Laptop damaged due to defects in laptop bag.

[DistortAMG]

I brought an Acer laptop at the end of March from Argos.

This came with a free pack that included a laptop bag, speakers, mouse and some software.

 

The laptop has been sat on a desk for most of it's short life,

the start of this weekend I decided to take it out,

so I placed it into the free laptop bag that came with the laptop and took it around to a friends.

 

While in the bag the laptop was subject to no forces what so ever.

It was placed down on the floor gently, great care was taken just as I always do with my electronic goods.

 

Upon opening the laptop bag, I found the laptop to have a cracked screen

and a very minor crack to the bottom half of the casing in a corner, consistent with the crack on the screen.

 

Anyone that works with laptops or portable devices will understand that it does not take much force at all the crack or damage a laptop screen, even less force when the force is applied to a corner.

 

I went to Argos. I explained to them the situation,

they immediately tried to fob me off that it was accidental damage

and therefor it was not covered by their guarantee.

 

I took the laptop out the bag and showed them that the laptop apart from this minor chip and cracked screen

(which was caused while in the laptop bag) was in immaculate condition.

Not a single scrach, mark or dent anywhere.

 

The lady then agreed with me that if I had not been careful with the laptop

then more marks or damage would be visible.

She then went to get a manager.

 

The manager came back with a number for Acer,

and told me to ring them and then come back in store.

He also told me that the laptop bags were sold for transportation purposes only and not for protection.

 

I rang Acer knowing they would be no help at all,

seeing that the problem was with Argos who had sold me a laptop bag

with my laptop that had damaged my laptop while being transported and subjected to no unusual forces.

 

I then went back into the store, spoke to the manager again,

firstly I pointed out that on the card sleeve the laptop bag came in

clearly stated on it that it had 'foam protection' so his claim half hour ago

that they only sell them for transportation was lies.

 

They agreed to take the laptop away for analysis but I will probably have to pay for any costs.

I refuse to pay a penny and refuse to accept the laptop back in its current condition,

due to the damage happening while the laptop was in a case that was sold by argos

with the laptop as offering 'foam protection' and the laptop was not subjected to any unusual or harsh forces.

 

Can anyone please tell me where I can go from here,

 

thank you.

[rebel11]

Hi DistortAMG

 

Welcome to CAG

 

Firstly I can't vouch for how careful you were with the laptop or whether there had been any impact prior to purchase, or what protection the laptop bag could or should provide.

 

You should expect the laptop casing to provide reasonable protection against any day to day impact.

 

They have the laptop.

 

If you paid by Credit Card or Visa Debit, contact your Card Provider, ask to do a Chargeback.

 

http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/problem/how-do-i-use-chargeback

 

or

 

if you paid by Credit Card, contact your Card provider, ask to do a Section 75 Claim

 

http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/section-75-of-the-consumer-credit-act

 

When sending the letters, send them Recorded Delivery. You might have a fight on your hands with both refund methods.

[DistortAMG]

Thank you for the quick reply. I understand it would be difficult for you to determine if the laptop was looked after or not. I did say this to the lady at the counter in Argos. My argument was that if it had not been looked after it would not be in the immaculate condition it is in now, apart from the cracked screen and slight damage to the casing. But, I would expect a laptop bag that came with the laptop and being sold as offering 'foam protection' to protect it against day to day usage, this it has not done.

 

I repair laptops for a living, it costs me £20 for a screen, and nothing for labour as I would do it myself. But my problem here is that they have sold me something that has not lived upto its claims, and has damaged my laptop in the process.

 

I did pay via visa debit so applying for a charge back is an option. There is alot of data on the laptop I would like to keep however, so in an ideal world I would like it repaired.

[dx100uk]

it might also be prudent to aside this from the bag issue.

 

I see many laptop, around about 2-3 mts old that just crack in the corners

this is usually down to twisting or clamping forces caused by the laptop screen surround itself

not any external issue.

 

the screen over its short life has had enough of being squashed by whatever the holding method used in the lid it.

 

don't forget SOGA, which is your friend here

 

if you purchased this is march

its down to argos to investigate and repair or replace or refund as they think fit.

 

its unusual to see argos fob customers off to the manu

they usually deal directly without quibble.

 

dx

[DistortAMG]

The crack is in the bottom half of the casing (the bit with the keyboard in), not the one with the screen in. But the screen is cracked and the crack starts in the same area where the crack is in the bottom half of the casing.

 

What is more alarming, the manager quickly gave me something to sign without going through any of it, took it off me and gave me a copy in a very hurriedly manor, probably because the store was close to close.

 

When I looked at it the day after it was an 'Argos after sales repair note' It says on here that the media and data has been removed and backed up prior to bringing back to Argos, this is not true and was never even asked to me. He has also made it sound like the crack on the casing was already there and it is the screen that is the problem and needs fixing, when in reality both were caused at the same time, and I will not accept it back with any still there.

 

When I also asked him if he needed the charger his reply was, 'nah you keep that, we probably will not get this back if we send it with the laptop' This makes me very nervous about what is going to happen with my laptop.

[unclebulgaria67]

As you repair laptops for a living, you will know more about laptop construction than most on here. I have an ASUS laptop, where the casing at the top of the screen cracked within a few months of buying it. But as the screen is not damaged, I just glued the casing to stop it coming apart. The plastic used for the casing in my opinion is just not robust enough. But it was a cheap laptop.

 

In an older laptop with a 17" screen, the casing cracked at the bottom, as I think the screen was too heavy for the support the casing was giving it. Even gentle moving around over a period of time, would have led to the casing cracking.

 

Most laptop bags are generic and offer limited protection. Unless the bag was specifically designed for the laptop size and you correctly used any straps inside to secure it, I think it would be difficult to make a winning argument about the laptop bag. You are more likely to succeed in making an argument that the materials used to manufacture the laptop were not fit for purpose under SOGA, as they did not offer the protection need to move the laptop around, without damaging it.

[DistortAMG]

The screen in most, if not all laptops is screwed into a metal frame this metal frame is directly connected to the hinge. The back casing (behind the screen) then screws onto this metal frame and then the front casing in front of the screen just clips into place. This design puts no strain onto the plastic casing, as the full weight of the screen is supported by the metal frame. I cannot say this is the same for newer laptops as I am yet to repair a screen on one of those.

 

As for the laptop bag, it is correct for the size of the laptop, and it does offer straps inside which were used. The laptop bag was also sold with the laptop, it was offered as a free gift with that laptop. This free gift was not offered with every laptop on sale in Argos at the time either. So therefor one would assume when buying this laptop with the free bag, that the bag would be sufficient enough to safely move the laptop around.

[unclebulgaria67]

Was the bag given away free by the manufacturer of the laptop or Argos ? I suspect that it was Argos. Not that it matters, as Argos as retailer would still be responsible under SOGA.

 

As the Laptop and bag came together, it is reasonable to expect the bag to be able to carry the laptop without it becoming damaged.

 

It is whether Argos sort out the repair/replacement or argue the Toss.

[DistortAMG]

Yea the bag was given away by Argos and not Acer, as part of their WOW accessory bundle.

[rebel11]

Hi DistortAMG

 

I wouldn't get bogged down with the poor construction of the laptop bag that was the cause of the damage, it could equally be the construction of the laptop. Although your focusing on the bag because that's what you believe is the cause and that's what you have told Argos.

[DistortAMG]

That is what I have told them, because that is what I believe to be the issue, but yes equally, it could be caused by poor laptop construction, this is something I shall consider mentioning when I receive an update from Argos.

[rebel11]

Hi DistortAMG

 

You have quite a few options once Argos come back to you, let us know what they say. It's best to keep a paper trail, everything in writing.

[DistortAMG]

So someone got back to me today from head office. They said they cannot accept that it was damaged in the bag. Because the foam protection the bag offers is not ment to protect it from anything more than scratches. They said they will see if they can fix it as a gesture of goodwill. But there are no promises.

 

Where should I go if they refuse that?

[rebel11]

Hi DistortAMG

 

Did you get to tell them about the casing, that should have provided protection?

 

So someone got back to me today from head office. They said they cannot accept that it was damaged in the bag. Because the foam protection the bag offers is not ment to protect it from anything more than scratches. They said they will see if they can fix it as a gesture of goodwill. But there are no promises.

 

Where should I go if they refuse that?

[DistortAMG]

Hi DistortAMG

 

Did you get to tell them about the casing, that should have provided protection?

 

I did. They said they cannot accept that.

[rebel11]

Hi DistortAMG

 

Why can't they accept that? Speak to your card provider. Explain the situation to them.

 

I did. They said they cannot accept that.