It has become standard trading practice to provide consumers with a free commercial guarantee when purchasing certain types of products, such as electronic products.
What consumers do not always realise is that such guarantees are given out voluntarily by the seller. It is a myth that a commercial guarantee cannot be given for less than two years because the law provides a two-year protection on purchased products.
There is, in reality, no legal obligation for shops or traders to provide a commercial guarantee when they sell certain types of products.
These guarantees are usually given out to promote sales and to enhance consumer confidence in the product. In fact, they vary significantly in their terms and conditions. What the commercial guarantee covers, for how long and what remedy it provides depends entirely on who is issuing it.
Whenever consumers purchase a product, the law protects the purchase by granting certain rights. Should the product be defective or not fit for the purpose for which it was bought, the seller must provide a remedy in the form of free repair or replacement.
When these two remedies are either not possible or too inconvenient for the consumer, then part or full refund of the money paid may be opted for. This is the baseline, and anything a guarantee offers is additional to these rights. This is why most guarantees carry the disclaimer, 'This does not affect your statutory rights'. Hence, should a commercial guarantee be given for less than two years, even after the guarantee period expires, legal rights will still apply.
Even though a commercial guarantee is given out voluntarily, once given the Consumer Affairs Act stipulates that it should be made available in writing and the terms of the guarantee should be set out in plain language that can be easily understood. Moreover, the language used should be either Maltese or English and should also give details of how consumers can make a claim under the guarantee.
The law also specifies that certain information must be included in the terms and conditions of a commercial guarantee, such as name and address of the guarantor, the length of the guarantee and a description of the goods and services covered.
Furthermore, unless expressly stipulated in the guarantee, the guarantor cannot request a fee or charge for transport of the goods under guarantee. The law also states that the guarantee is automatically extended by the period during which the guarantor had the goods, or part of them, in his possession while executing the guarantee.
Sometimes guarantees come with conditions attached to them. If these are not observed, the commercial guarantee could be invalid. For example, the commercial guarantee of a new car usually stipulates that the car should be serviced at specific intervals and if this is not done and the car breaks down, free repair won't apply.
Certain commercial guarantees may require that customers register their guarantee by filling in and returning a card. Such requests should be observed, as consumers may have trouble should they eventually need to make a claim. This is more so if consumers do not keep or lose the proof of purchase.
Regardless of the type of guarantee a consumer is given, it should never seek to replace the legal rights that the Consumer Affairs Act grants. Hence, should consumers feel they are not sufficiently protected by the commercial guarantee, before giving up and accepting to pay any charges for repair or replacement of the guaranteed product, it is first advisable to double check whether there are any legal rights that are more beneficial and could be used.
customer@timesofmalta.com
odette.vella@gov.mt
Ms Vella is senior information officer, Consumer and Competition Division.