Broken 2 year old TV - who's responsible?

CAA

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I'd be grateful if anyone could tell me how best to proceed on this problem or if they've had similar experience...

I bought a flat screen LCD TV (well known brand that got great reviews when I initially purchased)) from a well known Irish Electronics shop 2.5 years ago. The screen went out this week (very dark image that's slow to refresh). I did a google search on the problem and found LOTS of people posting the same problem with the same brand of TV after about 2 years of ownership. Some sites said it had to do with a defective part installed in that brand and model of TV. I went back to the shop I bought it from and they said it wasn't covered under warranty and would cost EUR40 to inspect plus repair costs if we chose to go ahead with repair.

I called the manufacturer in the UK and they said their only obligation was for the TV to function for the 12 months it was under warranty and it wasn't their problem. I asked if they were at all concerned that there were lots of comments on the internet about their TVs dying after 2 years and their reply was that they sell several million TVs a year so unless there were several million complaints, they were not concerned about a few hundered. I returned to the shop I bought it from as a prospective TV buyer and asked them how long the TV they were selling should last normally and they said 10 years.

I understand from the consumer website that a product should last me 8 years, so I think I'm within my rights to demand some compensation for a 600euro TV that only lasts 2 but I don't know what the route of complaint is and what to demand (repair, replacement, compensation for repair costs??).

Any advice much appreciated!
CAA
 
Re: Broken 2 year old TV - whose responsible?

CAA - if the manufacturer's standard warranty has expired, I'd suggest the Small Claims Court. The retailer will not be given credit by them for repairing, replacing or refunding the item, so this is probably your best course of action.
 
Re: Broken 2 year old TV - whose responsible?

AFIK the 1 year warranty is only a manufacturers warranty, and they always quote that an item is out of warrant after this period, the TV should last a resonable time, I think 5 years (look up the Consumer site) legally you can claim against them but this may take Small Claims Court action.
You could help us by telling us what make it is.
 
Re: Broken 2 year old TV - whose responsible?

Well, while your warranty has expired you may still be due some comeback, although you may have to fight a little.

Basically when you bought the TV you had a reasonable expectation that it'd last longer than two years, and you'd be correct really, given it's a 600 Euro TV. So you can query your manufacturer as to whether the TV was ever of merchantable quality. It's also a good idea to ask the manufacturer if there's any known design faults, or if many people are suffering from the same problem which might require a re-call of all the TVs... sometimes the manufacturer will come to realise that it's easier to pay you off than to fight you...

Basically you'd be threatening the retailer that you'd be taking a case in the small claims court, and that once there you'll be claiming that the TV was never of merchantable quality, that you are entitled to expect a high end TV to last longer than 2 years, regardless of warranty period... the judge may side with you, although at the same time he may not...

On brands, not all TVs are the same.. and so the consumer must expect a 1,000 Euro TV to be better than a 200 Euro TV, assuming specs are otherwise very similar... so it might not be reasonable to expect a 200 Euro TV to last more than 2 years whereas it would be reasonable to expect a 1,000 TV to last longer...
 
Re: Broken 2 year old TV - whose responsible?

if its known as a manufacturing fault then it must be repaired free of charge until such time considered a reasonable time for the average use of that product.

In the case of a TV 5 years + would be seen as reasonable.

I had a problem with an Isuzu trooper a few years back, it was 2 years out of warranty, but a known fault and it caused the engine to require replacement. There was no question of payment being required and a new engine was installed free. - same basis should apply to a TV.
 
Re: Broken 2 year old TV - whose responsible?

what size and brand is it?
 
has anyone gone to the small claims court or know how long it takes to be resolved. I have a tv problem as well and they only want to repair the tv this is second time it broke and I just want my money back.
 
Small claims court took 15 weeks when I used it last year, but it depends on the which area you use.
 
There is no reason I can think of that people can't name the make and brand.

This would be an interesting one for an internet vote, have you purchased a flat screen tv and did it break down after 2 years etc.

I've noticed that many people seem to have problems with the new TV types.
 
I caught a few minutes of the Afternoon Show on RTE 1 yesterday. It was dealing with consumer complaints and it had a woman on who had bought some fancy tv four years ago and it was now broken. Manufacturer warranty ran out after one year...what should she do?

Well, consumer advice person said she should get out her receipt and go back to the retailer, as it would be assumed that a tv would last longer than four years...I think it cost 1000 euros at the time. The onus falls on the retailer to do something. Ring a consumer advice helpline to get some advice before you do...or better still, email them and bring a printed copy of the email to the retailer. The Small Claims Court costs very little and as far as I understand it, you don't have to go to court but the retailer does.

Hope you still have your receipt!
 
Over what time frame can you reasonably expect any recourse from the retailer? We have a 32" LCD tv that has suddenly stopped working - cost €950 just under four years ago which is outside the warranty. :(
 
When people spend money on a TV and it states one year warranty why then the upset when it goes after 4 years? Surely that's to be expected from electronics otherwise the standard warranty would be much longer.
 
When people spend money on a TV and it states one year warranty why then the upset when it goes after 4 years? Surely that's to be expected from electronics otherwise the standard warranty would be much longer.

What a manufacturer offers as a warranty has little to do with the legal requirements of consumer legislation. So viewing all manufacturers' warranties and inferring from there that, because they are all of similar lengths of time, that period represents the useful life of the product concerned is putting the cart before the horse IMO.

Consumer legislation requires that products be "...as durable as it is reasonable to expect, having regard to any description applied to them, the price (if relevant) and all other relevant circumstances..."

The period of warranty is one of the factors to take into account when assessing how durable a product is reasonably to be expected. I would not consider 2 years to be a reasonable length of time for an expensive TV to last, even if the manufacturer's warranty was a year, 6 months, 3 months or whatever.

OP (and others with duff TVs), I'd contact the NCA and go from there. Small claims is probably the best option if all else fails.
 
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When people spend money on a TV and it states one year warranty why then the upset when it goes after 4 years? Surely that's to be expected from electronics otherwise the standard warranty would be much longer.

So you'd be happy enough if a 2k+ television failed after 12 months use?
 
So you'd be happy enough if a 2k+ television failed after 12 months use?

I would expect a longer warranty ifI was going to spend serious money. I wouldn't be happy with any failure, nobody would, i just believe that if you are buying a product and you ask how long is this TV/car etc covered why expect longer?
 
What a manufacturer offers as a warranty has little to do with the legal requirements of consumer legislation. So viewing all manufacturers' warranties and inferring from there that, because they are all of similar lengths of time, that period represents the useful life of the product concerned is putting the cart before the horse IMO.

Consumer legislation requires that products be "...as durable as it is reasonable to expect, having regard to any description applied to them, the price (if relevant) and all other relevant circumstances..."

The period of warranty is one of the factors to take into account when assessing how durable a product is reasonably to be expected. I would not consider 2 years to be a reasonable length of time for an expensive TV to last, even if the manufacturer's warranty was a year, 6 months, 3 months or whatever.

OP (and others with duff TVs), I'd contact the NCA and go from there. Small claims is probably the best option if all else fails.

It really depends on what you consider expensive. If you spend 1k on a 50" TV then it would seem quite cheap for what your getting.
Different manufacturers offer different warranties 1,3,5 so that would suggest you get what you pay for, even though that is not always the case
 
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