My T1 died after 2 weeks

[Flip Martian]

And 1 final point. The T1 was 15 days old - I wouldn't want it fixing, I would want a new one. The store would have given me that there and then, if they'd had stock. As it was, within 48 hours, I have a new one for 75% of the initial cost. I can use some of what I saved on a case now. :-)

[Bookworm_Girl]

I'm glad your new T1 has arrived and you are enjoying it! I recommend that you browse through the cover thread for some ideas. Happy reading!

[Flip Martian]

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

I'm glad your new T1 has arrived and you are enjoying it! I recommend that you browse through the cover thread for some ideas. Happy reading!

Thank you

No worries there - I'll be having a good browse, lots of good ideas there, thanks.

[carpetmojo]

Honestly, sometmes I feel I spend half my life telling UK residents about the "Sale of Goods Act !"
Those outside the UK are unaware just how good and helpful this is to consumers here.

As AnotherCat points out, correctly, the Consumer legislation supersedes all Manufacturer's Guarantees, is far more comprehensive, and has the force of Law behind it - a lot of retailer's may pretend not to know about it, or choose to say it doesn't apply in certain, cases, but they are wrong, and can face hefty fines for non-compliance, as well as doing what the Law requires them to do.
The items must be "fit for purpose" - that's basically it, no fine print really needed.
It's simple enough for a layman to get a precis of it, or contact Citizen's Advice Bureau, "Which" - or a lawyer if you don't mind paying a fee for advice.

And the whole reasoning behind it is simple, when you come to think about it - manufacturers offer you a Guarantee basically for one reason.

To limit their liabilities - not because they care about you !

And the Sale of Goods Act was made law to prevent this, which is all "Guaranties" in the UK have to say "this Guarantee does not take away or take precedence over your Rights in law" - or similar wording, can't remember offhand.
And I have no doubt the usually excellent Amazon Returns policy is done mainly because it makes economic sense for a concern with such huge clout with their suppliers - they just sling it back at them, and don't get hassled by the people who buy the stuff, or the retailers.

[Flip Martian]

All good points. I made sure before I returned it on Thursday evening that I did a quick catch up on the Sale of Goods Act so the store couldn't fob me off.

[carpetmojo]

Excellent - usually just the mention of the Act brings on 2 responses, a slight widening of the eyes and a faint air of "oh bugger, another one who know's about it", or a blustering waffle about how that doesn't apply to them/these goods/you, because you're supposed to send it direct to the manufacturer for a better service........

Incidentally, if a retailer ever says "leave it with us, we do all that for you" - photograph it from all angles in detail, especially the problem if possible, and keep all your original documentation, give them copies. And get a signed reciept from them with a brief accurate description of its condition that you agree on.

[soulfuldog]

My point about preferring to deal with Amazon's customer service is that while the Sale of Goods Act and other consumer legislation are obviously good things, it's not true that they are necessarily far superior to the service offered by Amazon.

Ok for some failure of the e-reader after a couple of years, but if you drop your e-reader, or accidently damage it in some way (and aren't these after all the most common reason for them to fail, not because they have developed a fault and are not fit for purpose?), does anyone else other than Amazon so easily replace their e-readers, in and out of warranty?

Sorry, I know it's a moot point as Flip Martian's T1 was within warranty and was clearly faulty, but still......

[Flip Martian]

CarpetMojo - I'm glad I don't work in a shop near you..

Amazon's customer service is excellent - I gave an example above from my own experience. But that doesn't mean buying a Kindle is the best choice for everyone. I don't like Kindles - I prefer the way the Sonys work. If Amazon sold the Sonys for a good price themselves, I'd buy one from them, for the good customer service.

[soulfuldog]

If it had been available at the time, I'd probably have bought the PRS-T1 instead of a Kindle 3 if Amazon had sold it too - though their customer service clearly wouldn't be quite so good for it as for their own e-reader.....

[Flip Martian]

Originally Posted by l_macd

If it had been available at the time, I'd probably have bought the PRS-T1 instead of a Kindle 3 if Amazon had sold it too - though their customer service clearly wouldn't be quite so good for it as for their own e-reader.....

[carpetmojo]

Originally Posted by Flip Martian

CarpetMojo - I'm glad I don't work in a shop near you.. .........................................

Well, in my business, I assume every customer/potential customer knows about the Sale of Goods Act, and that , usually, the buck stops with me. If every retail operation assumed the same - and trained staff regarding it, there would be far less of the ridiculous situation of them trying to evade the consumer rights legislation.
So I don't mind if anyone knows their rights - it makes things so much simpler.

And I agree Amazon returns are good - because they've found it pays, basically, and makes life easier.

[geoffwood]

Hardly surprising really that consumer goods are so much more expensive in the UK. Somebody has to pay for the high level of protection, and you know the manufacturers pass 125% of the cost through to the consumers.