A Gozitan computer supplier has been named and shamed by the Consumer Affairs Directorate after he failed to honour the decision of the Consumer Claims Tribunal.

A consumer had complained to the tribunal after buying computer parts from Reboot in Gozo, which turned out to be faulty. It transpired that there was a problem with the motherboard, which was eventually replaced by a used one which was not strong enough for the computer.

The consumer won the claim, and the trader was ordered to refund her with the price of the motherboard. However, the trader wanted a declaration that the woman would not file any future claims against him. As it happens, new faults developed which affected other parts of the computer.

When the trader failed to answer letters about these new faults, the consumer decided to go to another establishment to fix the defective computer.

The computer’s video card had to be replaced and she was also asked to pay for the inspection and cleaning services. This cost €784.

Justin Buttigieg, the defendant, stated that in his view, the original video card he had sold to the consumer was not faulty and that he could not honour the guarantee since the consumer and her son went to another shop.

However, the Tribunal gave more credence to the consumer’s version, and ordered Mr Buttigieg to refund the consumer the sum of €784 with costs.