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Vodafone repair are saying I damaged my phone and I did not

totallyttrs-com
2: Seeker
2: Seeker

Hi All

I have a samsung s7 that I got 3 months ago. After using the phone a few weeks I noticed that the volume buttons did not work, i can go into settings as change the volume and did that for a while. Busy December/Christmas came and went. Then I went on holiday in early Jan and my wife noticed me messing about with the volume and asked why I did that and told here the volume buttons did not work and that it would be fixed under warranty. When we got home I phoned vodafone and told them what was wrong, as I do not live anywhere near a store they sent a bag to return it in.

They phoned me today to say that there was damage around the volume button and they would not fix it under warranty and I would have to pay! I asked to speak to customer services to complain. I then got grilled on why I never sent the phone back earlier, I told them I had been busy and did not get around to it.

I told them that there was no damage to the phone when I sent it and they told me that as I did not take it into a store for inspection prior to being returned, they could not confirm this, I asked if the damage could have been done at their end as it was definetly not damaged when I sent it. I was told that because I cold not prove this they would believe that I sent it damaged....

Why did they not explain this to me when they sent me a bag to return it in? I would have gone to a store for prior inspection, if this would have been pointed ot to me. I have been made to feel very upset, I have been with vodafone for a very long time and it is wrong to be treated like this. They are sending the phone back to me so I can inspect it, but have been told they will not do anything else about it.

This is extremely annoying.

Any advice would be appreciated.

40 REPLIES 40

hrym

 

As I mentioned earlier though, doesn't that mean Vodafone are effectively waiving their obligations under the Consumer Rights Act if they tell a customer to go to the manufacturer themselves? Surely as per the regulations and Vodafone being the retailer they are responsible for the repair by whatever means, whether they have undertaken the repair or they then send it to the manufacturer. The burden is not with the customer.

BandOfBrothers
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

Yes thats correct the natural path is to go to the Retailer who supplied the phone. 

However through our experience the manufacturer knows their hardware and software better than a repair centre in my private opinion. 

We are not telling you to go down this path but are instead suggesting other viable alternative avenues as Vodafone 'The Retailer' have advised they cannot carry out work under the manufacturing warranty due to the afore mentioned issue. 

If you wish to not approach Samsung then you could raise a complaint and see how that pans out. 

Vodafone complaints.

Current Phone  >

Samsung Galaxy s²³ Ultra 512gb Phantom Black.

 

 

Thanks every one, will wait to see what the phones comes back like and let you all know.

hrym
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

As far as I'm aware, Vodafone won't tell you about the manufacturer option.  This is in part because technically, by refusing a warranty repair, they have declared the warranty invalid.   As non-employees, however, we can tell you this, but we always advise not mentioning what Vodafone have said.   There have been occasions when a manufacturer has said "oh well, in that case, the warranty's invalid".   To say nothing is not misrepresentation; you're simply allowing the manufacturer to draw their own conclusions.  Obviously, if asked, you'd have to be truthful, but that's a different matter.

Vodafone are not ducking their responsibilities because the warranty doesn't cover damage.  The manufacturer, however, can set/interpret the rules and be pragmatic.   If they regard a small scratch (say) as irrelevant, that's their prerogative.

Got the phone back yesterday, the damage they are saying has void the warranty is tiny, don't see how that would stop both volume buttons working and never seen that before I sent it away.

phone damage 2.jpg

There is a small scratch above the buttons and a small indent by one of the buttons.

Where do I take this if customer complaints are saying it was like that?

hrym
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

This is not unknown.   IMHO it's a very strict interpretation of the rules, but it happens.   Go to Samsung.   It's very unlikely they'll say the same thing, but finding out for sure will involve opening the phone.  If the two things did turn out to be related, Samsung wouldn't reimburse Vodafone for the cost, which is why they err on the side of caution.   As I said before, the manufacturer has more leeway and can be more pragmatic.   "Unlikely to be related" is usually good enough for them and they'll almost certainly do the work under warranty if there's clearly no connection.

Again this could be argued that Vodafone must prove that the unit was not already damaged when first received as you are within the 6 months stipulated by the EU Consumer Rights Act.

63johnw
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

wrote:

Again this could be argued that Vodafone must prove that the unit was not already damaged when first received as you are within the 6 months stipulated by the EU Consumer Rights Act.


Surely vodafone will argue they supplied a brand new phone and was not damaged when they sent it ?

 

And if it was damaged when new the buyer would have noticed ?

They could, but according to the EU law they must prove that the defect was not there upon purchase of the unit. Unless they have images of that specific device upon delivery this is almost impossible to argue against. No matter how good quality assurance procedures are in place any manufacturer will have some units with slight marks or defects.

 

The other route/explanation for this could be that it is normal wear and tear. While it would mean admitting that the minor defects were caused by the customer, normal wear and tear usage is expected on any device and so should not void the warranty, even if that has caused a larger issue. For example if using the headphone jack every day for 3 months causes the 3.5mm port to crack or become damaged and unusable, that is an inherant fault with the device caused by normal use and therefore would be covered by the warranty. So long as it is not out of the ordinary use the warranty remains valid. And if you have not been using the device beyond normal use to cause a defect/problem, and the retailer cannot prove otherwise, the repair should be covered under the warranty.

 

This is all typically hidden away in the T&Cs of the warranty about normal use, however it's often muddled in after all the items that cause the warranty to become void.

63johnw
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

But if it was damaged on receipt then surely the buyer would reject it?

 

As a member on the forum for several years now and having seen this issue many times all we are trying to do is get the quickest resolution for the OP, and from past experience that is by going direct to Samsung, if they want to argue with Vodafone they could be on quite a while trying to get anywhere, but at the end of the day that's their choice.