Consumer rights: Dryer broken after 5 months

[Bitlady]

Hi,

I’m hoping to get some advice as I’m getting nowhere with the company I purchased from!

I bought a tumble dryer 5 months ago. Brand new, known brand but from a 3rd party retailer.

It has totally stopped working, despite checking all the filters etc. An error code just keeps flashing.

I contacted the company directly who told me it is not their concern, I need to contact the manufacturer. I replied, reminding them that in line with The Consumer Rights act our contract is with the retailer, not the manufacturer.

They then replied, stating that I was quite right but as they would need to send an engineer to look at the fault and they are not able to because of Covid 19 they are unable to do anything. (Having looked online, the manufacturer’s are sending engineers but I would need to book directly to answer Covid questions.)

Before getting back to them I wanted to check: am I able to request a replacement/refund without an engineer coming as it has been under 6 months? I’m concerned about something breaking so quickly and to be honest, their attitude has made me wary of dealing with them in the future if it breaks again without having the protection that it’s under 6 months.

I hope I’ve covered everything!

Thanks in advance.

The fact that it has been less than 6 months means that any fault is assumed to have been present when you bough the tumble dryer. If the retailer wants to argue that the dryer was not faulty it is up to them to prove their case.

You have the right to a repair or replacement. You do not yet have any right to a refund. You can tell the retailer that you would prefer a replacement but they are not bound by that. They are entitled to insist on attempting a repair. However, if the repair fails you will be entitled to reject the dryer and receive a full refund.

So, as things stand, you can request a replacement or a refund but the retailer does not have to comply.

Thanks for replying. So in this instance, due to Covid restrictions perhaps I’m best to go to the manufacturer who will attempt a repair? Does that affect my contract with the retailer then though?

Getting the manufacturer to repair is fine.