of Goods Act.

Also an EULA cannot form a second contract on installation of the software (as the maufacturers claim it does) because their consideration is past, i.e. you have already paid to use it, so clicking 'I accept' is a "bare promise".

[JonCris]

Your correct Zamara The contract is with the seller....& not the manufacturer

[patdavies]

To further confuse the issue, for the most part you do not ever buy software. What you purchase is a licence to use the software.

[JonCris]

Nothing confusing about it.........The dealer who sold the software is still liable for it's performance