Q: I needed to buy tiles for my new apartment and went to a local shop. I submitted the plan of my apartment, so that the seller could calculate the exact amount of tiles I needed.

After doing so, the seller suggested the amount of tiles and guaranteed I would finish my apartment and have enough left over for the skirting. The seller also calculated I would be left with a few spare ones too. Based on this quotation, I placed my order and purchased the tiles.

When the tile layer started laying the tiles, we realised that the amount would not be enough for the whole apartment. In fact, I ended up with no tiles for two bedrooms and for the skirting. I immediately contacted the seller, who told me he would order more so I could complete the job.

So far so good. The problem is that the supplier wants to charge me €1,500 for the extra tiles. I refuse to pay this sum of money because when I first placed my order, the supplier guaranteed that the initial allocated amount would suffice.

This seller has years of experience in this line of work and thus claiming that he miscalculated isn’t a good excuse. I feel that I have been misled. What are my rights?

A: If the measurements you gave the supplier were correct and he intentionally or unintentionally miscalculated the amount of tiles you really needed to complete your apartment, you may have a valid case in refusing to pay the extra amount of money.

You may inform the supplier that since the sales agreement covered the purchase of tiles for the whole apartment, you should not be charged extra money if the amount of tiles the seller calculated was not enough. If the seller refuses to provide you with the extra tiles you need at no additional cost, you may file a complaint with the Office for Consumer Affairs.