Buying Goods

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When you buy goods from a trader, such as a shop, garage, market stall etc you enter into a contract controlled by the Sale of Goods Act 1979 (as amended by the Sale and Supply of Goods Act 1994 and the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002).

What is a contract?

It is a legally binding agreement between 2 parties with the exchange of money or something of value for goods. Lots of contracts can be verbal and very few actually need to be in writing. Verbal contracts are binding but less easy to prove.

The law

The law gives you the following rights under this contract.
The goods should be:

Of satisfactory quality

This means of a standard that a reasonable person would consider to be satisfactory – generally free from fault or defect. They should also be of a reasonable appearance and finish; safe and durable.

Fit for purpose

This means as well as being fit for all common purposes for which they are generally sold, goods should be fit for any specific or particular purpose made known at the time of sale.

As described

This means goods should correspond with any description applied to them – this could be verbally, on a sign, or packaging, or an advert.

It is important to remember these rights exist automatically, between you and the trader. The trader should accept liability for any problems under the contract.

Don’t be fobbed off by a trader who tells you to take it up with the manufacturer.

Only when you buy goods directly from the manufacturer is your contract with them and the same rights as above will apply.

If you have faulty goods

The first thing to do is act quickly. Tell the trader about the problems, either by going back to the shop, telephone or writing. You should stop using the goods. The law says you should be given a ‘reasonable’ length of time to examine the goods and check they are satisfactory. What is a reasonable time depends on the individual circumstances but it might not be very long and can be as little as a week or so.

 

Your legal rights

You have 2 options to choose from. Both these options give you 6 years to start a legal claim under the Sale of Goods Act.

 

1. You can ‘reject’ the goods and get your money back if you have complained within a reasonable period of time from purchase. If you have acted quickly, and allow the trader to repair the item, you may still have the right to get your money back if the repair does not work.

If you tell the trader too late to get your money back you can still insist on compensation for ‘loss of value’ (normally the cost of repairing the product). In practice, the trader may offer to carry out the repair.

It is for you to prove the goods are defective with this option.

1. Since 31st March 2003 the law gives you another option for goods purchased after this date. You can request a repair or replacement. If the item cannot be repaired or replaced or if this is considered too costly, taking into account the type of fault, you have the right to some or all of your money back.

Within the first six months, it is for the trader to show the product was not faulty when purchased.

The goods become yours only when delivered and not before.

You can rely on public statements made by the seller or manufacturer that influence your purchase, e.g. information in adverts, leaflets or on the internet.

Some other problem areas

Free Warranties/Guarantees

There is no legal difference between a warranty or guarantee and many products are supplied with them. This is an additional promise if things should go wrong but does not replace your rights under the Sale of Goods Act.

To benefit from a warranty you may be expected to meet certain conditions. The retailer or manufacturer is also expected to supply you with certain information. Sometimes it can be easier to sort out a problem with a warranty and you are entitled to enforce these rights separately to the main contract.

Misrepresentation

If you have been told something factual about goods that made you decide to buy them, but this later turns out to be untrue, they may have been misrepresented to you. In most cases you can end the contract and have your money back if you act quickly. However, this is a complex area of law.
If in doubt get further advice.

Pricing

The law does not control the amount a trader can charge for goods. The price displayed should be accurate but you cannot insist that the trader sells goods at the marked price.

Problems with a gift

If you have received a gift that develops a fault generally it is the person who bought the gift who can sort things out. If you are giving someone a gift you can get round this problem by letting the trader know who the gift is for when you buy it. You can do this by making a note on a receipt for instance. The trader can exclude this particular right though.

Second-hand and sale goods

Your rights are the same when you buy goods in a sale or second-hand although the law says you must take into account the age of the goods and the price paid. For example it will not be reasonable to expect a 10 year old, high mileage car to be completely free from fault, or to perform in the same way as a brand new vehicle.
Also, if you buy goods described as seconds in a sale, you cannot expect them to be perfect. If you have bought a very cheap item, then you cannot reasonably expect it to perform in the same way as a more expensive version or to last as long.

Paying By Credit Card

If the goods cost more than £100 and less than £30,000 and you paid part or all of the purchase price using your credit card, then you will have additional rights against the credit card company under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This states that the credit card company will have equal liability with the trader for any breach of contract.
So if there is a dispute with a trader you should contact the credit card company as well.

Private sales

When you buy goods from a private individual, you don’t have the same legal rights as buying from a trader. The law says ‘let the buyer beware’. You are entitled to expect goods to be ‘as described’ but none of the other rights apply.

 

When you are not entitled to anything

 

• If you were told of any faults before you bought the goods.
• If the fault was obvious and it would have been reasonable to have noticed it on examination before buying.
• If you have caused the damage yourself.
• If you made a mistake eg changed your mind about the colour or bought the wrong size.
• Seen the goods cheaper elsewhere.
• Bought the goods more than 6 years ago.

 

This advice is designed to provide basic guidance to Consumers. It is not a complete or authoritative statement of the law.
We will be pleased to offer this information in larger print or translated into any language on request.

C/con/061/002/ Feb 05