Know your rights

Burden of proof

The Sale of Goods Act (SGA) is the daddy of consumer protection law and tends to focus a retailer’s attention. It is not the consumer’s enforcer, however, for it sets out responsibilities as well as rights.

The SGA was amended in March 2003 and now gives buyers extra rights.With a clarity typical of the legal establishment, the new measures are called the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002, which we’ll shorten to the Regulations, and cover purchases made from the 31 March 2003. The Regulations state that goods must be of satisfactory quality, safe to use and fit for the purpose for which the seller knows you are buying them.

That last aspect is key for technology buyers because it means that consumers must be aware of the abilities and limitations of a device or application. If you bought, for example, aWindows Media Center PC and later found that it was not possible to connect it to an existing television because the graphics card did not have a Scart output, getting a refund or exchange would mean proving that the retailer knew the PC was intended for a composite display.

RAM is another example: if the memory bought is incompatible with a PC, you can’t expect a refund unless the shop said it would work in your PC. The best way to safeguard against this is to research what you need and communicate this clearly to the seller.

For expensive items, we recommend obtaining a specification sheet that describes components, so you have proof if the hard disk in a new PC turns out to have half the capacity you paid for. On the subject of proof, always keep receipts safe because other rights become difficult to enforce without a proof of purchase.

Judging fitness for purpose is clearer. Devices must match the description given to them, so a PC sold as suitable for creating DVDs must have a DVD writer. Items that simply won’t start up properly or have failing components, such as a DVD writer that won’t eject or fails to read discs, are simple enough. In this situation, you must inform the retailer within a reasonable amount of time and arrange for it to be returned.