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See you in Court EE! PLEASE READ
jmcdj
Posts: 35 Forum Member
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I thought I'd use this forum as I know what type of traffic it gets day-to-day and thought I must share something that is in fact quite diabolical and in relation to EE and their lack of regard for UK consumer law. I also want to warn as many people as I can about EE and advise you all not to buy an iPhone from them.
Having been a loyal customer of Orange for over a decade, as well as with EE more recently, I recently realised my iPhone 5 had become faulty. I noticed an on-going problem with what seemed to be the battery, whereby my phone would power down with approximately 10 per cent of battery remaining.
I called EE customer services and, following a diagnostic test, was advised that indeed my phone was faulty. I was then transferred through to Apple to arrange for delivery of a new phone.
Upon being transferred to Apple, I was advised that I had three options:
The first was to send my phone in to Apple for a diagnostic test. I would be without my phone for a number of days.
The second was to pay £30 for the privilege of having a courier deliver me a new handset and take away the old one for investigation. A significant charge would be placed on my credit card as a deposit.
The final option was to book an appointment with an Apple store, the nearest one to me being 30 minutes drive away and not feasible.
Having decided none of these options were reasonable and having purchased my iPhone in the (then) Orange store in Greenwich, London, thereby entering a contract for the sale of the phone with Orange/EE and not the phone's manufacturer, I was slightly perturbed by EE's insistence that I would need to go via Apple in order to seek a repair, replacement or refund. Therefore I contacted EE once again to see if anyone else would honour UK consumer law and subsequently advise that what I had previously been told was what it was - utter balderdash.
Unfortunately for me, one of their staff took it upon herself to disregard the UK Sales of Goods Act 1979 and advise that as my phone was in warranty, I would have to go via Apple. I explained I would be contacting her Executive Office and was told they would tell me exactly the same thing.
Not wanting to have to contact the Executive team and waste more of my time, I again foolishly called EE in the hope of speaking to someone with a bit more sense. I spoke to another customer services team member and was advised the same thing. Upon throwing chapter and verse at her in relation to the UK Sales of Goods Act 1979 and my rights as a consumer, having purchased my iPhone 5 in their store, I was kept on hold for a number of minutes and then advised that EE were unwilling to do anything by way of repair, replacement or refund owing to my faulty phone and that only Apple could provide a resolution to my issue. I asked her where she had obtained this information and was advised that she had looked at their WEBSITE! I asked to speak to a manager and was placed on hold once again, only this time I was disconnected.
I know this is getting repetitive now, but stupidly enough I again called the customer services team and spoke to a manager who advised me that she would be happy to go away and speak to their in-house legal team in order to dispute what I was telling her.
I haven't heard back from this silly little manager since.
Since then, I have written to EE via recorded delivery, indicating my intention to pursue them in court and subsequently received a call back from the executive team today to state they are unable to offer me anything as far as a replacement, refund or repair.
Now, when I entered a contract with Orange/EE by purchasing an iPhone in the Orange store, both Orange/EE and I were legally bound by that contract. Within less than 12 months my iPhone is now faulty and, despite this, they are unwilling to honour the Sales of Goods Act 1979 and issue me with a replacement phone. The place of purchase is responsible for dealing with my faulty handset and their refusal to do anything suggests they are in breach of contract.
Under the Act goods must be ‘as described’, 'of satisfactory quality', and 'fit for purpose'. The Act, therefore means I am within my rights to ask EE to replace, repair or refund any faulty item for up to a reasonable amount of time after an item is purchased.
However, they fail to honour the above mentioned law.
Sure, I would possibly need to strengthen my case by seeking an independent valuation of my phone and the problem as it is more than six months old, but this isn't something that bothers me in the slightest; it's a fault caused through no fault of my own. No water damage, no drops, nothing other than a battery related issue.
As a result of today's response I have issued them with a summons for small claims court. I seriously want them to dispute my claim so I can laugh in their faces in court when the judge slaps them on the wrist and tells them to stop thinking they are above the law.
I know this was very long-winded and appreciate it if you've got to the end, but PLEASE BE WARNED if thinking about going with EE.
I'm sure people will question why I don't just pop int the Apple store and get a replacement, but the fact of the matter is I am stickler for good customer service and believe EE should honour consumer law all instances, rather than just pass the buck.
Having been a loyal customer of Orange for over a decade, as well as with EE more recently, I recently realised my iPhone 5 had become faulty. I noticed an on-going problem with what seemed to be the battery, whereby my phone would power down with approximately 10 per cent of battery remaining.
I called EE customer services and, following a diagnostic test, was advised that indeed my phone was faulty. I was then transferred through to Apple to arrange for delivery of a new phone.
Upon being transferred to Apple, I was advised that I had three options:
The first was to send my phone in to Apple for a diagnostic test. I would be without my phone for a number of days.
The second was to pay £30 for the privilege of having a courier deliver me a new handset and take away the old one for investigation. A significant charge would be placed on my credit card as a deposit.
The final option was to book an appointment with an Apple store, the nearest one to me being 30 minutes drive away and not feasible.
Having decided none of these options were reasonable and having purchased my iPhone in the (then) Orange store in Greenwich, London, thereby entering a contract for the sale of the phone with Orange/EE and not the phone's manufacturer, I was slightly perturbed by EE's insistence that I would need to go via Apple in order to seek a repair, replacement or refund. Therefore I contacted EE once again to see if anyone else would honour UK consumer law and subsequently advise that what I had previously been told was what it was - utter balderdash.
Unfortunately for me, one of their staff took it upon herself to disregard the UK Sales of Goods Act 1979 and advise that as my phone was in warranty, I would have to go via Apple. I explained I would be contacting her Executive Office and was told they would tell me exactly the same thing.
Not wanting to have to contact the Executive team and waste more of my time, I again foolishly called EE in the hope of speaking to someone with a bit more sense. I spoke to another customer services team member and was advised the same thing. Upon throwing chapter and verse at her in relation to the UK Sales of Goods Act 1979 and my rights as a consumer, having purchased my iPhone 5 in their store, I was kept on hold for a number of minutes and then advised that EE were unwilling to do anything by way of repair, replacement or refund owing to my faulty phone and that only Apple could provide a resolution to my issue. I asked her where she had obtained this information and was advised that she had looked at their WEBSITE! I asked to speak to a manager and was placed on hold once again, only this time I was disconnected.
I know this is getting repetitive now, but stupidly enough I again called the customer services team and spoke to a manager who advised me that she would be happy to go away and speak to their in-house legal team in order to dispute what I was telling her.
I haven't heard back from this silly little manager since.
Since then, I have written to EE via recorded delivery, indicating my intention to pursue them in court and subsequently received a call back from the executive team today to state they are unable to offer me anything as far as a replacement, refund or repair.
Now, when I entered a contract with Orange/EE by purchasing an iPhone in the Orange store, both Orange/EE and I were legally bound by that contract. Within less than 12 months my iPhone is now faulty and, despite this, they are unwilling to honour the Sales of Goods Act 1979 and issue me with a replacement phone. The place of purchase is responsible for dealing with my faulty handset and their refusal to do anything suggests they are in breach of contract.
Under the Act goods must be ‘as described’, 'of satisfactory quality', and 'fit for purpose'. The Act, therefore means I am within my rights to ask EE to replace, repair or refund any faulty item for up to a reasonable amount of time after an item is purchased.
However, they fail to honour the above mentioned law.
Sure, I would possibly need to strengthen my case by seeking an independent valuation of my phone and the problem as it is more than six months old, but this isn't something that bothers me in the slightest; it's a fault caused through no fault of my own. No water damage, no drops, nothing other than a battery related issue.
As a result of today's response I have issued them with a summons for small claims court. I seriously want them to dispute my claim so I can laugh in their faces in court when the judge slaps them on the wrist and tells them to stop thinking they are above the law.
I know this was very long-winded and appreciate it if you've got to the end, but PLEASE BE WARNED if thinking about going with EE.
I'm sure people will question why I don't just pop int the Apple store and get a replacement, but the fact of the matter is I am stickler for good customer service and believe EE should honour consumer law all instances, rather than just pass the buck.
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Comments
The first and third option are more than reasonable.
You say you want a repair or replacement and you would have got one or the other if you'd just chose one of the options.
Clearly you don't know SOGA yourself . I see no mention of yourself providing proof that the phone was inherently faulty.
If you have a flipping manufacturers warranty then get it repaired or replaced under that warranty like you were offered.
If you can't get to the Apple store, how are you going to get to court?
Jabbamk1, why on Earth would I want a large corporation to not honour a contract? It's actually a lot easier to deal with it the legal way than it is by continuing to keep on and on at EE, and that is the only thing I regret doing. It would be even easier to go to the Apple store, but why should I allow for EE to wash their hands of the problem, when they should honour my faulty item as well as the SOGA?
The first and third options, as well as the second, are not reasonable at all. It has NOTHING to do with the manufacturer and everything to do with the retailer where my phone was purchased. If you bought a Bosch cooker from Curry's and it broke down within a year, would you go straight to Bosch if Curry's told you to? Please don't say yes.
Thanks GRPS. I've already sent them a letter to similar effect and, as they've responded stating they refuse to do anything, it's now been lodged with the small claims court.
Cheers.
I have to agree with you Jabba.
What the hell is wrong with some people??
All three options are perfectly reasonable (to a reasonable person).
My iPhone did nearly exactly the same the other day. Still in Warranty (with Apple).
Forgetting how Apple work, I rang EE and they told me that as it was in warranty, Apple prefer to deal with it rather than letting the retailer sort it.
I was advised the easiest thing was to book an appointment (in the Brand new Plymouth store) which I did easily on-line.
The guy in the store tried all the restoring and poking and prodding and then just got out a new one and that was that.
I got a nice invoice emailed to me from Apple that said.. Cost of replacement £149, Total to pay £0.00. Nice.
Can someone please tell me how in the 21st century, a 30 minute journey is unreasonable?
This does beggar belief.
Yes, i can-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qS7nqwGt4-I
I agree
My sons IP5 went tits up after 51 weeks , he booked a meeting at the Apple store in Meadowhall,and after a 30 mins travel he arrived and 45 mins later he walked out of the AS with a new IP5
It wasn't so hard for him and he had to travel by train
The guy wants to go through the hassle of court action just to prove a point, basically :rolleyes:
Why cause yourself this stress? 30 mins away from an apple store where they would have sorted the issue in 5 minutes. I am with EE in this one,
I'm fairly certain the OP edited his post to include my recommendation of getting an independent report carried out. If he didn't edit his post then WHY did he even post here in the first place if he knows thats what he has to do FIRST!.
He's causing himself so much hassle over something, as you say yourself devon, is very easy to sort out.
You won't get anyway in the small claims court either as the judge will put you straight when it comes to consumer law. You don't have a case for the small claims either as both Apple and EE have offered reasonable measures in which to have the problem dealt with. It is your own pig headedness which is preventing you from seeing this, no network has an obligation to provide you with a temporary phone should yours need to go off for repair, bit like you would have Currys provide you with a temporary washer should your current one need repairing.
EE are following the law. Although Apple don't have to they assume all warranty responsibility for all of their devices sold through the various retailers no other manufacturer does that.
Get your backside down to the Apple store and have it looked at. You will walk out with an as new device....simple!
I would say they're very reasonable.
Apple's aftercare service is first class and you're lucky to have those three options. Apple would almost certainly replace your handset with another one.
When my iPhone went wrong, I returned it to the o2 shop who followed the law by sending it to an authorised Apple repair company. I had to wait 2 weeks while my repair' was processed. The second time it went wrong, they did me a favour by advising me to contact Apple. Upon doing do, Apple sent a courier to collect my iPhone and within 4 days, I received a replacement.
Couple of days won't kill you, but this level of stress in your life might. Chill out.
Spot on. This is kinda what i was trying to say but i'm never good at explaining things.
Would you buy a car, and then complain you had to drive it an hour to the nearest dealership to repair (like I have to?). I'm sure you'd want your car fixed.
To be honest mate, mountains out of mole hills springs to mind.
It's more like Tsunami's out of Ice mate...
Tru. Dat.
Actually you'd have to because Currys do no repairs on a lot of items under the 1st year warranty unless you have one of their extended warranties and the fault was caused by accidental damage!