Repair, replacement or refund for appliance

Q: A few months ago, I bought a washing machine which is still under guarantee. The washing machine had the same fault for three consecutive times and the supplier always chose to repair it. At the moment it is at the supplier for another repair.

Is it true that the supplier can only repair the product the first time it breaks down? Then if there is another fault it has to be repaired and after that, one is entitled to claim his money back?

Could you refer me to the law that specifies exactly what my rights are as a consumer?

A: The Consumer Affairs Act does not specify any order of remedy. What the law stipulates is that if a product is found to be defective, the trader is obliged to provide a remedy.

The first type of remedy that should be made available to the consumer is either repair or replacement. If the trader offers to repair the defective product the consumer can only refuse it if it is not practical or casues him/her inconvenience.

In your particular case, you have sufficient grounds to refuse repair because this remedy has already been tried more than once and proved unsuccessful.

Therefore, you can request the trader to replace the defective washing machine.

Part or full refund can only be claimed by the consumer when neither repair nor replacement are possible, that is, the item cannot be repaired and the trader cannot supply the replacement without causing significant inconvenience to the consumer.