Sale Of Goods On-Line Warranty

[woodchopper]

A pair of in-car DVD players for children were purchased on-line with a 90 day warranty. They sat in the box for 6 months before being used and now one of them has failed to function - is there any recourse under the sale of goods from the retailer ? They are still under a year old.

[boxtops]

The warranty says 90 days, that's what it means......

[New Judge]

Warranties do not mean much, especially when it is as short as 90 days.

What is important is the Sale of Goods Act. This says that goods must be as described, satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and last a reasonable time. “Reasonable time” is not defined but there is plenty of case law and most goods are expected to last at least 12 months.

If the goods fail your claim is against the retailer (NOT the manufacturer, hence my remark that warranties mean little). You should ask the retailer to repair, replace or reimburse you (the choice is yours) and if you have difficulty your first port of call should be your local trading standards department who should advise you how to proceed.

[tonywiltshire]

Use the Sale of Goods act 1979, improved by the 1994 act which changed “merchantable quality”, a term dating from the Victorian times with an uncertain legal meaning to the much more “satisfactory quality” which, as NJ says, is more straightforward and easier to understand with plenty of case law. Your contract is with the supplier of the goods not the manufacturer.
Goods must be of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose, if they had failed in the first 6 months the supplier would have to prove they were of “satisfactory quality” when supplied contact the supplier and remind them of their responsibility under the Sale of Goods act 1979 (as amended).