Recently I could not resist purchasing what I thought was a bargain electric iron. It proved not to be the most successful purchase ever. On its first use, the iron set fire to my work shirt and blew the electrics in my house. Being a sad solicitor, it made me think what my legal position would be under the new Consumer Rights Act 2015 which will come into force in October.

Breach of contract

The new consumer law, just as the current law, requires that the iron is of satisfactory quality. Clearly it is not, so the retailer is in breach of contract.

The right to reject

As the retailer is in breach of contract, I have a right to reject the iron within 30 days of purchase. This will entitle me to a full refund. As it happens I purchased the iron 100 miles or so from my home. To reject my iron, I am not actually required to return it to the retailer unless my agreement with the retailer requires me to do so. In-store retailers will therefore face an interesting challenge as to how to impose a contractual obligation on their customers to return defective goods.

As an alternative to rejecting the iron in the first 30 days, I can require the retailer to repair or replace.

Repair or replace

After 30 days my right simply to reject is lost. Instead, I can require the retailer to repair or replace the defective iron. The retailer gets only one go at these. If the retailer attempts a repair and fails then I have a right to a price reduction or an additional final right to reject. Which remedy I pursue will depend upon whether I wish to keep the iron, despite its pyromaniac tendencies, and get some money back or reject it completely and get all of my money back.

After 6 months

If I exercise this additional final right to reject more than 6 months after my initial purchase, the retailer can deduct from the full refund a sum to take account of the use I have had from my iron during the period since its purchase.

Additional Compensation

In addition to the remedies above, I can claim damages. In this case, I can claim the cost of the shirt the iron destroyed and the cost of repairs to the electrics in my house.

What next?

The new law is extremely helpful in that the consumer’s rights and remedies are clearly set out. For retailers, there are a number of implications. They will need to train their staff in customer facing roles about the new law and how to deal with complaints. They will need to consider changes to their terms and conditions as well as to the information that they provide in store.