|
SUBJECT
Sale of Goods Rights, Faulty Goods, Poor Service.
RELEVANT OR RELATED LEGISLATION
Sale of Goods Act 1979. Supply of Goods and Services Act
1982. The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations (following
31/3/03 transposition of Directive 1999/44/EC).
KEY FACTS
1. Rights have been enhanced when the Sale and Supply of
Goods to Consumers Regulations was implemented on 31 March 2003.
2. The Regulations transpose EC Directive 1999/44/EC on certain
aspects of the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees.
3. Wherever goods are bought they must "conform to contract".
This means they must be as described, fit for purpose and of
satisfactory quality (i.e. not inherently faulty at the time
of sale).
4. If goods do not conform to contract at the time of sale a
consumer can request their money back "within a reasonable
time". (This is not defined and will depend on circumstances).
5. For up to six years after purchase (five years from discovery
in Scotland) consumers can demand damages (which a court would
equate to the cost of a repair or replacement).
6. At present, the onus is on consumers to prove the good did
not conform to contract (e.g. was inherently faulty) and should
have reasonably lasted until this point in time (i.e. perishable
goods do not last for six years).
7. Now consumers have a six months reversed burden of proof and
a right to seek a repair, replacement and a partial or full refund.
The following are subject to the transposition of the Directive
1999/44/EC via the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations
on 31 March 2003:
8. If the consumer chooses to request a repair or replacement,
then for the first six months after purchase it will be for the
retailer to prove the goods did conform to contract (e.g. were
not inherently faulty).
9. After six months and until the end of the six years, it is
for the consumer to prove the lack of conformity.
10. If repair and replacement are not possible or too costly,
then the consumer can seek a partial refund, if the fault has
meant that they have had only some benefit from the goods.
11. If repair and replacement are not possible or too costly,
then the consumer can claim a full refund, if the fault has meant
that the consumer has enjoyed no benefit from the goods.
12. Where retailers or manufacturers offer free guarantees or
warranties, the Regulations provide that they will now be legally
binding.
13. The guarantees must also be written in plain English, must
be available for viewing by consumers on request before purchase
and must state that they do not affect the consumer's legal rights.
14. The Regulations do not impose an obligation on retailers
or manufacturers to offer guarantees nor do they apply to extended
warranties, which have to be purchased by the consumers.
15. The consumer has exactly the same rights with second hand
goods as he does with new, however, with older goods it is increasingly
difficult for the consumer to prove that a fault was inherent
at the time of sale and the conformity criteria also allow second
hand goods to be judged less rigorously than new.
back to Information &
Advice Index
|
