Faulty Samsung Battery - retailer won't help me

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Jase2985

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#1289760 22-Apr-2015 20:33

1eStar: I have already emailed the retailer twice and had the same nonchalant reply that I'm outside their warranty conditions, despite quoting some relevant text from the CGA. Short of threatening to go to a disputes tribunal, where the fee will be nearly comparible to the battery cost, I'm running out of ammunition. I guess I could post negative feedback on facebook/pricespy etc.
However the CGA allows me to approach the distributor, hence my request for a contact at Samsung.

you go to the commerce commission if you have issues.

disputes tribunal would be overkill for the price of the item

and you dont threaten, you send them a complaint. even if they end up resolving it, they need a reminder in what the CGA is about.

mattwnz

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#1289772 22-Apr-2015 21:00

johnr: The store of purchase should sort this out not Samsung, The store can bring it up Samsung

Under the cga the consumer can deal with either the retailer or manufacturer. Although legally the retailer should sort it out, and the consumer shouldn't need to take the steps of going to the manufacturer.

1eStar

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#1289778 22-Apr-2015 21:17

Thanks peoples. I've written another patient non-threatening email to the retailer, reminding them of their responsibilities, and suggested I'm hoping for a favorable response this time.
As I'm out of the country for a few more weeks I'll await a response from the retailer before I try the Samsung route.

gregmcc

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#1289781 22-Apr-2015 21:27

Jase2985:
1eStar: I have already emailed the retailer twice and had the same nonchalant reply that I'm outside their warranty conditions, despite quoting some relevant text from the CGA. Short of threatening to go to a disputes tribunal, where the fee will be nearly comparible to the battery cost, I'm running out of ammunition. I guess I could post negative feedback on facebook/pricespy etc.
However the CGA allows me to approach the distributor, hence my request for a contact at Samsung.

you go to the commerce commission if you have issues.

disputes tribunal would be overkill for the price of the item

and you dont threaten, you send them a complaint. even if they end up resolving it, they need a reminder in what the CGA is about.

Have a good read of the CGA, you can also claim additional costs that have arisen out of the product failure, this can be for example the cost of the claim for the disputes tribunal, the time you have had to take off work to deal with the problem etc. Be reasonable, don't be greedy. Maybe a letter to the retailer detailing the problem, and stating what it will take to sort out the problem (refund of purchase price or replacement) and advise them that you will take it further with the disputes tribunal when they may have to end up paying these additional costs associated with this problem. Copy and paste the relevant sections of the CGA in to the letter and CC a copy to Samsung, that way the retailer not only gets pressure from you they also get pressure from their supplier to do the right thing.

- stick to facts
- keep it nice
- quote relevant legislation
- follow through, if the retailer won't budge then go ahead with your disputes tribunal claim, if your not prepared to follow thru then you might as well give up now and walk away

and when it's all over come back here and tell us how it went

andrew027

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#1289985 23-Apr-2015 09:45

My 2¢: The retailer is refusing to acknowledge their obligations under the CGA and deserves to be brought to account, which would be the right thing to do. What you have to decide is how much time and money you want to spend for an item that doesn't have much capital value.

You could go to the Commerce Commission or Disputes Tribunal.

You could go directly to the manufacturer. I have had dealings with Samsung over two major appliances recently and based on my experiences I would say they are excellent to deal with. For example, I had a washing machine that was several years out of manufacturer's warranty that just stopped working "mid-load". They replaced all the electronics and the motor and it didn't cost me a cent. If you go this route, I just hope you don't find out later that it's not a genuine Samsung battery.

You could advise Gadgets Online that you'll post your story on social media if the situation is not resolved - they're on Facebook and Twitter. If the battery only cost you $48, it probably cost them less than $25, so they only need to lose one or two sales from your negative comments to be at a loss.

You could contact Fair Go - it's not a big dollar value, but they love stories about retailers shirking their responsibilities. Or just turn up with the relevant information from the GCA in your hand, and a friend holding a big video camera, and say he's from Fair Go...

1eStar

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#1290058 23-Apr-2015 11:38

Todays update. Good news. My third email I composed last night has a favorable response.

_________________

Hi *MY NAME*

I understand the CGA act and I agree with you , the most common reason behind batteries getting swollen is because of heating. It can occur mostly when you leave your phone on charging more than it is required , if you don’t believe me you can search on internet about it. But i have escalated the issue with our buyer and he authorised replacing the battery, so Just bring the old battery in or send it to us with your receipt and we can replace it for you.

Thanks and Best Regards

*HIS NAME*

Gadgets Online NZ Ltd

_______________________

Special thanks to xpd for quoting the dispute resolution path, I used that as the bulk of my third email.

Now I'm out of the country a few weeks yet so will be interesting to see if I can find my receipt when I get home.

New World

Shop on-line at New World now for your groceries (affiliate link).

richms

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#1290105 23-Apr-2015 12:31

Its probably a fake battery and they are now worried that you will go to samsung with it. They take a dim view of people selling fakes for obvious reasons.

In shenzhen there is an entire floor full of people "recycling" old batteries with new genuine looking stickers and packing them up in genuine looking packaging.

Richard rich.ms

1eStar

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#1290128 23-Apr-2015 13:01

richms: Its probably a fake battery and they are now worried that you will go to samsung with it. They take a dim view of people selling fakes for obvious reasons.

In shenzhen there is an entire floor full of people "recycling" old batteries with new genuine looking stickers and packing them up in genuine looking packaging.

I have no reason to believe it is a fake. The battery and flip cover I bought from the same store 2years previous are still good and have every appearance/characteristic of being genuine. I did mention in my final email that if it was a clone I'd then need to invoke the Fair Trading Act.

Salami

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#1293242 29-Apr-2015 07:27

If a battery bulges upon use then its definitely a fake battery.

scuwp

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#1293243 29-Apr-2015 07:40

Salami: If a battery bulges upon use then its definitely a fake battery.

I would be interested in what evidence you can provide to support this?

There have been plenty of documented battery failures from OEM battery products in all manner of electronic devices. The Samsung S3 had a problem there for a while IIRC.

Lazy is such an ugly word, I prefer to call it selective participation

1eStar

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#1312391 27-May-2015 01:12

Just to follow this up. I rolled into the store today to claim my warranty replacement battery. The first assistant stated that there was no warranty etc blah so I produced my email that stated I'd get a replacement and asked for the person named on the email. As the first assistant raved on about the reasons why there shouldn't be warranty, the second guy calmly, but slightly sheepishly, proceeded to process the claim and replace the battery. I hope there was no punch up after I left, but I was sure glad I'd done my negotiations via email prior to fronting at the shop. I hope the next battery performs OK...

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