Know Your Rights – when buying tech and gadgets

Under the Sale of Goods Act, retailers have a legal obligation to protect consumers from misrepresentation, poor quality and fraud. The rules below apply to used items as well as new and are flexible enough to allow for used equipment being less reliable than new.
The product must match its description. The kit in the box must be the same in content and quality as described in an advertisement or sales pitch. You have a reasonable time after taking it home or delivery in order to check it. If it does not match the description you are entitled to return it and have a full refund. This is still the case even if you have chosen the product or examined it yourself before buying.

This rule also applies to private sales – the others do not. If you bid for something in an online auction or buy in any other way, you can return what you have bought if the private seller has misled you with the description.

The product has to be of a satisfactory quality. What is satisfactory depends on a number of issues. A computer or other item will be considered satisfactory if a reasonable buyer would accept them after taking into account the description and price.

The product has to be fit for purpose. For example, if you make it clear when buying that you want the product to be able to carry out specific functions, or connect to other hardware; then it must do so – if you have been told it will. If you discover straight away that the kit does not comply, you can reject it and return it to the retailer for a full refund.

Quite often, of course, faults don’t arise until after the kit has been used for a while. It’s obvious that it isn’t practical for the law to prescribe exactly how long a product should last or how well it should perform. It may have been designed for lightness rather than strength, or for speed rather than endurance.

The big question is always: how long should a product have lasted before that fault can be considered reasonable wear and tear? This is where the question of ‘what is reasonable?’ becomes vital. Unfortunately, there are no legal guidelines, so common sense must be applied. How long any product will last depends on a number of factors including build quality, how much it’s used, for what activities and the conditions in which it’s used and transported. When buying, try asking the retailer for an indication of how long the kit would last under normal use and conditions.