Buying Sony TV’s

MikeHill

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Buying a Sony TV? Well let me tell you how it went for us. On the 09/11/19 we bought a Sony TV KD65XF900 5 costing £1,299. During the European World Cup in July 2021, would you believe it, the TV shut down during a crucial game. We turned it back on and it restarted. Then we noticed horizontal lines across the screen and a single black vertical line from top to bottom towards the R/H side. Over the following weeks, which turned into months, the TV would occasionally shut down and we had to restart it. The screen lines persisted and we tried various reboots, factory resets and software updates but had no success. The help desk has been helpful in telling us what we have already tried and when they realised the screen is no longer salvageable, they are now picking holes in the warranty and saying we did not call within the period of the warranty. We have a 2 year warranty that expired on the 09/11/21. Because we did not report it within this warranty as a defect, they are no longer interested. Now, what does that tell you? Their expensive 65” TV is not expected to last longer than 2 years? In our case no longer than 21 months. It’s not like we even watched it very often! This makes us realise the warranty period is decided by management once they realise how long their product is likely to last (2 years). I’m of an age when Sony products were a quality built product. We now have a large TV that appears to be of only scrap value after 21 months. Be warned, Sony does not want you knocking on their door returning their faulty products once they have your money. Sorry if this sounds bitter, but I would not buy another Sony product.
 
There’s some consumer act that states that a TV should last a reasonable time regardless of the guarantee, and it’s more than 2 years. Someone will chip in I’m sure with more info, hang tight and don’t bin it yet.
 
Where did you buy this TV? Several retailers (not Currys!) give and have been giving 5+ years warranty on any make of TV.
Why did you wait over 3 months to raise a warranty claim. Your contract said 2 years warranty so Sony are well within their rights to refuse your claim. I am sure your TV is an unfortunate exception to their usual quality. However I would try talking to the retailer (unless it was Currys!) and see if they can help. Also somewhere I think there is an EU rule governing expected lifetime of products. This may not apply as we are no longer in the EU but the TV was almost certainly manufactured in the EU.
I have recently bought a Sony TV and it came with a 5 year Sony warranty.
 
Thank you for your concerned replies. The retailer we purchased the Sony TV from was Curry’s. It’s the biggest retailer in the area and hard to ignore. We initially reported it to Curry’s, but they advised us to speak to Sony. After collecting my thoughts on the conversation with the Sony help desk, the person also tried to suggest it was a 1 year warranty, but after I corrected her, she apologised. A tactic they use regularly I’m sure.
Why did we wait so long before reporting it? Sorry, but I’m sure there is a bigger issue here, but if you must know the finer details, we mounted the TV on a wall with little access to the rear. The thought of the effort and inconvenience of moving furniture taking it down and having to manhandle it to facilitate a repair was not high on our priority. We first looked online for a remedy and there seemed to be many. We worked through these many complicated sequence of reboots, software updates, shut downs restarts and because it occasionally would stay on for an hour or so, we thought the problem had been fixed. We also live with our 93 your old mother who has some health issues often sitting in an adjacent room (with her small 16 year old TV) and given we both still work, watching this large luxurious TV is often reserved for family gatherings. These gatherings have been very thin on the ground of late and we have had cancelled hospital appointments for our mother occupying our free time, so we have been focused on her needs. This TV was a little bit of escapism when we had the free time.
We are not hiding from the facts fore or against, but this is an honest account of the events. Should a TV of this size and value only last for 21 months? If this was a one off account, don’t you think Sony would stand behind their product investigate and repair it? I would hope they would. But it either seems this is not a one off account (meaning there have been many others) or they really are that petty and mean spirited to deny us this repair. We are both maturing in age and this kind of treatment is just plainly unfair. I have tried to register with the Sony forum, but it seams my email address (which they have) won’t be accepted. Obviously they have instigated some kind of rejection of this email address. It’s shameful.
 
This sounds like a typical Currys fob off which is why I wouldn't even buy a fuse from those cowboys. YES a TV of that quality IS expected to last more than 2 years and should be covered by consumer rights act 2015 (satisfactory quality-You normally have up to 6 years) and I believe the retailer is responsible. Do not let this go.
Go back into currys and make a fuss to the manager (if possible in full view of other customers) and tell them they have sold you a product that was NOT of satisfactory quality (A reasonable length of time for a TV like yours should last at least 5-10 Years) quote the consumer rights law (of satisfactory quality) and threaten them with small claims court proceedings unless they repair your TV within a reasonable time, DO NOT let them fob you off telling you to deal with Sony, Curry's are the ones who sold you the TV and it is THEM that you have a contract with (you have a contract in law when you buy goods from them)
Sony TV's are normally very reliable as are ALL japanese Built TV's, you should not expect faults like that for at least 7-10 years, my last Panasonic TV was still working perfectly after 13 years and was used for 8 hours a day.
I am sure there will be others on here with more knowledge than myself regarding consumer law that will help you through this, so do NOT let Currys win, they are WRONG.
 
Ive found it can be better/less intimidating writing to the retailer. There are letter templates on the Citizens advice website that you can populate with the details of your case that you can fill in and print out, but in summary the product is not for for purpose, something of that value should last longer than 2 years.

Send the letter to Currys Head Office recorded delivery, the letter should include a timescale for Currys to respond to your complaint.

Its pretty common for the first letter to go ignored or to try and fob you off, but you will eventually get to the point where they take responsibility of the problem.

As mentioned, your complaint is with Currys as the retailer. Its a pain as retailers hold out for as long as they can trying to put you off, but you should get a result this way.

Link to Citizens advice and Consumer Rights Act here
 
This sounds like a typical Currys fob off which is why I wouldn't even buy a fuse from those cowboys. YES a TV of that quality IS expected to last more than 2 years and should be covered by consumer rights act 2015 (satisfactory quality-You normally have up to 6 years) and I believe the retailer is responsible. Do not let this go.
Go back into currys and make a fuss to the manager (if possible in full view of other customers) and tell them they have sold you a product that was NOT of satisfactory quality (A reasonable length of time for a TV like yours should last at least 5-10 Years) quote the consumer rights law (of satisfactory quality) and threaten them with small claims court proceedings unless they repair your TV within a reasonable time, DO NOT let them fob you off telling you to deal with Sony, Curry's are the ones who sold you the TV and it is THEM that you have a contract with (you have a contract in law when you buy goods from them)
Sony TV's are normally very reliable as are ALL japanese Built TV's, you should not expect faults like that for at least 7-10 years, my last Panasonic TV was still working perfectly after 13 years and was used for 8 hours a day.
I am sure there will be others on here with more knowledge than myself regarding consumer law that will help you through this, so do NOT let Currys win, they are WRONG.
Thank you Kapkirk. You have been supportive and inspirational and you read the relationship between myself and Curry’s perfectly. We approached Curry’s this morning armed with the mindset you provided and the terminology of the consumer’s position in this contract. The manager at the store was nice and approachable but played his part as we expected and tried various tactics to hinder the process of a repair. But we were prepared with counter arguments. At the final stage to them having to ring their head office for us to log our complaint, they happen to discover our TV had a 5 year guarantee and it can now be repaired. It was a small but important victory. I’m still going to shop in Curry’s because they have the volume and range of products not to mention the number of assistants on hand to help. I’m more disappointed with Sony as I still feel they have an unforgiving approach to support their product even after stating our position respectfully.
 
Ive found it can be better/less intimidating writing to the retailer. There are letter templates on the Citizens advice website that you can populate with the details of your case that you can fill in and print out, but in summary the product is not for for purpose, something of that value should last longer than 2 years.

Send the letter to Currys Head Office recorded delivery, the letter should include a timescale for Currys to respond to your complaint.

Its pretty common for the first letter to go ignored or to try and fob you off, but you will eventually get to the point where they take responsibility of the problem.

As mentioned, your complaint is with Currys as the retailer. Its a pain as retailers hold out for as long as they can trying to put you off, but you should get a result this way.

Link to Citizens advice and Consumer Rights Act here
Thank you rorton. Your explanation of the more formal process was insightful and knowing what to expect from their lack of response shows experience which we don’t have, but you gave us confidence that with perseverance we would prevail. This was going to be our secondary approach to the expected resistance should the primary approach fail. Primary being a respectful but assertive statement of our case on a busy Saturday morning, and with help from this forum, has worked in our favour. We are delighted to inform all those that helped that the TV is now back with Curry’s and being repaired. We are both very grateful for your time and knowledge. 😁😁
 
Curry’s are well known for being terrible on customer service, warranty and everything in general really: people do buy from them but of course if there is an issue, it will be a battle. People like John Lewis and Richer Sounds are by far better and 5/6 year warranty too: well worth it.

In this context Sony aren’t on the hook for anything; you bought it from Curry’s and that is who your contract is with. Curry’s should always have been your go to focus to get it sorted out.
 
Curry’s are well known for being terrible on customer service, warranty and everything in general really: people do buy from them but of course if there is an issue, it will be a battle. People like John Lewis and Richer Sounds are by far better and 5/6 year warranty too: well worth it.

In this context Sony aren’t on the hook for anything; you bought it from Curry’s and that is who your contract is with. Curry’s should always have been your go to focus to get it sorted out.
Thank you Pastrybloke19. I’m taking everything onboard and will bear your comments in mind when I’m making my next purchase. Life seems to be full of obstacles and having to jump through hoops when things go wrong. The problem companies grab the headlines and the better behaved companies drop below the radar. I totally forgot about John Lewis. My good lady has just emphasised her good experiences with Richer Sounds back in her student days. Could this weekend get any better! 👏👏👏👏👍👍👍👍
 
Update….
Curry’s cannot repair so they are offering a substitute. We have been in store to view model and was told by Sony rep that it is an old model and he was surprised that they suggested that one. He said that we could upgrade which we were willing to do, but the help desk said no, we have to accept the one they are offering. I realise we can’t have refundand but was willing to pay extra £500 for a much better model. After a couple of hours of them quoting all sorts of reasons why this was not possible, they said we could have a right-off voucher but we would not know how much that would be unless we agree. This sounds absurd. They were saying the sum could be as low as £600. We bought a £1300 tv 21 months later it started to give problems and failed. The replacement is end of line and they say it has a better processor. They also said they don’t have it in store but Southend has one left. We refused to go to Southend so they have had it delivered to their store. We agreed that we would not agree to anything until we see it. We are not unreasonable people and if this sounds correct we will accept the TV.
 
What model are they offering you?
We should be able to let you know if it's a fair swap and if not what features it's missing over your old TV.

Currys in unsurprisingly crap service shocker
 
It's actually quite a bit better than your old TV, so it's a more than fair replacement.
 
It's not only probably the best 2020/21 LED LCD but may come with a Sony 5 year warranty (by registration on the Sony Website).
 
It's not only probably the best 2020/21 LED LCD but may come with a Sony 5 year warranty (by registration on the Sony Website).
Thank you boostrail.
This is the update…..
We picked up the TV. It came with no box, no manuals, stand detached in separate plastic bag and no screws. So we had the tv, remote and stand. It still had the polythene around the edge, presumably from new, and a large loose plastic sleeve enveloping the tv. No supporting paperwork. We insisted that the replacement tv model number be recorded on the original invoice as there was no mention of it. They reluctantly put a handwritten model number on the invoice.
We took it home to mount and needed spacers and longer screws to fix the wall bracket to the rear of the tv which we don’t have. So it is now sitting on the sofa for the next few days as we are visiting relatives over the weekend.
My wife was sent a link from Currys as follows….

We'd love to hear about your recent Currys repair experience. Texts are charged at standard network rate. Ignore to opt out. On a scale of 0-10, with 10 being extremely likely, how likely are you to recommend us to family/friends? Please reply with a number 0-10.

Halfway through the discouraging results something went wrong and she was kicked out.

We have yet to experience the replacement tv.

If Currys was a hotel, Faulty Towers comes to mind.
 
Sounds like an ex display or someone else's return - hope not!
Get the numbers off the back of the TV and go on to the Sony Website and try to register it for their extended warranty and see what happens.
 
It does sound like an ex-display model.
if it was me I would only accept the replacement in a factory sealed box.
 

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