Office chair gas strut failed

[silverback12345]

I hope someone can advise what to do next.I bought an office chair 18 months ago with a two year guarantee the gas strut has failed and the chair no longer rises.I have emailed the company and they said they will send out a new strut this is where the problem arises. I originally paid for the chair to be assembled by the retailer because I am disabled and could not do it myself. If they send the part I cannot fit it and don't have anyone who can do it for me so I would have to pay someone and I don't think that's fair. Surely it is the responsibility of the retailer to repair or replaced the faulty chair? not the purchaser.The chair cost nearly £250 and is a heavy duty 24hr chair so not cheap.

I think I paid for the chair using my Barclay card if that makes a difference.

This is their defective/damaged goods policy
"Defective Products: Products can returned by you because of a manufacturing defect/fault will be refunded in full (Including all carriage charges) only if they are returned in the same packaging as they were delivered and once they have been checked and confirmed defective by our returns department. Alternatively, if we and you agree, we may supply you with a replacement product or part."

I have not agreed to have the part sent to me that is the only choice they are giving me and of course I don't have the packaging as it was a huge box.Any advice would be appreciated.

[R0b]

Hello

The defective products clause might not to be the same as the guarantee you were given. Without knowing where you purchased the chair from and what their terms and conditions are, its difficult to say what rights you have and the extent of the company's guarantee. Did you receive any paperwork which mentioned the guarantee or is it on their website?

Also, it's not quite clear from your post what you are alleging - just because something has stopped working does not automatically mean that it was faulty.

If you are alleging that the chair is faulty, the position is that if the product is over 6 months old then you are required to prove that it is faulty. Unless you can prove the gas strut was faulty from the start, I can't see how you would be entitled to get them to repair it free of charge. You've admitted that you paid someone to assemble the chair and I would expect that you will be required to pay for disassembling/reassembling if that's a service they offer.

You also have to take into account the fact that you have had 18 months use out of the chair and the fact it has lasted for some time might be an indicator that it could be down to use rather than a fault.

If you can provide a link to the company's terms and conditions or if you have a copy of their terms and conditions and can upload them, one of us can have a look and see what options you have.

[des8]

Hello
You also have to take into account the fact that you have had 18 months use out of the chair and the fact it has lasted for some time might be an indicator that it could be down to use rather than a fault.

Wouldn't the argument be the chair was unsatisfactory in that it only lasted 18 months.
If I paid £250 for a chair I would anticipate better durability.
Also by offering a free replacement aren't the company implicitly admitting a manufacturing fault as per their policy as quoted in post1.

[ostell]

Can you not get someone you know to replace the strut? It's normally a straight replace job, the strut is a tight fit but nothing actually holding it in.

[R0b]

Wouldn't the argument be the chair was unsatisfactory in that it only lasted 18 months.
If I paid £250 for a chair I would anticipate better durability.
Also by offering a free replacement aren't the company implicitly admitting a manufacturing fault as per their policy as quoted in post1.

You could argue that, but again the onus is on the consumer to prove this, particularly if there has been no issue for 18 months. There's always two sides to the coin but it is the OP in this case to prove that it was unsatisfactory. If it came about that the chair was constantly used on a regular basis for 5 or more hours a day, then an inference could be made that such use over the 18 months is more likely than not down to use instead of any fault/unsatisfactory quality.

I don't think that particular clause implies an admission of a manufacturing fault, rather it looks like an attempt to box off consumer rights under the CRA.

[silverback12345]

Thank you all for your replies.

Hopefully my answers below will help.

I have fully read the companies t&c's the only part that mentions faulty goods I have already pasted in my first post. There wasn't any guarantee paperwork included in the packaging not that I remember.Their site does not state what their guarantee covers but this is from their description "The height of the chair can be adjusted through the pneumatic gas lift that will comfortably support up to 28 stone. 2 Year Guarantee" this suggest the strut has a 2yr guarantee. The chair worked fine for just over a year it actually became faulty at 13 months old. I have been quite unwell and to be honest the last thing on my mind was contacting the company about the chair.
I paid the company I bought the chair from to assemble it as this is a service they offer and why I bought the chair from them.

The chair is a heavy duty use chair and listed on their site as 24hr use and supports up to 28 stone I weigh 18.I use the chair at it's lowest height and only used to raise it when it worked once a day to eat. From their own description,weight limit,usage statement and warranty surely anyone purchasing this chair would expect it to last longer than it has. The chair also creaks very loudly when moving and drives my wife mad.

OSTELL the only person I know who could possible remove the old strut and fit the new strut has been suffering from sciatica the last few weeks.

[R0b]

If their terms of sale are on the website then it might be best if you simply give us the link to the terms and conditions rather than asking a whole load of questions each time.

I agree with you in that the 2 year guarantee suggests it relates to the preceding sentence which is the pneumatic gas lift. The wording is not actually clear on what the guarantee is offering, such as a refund, repair or replacement so its all a bit ambiguous. It's also not clear whether the company is also the manufacturer, because if they are not the manufacturer, this might affect what you are actually entitled to under the guarantee which could be why they are suggesting a replacement only. Then again, the wording of the clause is poor and does not suggest a manufacturer's guarantee so you could reasonably construe that as meaning a guarantee from the company that the pneumatic gas lift will work for at least 2 years.

Guarantees are an added bonus in that they are in addition to your rights under the CRA and do not replace them. Your starting point might be to assert your legal rights and request a repair or replacement but I would expect some push back from the company, it might be easier to rely on the guarantee but you are also looking to put the onus on them to replace it at no cost.

So, if you can give us links to the T&Cs and the chair you purchased then we should be able to comment further.

[silverback12345]

Thanks for the reply. I have already requested a replacement or repair in my original email they said the don't have reps in the area to repair the chair and have only offered a replacement strut.
Here is the chair their T&Cs are at the bottom of the page.

[ostell]

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