Would i be successful in small claims

[marsaday]

I bought a kitchen from diykitchens in 2008 and fitted it myself.

The sink doors were a little different in colour and we thought nothing of it.

2 yrs later i realise they have supplied the wrong doors.

To buy the new doors will cost £100 approx.

2 issues:

1) i have agreed to buy the new doors at cost price and pay the postage (£100)

2) at the time of fitting i had to hire from them a jig to make the cut outs for the hinges. So i have asked them to do this for me because i cannot hire the jig again and pay postage back and forth (£50 for this). So now they want to charge me £13 for doing this. total cost = £113

I am peed off anyway, and wondered if i could take them to the small claims for the full cost of these doors.

I understand you have a reasonable length of time to tell the retailer there is a problem, but we only found out about the problem this week. We knew there was a difference in the shade of colouring and thought this was normal. We know realise we have a totally different door (croft washed as opposed to the bede style).

Would i have a chance in the small claims?

[Amethyst]

Re: Would i be successful in small claims

I'd think it hinges (lol) on what would be classed as a reasonable period of time.

if you installed the doors straight away and have had them without noticing the error for two years then it would likely be deemed that you accepted them. If you had not installed them till recently and noticed on installation the error then there wouldnt be a problem I think as that would be classed as reasonable time.

The independent standards body for furniture and floor coverings (including kitchens and bathrooms) is Furniture Ombudsman - call 0845 653 2064 - can give them a try see what they think.

[marsaday]

Re: Would i be successful in small claims

thanks for reply.

i know the length of time is a problem, but i would be in the same position a week after fitting and noticing by their rules.

if i had used a kitchen fitter i am sure they would have spotted the error. however i bought the kitchen from DIY kitchens and so this company is geared up to help the average joe fit his own kitchen.

i will give them a call.
------------------------------- merged -------------------------------
tried them and they were know use - £250 for an independant report.

This question of a reasonable length of time only starts when we know there is a problem. i wonder if a judge would accept this argument. The item hasnt deteriorated in the time and the company would be denying responsibility once we had fitted the doors any way.

I can see someone with good reasoning skills could win this in the small claims.

[dansal]

Re: Would i be successful in small claims

If you do issue a claim against them, make sure you have the exact name. Many of these type of companies hide behind limited companies trading as.

My sister sued a well known kitchen company only to find a whole host of Ltd Co's behind it. One Director had over 40 dissolved kicthen and bathroom companies all with similar names and he is still a Director of around 20!!!

Have a look at the bottom of any paperowrk you have. They are required to put their real company name and registered number on it.

Good luck

[Amethyst]

Re: Would i be successful in small claims

Cool - thanks for trying that - will make a note

[WendyB]

Re: Would i be successful in small claims

I bought a kitchen from diykitchens in 2008 and fitted it myself.

The sink doors were a little different in colour and we thought nothing of it.

2 yrs later i realise they have supplied the wrong doors.

sorry, but I don't see why, if you thought nothing of it and were perfectly happy with the doors you'd got for 2 years, why you would now decide that you aren't happy with it and want to go through all the hassle of making a claim in small claims court etc?

[marsaday]

Re: Would i be successful in small claims

Because we thought the pattern was part of the kitchen look, but i now realise they are 2 different types of doors. once you know this fact they stand out pretty badly.

As soon as i realised this i want the correct doors. i just didnt realise because of the similarities. Maybe a kitchen fitter would have spotted the difference.

The bottom line is they supplied the incorrect doors.