Consumer rights when a product repair fails?

[LandmarkRhodes]

Would greatly appreciate any thoughts on my rights in this situation. I have an item of jewellery that broke (the metal setting around a small diamond). It was outside of the original five year guarantee. I contacted the (online) store where it was purchased from and they sent it off for repair at significant cost to me. It was returned to me, repaired, about six weeks ago.

The repair has now failed, the metal setting has broken again and the small diamond is lost. I contacted the store again and they said they don’t guarantee any repairs that they undertake, so if I sent it to them again, I would need to pay again. I then took it to a nationwide jewellery store chain today and they said their repairs are always guaranteed for a year, and they encouraged me to strongly push back on the original store to correct their work.

I intend to follow this advice, but wondered if anyone is able to clarify whether I have any specific rights that I can quote for when repair work fails, and whether the company can legally claim that they can’t guarantee their repair work, and can charge me again for the repair? Thanks!

Thanks all for the ongoing advice. I sent the ring to them and they’ve said it looks like undue force rather than the repair failing. So I am being told I have to pay again. Obviously I know there has not been undue force. It’s been on my finger, I would have felt it! I have said since it is the same small diamond as before, clearly the same place as last time, it can only be that the repair has failed. It is a very frustrating situation. I am still of the view it is completely unfair not to redo the repair so I have pushed back and again asserted my rights under the consumer rights act.

I think it is worth a try. The first time this happened, my ring was over five years old and out of guarantee so of course I was happy to pay for the repair. But when the same thing happened just a few weeks after it was repaired, it can’t be a coincidence! So I think there is a duty to ensure repairs are adequate and fit for purpose, regardless of whether they don’t guarantee their repairs!