Mis-Sold Downlights and Rights

Witterings

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I recently bought some new led downlights but didn't know anything about them so e-mailed the people the originals came from asked what a suitable replacement would be.

They replied with a suggested so I went and picked them up and fitted 2 of them and crushed the box's.

That evening I put the lights on and the difference in colour was glaring so I started doing some research. I found the old lighst were Neutral White at 4000 Kelvin and the ones they'd suggested (all in writing via e-mail) were 3000 kelvin .... despite they do and hold in stock the same model in 4000 kelvin.

I rang the shop and was told there was nothing they could do to help, when I starting questioning it the manager told me I should have checked them before fitting them (maybe they should have checked before suggesting these a suitable replacement?) followed with "I'm not in the mood for a call like this at the moment" and slammed the phone down on me.

If anyone knows if I have any recourse under consumer rights I'd be interested to hear what they are but also just generally what people's thoughts are on it / whether they should rectify a situation caused by me following their advice?
 
I can't quite understand what you're saying.

Why did you need replacements if they were new lights?
If you didn't know anything about these new lights that you bought then what information did you put in the email? Also, what is meant by "suitable replacement"? If you wanted replacements for new lights then that sounds like you weren't satisfied with them in some way so the wording in your email is important.

You obviously didn't do this but one thing I learnt a long time ago is to keep the packaging for a reasonable amount of time, just in case there's a problem and you need to return the item.
 
I can't quite understand what you're saying.

Why did you need replacements if they were new lights?
If you didn't know anything about these new lights that you bought then what information did you put in the email? Also, what is meant by "suitable replacement"? If you wanted replacements for new lights then that sounds like you weren't satisfied with them in some way so the wording in your email is important.

You obviously didn't do this but one thing I learnt a long time ago is to keep the packaging for a reasonable amount of time, just in case there's a problem and you need to return the item.
I can't quite understand what you're saying.

Why did you need replacements if they were new lights?
If you didn't know anything about these new lights that you bought then what information did you put in the email? Also, what is meant by "suitable replacement"? If you wanted replacements for new lights then that sounds like you weren't satisfied with them in some way so the wording in your email is important.

You obviously didn't do this but one thing I learnt a long time ago is to keep the packaging for a reasonable amount of time, just in case there's a problem and you need to return the item.

My garage is full of empty boxes from electronics dating back 25 years. Definitely keep your boxes but maybe consider throwing them away after two years
 
Just to check everyone's on the same page with regards to terminology, when you say 'new lights', do you mean complete new light fittings or just new bulbs ?
 
crepello re: terminology
Bulbs are things that grow in the garden - lamps are what go in electrical fittings and light up.
 
crepello re: terminology
Bulbs are things that grow in the garden - lamps are what go in electrical fittings and light up.
bulb

Originally derived from Greek for plant bulb; now can mean any similarly shaped object, with optional suitable modifier. If the modifier is omitted, context gives the meaning.
  • The kitchen bulb has blown;
  • The bulbs in the garden are coming up.
 
I recently bought some new led downlights but didn't know anything about them so e-mailed the people the originals came from asked what a suitable replacement would be.

They replied with a suggested so I went and picked them up and fitted 2 of them and crushed the box's.

That evening I put the lights on and the difference in colour was glaring so I started doing some research. I found the old lighst were Neutral White at 4000 Kelvin and the ones they'd suggested (all in writing via e-mail) were 3000 kelvin .... despite they do and hold in stock the same model in 4000 kelvin.

I rang the shop and was told there was nothing they could do to help, when I starting questioning it the manager told me I should have checked them before fitting them (maybe they should have checked before suggesting these a suitable replacement?) followed with "I'm not in the mood for a call like this at the moment" and slammed the phone down on me.

If anyone knows if I have any recourse under consumer rights I'd be interested to hear what they are but also just generally what people's thoughts are on it / whether they should rectify a situation caused by me following their advice?

So you told them you wanted 4000 Kelvin bulbs but they sold you 3000 Kelvin bulbs, isn't that just how bright they are? That can be personal preference.
 
Kelvin is the colour temperature, 3000k is generally classed as warm white and 4000k is cool white, although some manufacturers call that neutral white.

I expect pretty much every electrician has been through the same thing at college, they are lamps, bulbs grow in the garden. Hence the bit you put the lamp in being called a lampholder. Although in this case I'm assuming they are the integrated led downlights, not the replaceable GU10 type...

To the OP, did you give the shop the exact details of your current lights?
 
I can't quite understand what you're saying.

Why did you need replacements if they were new lights?
If you didn't know anything about these new lights that you bought then what information did you put in the email? Also, what is meant by "suitable replacement"? If you wanted replacements for new lights then that sounds like you weren't satisfied with them in some way so the wording in your email is important.

You obviously didn't do this but one thing I learnt a long time ago is to keep the packaging for a reasonable amount of time, just in case there's a problem and you need to return the item.

To reply to this and give more clarity as re-reading my post after with your query .... apologies it wasn't very clear and also hopefully answer some of the other queries as well.

I was replacing some 10 year old Led Dowlights in the kitchen that have a life expectancy of about 10 years (so no complaint there) and were originally bought from the same company but that model has subsequently been discontinued.

As I know very little about lighting for a house and what's safe to put in a recessed area / fire rated accordingly I e-mailed them a picture of what I originally bought so they could see which make and model and asked for the best replacement.

The ones they suggested are a totally different colour which may be suitable if you had a "mood room" and chose to put them in there, but they don't quite do the job in the room they're in.
They also look awful mixed with the other 15 that are still in there which are very obviously brighter / a very different colour.

Granted I should have kept the boxes a bit longer, I've a loft full of TV, Hoover, Garden Tool and HiFi boxes that are years old as I normally hang onto them, I don't know what possessed me on this occasion to dispose of them quite so quickly.

In answer to The Dark Horse, I didn't tell them what I wanted I asked them what would match the old ones.
 
So you told them you wanted 4000 Kelvin bulbs but they sold you 3000 Kelvin bulbs, isn't that just how bright they are? That can be personal preference.
Its the colour. Brightness is measured in lumens (lm).
 
If something is supplied to you which isn’t ‘as described’ you are entitled to reject it, so your case would all come down to the conversation you had with the seller.

If he didn’t accept he’d mis-sold you them, it’d be a small claims job. Once there, if he turns up, you’d need have to have a good recollection of the conversation you had, but it’d be your word against his.
 
In answer to The Dark Horse, I didn't tell them what I wanted I asked them what would match the old ones.

So they do fit and work just a different colour to what you had before. I'm not sure where that would leave you unless you specified what you wanted and they supplied something else. Otherwise you asked their opinion for a bulb and they gave you a bulb that would work. Can they not just replace them for the one you want?
 
If you knew they were 4000k and wanted the same warmth, why did you need to ask for advice? Surely you would just buy 4000k. There’s a reason they’re rated so you know the exact colour you’re getting. .
 
To reply to this and give more clarity as re-reading my post after with your query .... apologies it wasn't very clear and also hopefully answer some of the other queries as well.

I was replacing some 10 year old Led Dowlights in the kitchen that have a life expectancy of about 10 years (so no complaint there) and were originally bought from the same company but that model has subsequently been discontinued.

As I know very little about lighting for a house and what's safe to put in a recessed area / fire rated accordingly I e-mailed them a picture of what I originally bought so they could see which make and model and asked for the best replacement.

The ones they suggested are a totally different colour which may be suitable if you had a "mood room" and chose to put them in there, but they don't quite do the job in the room they're in.
They also look awful mixed with the other 15 that are still in there which are very obviously brighter / a very different colour.

Granted I should have kept the boxes a bit longer, I've a loft full of TV, Hoover, Garden Tool and HiFi boxes that are years old as I normally hang onto them, I don't know what possessed me on this occasion to dispose of them quite so quickly.

In answer to The Dark Horse, I didn't tell them what I wanted I asked them what would match the old ones.
If you emailed them a picture of what you originally bought but it just had the make and model on them then how are they supposed to know what kelvin level would be suitable for you? I'm assuming that's the case because if the kelvin level was shown in the picture you sent then surely they would have suggested some downlights which matched that value.

You've since done some research and found that the old lights were "Neutral White at 4000 Kelvin" and I don't want to sound like a smartarse but perhaps you should have done that research before your purchase.
 
bulb

Originally derived from Greek for plant bulb; now can mean any similarly shaped object, with optional suitable modifier. If the modifier is omitted, context gives the meaning.
  • The kitchen bulb has blown;
  • The bulbs in the garden are coming up.
Late to the party, but this vid will clarify the correct terminology, when referring to some of the light emitting devices;

 
Late to the party, but this vid will clarify the correct terminology, when referring to some of the light emitting devices;



That's funny :) .... It's also weird showing age to a degree they always used to be called bulbs, or to be more precise "light bulbs".

The follow on to all this and the part I didn't mention initially, I rang the shop and said is there anything you can do to help me out here, the guy got a complete strop, was downright F&&$$g rude, told me he wasn't in the frame of mind to deal with it as he was having a bad day and slammed the phone down on me. ... He had no idea what sort of day I was having when he did that.

If he hadn't been so rude at that stage, I would have happily accepted that maybe it was a joint error.
They could have taken the ones back I'd incorrectly been sold (and resold them as open box) and I would have happily paid cost price for the right ones.

BUT .. with his attitude ..... I rang back and asked to speak with the manager, to make a complaint. The person that answered said I had been speaking with the manager and it was hinm that out the phone down on me.
I asked for his name the head office phone number, found the HR person that would deal with it and e-mailed an official complaint.

The MD rang me a few days later and arranged for them to drop off replacments which I've now fitted and are what they should have suggested I buy in the 1st place.

All's well that ends well from my point of view but shame I had to deal with someone who recommended a bad match and someone who was so rude when I raised it as an issue .. they could of been a lot more co-operative.
 

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