10 Year Guarantee, But company has changed ownership?

[Vini]

Good evening all, I was recently notified of the community here, and signed up as I figured it would come in useful. Well sure enough, I have an immediate requirement.

On the 10th of Feb 2011, I purchased an Aquaflo shower from FirstBathrooms.co.uk. Approximately 18 months after installation, the thermostatic cartridge/valve failed - ie, the regulator that controls the temperature of the shower. One of the reasons for choosing FirstBathrooms was not only the price, but the fact the product came with a 10 Year Manufacturers Guarantee... Knowing this, I got in touch with FirstBathrooms and was told that the specific item I had received, had been revised meaning they could not simply send a replacement thermostatic cartridge. Instead they would need to send an entirely new unit. This was not ideal, as the design of this specific shower is meant to be sunk into the wall and tiled over, which is exactly how we have it...

Anyway, after about 6 weeks, we received the new revised model. Replacing the old shower unit meant removing tiles, which itself caused a whole heap of stress - on top of 6 weeks without a shower. Granted, that's not really the fault of FB and we sucked it up, smashed the tiles and replaced the unit. It has been fine since then.

Until now... We're starting to see the same symptoms as before, with the thermostat failing to hold steady temperatures, and often drifting between hot, lukewarm and freezing cold - which is not nice in the colder weather.

Knowing the product is still within 10 years, I reached out to FB two weeks ago... time passed without a reply, so I re-sent the message yesterday. Today I have received the following response;

Good Morning

Thank you for your email, unfortunately the item purchased was with an old company that use to own firstbathrooms.co.uk, we (plumb4less ltd) took over the website in July 2013. The item you have purchased is an aquaflo, the old company used a variety of different manufacturers and rebranded them as aquaflo. It is hard to decipher which company that they used. The only thing I can suggest is that you send a picture of the valve in and if you could take the front plate off and take a picture of that as well, I can maybe help you out. It sounds like the thermo cartridge has gone, I would say before you go any further with this while the front plate is off if you remove the cartridge, place it in a bowl of diluted vinegar this should help relieve some of the hard water lime scale that has built up inside the valve this may help.

In terms of the 10 year guarantee this is only for the non-working parts, there is only a 1 year guarantee on working, moving parts so this would be a chargeable item and as the guarantee is not with us it is with the now liquidised firstbathrooms.co.uk the guarantee is not with us. If you send over a picture of the valve I can maybe pass on your details and send them over to a couple of manufactures and see if it’s their valve. Hopefully it’s one of their valves and they might be able to help out in some way in terms of price but I cannot guarantee anything.

Kind regards

Aaron

I don't know enough about consumer law, infact I know nothing, which is why you're reading this now

Does what I've been told, fall within consumer law?
Do I have any rights?

Firstbathrooms.co.uk is listing the very same item that I bought... which also comes with a 10 year manufacturers guarantee... http://www.firstbathrooms.co.uk/aqua...r-p-14250.html

If what I've been told is correct, then I'm fine with that. It's not ideal, but I shall accept it. Given the time it took to resolve the problem last time, we had all but written off the shower unit, so the fact it's lasted 4 years, is better than nothing.

I just don't like to be fobbed off, which is what I feel is happening here...

So, your thoughts?

Appreciate your time,
James

[des8]

Re: 10 Year Guarantee, But company has changed ownership?

Hi and welcome.
I'm wondering what a company "liquidiser" looks like?


More seriously, if one company purchases the assets of another company which is in liquidation, they do not take on its liabilities.
So the new owners aren't fobbing you off, but IMO trying to be helpful by trying to trace the original manufacturers.

It might be worth checking to see if FB did actually go into liquidation.


Note 25/06/2013 liquidator appointed in voluntary winding up

[Vini]

Re: 10 Year Guarantee, But company has changed ownership?

Hi Des8, thanks for your reply. I'm just trying to work out if they went under... to be fair, it does look like the company has changed hands at some point. I can find records of a company in Manchester owning firstbathrooms.co.uk, but now, as per the email, plumb4less ltd, who are in Kent appear to run it...

Given they're selling the very same product still, they must have access to the manufacturer.