Faulty suite?

[jigman1]

Hi. We ordered a new leather suite from a well known high street chain , waited 6 weeks for delivery and when it came the delivery chaps said it was damaged and with our blessing took it back. After phoning the the company they apologised and said we could use the damaged suite until a new set could be made and delivered .
We agreed to this offer so they came back and delivered the (damaged) suite. 6 weeks later our new suite arrived and ,yes, it too was badly damaged so they took that one back also!
We feel we have been fairly treated by the company involved and their delivery men are 1st class.But every time they deliver we lose time off work, so we just want an end to this situation.

We have offered to buy the faulty suite and pay to have it repaired, that we still have 4 months after it was delivered (and haven't paid a penny for!) But they are refusing to sell it to us for a reduced rate and want us to wait yet another 6 weeks for delivery, but our confidence in this company to get it right this time is nil.

Does anyone have any ideas about how we stand in this situation?

[emmalee]

As your original suite was obviously faulty your consumer rights are as follows;

A full refund or a repair or replacement.

However, the repair or replacement must be carried out within a reasonable time and without causing significant inconvenience to the consumer. If this does not happen or the repair or replacement is not possible, then the consumer can rescind the contract (claim a refund) or request a reduction in purchase price.These financial remedies can only be achieved by a failure of the repair / replacement option once acceptance has taken place. If the trader agrees to rescission, the amount paid may be reduced to take account of usage.
Once you have chosen a remedy and the trader has agreed, you must give the trader a reasonable time to effect the chosen remedy before switching to another one. Ultimately, if a remedy cannot be agreed upon, then the courts have the power to choose any of the remedies.

Ask the retailer to check out trading standards you are quite within your rights to DEMAND a reduction in price.

Hope this helps

[Stu Dent]

Depending on what type of agreement you have entered into, you should have the right to reject the goods - probably under the Sale of Goods Act 1979. Since you haven't paid anything, and don't have the suite, then you appear to be in a very strong position.

Just call the company and reject the goods by saying you no longer want the suite as it was not of satisfactory quality. If they threaten you with legal action say 'sue me'. They are in the wrong, not you.

[R2Driver]

In addition - thinking of what they might tell you: I heard a question like this recently where the people who bought the item were told by the sellers that the buyers had signed a standard form contract which meant that the rules regarding ability to rescind contract etc did not apply.

If this happens to you, this is not correct. For one, you cannot contract out of your statutory rights, and even to make this statement is illegal as per: Consumer Transactions (Restrictions on Statements) Order 1976. You might want to let them know that if this happens.

If you have signed a 'standard form' terms and conditions, you will be protected under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977. You should be able to find all the relevant details of that act by googling.