Letters of the month: diseased bees, leaky taps and faulty thermostats
You’ve sent us your questions and shared your experiences with diseased bees, leaky taps, and more. Our expert advisers explain your rights.
Stitched up with handbag
I bought a handbag on sale for $27 from a shop and some stitching hidden in the middle of the bag came apart (was not ripped) on my first day of using it. The shop’s refusing to give me a refund or replacement with reasonable conditions. First, it said that because the bag was sold on sale, it’s not subject to the Consumer Guarantees Act (CGA) because the sale terms said no returns. But this is not a simple return, it is a faulty item. Second, the shop’s saying it can refund but will deduct $20 of admin fees, or it can replace the bag but I would need to foot the entire postage costs. Because I no longer live in the area this means I would have to pay postage to send the bag back as well as to receive the replacement. Can you please advise whether items sold on sale are exempt from CGA rules? And whether sellers can charge for admin on processing a refund for a faulty item?
- A MEMBER
From what you say, you have rights under the CGA. The act should apply even to goods on sale, unless an actual flaw is pointed out before purchase. There’s evidently a substantial fault and you’re entitled to have the bag replaced or repaired, or to a refund of what you paid for the bag. No admin fee should be charged and any postage fees you may have to pay should be reimbursed.
Our member received a refund from the retailer.
Diseased bees
I’m a hobby beekeeper and I’m after some advice on how to deal with a commercial supplier who sold me two bee NUCs (nucleus colonies). One was in terrible condition and the other was loaded with disease. The supplier has finally agreed to refund the purchase price but, because of the disease, I now have to destroy the hive gear that was used with the new hives I purchased as it is highly infectious. The trader’s refusing to refund the cost of my now unusable gear through consequential loss.
- JOSS MATTHEWS
You’re covered by the Consumer Guarantees Act and/or the Sale of Goods part of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 for the cost of the NUCs and any reasonably foreseeable costs incurred as a result of those faulty products, e.g. the equipment contaminated by the diseased NUC. If necessary, you could lodge a claim with the Disputes Tribunal, which would cost $59 as your claim is for less than $2,000. If a retailer’s selling contaminated products to other beekeepers, we’d suggest you also lodge this as a FYI with the Ministry for Primary Industries, given the importance of bees to the New Zealand economy.
The bee business owner agreed to replace the contaminated hardware and tools.
Lights out
We bought a Kabuki floor standing lamp 2 years ago. It has a special flat LED bulb which the retailer told us it could supply should it falter. However, we were told that replacement would be unlikely as it has a life of 50,000 hours. Our bulb has faltered! We rang the retailer for a replacement. Yes, it had one, but it would cost $610! I wasn’t told this at purchase. Does this seem reasonable? Can I ask the retailer to replace it for free as it hasn’t done anywhere near 50,000 hours as stated. What do you recommend we do?
- KRISTIN GUNN
If the issue with the bulb not working is a problem with the bulb or lamp, then you’re covered by the Consumer Guarantees Act, and the retailer should be supplying a new bulb free of charge. The bulb is not of acceptable quality if it has not lasted as long as it should have. You should go back to the retailer and point this out. If the bulb needing to be replaced is due to a power surge or similar caused by your house power supply, then you’re not covered by the Act.
Kristin was charged $488 for the new bulb. A 20% discount was given. She was not impressed!
Quote not honoured
A tradie provided me a verbal quote of $1,200 “all up including labour” to urgently replace a water pump. The work was completed satisfactorily that afternoon. I received the invoice a week later for $1,800. Can I challenge this?
- ELIZABETH FRANCIS
The first thing to do is to pay the $1,200 (which should include GST) and dispute the extra $600.You’d do so by emailing the company saying that you chose it because of its quote, so that is all you’ll pay. It may be that there was extra work – if so, you should have been told at the time. You should not have to pay more than you were quoted for the work done. If you and the tradie can’t come to an agreement, you could apply to the Disputes Tribunal for a decision, although with a verbal quote it might be harder to argue your case.
Elizabeth was given a discount.
We know your rights
Got a problem with a faulty product, received shoddy service or been misled by a retailer? Our expert advisers can provide clear, practical advice that you can trust.
Leaky tap
I purchased a new Foreno sink mixer for $201.40. It had a 10-year warranty. Less than a year later the mixer was leaking. I contacted the retailer, and it contacted the supplier. A replacement part was sent to my address, and I paid a plumber to install it. Less than a year later the mixer’s leaking again, very badly. The retailer has said it will refund the cost of the mixer if it’s returned. The problem is that the retailer’s told me I have to pay the call out fee for the plumber again! Can I claim any of the call out costs from the retailer?
- TOM LEONARD
You may find that the 10-year warranty is parts replacement only. If this is a poorly manufactured tap, then this is covered by the Consumer Guarantees Act. The retailer should reimburse you for last year’s removal and installation of a new tap, plus the removal of this tap and installation of a new tap. You should not be out of pocket due to the faulty tap.
Tom was offered a gift card for $100, which he accepted.
Faulty thermostat
We recently had repairs done to our electric water heater. An electrician installed a new thermostat, as the old one had failed. But only 2 months later the new thermostat also failed, requiring yet another thermostat to be installed, for which we are now being asked to pay $175.95 to cover. My question is should we be paying for the new thermostat and labour, or are we covered under the Consumer Guarantees Act since it failed so quickly?
- TONY BELL
You would not expect to be billed for the replacement (either for the parts or the labour) as the thermostat should obviously last a lot longer than 2 months – the Consumer Guarantees Act requires, among other things, that the goods must be durable. The only exception would be if there was perhaps a fault with the water heater that caused the failure, and that fault was for some reason not apparent to the repairer who installed the replacement. This is, of course, unlikely to be the case. We’d suggest you tell the electrician that you’re not prepared to pay for the replacement because the previous thermostat failed so quickly. If there’s a reason why they think it’s justified to charge you so soon after the last replacement, we’d like to hear it.
Tony was not charged for the replaced thermostat or it’s installation.
Watching the grass grow
I was wondering what length of time is realistic for having my Ryobi RM480e electric ride- on mower repaired? It was less than a year old when it broke down and has a 3-year warranty. The retailer’s had it for over 2 months and the only comment I get when I ask it what’s going on is “it’s ongoing”.
- A MEMBER
The mower should have been fixed by now. We normally recommend up to a month for repairs. Any problems the retailer has with the supplier are its issue, not yours. Assuming the mower is for your personal use, you’ve had it serviced according to the schedule, and the problem is not user error, then the Consumer Guarantees Act applies, and the retailer should have fixed this within a reasonable time. Two months is too long. You’re entitled to reject the ride-on and get a full refund of the money you originally paid for it.
A full refund was paid by Ryobi.
Postage – who pays?
I bought an item from an online auction site recently. The item delivered was not what was advertised and not fit for purpose. The New Zealand supplier has apologised and offered a “full refund” after I send the product back. Do I have to pay postage (i.e. not refundable) to return to the supplier? Am I entitled to a refund for the original postage I paid to have the product sent to me?
- A MEMBER
As the product was bought from a New Zealand retailer and it was not as described and not fit for purpose, the Consumer Guarantees Act applies. Under the Act, you get reimbursed the cost of the product and the initial delivery fee. Also, depending on how big the product is, the retailer should either send you a pre-paid courier bag or ticket to return the product, or reimburse you the cost of returning it if you pay.
The supplier paid for the return postage, as well as the original purchase and postage.
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