UPDATED: Persistence is everything (PC World)

Member Name: grahamt

Product:	PC World
Date:	27/07/09 (121 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A great place to get ideas

Disadvantages: Appalling customer service ; Every claim is a battle

PC World is where I go to get ideas and to see potential purchases "in the flesh". Rarely do I buy anything there, for the same reason that most of you don't - appalling customer service. When I do buy at PC World it has to be something that is unlikely ever to go wrong and at a very good price, not something you're often likely to find here, or else in an emergency, when there is really no other option.

The former is represented by my purchase of a Sandisk Cruzer Titanium 8GB thumb drive for around £15. This was, at the time, an exceptionally good price and the device itself has continued to work, but then there really isn't that much that can go wrong with these gizmos.

The latter is represented by the purchase of an HP Photosmart All-in-One C7280 printer, about which I wrote a review here. It was bought because the previous printer (also an HP!) had failed and my wife needed a replacement urgently, for her work. It seemed to be a good purchase at the time but appearances can be deceptive, as you will discover if you read the review.

Anyway, be that as it may, the issue from my point of view was to get justice and recompense from PC World directly or, if they tried to evade their responsibilities, from their owners, DSG Retail Ltd or the parent company, DSG International plc, in Hemel Hempstead. As the machine had failed just after 12 months from the date of purchase, I fully expected to have a battle on my hands, and I wasn't wrong.

Stage 1 - The initial confrontation
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So, I followed the correct procedure. Initially I returned the printer to the PC World store from which I had purchased it, which happened to be the one in Farnborough. I explained the problem, showed the receipt and thought I was going to get a result until the guy on the desk realised he'd misread the receipt and that it was bought just over a year before rather than the previous month.

Refusal No. 1 - "Your guarantee has expired"
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This is always the first ploy. For the first 12 months, most retailers will replace a faulty product without question. This is because most of them will have contracted with the manufacturer to take back these goods from the retailer and either replace them or refund the cost. Like PC World, many will spin you the old sob story about them not being able to get recompense from the manufacturer after 12 months, in order to try to elicit your sympathy.

Pay no attention to these tricks. What financial arrangement the retailer has with the manufacturer is of absolutely no relevance to you. Your contract is with the retailer, not the manufacturer. You cannot get recompense from the manufacturer, only from the retailer.

Rebutal No. 1 - "I have protection in Law for two years under EU Directive 1999/44/EC"
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Whatever you think about the EU, here they have enacted European-wide legislation which is designed to protect the rights of consumers, either in addition to or in place of local legislation. OK, we have the likes of UKIP whining about how the EU is usurping our rights to govern ourselves. Well, here is an example of when that's a "Good Thing".

The EU Directive makes is mandatory for a period of up to two years for a retailer to replace, repair of refund a faulty product.

Refusal No. 2 - "The UK has opted out of this legislation"
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The first attempt will be to try to con you into believing that as a part of the UK's seeming love/hate relationship with the EU, it has decided not to give its citizens the benefit of the protection that the EU has enacted for the benefit of all EU member states.

Rebutal No. 2 - "Oh no it hasn't sunshine"
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The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002, which came into force on the 31st March 2003, incorporates and extends the EU Directive. It entitles the consumer to a full refund if the product becomes defective after a "reasonable period of time" after purchase. What is "reasonable" is not defined and will relate to the type of product.

Is it reasonable to expect that it should have lasted longer than it did? In the case of my printer, definitely. No reasonable person would expect a computer printer to only last a year. However, ultimately, what is or is not reasonable may have to be decided in a Court of Law. Hopefully we won't have to go that far.

UK legislation provides further protection. You can also claim compensation for up to six years, though this may not be the entire amount of the purchase price. In Scotland it's even better: you have five years from discovering the problem. Why is it that Scottish law is invariably better than English law?

You can get further information about all this at the Citizens' Advice Bureau website and another website called Law of Contract, where you can download a document giving you the full run-down of the legislation.

Refusal No.3 - "You'll have to go back to the manufacturer"
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The next trick is to point the finger at someone else and try to unload you onto them.

Rebutal No.3 - "My contract is with you, not the manufacturer"
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Remember, you have no rights against the manufacturer and they will rightly have nothing to do with it. Yes, they may offer to repair the product for you but only at a cost to you. For products like this, the repair cost will generally be higher than the cost of the machine.

Remember, the manufacturer wants to shift product. They can only do this by making them not worth repairing. That's why I rarely buy extended three year warranties: for products like this they cost almost as much as buying the product twice.

Refusal No.4 - "We're not going to help you"
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At this point I had probably gone as far as I could at the store. In my case, at PC World, my final "discussions" were with the Store Manager. He will have received his instructions from Head Office in Hemel Hempstead and they will have told him that he is not authorised to offer anything beyond the basic understandings.

So, all this has been a waste of time? Well, yes and no. It's got to be done, because you are building a case to show that you have given the retailer every opportunity to do the decent thing, should this ultimately go to court. Remember, take the names of everyone with whom you had your discussions.

Stage 2 - Take it to a higher authority
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Next we have to take the fight to PC World's parents, DSG Retail Ltd. Initially I drafted an email to their Customer Services email address, laying out my grievances and attaching scanned copies of all relevant documents. In my case, following an initial phone discussion, they demanded an independent report by a computer repairers that in their opinion they machine was subject to a manufacturing defect and had not been subject to user abuse. I was lucky to find a place in Aldershot which was happy to do this for no charge at all.

I waited five working days and didn't even get the benefit of an acknowledgement let alone a reply or even a rejection of my claim! Are we surprised? Don't worry about this though; it all goes to demonstrate that you have given the retailer every chance.

Next I delivered the same communication in "hardcopy" by snailmail, using Recorded Delivery to prove that they had received it. This produced results; I guess they could no longer procrastinate by claiming that they had never received it. You may want to use this as the first approach; I just wanted to see if their advertised email communications actually worked; I guess we all know the answer to that now.

About a week later I received in the post a letter enclosing a DSG Gift Card loaded with about 2/3rds of the original purchase price of the printer. My decision now is, should I accept this or should I press on to:

Stage 3 - Let's Take Them To Court
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So, this is where I am now. Do I press on and take PC World to the Small Claims Court? In offering me recompense they have insured themselves should I issue a law case against them. The court will take any offers by the retailer to settle the claim into consideration.

I think I have a strong case but the issue is, is it worth the hassle? It's not that issuing a claim for compensation is difficult. You can even do it online these days. There's a website set up by the Government called, Money Claim Online, which leads you through the stages of making a claim for compensation in the Small Claims Court.

I'm still thinking about it. On the one hand I have money back from PC World, not the entire amount it's true, but a goodly amount nevertheless. Also, they haven't asked for the printer back, so I still have that as well. OK, it doesn't work properly at the moment but I have seen some advice on the HP Forum and if it works out then I have a printer working again and compensation!

You may choose to do otherwise and that is, of course, your prerogative. Whatever you decide to do, remember, Don't Take No For An Answer.


UPDATE - Aug 2009
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Well, I decided not to leave it there. Although the amount I was being offered was not unreasonable if I was to avoid a long, drawn-out legal battle, the fact that it was offered as a Gift Card rather than as cash was not. The problem was that PC World does not offer an alternative printer with all of the features I needed. If I was to get what I wanted it would have to be from another retailer.

I sent PC World another recorded delivery letter asking for a better offer and detailing my reasons. In response got a confirmation that they would offer me the same amount but as cash, which is what I wanted.

So, now all I have to do is find another retailer who can supply a replacement printer of the design I need.

Summary: Don't take "No" for an answer