Need legal advice

hi guys,

I need some advice. I brought an Acer 4810tz from ebuyer on the 19/04/10.
from day one I had problems that everyone gets;the freezing.
following peoples advice I installed new drivers for everything, but I still had problems.
after talking to ebuyer support on 25/04/10, i was told to do the same, and if i still had problems we would have to do a factory restore, (but he stated this would only be a last resort) i asked him if they were open till 6 (i was at work and couldn't do anything till 4) and he said they were.
i went home did what he said, (i had already installed all the drivers) I rang at 4.45, they were closed.
So I did a factory restore, and reinstalled the drivers, but after a few hours the problem was still there, so I did a online return on sun 26/04/10.

I'm a student whos got revison to do, (got exams coming up) and i need a laptop I can rely on, and the 4810 couldn't be.
I got an email on sun saying that I would have to ring ebuyer to speak to them, I rang them yesterday (i was too busy to ring them mon) and old them the problem, fine they would pick it up thurs and I would get a refund.
I had to buy a replacement laptop (silly I know, but I have to revise)
I got an email today saying they are picking it up thurs, but it also said if no fault is found they would bill me for the return and send the laptop back!
so I rang them and explained that it may be pretty hard to replicate the fault, out of the 5 days I had it, it froze 5 times, but each were different, one was when browsing, 2 were coming out of hibernate and the others I cant remember. the lady said they would test it and if it was faulty then i would get a refund if not they would return it. so I have to wait 3-5 days for a refund, and even then I might not get one!

where do I stand if they can't replicate the fault?
its not fit for purpose, so thats sales of goods act, but what about distance selling? you get a 7 day cooling off period, so im allowed to open the packaging and inspect it then if I dont like it, send it back.

i'm really worried that i'm going to be left with two laptops and no refund

any advice would be greatly appreciated, it might be all ok but I havent got the time to mess about so i'm just covering all avenues!

thanks and sorry for the massive post!

 

I think the only advice to give is not to buy from eBuyer again. Their return policy is a little authoritarian, but you pays your money and makes your choice, etc. If the laptop had been damaged or there was a real noticeable hardware fault, the refund would be straightforward, but because this is an issue that is hard to replicate, then they might decide not to refund. It really is a case of wait-and-see, I am afraid.

One strategy you can try if they do decide against you is to phone them up, try and speak to someone up senior in the returns department and talk about the laptop not being "fit for purpose" etc. The distance selling regulations are for seven working days, but I'm not sure if you get into that window. And besides, you have already declared that there is a fault with the item.

If all else fails, threaten them with reporting them to their local Trading Standards office and actually do it.

 

well lets hope it doesnt come to that!

 

Let the company make it's decision. I would not anticipate too much until you know what you're dealing with. While I understand your student status, the time needed to send a laptop to a seller and wait for a replacement or refund is the risk you take when buying on-line. If you don't get satisfaction, I would then spend the time on the phone. But if you still don't get staisfaction, if you are in the states, file a complaint and ask for mediation from your state consumer affairs division. Just the time that the company has to spend dealing with this will probably resolve your problem on the first conferenc call with the CAD.

Bronsky

 

In UK law you dont have to prove an item is faulty , the seller has to prove it is not, send them an email stating the problems you are having and that you have followed their advice on how to fix the problem and that the problem is still there even after a factory restore, and add the following to the email, that you will give them 14 DAYS from the date of the email to refund or replace your notebook or you will take them to the small claims court , it will cost you £50 but you will get it back.

Also add this to the email "THAT TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE"

Also have you though about getting a repair though Acer.

WikiAnswers - What does the phrase time is of the essence mean

 

Thanks tinder, they said they will test it throughly for 3-5 days and if they don't find a problem they will send it back!
So I'll see what they do, and if it turns ugly will take your advice!