My TV's given up but I'm furious as it's only 29 Months old!

[#1]

Back in Dec 2016 I shelled out £1.5K for a new Samsung TV, while watching the News last night the picture changed and it looked like the footage was from the 80s. From this it went dark as if someone had turned off the lighting, then the vertical bars appeared. Oy vey, that’s all I need.

Doing a bit of searching it appears that the TV is really quite sick but might be repairable but I’d be loathed to pay for a repair on a device that’s not even 2 and a half years old.

[#2]

£1.5K!!! Wow  I paid £275 8 years ago for the cheapest TV I could get and its still going strong. One thing though, it is always on standby. Ready to roll. Do you turn your TV on and off at the main switch?

But at £1.5K, you should take it back to where you bought it asking for it to be repaired, free of charge. One can only try. Maybe 2½ yrs is the expected life of such TV's. From experience of electronic repairs, they don't tend to last long. Usually whatever failed has shorten the life of something else. Good luck.

[#3]

These high priced high end televisons are all about the screen type I believe plus fancy shapes none of which in my view warrant that sort of money but still, must be worth getting a repair esitmate at least.

Getting what you pay for isn't always the case.   

[#4]

@Anonymous 

Is it possible you have a Samsung 5 year warranty which you've forgotten about?

Not wishing to rub salt in the wound, but it pays to shop around when buying items such as yours, and I don't mean just on price but on the 'extras' including warranties.  Some retailers offer 5 (and I believe even 6 in the case of Richer Sounds) year warranties on TV purchases.

In March 2012 I splashed out almost as much as you on a D8000 series Samsung HD-TV but made sure I bought it from John Lewis especially for their 5 year warranty, but also because they price-match.

Roll-on December 2014, I decided to report a screen fault which had been gradually getting worse to John Lewis, and take advantage of their no-quibble warranty, which, long story short, they duly honoured.  They and I agreed a replacement 'equivalent' model.  I told them based on their price of the TV offered, I would prefer to pay an extra £200 for a Samsung UHD-TV they were stocking, to which they agreed. On 31/12/14 I took delivery of a brand new, larger screen than the original, Samsung HU7500 series 4K TV, which counted as a new purchase and came with its own 5 year warranty!

Not only that, after the deal had been agreed (14/12/14), I went on to their website on Boxing Day and took advantage of their price-match, and as the TV had dropped £200 in price I received a refund to my credit card of the extra £200 I had agreed to pay, so win-win!

[#5]

There was a contributor on this forum a few years ago who was very clued up on consumer law.

Not sure if this is of any help https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/consumer-rights-act

It used to be the case that an item had to last for a lenght of time that could reasonably be expected, and I would certainly expect a TV to last more than two and a half years.

[#6]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Back in Dec 2016 I shelled out £1.5K for a new Samsung TV, while watching the News last night the picture changed and it looked like the footage was from the 80s. From this it went dark as if someone had turned off the lighting, then the vertical bars appeared.

.... I’d be loathed to pay for a repair on a device that’s not even 2 and a half years old.

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You have my sympathy.  That sounds like a very nice spec TV. I don't agree with the previous reply  - a high price doesn't equate to better reliability.  A Ferrari costs more than a Polo for obvious reasons, but would probably be less reliable.

You could try Samsung Live Chat to get a feel of your chances with them.  (At the moment they have a 5 year warranty offer on the go.)  Perhaps next time consider someone like John Lewis who do a 5 year guarantee on TVs as standard.

[#7]

@RobPN Yes, it's usually a lot easier to get the big household names to honour their obligations under consumer rights.

[#8]

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@ffox wrote:

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... A Ferrari costs more than a Polo for obvious reasons, but would probably be less reliable.

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I guess you'd just have to suck it and see. 

[#9]

@idonno My TV’s always on standby too, and I doubt if it’s ever been off more than a dozen times in it’s (short) lifetime.

For what its worth I did buy from RicherSounds in Edinburgh and I’ve spoken to the Warranty Dept who say they have no record of my 6 year plan! But I’ve sent them this image of the issue and I’m awaiting their response.

[#10]

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@Jonpe wrote:

@RobPN Yes, it's usually a lot easier to get the big household names to honour their obligations under consumer rights.

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@Jonpe 

I agree.

Actually I've just been thinking over the replacement deal described above, and my account was slightly inaccurate.  The amount I offered to pay extra to the JL price (£799) for the replacement offered by them was actually £400 which I then price-matched on Boxing day to get a £200 refund, but they never took the agreed £400 from my credit card, so I was actually £200 quids-in!.

However, I didn't feel guilty because (short story long) they'd originally sent a repairer out to examine the faulty TV and then offered to pay the estimated repair bill of £1100 which I obviously saved them by taking the replacement route.

[#11]

Well I've just had a call from RicherSounds and kudos to them they are going to honour the 6 year warranty. The down side is that they need to send an engineer and the whole process could take some time. But at least for now it's not going to landfill!

[#12]

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@Anonymous wrote:

For what its worth I did buy from RicherSounds in Edinburgh and I’ve spoken to the Warranty Dept who say they have no record of my 6 year plan! But I’ve sent them this image of the issue and I’m awaiting their response.

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@Anonymous 

I can't remember exactly when they changed, but ISTR RS originally offered inclusive 5 year warranties on TV purchases before changing to 6 years, bur either way I'd have thought you should be covered, although I'm not sure if you have to jump through any hoops to activate a RS TV warranty when you first buy the TV.

Slightly OT, RS offer warranties as a 'paid-for' extra on many items but with the advantage over most (rip-off) warranties that if you haven't claimed on them during the warranty period you can claim a full refund of the price paid for the warranty - if you remember!

Those vertical lines are similar to what I was seeing on my faulty Samsung TV, albeit that many people couldn't notice them on a normal TV channel until I pointed them out.

[#13]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Well I've just had a call from RicherSounds and kudos to them they are going to honour the 6 year warranty. ...

... But at least for now it's not going to landfill!

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@Anonymous 

Unless your repair estimate turns out to be more than what the TV would presently be worth if still working.  You may find yourself in a similar situation to mine as described above!

[#14]

Well maybe it'll work to my advantage like some I could mention!

[#15]

@Anonymous  https://blog.moneysavingexpert.com/2010/12/the-eu-goods-must-last-a-minimum-two-years-rule-is-a-myth/

This page

https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/knowledge/articles/2017/03/sale-of-goods-legislation-consumer-rights-act-guide-for-small-businesses/

has this paragraph....

The right to a refund, repair or replacement

If the goods sold by the trader don’t meet the requirements set out by the Consumer Rights Act (satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and matching the description), the consumer has a short period (usually 30 days) during which they can reject the goods.

The trader is obliged to give a refund within 14 days of agreeing that the consumer is entitled to one. The trader can ask the consumer to show proof of purchase, but this doesn’t have to be a receipt.

If the contract has been breached but the consumer has lost their right to reject goods because the 30 day period has passed, the trader is obliged to offer repair or replacement, a ts long as the complaint is made within six months of purchase.

The repair or replacement must not cost the consumer anything, and must be completed within a reasonable time and without causing significant inconvenience.

If the repair or replacement isn’t possible, it fails, or it isn’t completed quickly enough, the consumer can ask for further repairs or replacements, or claim a price reduction or a refund.

The consumer can also claim additional compensation if they’ve suffered other losses as a result of issues with the goods, for example if the goods have caused property damage.

(My bold in the above) ....

but note..... two important things.... If the contract has been breached  and

the consumer has lost their right to reject goods because the......... 30 day period has passed,

It would appear, that... in your case... @Anonymous  you are "at the mercy" of the retailer, as to whether they will "repair" or "replace" free of charge... or  charge you accordingly.

Good Luck... I hope they do the "nice thing" for you ! .