Pissed off with bugaboo! Within warranty but they won't fix pushchair!!

[Steelojames]

To cut a long story short,
I have a bugaboo cameleon3 that was purchased by my friend who works at john Lewis.
She got a discount. As a result, the puschair is in her name, and she had it delivered to her address then brought to my baby shower.
The puschair was purchased brand new in August 2013.
Last weekend whilst out with my son, the handle bar broke and I was furious!!! It was incredibly unsafe for my son and so I took it straight back to john lewis who gave me a replacement bee and sent the cskeleton off to be repaired.
I receive a phone call from john Lewis stating bugaboo won't fix as out of warranty, even though I have supplied proof of purchase!!!!!!!!
The serial number on the chassis indicates that the pushchair is 2 years old, and that is wrong!!! The puschair is 14 months old and under warranty yet despite prof of purchase bugaboo do not believe me!!
As puschair in friends name they won't speak to me about it when I rang, are not sympathetic to the situation and my sons safety and insulted me by implying the pushchair is out of warranty and that I must have got it second hand.
I don't know how the chassis has a different date!!
John Lewis are fighting with bugaboo to get this sorted.
I have sent a nasty email to bugaboo to complain.
I feel let down by bugaboo, why have I invested £800+ in a puschair that is not fit for purpose?!!!!!! Then to make matters worse they won't even fix for some unknown error to me?!! Not to mention the risk they out my son in!! A pushchair of this kind should not develop such a fault!! Not after 14 months!!
Anyone have any advice, I'm leavng john lewis to sort but I'm getting stressed!!

It should not have broken.

But it is not under warranty, because you are not the first owner, and warranties are void for second owners.

If you argue that you are the first owner, you are admitting that your friend committed fraud.

Maybe mild, it'll-be-OK, nudge nudge wink wink kind of fraud. But fraud nonetheless.

You need to decide what will cost more. Fixing it yourself or admitting your friend used the discount fraudulently.

Steelo, hide this thread and do exactly as I said and it will be fine. Just going through my emails now.

You shouldn't have to pay to have a 14month old buggy fixed but you invalidated the warranty by getting your friend to use her discount fraudulently.

Whatever way you try to wiggle out of this it will look dodgy (because it was). If you argue it was a gift (then JL may look into it and discover it wasn't you paid her.) If you admit you paid her then you are admitting that she committed fraud and you are the second owner and thus don't have any warranty.

Seriously quit while you are ahead and your friend hasn't been investigated/ prosecuted.

And learn from this! If she had tried to sort it out from the beginning there wouldn't have been a problem or if you had just bought your own bloody pushchair and paid RRP like the rest of the world.

Hi sorry to repeat myself, I posted early today.

Please read the link I posted. The JL employee was prosecuted firstly for stealing from JL (£200), she was sacked and continued to use her discount card (just over £200) - she was imprisoned despite no longer worked for JL at the point of usage. I know it is somewhat different but the amount is not dissimilar and your friend may have bought 'gifts' for others so her total may be more than £200.

Fraud can lead to prison. Teachers will find it hard to gain employment with a fraud record. As I said earlier today your friend may want to reread her old JL contract. Not working there anymore may not make a difference.

The pushchair is not in warranty because legally you are the 2nd owner and bugaboo warranty is vested in the first purchaser and does not transfer.

Your friend committed a fraud by using her JL card to buy your pushchair.

your choice is

your friend gets done for fraud

or

bugaboo don't fix your pushchair

you can't have it both ways.

steelo- "Surely that is the bottom line?" No.

That is not the bottom line. You bought the buggy second hand. Your friend commited fraud, THese are the "bottom lines"

I'm not trying to be harsh but I don't think you (nor your friend) are understanding the implications of your actions.

Protect your friend.

Pay to get it fixed.

Learn from it and move on.

I'm a bit confused about so many people saying that under the SoGA, the OP has an automatic right to a repair or replacement after 14 months? I thought that after 6 months, the customer has to prove to the retailer that a manufacturing fault was present at the time of purchase, and that any issues aren't the result of misuse or wear and tear?

SOGA right to repair or replacement won't apply Laquila because the OP bought the pushchair 2nd hand from a private seller.

Given that you've now admitted on a public forum that you paid your friend for the pushchair, you and your friend might not get a great outcome. Your circumstances at this point in time sound quite unlikely to be the same as anyone else in the country. Therefore you have admitted that the pushchair is second hand as she sold it to you and she fraudulently used her discount card.

If Bugaboo or JL monitor their mentions on social media then they will have read this thread. I have no idea how common it is for companies to do that.

Such sanctimony on this thread! Fraud and criminal activity and all this nonsense. What rot.
OP, just deal with JL as the contract is with them. I doubt they could give a shiny if an ex employee used their discount for you (which no doubt everyone does all the time)

Grocklebox - I think you need to read 43percentburns' link above. The woman got a prison sentence for defrauding JL out of about £400. They clearly do take it seriously.

JL is employee owned. If you steal from them as a member of staff you are stealing from your colleagues.

The only person I know who worked for JL was very careful to use his discount within the rules. I think his attitude came from the general culture of high integrity in JL.

www.cambridge-news.co.uk/ExJohn-Lewis-worker-jailed-card-fraud/story-22360171-detail/story.html

Ohhhh another one warning about JL and their staff discount. I've got a friend who used to work as a manager in a branch. They are incredibly strict with their staff discount- to the point of, when she bought me a mascara using her discount once, she insisted on carrying it through and out of the store, and then all through the shopping centre before giving it to me- because of CCTV.

My sister was sacked from one of the other big department stores for this very reason because even though they had a friends and family policy where she was allowed some discretion over the discount she found that a lot of people completely took the piss and her generosity and inability to say no lost her her job.

We have to do discount training every year, so we know what discount can and can't be used for. I know of 2 people who have been sacked for claiming discount fraudulently, both on items cheaper than the bugaboo.

it's always been crystal clear that discount is for personal use and gifts which you wholly pay for

I think the friend will be more than a little concerned that this broken buggy is opening a huge can of worms and that she could find herself unemployed with fraud/theft on her employment record. 'Friends' used to ask me all the time to buy things, I wasn't always popular saying no. The staff discount was a part of my salary,I wouldn't give part of that away so why would I put my job and integrity at risk so someone else can receive the benefits without any of the risks.

People do get dismissed for abuse of discount systems.

grockle the voice of reason!

Im about to be another!
My friend works for them. Won't use her discount to get me anything as she can be fired for it.says they're really strict about it, someone she worked with lost her job because she let her sister use it.

I'm with Grockle - this thread is batshit crazy .

OP got her friend to buy her a pram and her friend kindly used her staff discount - JL do not need to know that the OP paid her friend as to all intents and purposes it was a gift and given to the OP to use for the 1st time as a 1st time user - it has not lasted the warranty therefore she should be able to get it fixed ( especially since receipts can be provided ) it is not fit for purpose.

Fraud - for a staff discount, really? I cannot see how they will retrospectively prosecute her friend and all this talk of not being able to work as a teacher because she bought a pushchair for her friend is just ludicrous.

Some recent posters appear to think that JL run some kind of lottery , where if you are lucky enough to know someone who works there you have the right to save a considerable amount of money on any thing they sell.
It's a long time since I worked there , but 'friends' asked me to take their kids for school shoes ???? ( I had no DC's at that time! Buy a washing machine, clothes ( in sizes I most definitely wasn't) etc. Then got arsey with me because I wouldn't say it was a gift if challenged. REALLY! Who has friends that buy washing machines or in this case buggys at £800 as a gift! Family - yes , but friends - I doubt it.
The OP stated quite clearly in her original post that friend bought the buggy on her card, it was delivered to friends house , taken to OP's baby shower and £800 given to friend.
OP should get down off her high horse , accept this mess is the chance you take when cheating the system , and pay to get the buggy repaired.

I agree that maybe the op has not mentioned to JL that she paid her friend for the buggy. Though if she used the word investment in her email/call this may allude to the fact. No doubt she gave cash to her friend at the baby shower so no audit trail. There is also the possibility that the friend may have made many large purchases for others as gifts. This may or may not now be being looked at by JL.

The op has said JL came back to her and asked a variety of questions about the dates etc of her friends employment with JL. This seems unusual. Normally a company would ask for the receipt (clearly dated) to prove when the item was purchased plus JL would have details on their PC as they record one purchases (I know this for sure). Why do bugaboo want to know dates of employment?

Another poster has mentioned that JL do have a department who check for staff discounts being used incorrectly. The Cambridge news has an article where JL have pursued an ex staff member for incorrectly using her discount card for just over £200. Therefore I guess someone at JL must take it a bit seriously.

The fact is most of us on this forum don't know JL policy however from this thread, snippets suggest that JL tell their staff not to use their discount incorrectly. As money changed hands investment etc, it was used incorrectly. JL do pursue ex staff - see newspaper article - where lady was imprisoned. Yes case was slightly different but amount not dissimilar.

If friend had returned bugaboo and op had not got involved then there would probably be no issue.

Some purchases not one

Im with Grockle, what a complete overreaction (fraud etc) really?

You do know, that John Lewis, in line with most major businesses have a section within the press and publicity dept who are charged with constantly monitoring social media, face book, Twitter etc. they have computer programs running that will seek out the words John Lewis, complaint, refund etc etc. Also, those dealing with your complaint will cross check the Internet, and this thread makes you pretty identifiable.

We run similar programs at my company to protect trademarks, brands, to prevent resale of items on eBay etc.

If I was your friend I would be crapping myself, especially as you just admitted you gave her the money for the buggy. If you can't get the thread removed, then consider not pursuing it. Someone is going to get grief here...