Major problems with a product or service

Major problems with a product or a service

A product or a service has major problems when:

• either the product is unsafe or the service creates an unsafe situation
• it is substantially unfit for its specific purpose and cannot easily be fixed within a reasonable time
• it would stop someone from buying a product or acquiring a service if they’d known about the problem  
• it is significantly different from the sample or description.

Replacements and refunds for major problems

When you have major problems with a product, you have the right to ask for:

• a replacement, or
• a refund.

For major problems with services, you can:

• cancel the contract and get a refund. This may not be a full refund, as the consumer needs to pay a reasonable amount for any work already completed and as expected.
• keep the contract but pay a lower price that takes the problem into account.

Replaced products must be similar to the original product

Refunds should be the same amount you paid and be in the same form as your original payment.

When processing a replacement or refund, the business can consider how much time has passed since you bought the product, and also take into account the following:

• the type of product
• how a consumer is likely to use the product
• the length of time for which it is reasonable for the product to be used
• the amount of use it could reasonably be expected to tolerate before the failure becomes noticeable. 

Businesses are responsible for resolving problems with products they sell to consumers. They must not tell a consumer to go to the manufacturer for a remedy. 

However, for some consumer guarantees, consumers can choose to seek a remedy from the manufacturer, rather than the business they brought the product from. 

A manufacturer may offer to resolve the problem by providing a repair, refund or replacement, but the consumer cannot demand this from the manufacturer.