New Fridge - Slight Damage - What to do?

nheather

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Hi,

Took delivery of a new american style fridge today to replace the one that had died.

It was a real bitch to get in the house Took about an hour and they had to remove the doors of the new one and the one they were taking away. The delivery guys worked really hard. - so much so, I gave them £20 tip.

Once installed they said that I had to leave it alone for 6 hours before powering on.

So I did as they said, leaving it alone, and when the time came I satrted to remove the interior packing tape and the advertising labels from the doors.

This is where I encountered the problem. When I lifted the '10 year warranty on digital compressor' sticker I found I nasty scratch underneath.

The finish on the fridge is called Manhatten Silver which is a gunmetal paint on the metal doors - looks really nice.

The damage is a scuff of paint, revealing the bare metal underneath.


So here's the rub. They asked me to check it as soon as they got it off the lorry. I went round it carefully looking for dents or scratches and confirmed there weren't any.

When it came to acceptance, again I looked over it, checking the corners but it all seemed fine so I signed their paperwork.

So it was only after I started removing the labels from the door later on that I noticed the damage. In fact on closer inspection the label in question had a slightly damaged corner so had been peeled off before.

I'm now thinking that the prime scenario is that the installation guys scuffed the corner of the door and then repositioned the label so it could not be seen.

Yes I should have checked under the labels but it didn't occur to me.

So what should I do? Either of these are acceptable

(i) Reject/full replacement - not sure where I stand with DSRs with large appliances
(ii) Replacment door.
(iii) Local respray\touch up with the correct colour

with (ii) being my preferred option.


(i) would be a pain, because we have been without a decent fridge for a couple of weeks now and also getting these things in and out of the house is a nightmare.

Have eMailed the retailler but their Customer Service department was closed and I don't think they open till Monday.

Cheers,

Nigel
 
You will be fine getting it sorted, but not sure what option they will provide.

I presume the easiest for the seller would be a swap out, i.e. take it back and replace it.
 
Not sure where we stand on Distance Selling Regulations as we have started to use it - pretty desperate to get some cool food and drink after two weeks.

My wife just thinks of it as an early bash and knock that it is likely to get in it's life time, but whilst I agree and admire that calmness, all I can see is a nasty scuff on my brand new £1k purchase.

Cheers,

Nigel
 
If you're happy to keep it could you touch it up with a metallic silver scratch stick for a car?
 
Miss Chief said:
If you're happy to keep it could you touch it up with a metallic silver scratch stick for a car?

It will stand out like a sore thumb ....
 
It will stand out like a sore thumb ....

Exactly - the chances of finding the exact gunmetal grey combined with amateur skills would be a terrible result.

If Samsung have a professional paint repair service then I would not be adverse to that, but having a go myself is a no-no.

Cheers,

Nigel
 
Since you have switched it on, you cannot return it. I had similar problem on new fridge recently and as I had switched it on, they could only offer me some money off.
 
If you bought it online youve got 7 days under distance selling, regardless of using it. HOWEVER if they wont repair/replace due to not accepting it was damaged on delivey youll be on sticky grounds returning a damaged product which they may charge you for
 
Not sure where we stand on Distance Selling Regulations as we have started to use it - pretty desperate to get some cool food and drink after two weeks.

My wife just thinks of it as an early bash and knock that it is likely to get in it's life time, but whilst I agree and admire that calmness, all I can see is a nasty scuff on my brand new £1k purchase.

Cheers,

Nigel

Sorry but think your wife might be right :)
 
If you bought it online youve got 7 days under distance selling, regardless of using it. HOWEVER if they wont repair/replace due to not accepting it was damaged on delivey youll be on sticky grounds returning a damaged product which they may charge you for
It would be down to the retailer to prove that it was not there when sent out though
 
Sniper Ash6 said:
It would be down to the retailer to prove that it was not there when sent out though

Is that the case if you sign for the delivery accepting its in good condition, was it noted on the document that the OP had not fully tested/checked?? Unfortunaly i suspect not
 
I suspect you are right. What niggles me is that the damage was deliberately hidden - it is not something you would have missed otherwise.

With the label in place

44930-albums898-picture12098.jpg


Underneath the label

44930-albums898-picture12099.jpg


Cheers,

Nigel
 
Clearly you have been cheated.

Just tell it to them as you have told it to us and you should be OK for a replacement.
 
I think the retailer will be reasonable. Just looking at the eMail confirmation and it does say this

Check your new product for any damage & that all accessories are included where possible before the delivery team leave. You do however have 7 days to notify us if this is not possible at the time.

Cheers,

Nigel
 
Miss Chief said:
If you're happy to keep it could you touch it up with a metallic silver scratch stick for a car?

Spend a grand and touch it up? What are you talking about? Ridiculous
 
I take it the protective packaging was removed to get it in the house?

I'd have it replaced anyway - going by the email statement you will be fine. At the time you checked for damage where possible. Checking under stickers etc isnt reasonable I'd say.
 
Can I add a fourth option?

(iv) Just leave it be? It's a little cosmetic damage and doesn't affect the operation of the fridge...
 
Singh400 said:
Can I add a fourth option?

(iv) Just leave it be? It's a little cosmetic damage and doesn't affect the operation of the fridge...

On a £1000 item , I think you need to shake your head a bit , I have a few scratches on an American style fridge freezer that only cost me £100 never mind a grand and they annoy me .....
 
Last edited:
Just leave it haha...some people must really like throwing cash away, it's not as if it's a tiny nick it stands out like a sore thumb!
 
Can I add a fourth option?

(iv) Just leave it be? It's a little cosmetic damage and doesn't affect the operation of the fridge...

That of course is the default option if the retailer won't co-operate. It's not enough to get all stressed and legal about.

But I want to try something because it irks me that it is cosmetically scarred before I've even had chance to use it. If I'd done a few months down the line I'd have been a bit angry with myself but I would have just shrugged it off.

Cheers,

Nigel
 
I'd complain like - as the placement of the sticker was to cover the mark...don't take and c**p from them...
 
Stop worrying, tell the vendor (who was...?) you aren't happy. Make sure it's clean and dry and not further scuffed when they come to take it away.
 
I intend to call them on Monday morning when their customer services are open and see what they say.

Will be firm but at the end of the day, if they won't play ball I will have to live with it.

But I do have one weapon in my armory. I took out a 5 year extended warranty with them. If they don't co-operate I will cancel that and take that business elsewhere.

Not to name and shame because they may be perfectly fine about it, the retailer is Laskys who are part of the Comet group.

Cheers,

Nigel
 

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