Shoppers with faulty goods are being routinely denied repairs or replacements because they are not told about their rights under a guarantee scheme.
EU law creates a minimum period of two years in which a faulty product can be returned, and in England and Wales the figure is six years.
But many High Street stores are denying customers these rights, either because the staff don't know the law or because they think they can get away with it.
Generally, retailers hide behind the offer of a standard one-year guarantee and refuse to do anything when this lapses. Consumer experts say this means they are failing to abide by the law.
Most shoppers are in the dark about their rights and often simply throw out a faulty product.
At one time, household products were manufactured to last, but the industry can now make more money by churning out 'junk products' with a short lifespan.
Chris Warner, consumer lawyer at Which?, said: 'While it is true that the EU consumer rules mean stores should repair or replace an item that breaks inside two years, the Sale of Goods Act affords consumers protection up to six years from the date of purchase.'
He said the existence of one-year manufacturers' guarantees can confuse the situation. This is because stores wrongly deny any liability when these lapse.
'I don't think it's too cynical to say that retailers have been happy to let consumers think they have only a year's guarantee,' he added.
Another aspect of this confusion is that stores are able to profit from selling extended guarantees covering household products.
In the past, some electrical chains have made more money on selling these insurance policies than on the goods they offer.
Typically, a retailer would charge £150 for a three-year warranty on a £350 washing machine, while the same cover direct from the manufacturer might come in at £100.
In 2005, it was estimated that consumers were paying as much as £200million a year over the odds for these expensive warranties.
Tesco replaced retired teacher, Peter Ward's £400 Technika television after it went wrong 18 months after he bought it from the chain's Batley branch because he quoted the EU law.
The Government's Business department, BERR, said it is planning measures to clarify the law.
'We will also be launching a campaign to raise awareness of consumer rights,' a spokesman said.
The problems have been highlighted by Peter Ward, a customer of Britain's biggest retailer, Tesco.
The retired teacher, who lives with his wife Gill in Liversedge, near Leeds, bought a £400 Technika television set from the chain's Batley-branch.
When it failed after 18 months, Tesco told him it did not stock the parts to fix the set.
Mr Ward, 59, said: 'I was bounced around between different departments. The whole thing appeared to be dedicated to confusion.'
However, he was aware of his rights under EU law and so he and his wife took the set back to the branch.
But the store's duty manager refused to accept any liability and he said that because the set was more than 12 months old, Tesco would not repair or replace it.
This scenario is played out on a daily basis in many retailers' stores up and down the country.
In this case the Wards refused to back down. 'Eventually, the manager went off to telephone someone at head office,' said Mr Ward.
'He returned admitting that the European law was correct, and as the Technika set was not repairable we were entitled to a new set.'
Retailers keep secret EU law that gives consumers a TWO-year guarantee on goods | Mail Online 
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