Kitchen troubles

[harbourlightsbaby]

We had a new kitchen fitted about a couple of years ago, we had all sorts of problems with the instillation but that was eventually rectified and we were happy with our kitchen, which cost us quite a bit of money.

Recently some of the fronts started to delaminate, the company replaced the fronts for us. We are really disappointed to see that the new fronts do not match the original fronts in colour and that the original fronts have in fact yellowed over time. So now I have a slightly yellowed kitchen (originally gloss white) and mismatched kitchen cupboard fronts.

I have emailed the company to ask what on earth they can do to rectify this, but does anyone know where I stand legally with this? What can I expect as a resolution. I'm so disappointed, after 30 years of home ownership this is the first time I've been able to afford a new kitchen and quite frankly it looks pretty awful now!!

Phone trading standards. Something must be fit for purpose and they will tell you exactly what you can do.

Is the yellowing due to the passage of a bit of time or are the replacement fronts not actually the same
as the originals?

I expect they will try to put the yellowing on you OP and blame what you have used to clean the units. How did you pay? If by credit card or finance contact them, they will help negotiate a resolution if your complaint is falling on deaf ears. I would say to anyone buy major purchases always on credit, whether you need too or not for the added consumer protection. Good luck OP I hope you get sorted.

Not years after she bought it, they won't!

I’m gonna guess that wren are the suppliers? Heard about something similar happening to others. If it is look up wren kitchen nightmares on Facebook. Lots of people there in similar situations. If it’s not wren, have a look for similar groups on Facebook for that brand. Lots of helpful people who will have been through hat you have and can advise.

Thank you everyone for your replies. To answer some questions, yes, the yellowing is due to age although I think the kitchen is only a couple of years old and yes, we did buy it on finance, although this is now all paid off.

@Susanfromfinance I couldn't possibly comment 😏. I dont want to mention names at the moment as I'm quite happy to take them to court as I honestly think the kitchen needs replacing. I'm off to check out those facebook pages. Thank you very much!!!!

If you think you might need to take legal action, check to see whether you have any Legal Expenses Insurance with any of your policies (e.g. car, buildings, contents etc).

Lawyers are very expensive and costs aren't generally recoverable on claims under £10k (i.e. those in the small claims court). Even those that fall onto the fast or intermediate track (i.e. claims from £10k-£100k) are generally subject to the fixed costs regime which limits costs recovery. You could, for example, spend £60k on legal costs getting a matter to trial but, even if you win and get a costs award in your favour, recover only £40k of your legal spend (meaning you're £20k down).

That all said, the small claims track is designed for lay people to use so, if your claim is worth under £10k, you could chance it yourself there and see how you go without there being too much risk of a massive costs order against you in the instance you lose (just have a read of the Civil Procedure Rules - specifically pre-action and small claims track - first, so you can do your best to comply).

In all honesty, though, litigation is best avoided if possible and I would strongly suggest you not only fully explore and pursue all other avenues first, but also don't place too much reliance on expecting to resolve this in Court.

What are the cabinet doors made of? I have white gloss doors in my South West facing utility room and they are still gloss white despite the direct sun and having been in situ for almost 20 years. You might try to argue that after 2 years the doors should still be white as kitchens are usually expected to last anything from 10 to 25 years so they should replace all of the doors...

Just a little update. I'm really surprised they have offered to replace all the doors, drawer fronts and panels! I am concerned about it happening again, so I am wondering about changing the colour, but that would mean changing more parts of the kitchen and I'm not sure that they would agree to that. I'm really surprised, I thought I would have to fight harder to get that offer.

That’s great news, so they should. Well done.

The only surprising thing is that you have a company that has actually given you your legal rights (read up on Moneysaving Expert's SADFART mnemonic where something has to be satisfactory quality, as described and last a reasonable length of time - this kitchen fails on two of these so you have a right to repair or replacement). Usually they're much more slopey shouldered about this.

As you paid on finance, the finance company is equally liable, under the same rules as for credit cards, so if the kitchen supplier hadn't come through, you could have claimed from the finance company instead.