Q: On September 29, 2006, I purchased two leather massage chairs through teleshopping for €395.99 (Lm170).

The items were described as real leather by the presenter of the show. Last year the upholstery started to peel off, revealing that it was not real leather at all, contrary to what was claimed on air.

All summer, I have been attempting to contact the director of the company where I purchased the chairs from, but somehow he always managed to find an excuse to cut short the conversation.

Finally, he said that if I have a complaint, he would send one of his employees to Gozo to check the damage. However, he also told me that I would have to fork out the expenses to cover his ferry trip together with a normal day's work.

I am seeking your intervention to address this violation of basic consumer rights. Such fraudulent claims should be dealt with accordingly before any other unsuspecting customers fall into the trap.

A: According to the Consumer Affairs Act, traders are obliged to deliver to consumers goods that are in conformity with the description and specifications in the contract of sale. Hence, in your case, if the trader advertised the massage chairs as real leather chairs, you are entitled to chairs as promised by the trader.

In fact, the law stipulates that if goods are not as described, the trader has to put things right. Basically, the trader is obliged to either repair or replace the product free of charge. If neither repair nor replacement are possible, the consumer may ask for a refund of part of the price or revocation of the contract.

These remedies can be claimed by the consumer within the time limit of two years from delivery of the product purchased. However, the consumer must inform the trader about the lack of conformity in writing within two months from discovery of the defect. If consumers do not respect this time limit, they risk losing their rights.