Warranty Question

[Spoff]

I have a two and a half year old sofa and have discovered the stitching on a couple of seats is coming away from the cushion.

On buying the sofa I took out a warranty with Guardsman that covered amongst other things stains and accidental damage.

Have just phoned the comapny to be told that stitching is not covered!?

Now for me a sofa under normal use should last longer than 2.5 years so going to shop where I bought it, but what do I need to quote, what are my rights so I don't get fobbed off!

 

[Alex1975]

where did you buy it?

 

[Spoff]

SCS

 

[Alex1975]

OK DFS are or were well known for not being helpful with warranty stuff. I remember some years back it came up on one of those consumer programs and at the time they were quoted as saying that as sofas life is about 2.5 - 3 years.

this does not help I know but I would expect little to no help in store if you have had no luck on the phone.

I may well be wrong though.

 

[Spoff]

Cheers Alex, will give it a shot - personally I would expect the life of a sofe to be closer to 5-7 years, minumum to be honest.

I'll probably give CAB a call first for their take on it.

 

[viscount17]

tbh, I don't think you have a prayer. Manufacturer's warranty will probably only be 12 months and the retailer won't be any longer.

 

[AuburnWarrior]

I think that there's a new European legislation that means everything is now guaranteed for two years.

Happy to be corrected though.

 

[madandra]

So DFS say a sofa should last 2-3years?
Why do the do 4 years credit then?

Good luck mate.

P.S.

Can't you " accidentally " damage it? An excess is a lot cheaper than a new sofa?

 

[chrisd]

I think that there's a new European legislation that means everything is now guaranteed for two years.

Happy to be corrected though.

I think you will find it's 6 years read to the bottom of this link ... it tells all

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/consumer-rights-refunds-exchange#must

Chris

 

[nomadpaul]

Incorrect i think.....there's a difference in 'being fit for purpose' and a warranty .

For instance , if you spend £800 on a washing machine you could reasonably expect it to last , for istance , 8 - 10 yrs.....but if you buy a chinese built pile of crap for £150 , should you still expect it to last the same length of time ?
If you buy a sofa for a single person and then compare it to an identical sofa of a family with 3 kids , will they last the same period ?

Unfortunately , too many people get dragged into the 6 yr period thinking its the be all and end all of the Sale of goods act but there are so many discrepancies and grey areas that need to be sorted first.

 

[chrisd]

Incorrect i think.....there's a difference in 'being fit for purpose' and a warranty .

For instance , if you spend £800 on a washing machine you could reasonably expect it to last , for istance , 8 - 10 yrs.....but if you buy a chinese built pile of crap for £150 , should you still expect it to last the same length of time ?
If you buy a sofa for a single person and then compare it to an identical sofa of a family with 3 kids , will they last the same period ?

Unfortunately , too many people get dragged into the 6 yr period thinking its the be all and end all of the Sale of goods act but there are so many discrepancies and grey areas that need to be sorted first.

To some extent I agree with you but if you have bought decent stuff and the problem is a manufacturers fault then, when you go back to the supplier, you need to have a target outcome and if the supplier is trying to wriggle out of helping, and you start with the 6 year European directive, then you stand a better chance than working with the 1 year standard warranty argument - ie it pays to know your stuff beforehand. Also I believe that "fitness for purpose" is more important in the law than "warranty", in that you will only get a 1 year manufacturers warranty on a £1000 washing machine or a £200 one so if your £1000 goes wrong after 3 years then I cant see the store/manufacturer being able to hide behind the one year.

My experience is, if you know your stuff then the store manager will not usually try and treat you as an idiot and, in the end, most stores baulk at the thought of Court action.