OT: Consumer rights advise

[JoeJoe]

Bought roof bars for my car 18 months ago. I think that they are Thule made, possibly Mont Blanc, but branded as Ford specific. The have had very light use since (and definitely no abuse).

I happened to remove the plastic cover of one of the anchoring points a few days ago, a big piece of plastic covering the unsightly metal fixings, and discovered that the padding (type of a washer made out of rubber) that holds the bars to the screw that goes into the anchoring point has completely disintegrated... It is completely hidden by the cover, so the screw that holds it to the roof could have easily snap causing quite serious damage to the car.

I have since checked the other 3 anchors, and discovered that another one has failed in a similar manner.

I spoke to the Ford dealer that I bought it from, and he informed me that:

1. Spare parts for it are not sold separately, and;
2. The warranty is only for 12 months, so I am on my own.

This does not make sense to me as I believe that one can sensibly expect roof bars to last a little longer than that (the set on my previous car lasted 8 years without a problem). However, I am not sure of my rights/my course of action.

Any tips as to how to proceed will be much appreciated.

PS: unfortunately the bars were bought online from a dealership at the other end of the country (they are quite pricey, and they offered a substantial saving), so I cannot really go there and cause a scene...

[Adrian]

"JoeJoe" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

Any chance of a photo of a good one and a bad one?

It sounds like it's not going to be the end of the world to make something to do the job.

Sale of Goods Act. There's a fairly decent overview here :-

[Skipweasel]

That's a typical fob-off. Products are expected to last for a reasonable length of time - a year for a roof-rack isn't reasonable.

Tell them you're off to Trading Standards and also write to Ford HQ.

[Cash]

Your contract under SoGA is with the company that you bought them from - so that's who you will have to deal with.

Have a look at the link below and it will give you an idea of the Sale of Goods Act.

answers a bit brief, but catch-up on SoGA, and then contact the company that you dealt with and if they attempt to fob you off, you will have the info to counter their arguments.

As a matter of interest, SoGA 'covers' you for up to six years (five in Scotland) against latent defects in materials or manufacturing process - please ignore those that tell you that you have almost unlimited rights under "European" laws as the is not entirely factual.

SoGA has greater powers in this country

Cash

[Cash]

I'm sure I typed 'that' and not 'the' above - blood keyboard! :-)

Cash

[Skipweasel]

Not necessarily. They are obliged to deal with you - but you can elect to deal with the manufacturer if you prefer.

[MuddyMike]

If you buy something which should last 7 years but breaks down after a year and a day, you can still claim it was of poor quality in reference to the durability aspect. See.

[Cash]

Unwise to do that unless you contact the seller first and agree that with them, as you could be in a situation where neither seller nor manufacturer will help - it has happened.

Besides, under SoGA, the seller has the right to examine the goods first to ensure that the problem was not caused by abuse, and then offer a repair, replacement or refund. Also in the case of replacement, the seller can offer a reconditioned unit or only a partial refund for that takes into consideration the use the buyer has already had.

SoGA can be a mine-field for those who have little knowledge of it.

Cash

[JoeJoe]

cannot remember for sure, but I would guess that the washer was somewhat soft initially (or at least had some sort of a give). It is now rock solid. Maybe something to do with the recent weather?

[Adrian]

"JoeJoe" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

It probably won't have helped.

The screws also look manky for only a year old - have the roof bars been left on the car permanently? They could easily claim that the design is intended for occasional use, so you've misused them by having the connectors torqued up and stressing those cups all the time isn't going to do them any favours. (As well, of course, as all the fuel you're wasting from murdering the aerodynamics)

[Skipweasel]

Indeed, but much recent stuff comes with big instructions on the packaging to contact the maker (of some appointed agent) and not the vendor.

[JoeJoe]

It is quite an operation to put them up/take them down. They were clearly not designed for this to be done regularly.

I have had roof bars on all my cars permanently for the last 15 years or so.

Fuel consumption, etc - I am prepared to leave with it.

[Niel Humphreys]

Snip

Why have you cross posted this to the Ebay newsgroup when it has absolutely f*ck all to do with Ebay?

[Cash]

Yep, a foreign company with many outlets in this country for one - and it can only be applied if the buyer agrees to do that. It does not over-ride the Sale of Goods Act 1979 as amended - it is still the responsibility of the seller.

I had a problem a year or two back with some stuff from them and I took it back to the store, their manager did his best to tell me that it was not their responsibility and that *I* had to contact the manufacturer at *my* expense etc - which I (politely0 disagreed with.

To cut the story short, a quick visit to the trading standards dept of my local council with a copy of the firms warranty, drew out the information that the stores warranty in fact, did not comply with SoGA and that their department had several complaints about this company and their actions with defective goods.

Armed with this information, I returned to the store, had a long discussion with the manager and agreed that I would return it directly to the manufacturer if *he* did all the telephoning and collection arranging - which would (and did) resolve the problem (this was before they introduced a free phone number).

After this was sorted, I wrote two letters to the companies head office telling them that their warranty agreement was in fact unlawful and would they rectify the matter - no replies received and no changes in their warranty terms the last time I looked (other than the phone number change).

As a result, I wont buy any costly stuff from them now.

All good stuff, and it made me look very deeply into SoGA information

Cash

[Harry Bloomfield]

JoeJoe used his keyboard to write :

The warranty is only THEIR official warranty, it is not the limit of their responsibility under SOG act, which can expect them to repair/replace it for up to six years. It legally has to last and be functional for as long as a reasonable person would expect it to last.

[Man at B&Q]

And it will (should) always state that such instructions do not affect your statutory rights. Your contract *is* with the vendor in *all* cases. The manufacturer is *not* obliged to deal with you.

MBQ

[Peter Crosland]

Is your command of the English language so poor that you cannot express yourself without resorting to offensive words? It would be much more useful to politely suggest that the OP post in a more apposite news group such as uk.legal.moderated.

Peter Crosland

[Fran]

As usual, you are wrong. Neil is, in this instance, spot on.

[MuddyMike]

Some of you may recall that about a year ago my Boiler suffered failure of the main PCB. Sadly the installer/supplier had ceased trading so I tried to pursue the manufactures under the durability aspect. I took legal advise and was told that my contract was solely with the supplier and that I could not take the manufacturer to task. That hurt as I ended up being billed over £400 to have it replaced.

Mike

[Cash]

Thanks for that link Mike - saved for future reference.

Cash