My son bought a new TV

Discussion in 'Miscellaneous' started by Miss Chicken, Jul 20, 2013.

  1. Miss Chicken

    Miss Chicken Little three legged cat with attitude Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2001
    Location:
    Howrah, Hobart, Tasmania
    That was delivered yesterday.

    When he signed for it he didn't realise there was a small hole in the box

    Photo of box

    [​IMG]

    there is no noticeable damage to the TV. The screen looked undamaged. However when we turned it on this is what we saw

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    I phoned up the company is was bought from and they said that it was sent directly from the distributor and that she would notify them and e-mail me back. That was late yesterday (Friday) so I probably won't hear from her until next week.

    I want to be able to argue a case so that I can get a refund or a replacement.

    I think that this is down to bad packaging. There was styrofoam on each corner of the TV but only a very thin piece of plastic over the screen. It is possible that the box was punctured by a corner of another box and it wasn't hard enough to fracture the outside screen but damaged the internal screen. Does anyone know if this is possible.

    Also, if the company isn't helpful, can I take an "Item not as describe" action seeing it was paid for by Paypal?

    Can we be held responsible because we opened the box?
     
  2. Avon

    Avon Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    May 7, 2010
    Location:
    Avon
    i think you should get the money back. you sign for stuff to confirm you've recieved it, not to say you're happy with the contents without being able to know whats actually check inside.

    (just common sense reasoning on my part, so someone with actual knowledge of selling laws may tell you otherwise)
     
  3. FPAlpha

    FPAlpha Vice Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    Nov 7, 2004
    Location:
    Mannheim, Germany
    I work in logistics and i have to say you may have a bad case here because you signed off on the delivery.

    That declared you received the goods in good condition so the burden of proof is on your side to show it happened during transport. The picture of the unopened box with the hole might help in this case.

    Since you claimed this case immediately you at least didn't miss any deadline, that's good.

    In my experience companies usually don't make a big deal and replace items because they know that these things happen (you wouldn't believe how rough sometimes goods are handled in warehouses, even delicate things like electronics) and they want to avoid a bad rep (replacing it costs them a fraction of what you paid for it and they will most likely claim this to their distributor/forwarder and hand it over to the insurance company).

    Good luck.. the fact that the lady didn't immediately block your request is a good sign but don't get your hopes up yet.
     
  4. Miss Chicken

    Miss Chicken Little three legged cat with attitude Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2001
    Location:
    Howrah, Hobart, Tasmania
    Unfortunately my son signed for the delivery and opened the box before I took the picture.

    Can I use the fact that it was poorly package i.e. no real protetion for the screen. I think that Australia Post says that a package should be able to stand up to a box weighing 20kg dropped onto it.
     
  5. FPAlpha

    FPAlpha Vice Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    Nov 7, 2004
    Location:
    Mannheim, Germany
    I don't know about australian laws and regulations but it all comes down to him signing for the delivery.

    As i said most companies replace unusable items out of good will because in the end they stand to lose more with an unsatisfied customer (who'll likely talk to his friends, family and since about a few years ago to the whole world via online forums) and that may result in more damage than the few bucks they need to spend to replace the item.

    Just wait until they get back to you.
     
  6. Retu

    Retu Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2005
    Location:
    Finland
    In Finland the consumer protection law guarantees the right to return the goods to the seller and full compensation of the sale price (including delivery costs) to the buyer during a period of 14 days after the buyer has recieved the goods. No questions asked. I suggest you check your local legislation, if there are any similar consumer laws.
     
  7. MacLeod

    MacLeod Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2001
    Location:
    Great Britain
    Well in the UK, it would fall under the Distance Selling Regulations, the goods are quite clearly faulty and would have to be replaced. You are signing to say you've recieved your goods, not that they are in good condition. Just because the box has a small hole in it doesn't mean the goods won't work as described.

    But it all depends on the local regulations and laws.
     
  8. Retu

    Retu Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2005
    Location:
    Finland
    Related to the topic: I bought a TV table from the local furniture store. When I opened the package I noticed that one of the pieces was damaged. A 10 cm long piece was missing from the corner of one of the longer boards. No exterior damage in the package, but there was some damage in the styrofoam packing.

    The shop accepted the responsibility and has promised to find out replacement parts for the table. No hassle and no trouble. :)
     
  9. Shazam!

    Shazam! Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2006
    Hole in the box or not, the TV doesn't work so at the very least you're entitled to a replacement, surely.
     
  10. Miss Chicken

    Miss Chicken Little three legged cat with attitude Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2001
    Location:
    Howrah, Hobart, Tasmania
    I haven't heard back from the woman, nor the distributors, so I will contact the vendor again tomorrow.
     
  11. Mooch

    Mooch Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2001
    Location:
    Canada
    It's tough to know what to do in a situation like that, cause you don't want to refuse delivery if you don't know that it's damaged, but the delivery guy isn't going to want to wait around while you test it. I doubt most reputable vendors would have an issue replacing it, though.
     
  12. iguana_tonante

    iguana_tonante Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 15, 2006
    Location:
    Italy, EU
    Once I got an entire bookshelf replaced because one of the doors was faulty. I would have been happy with just a new door, but they insisted on replacing the whole thing. They were very nice and helpful.
     
  13. BillJ

    BillJ The King of Kings Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2001
    Location:
    America, Fuck Yeah!!!
    If they try to resist replacing the TV, scream as loud as you can to whoever will listen.

    By-the-by: is the set covered under the card your son bought it on by any chance?
     
  14. RJDiogenes

    RJDiogenes Idealistic Cynic and Canon Champion Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2003
    Location:
    RJDiogenes of Boston
    I'd be surprised if there was any problem replacing it, unless the company is really fly by night. Signing for a delivery just confirms receipt, it means nothing in terms of the condition of the contents.
     
  15. Miss Chicken

    Miss Chicken Little three legged cat with attitude Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2001
    Location:
    Howrah, Hobart, Tasmania
    I am currently trying to discuss it with them through their live chat but it doesn't seem to be all that live.
     
  16. Miss Chicken

    Miss Chicken Little three legged cat with attitude Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2001
    Location:
    Howrah, Hobart, Tasmania
    Over an hour has passed since I sent my first message via live chat and all I have received is an automated message saying that they have received my message.

    Still waiting. I just posted a message on their Facebook page asking how long will I have to wait for a Live Chat answer.

    Hahahaha - got a reply within 15 minutes after posting on Facebook. They say they are chasing the supplier to get a repacement for me.
     
    Last edited: Jul 24, 2013
  17. Yoda

    Yoda Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Jul 13, 2000
    Location:
    San Diego
    A couple of years back I had an issue with an Ebay package through the US Postal Service. The box was shredded and torn apart, 80 percent of the contents were missing, the rest heavily damaged.:

    [​IMG]

    I took it back to the Post Office and they advised that I reject delivery as I hadn't technically opened it. Of course little did I know that it ran contrary to the fine print on Ebay, that if you reject delivery you automatically lose any dispute. And since PayPal and Ebay are the same company, if you dispute with one, you waive the dispute process with the other. It wasn't clear if picking correctly in that case would have helped me.

    First thing I did was contact the seller to see if there was something we could work out, there wasn't, so I went through dispute process, which I lost. All the while I was dealing with USPS on a WTF where are the rest of the contents of my package kind of basis. It was a constant run-around, people transferring me to various people in various departments all over the country, telling flat-out lies and contradicting each other. Very frustrating.

    Anyway, once I exhausted all those options, despite the PayPal terms of service having some pretty harsh wording about doing chargebacks through your credit card company, I went ahead and filed a complaint with them, painstakingly detailing the entire ordeal. They credited my account the ~$400 I had lost immediately on a provisional basis, and about a month later I received confirmation that their disputes department had found in my favor.

    I kind of expected my PayPal account to be terminated, but it wasn't. I would have been less comfortable going the route I did if I had linked my bank account to my PayPal account, as I've read people claiming some shady business with unauthorized withdrawals.

    Bottom line, you're entitled to a refund or exchange on this one. It's not your fault, it's not your son's fault for not hawk-eyeing the random hole which may or may not have been entirely superficial. The delivery guy is more likely to have seen the hole. Did he bother to point it out? Did he suggest you reject the packaging? Did the guy who actually put the hole in the TV own up when he did it? No, he let that shit roll downhill on you.

    Definitely try to resolve it with the seller, figure out if the package was insured, etc... But don't let them waste all your time and effort. If they're not being reasonable take it to the PayPal dispute process. And failing that, if you paid with credit card through PayPal, file a complaint with your credit card company, and they'll probably have your back if you have decent documentation of what happened, who you tried to resolve it with, etc.
     
  18. Pingfah

    Pingfah Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2005
    Location:
    Pingfah
    ^ In my experience Paypal always favours the purchaser rather than the seller.
     
  19. Mooch

    Mooch Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2001
    Location:
    Canada
    Which is usually the correct thing to do. It's important for people to feel comfortable buying stuff through them.
     
  20. Starbreaker

    Starbreaker Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2001
    Location:
    Birmingham, AL
    I won a dispute with Paypal once. I ordered Skyrim and in rolled in a freaking DVD of a trailer of another game.