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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To not want to pay icandy £50 to fix my apple chassis ?

29 replies

ALittleBitOfMagic · 16/09/2013 16:03

I send my 10 month old apple chassis to be repaired as it has been collapsing . They got back to me after two days saying the needed the seat unit too . So now two weeks later they have contacted my retailer to say the fault is due to excessive weight being put on it and they can either send it back of repair it for a fee of £50 . I am absolutely not accepting this . Apart from the fact I really don't have a spare £50 I paid over £700 for a pram that's broken within the first year and they want me to PAY to have it fixed ???

They've said they put it on a machine to test it as it said its been excessive weight . His pram bag is on it all the time and sometimes dds school bag but that's it other than the occasional bag of shopping (ie clothes/make up etc) if I go to town. I'm fuming I love that pram but I am absolutely not willing to pay to get it fixed . I need to phone icandy directly (ASAP as I won't get another chance) I'd like to know my legal rights before phoning them . Thanks

OP posts:

GeppaGip · 16/09/2013 16:38

At 10 months old, the pram wasn't fit for purpose. Unless you've been stuffing an elephant into the shopping basket then it should really withstand a fair bit of weight without damage for longer than that. My trusty mothercare travel system (£200 new) has been through some shocking abuse in terms of what it has had to carry and is still going strong after 2 years and will be used for dc2.

Tell them you will contact trading standards unless they repair or replace for free under the SOGA.

GeppaGip · 16/09/2013 16:44

PS I have heard so many complaints about faulty iCandy buggies I am amazed they don't just fix it to protect their reputation!

Original poster

ALittleBitOfMagic · 16/09/2013 18:39

Thanks I will do some googling on the sale of goods act . The thing that's worrying me is the fact they have apparently tested it on a machine they are basically saying they have proven I "misused" it - when I can't prove that I haven't !

The more I think about it the more bullshit it seems . The pram can be converted into a twin . So it can withstand two carry cots or seat units plus the twin converter , plus two babies plus an extra 5 kilos -- yet their saying my 10 month old and a pram bag is too much ??!! Oh I'm getting more and more annoyed the more I think about it !!!

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RoonilWazlibWuvsHermyown · 16/09/2013 18:53

What does the weight limit say in the instructions? Is there any guidance about hanging things off the pram? Sometimes the weight limits they give seem ridiculous. My pram (not icandy) has a weight limit of 15kg apparently which is nothing when you think about chubby babies and shopping. If mine broke now, I'd get nothing because I would have ignored their advice about weight. Maybe yours has similar information in the instructions and that's why you have to pay?

Wibblypiglikesbananas · 16/09/2013 19:41

iCandy are notorious for bad customer service. I posted similar last year re my iCandy Cherry, which has had four sets of replacement back wheels/axles and as a consequence, the frame is now warped. I hoped it would have lasted two DC, but no chance. The whole thing is knackered - and I've never used buggy hooks or anything else. By the time DD was 9mo, the wheels just couldn't take her weight and started to bow out. iCandy were totally, totally unhelpful, similarly tried to blame me for misusing the pram, tried to say the guarantee was invalid as I'd taken the pram abroad (except I'd used one of their very own travel bags) - honestly, they are the worst company I have ever, ever dealt with and would definitely not recommend them.

Anyway, I got totally and utterly flamed as everyone just launched into me about how I shouldn't have spent so much on a pram in the first place (it was actually DM who paid for it) and very little sympathy. I'm sure if it had been a £700 mountain bike or something else, people would have been more sympathetic. In the end, I gave up, bought a new pram (Phil and Teds - love it) and moved on. However, I feel your pain and the sense of injustice is the worst thing. There are various web forums where people talk of similar problems - so beware buyers! On the other hand, I've only had good service experience with UppaBaby and Phil and Teds.

Wibblypiglikesbananas · 16/09/2013 19:45

Apologies - that isn't a very positive outcome story, but it is my experience. Good luck getting through if you call them - they cut me off mid call one day, I tried to call back and just got the answer machine. They don't respond to letters. The shop I bought from have since stopped selling iCandys - which says it all really.

MrsRogerSterling · 16/09/2013 19:47

Terrible service. Bugaboo sent me spare parts for free when I contacted them about a fault on my 7 year old pram. YANBU.

IneedAyoniNickname · 16/09/2013 19:50

My 18 month old silver cross chassis broke because toddler ds1 used to stand on the bar and they replaced it free of charge, no questions asked!.

Icandy sound shite!

McNewPants2013 · 16/09/2013 19:54

I would be questioning if the machine they use broke the chassis ever further and diverting it back to you

gutzgutz · 16/09/2013 19:55

Agree that not satisfactory quality and fit for purpose under Sale of Goods Act. For £700 it should last many years. I would consider taking them to the small claims court if they won't do anything. It can be done online for very cheap and you claim for the cost of the court fee. But firstly, you would need to speak to customer services and follow it up with a few polite but strongly worded letters (send recorded delivery). Your claim is against the retailer. I spent a similar amount on a bugaboo bee which, 3 years and 2 children later, my sister now uses and she walks ALOT. The wheels went a bit wobbly and bugaboo sent her new washers for free.

Blissx · 16/09/2013 20:01

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by Mumsnet for breaking our Talk Guidelines. Replies may also be deleted.

Cuddlydragon · 16/09/2013 20:08

Icandy are truly rubbish. I bought the new Peach last summer. The wheels are terrible and the bloody hood is so loud it wakes my baby. I hate it. Biggest waste of money ever and their customer services are very poor. Hate hate hate. Sale of Goods Act should cover you as being not fit for purpose. I'd have a word with trading standards too.

caroldecker · 16/09/2013 20:26

Sale of goods act claim is against the retailer, warranty claim is against the manufacturer, so need to decide which you are going after (here)
I woiuld talk to trading standards and get their advice

Original poster

ALittleBitOfMagic · 16/09/2013 20:39

Thanks so much for all the replies . I kind of have to go for the manufacturer as the girl who owns the shop is someone I know . Not very well but our social circles overlap and we talk at the school gates . And she gave me a free car seat with my pram so is feel bad if I started challenging her . When she told me what icandy had said she just said I will give you their number and you can phone them .

OP posts:

Original poster

ALittleBitOfMagic · 17/09/2013 17:02

Ok so dh phoned icandy today and they are saying its definitely not a fault it's our misuse that has broke it . And its up to the shop to decide to waive the fee or not . I phone trading standards and they have said its up to me now to prove it wasn't put fault . I am so mad !!!

I really didn't want to have to take it up with the girl in the shop we are sort of kind of friendly . Awkwarddds

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Wibblypiglikesbananas · 17/09/2013 19:02

They are shocking. We bought from a small independent that we wanted to support locally and looked at Sale of Goods - but if we'd made the shop refund us, they would have been seriously out of pocket. In the end we cut our losses and as we moved to the US soon after, didn't pursue further (bigger fish to fry - and prams are so much cheaper here). Whenever I see a thread like this though, I think 'there's another person been ripped off' and it really winds me up. As I said up thread, the worst company I have ever dealt with. You could use one of their products for a day, empty, and they'd swear blind you'd abused it somehow when a bit fell off or broke.

littleducks · 17/09/2013 19:44

It we as a few years ago now but I had same problem with a cherry. they just refused to do anything and said it was misuse, it honestly wasn't.

HoneyDragon · 17/09/2013 19:55

Ok. So ask iCandy to provide proof that it was your fault.

As far as I am aware there are machines that can test for an existing fault in a mechanism But not any machine that can for a already broken mechanism. It's not logically sound.

So that means they had an engineer look at the where the fault is and say its damaged through weight bearing. Which is fine, but what if the fault was already present at purchase? Normal use would aggravate it.

It would cost you what £50 odd to go through the small claims court and request they prove absolutely that the fault was entirely of your doing?

Original poster

ALittleBitOfMagic · 17/09/2013 20:18

Can I take icandy to small claims rather than the shop ? I know I'm being a bit too nice here but I really don't want to do that she's just starting out she's only had the shop about a year and a half (she took over an already established business)

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Original poster

ALittleBitOfMagic · 17/09/2013 20:19

Also I'm in Scotland do you even get small claims here ??

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Mumtothreeboys27b · 17/09/2013 20:22

Contact Which?.
The SOGA will cover you.

bundaberg · 17/09/2013 20:28

do they tell you not to hang stuff from the handles? if so then unfortunately i'm not sure you have a leg to stand on tbh...
icandy are well known for this, refusing to fix prams that have had buggy boards on etc etc

i'd be fuming too btw, and would expect an expensive pram not to break within a year. but if they do specifically tell you not to hang things on it and you have....

bundaberg · 17/09/2013 20:30

your rights under SOGA are with the retailer not the manufacturer, so i'm fairly sure if you went through small claims then you would have to take the retailer to court.

bundaberg · 17/09/2013 20:31

this may be relevant too...

"If your claim is about a problem that arises within six months of buying the product, it's up to the retailer to prove that the goods were of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose, or as described when it sold them.
For example, by showing that the problem was caused by an external factor such as accidental damage.
To get a faulty good repaired or replaced, follow our step-by-step guide.
Expert's reports
Beyond six months, it's up to you to prove that the problem was there when you received the goods even if it has taken until now to come to light.
So, you may need to prove that the fault was not down to ordinary wear and tear or damage you caused, and that the product (or a component) should have lasted longer than it did.
To do this you may need an expert's report, for example, from an engineer or a mechanic.
Always try to keep the cost of any report proportionate to the value of the claim and, if you can, try to agree on an expert you and the seller both agree has the necessary expertise."

Original poster

ALittleBitOfMagic · 17/09/2013 21:08

Ok my plan for tomorrow is :

Phone icandy back and ask for the technicians report
Proof of servicing of their "machine" to prove its in perfect working order
Tell them to get their technician to put it up and down a few times to see the fault I reported in the first place and was told that's what icandys are like .

I will then phone the shop

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