Faulty aquarium heater

[mdg_101]

Hi all, I recently purchased a new aquarium heater for my already established aquarium of 6 years. I followed the appropriate instructions in installing the heater & set the temperature to 26 degrees. Sadly overnight the heater brought the temperature up to 38 degrees & when I woke, near enough all my fish were dead! I haven't yet counted up the costs but it'll be in the region of £600-800! What recourse (if any) do I have with the retailer or manufacturer?

[Dazbrad]

Re: Faulty aquarium heater

If the heater was bought before the 1st Oct 2015:

The 'Sale of Goods Act 1979' (SGA) states that "All goods must be of a Satisfactory Quality". Where goods are NOT of a satisfactory quality like you describe, then the remedies available under the SGA could be:

a) Refund - The burden of proof will be on yourself to prove the goods were faulty, or;

b) Repair/Repacement - The burden of proof will be on the trader for the first 6 months to prove the goods were not faulty. After 6 months, the Buden of proof will be on yourself to prove the goods are faulty.

As for the monetary loss incurred when your fish died as a result of the faulty heater. You may also be able to claim 'Consequential Loss' from the trader. A loss that may not have happened if you did not enter into a contract with this particular trader.

An agreed, or court ordered remedy should not cause you significant inconvenience.

The trader will not be liable for;

a) Wear and tear
b) Accidental Damage
c) Misuse

You need to gather as much evidence as possible. For example, Letters, Emails, Text Messages, Photos, Screenshots.... Anything relavant!

Assuming you have paid by either cash, cheque, or card then need to write a letter to the trader with the following info:

a) your details
b) what you bought and when you bought it
c) include the legislation and that the goods were not of a satisfactory quality.

If the heater was purchased on, or after the 1st Oct 2015, simply change the legislation from 'Sale of Goods Act 1979', to 'Consumer Rights Act 2015'.

d) explain the faults with the product
e) Ask for either a Refund/Repair/Replacement
f) Request that the trader compensate your Consequential Losses - Include what the loss is, how much in value and evidence of this. The burden of proof will be on you to prove that the losses that you are claiming for are directly related to the faulty goods.
g) Ask in writing whether the trader is a member of an ADR scheme - more about this in a moment
h) set a deadline for the trader to respond. A reasonable deadline could be anywhere between 7 & 21 days
i) take two copies of this letter, one for yourself, the other to send to the trader by recorded delivery- that way you know whether the trader has recieved it

An ADR scheme is short for 'Alternative Dispute Resolution', it is a form of mediation where a third party acts as judge and can make a legally binding decision on a particular party.

A trader is not required to become a member of an ADR scheme which are certainly chaeper than court, if not free. If a trader is not a member of an ADR scheme, then court may be the only other option.

If the deadline on the letter that you sent to the trader has expired, you then need to send the exact same letter to the trader again by recorded delivery.

If the deadline on letter 2 expires, you then need to send a third and final letter. This letter will be exactly the same as the previous letters, with the addition of a title which states "Letter Before Action".

If the trader misses this final deadline you can either go to your local court house and.collect an 'N1' form and put you claim through the post. Otherwise, if you have access to the internet you can do this online at www.moneyclaim.gov.uk

Hope this helps and good luck. Get in touch to let us know how you get on.

[Dazbrad]

Re: Faulty aquarium heater

If the Consumer Rights act 2015 applies to your contract, then the available remedies are as follows:

a) If the purchase was made within 30 days, you can exercise your 'Short Term Right to Reject' and demand a full refund.

b) If the purchase was made more than 30 days ago, you may only claim for a repair or a replacement. If these remedies cause significant inconvenience, come at a cost to you, or can not be given within a reasonable time. You may be able to pursue the trader for a refund

[Demixl]

Hi all, I recently purchased a new aquarium heater for my already established aquarium of 6 years. I followed the appropriate instructions in installing the heater & set the temperature to 26 degrees. Sadly overnight the heater brought the temperature up to 38 degrees & when I woke, near enough all my fish were dead! I haven't yet counted up the costs but it'll be in the region of £600-800! What recourse (if any) do I have with the retailer or manufacturer?

It's the terrible story, man. It is always painful to lose your fishes. Frankly speaking, I had the situation, similar to your one. I bought the filter for the fish tank(of course, it wasn't the best one, but I paid $170), I installed it. When I woke up at the morning, my fishes were dead. After that moment I use only live rock, like biological filter, and I want to tell you, that there is no risk here and it works not worse, than the electric one.