Winch wireless remote - is this wording binding?

whiteoaks7

whiteoaks7

Well-Known Member
Joined
29 Nov 2002
Messages
570
Location
South Wales, UK
www.seasolutions.co.uk
So I went to Amazon and ordered one of these:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wireless-Wi...9FQ0/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1343811621&sr=8-6

... and then read this:

"!! IMPORTANT NOTICE !! BY PURCHASING THE PRODUCT YOU ARE AGREEING TO THE TERMS AND CONDITION SET OUT BELOW. 98% of all returns received for this item have been found to be the fault of incorrect installation. Due to this problem, you must accept and agree to the following before you decide to purchase this product. 1/ The product must be installed by an approved electrician in this field. 2/ Warranty claims must be provided with proof of the installer's electrician's certified up to date certificate. Without this information, all claims will be rejected. The item must be returned at your cost. We will return the item at our cost should the item be genuinely faulty. 3/ Returns must be agreed in advance by email to reeves.a1plant@btconnect.com quoting your eBay ID. An address to return items will be provided on acceptance. 4/ Returns regardless of reason will be fully tested before any refund is given. For this reason, we will not refund the unit until a full inspection. Please allow 15 working days from date of return, for our decision. 5/ If the item purchased has been abused, incorrectly installed or damaged, NO REFUND WILL BE GIVEN. The unit will be disposed of within 5 working days, unless you request the unit to be returned before this time. The unit can be returned to you at a charge of £3.99 6/ Negative feedback resulting in the sale of this item will be investigated by our team. Should we feel that the feedback left is unfair due to any of the above, we will have no alternative but to report the matter to eBay. Please do not purchase this item if you have not clearly understood and agreed to the above. 12 VOLT WIRELESS REMOTE CONTROL KIT NEW 12v Wireless Remote Control UNIQUE EASY TO FIT DESIGN REMOTE RANGE UPTO 60ft WEATHERPROOF TRANSMITTER AND RECIEVER TRANSMITTER EQUIPED WITH LONG LIFE BATTERY WIRES DIRECTLY INTO SOLENOID BOX WILL FIT MOST MODELS AND TYPES OF WINCHES ON/OFF SWITCH" [Amazon website]

... so how binding is this actually? If the thing doesn't work they're saying they won't replace it unless I cough up some cash and prove it was fitted by an electrician whose specific field is boat electrics. They're serious. I wonder that Amazon supports them (interesting the reference to eBay). If it fails presumably I can deal with Amazon...?

Any sea lawyers out there?

David Berry
 
It's only £16!

Clearly the manufacturer is sick of people installing them badly and then returning them when they break.

Whether the wording is legal or not is irrelevant. If you buy it, install it properly and it breaks it is not worth your time arguing the toss about their terms and conditions, even if you are right.
 
Ex-SolentBoy said:
It's only £16!

Clearly the manufacturer is sick of people installing them badly and then returning them when they break.

Whether the wording is legal or not is irrelevant. If you buy it, install it properly and it breaks it is not worth your time arguing the toss about their terms and conditions, even if you are right.
Click to expand...

+1
 
I very much doubt that those terms are fuly enforceable but then are you really going to argue about that amount of money? Mind you I would not buy the item simply because of the aggressive way they have written the terms.
 
Ebay have the same, but twin handset, remotes for £11-69 inc. p&p, returns accepted. Why bother with Amazon?
When I bought mine a while ago, I complained that the battery was flat, and got a complete new unit by return, so I now have a spare. How's that for sevice?
 
As an ex-retailer, I suspect this would constitute unfair terms. Sale of goods act is quite specific that the goods must be of merchantable quality and fit for the purpose. If not, you are entitled to your money back. I wouldn't deal with this company again.
 
Winch remote - protect your rights !!!

I believe the purchaser should have rights and the seller should not feel free to draw such tight boundaries around the installation of the goods he is selling. My boat (and probably your boat) is full of electronics these days - radar, gps, autopilot, etc etc - how many of the suppliers who sold the kit insisted on the conditions that this turnip has? The fact that the thing is only worth £16 plays into his hands - he knows that he can sell **** and no-one is going to return it. Would any supplier seriously expect to stay in business if he applied such onerous conditions to something like a radar at £1600? I doubt it, we would all go elsewhere.

His answer to his obvious returns problem is to issue better fitting instructions perhaps.

If this doesn't function as specified I'll return it to Amazon and see what happens.

David Berry
 
It's important to note that you aren't buying it from Amazon but via the Amazon website from One Safe Source (whoever that is). I don't believe Amazon would try to impose such cockeyed and amateurish 'terms and conditions'.

So I have little doubt that:
(a) The bit about the certified electrician is totally ineffective garbage.
(b) If you buy the goods and they are faulty, you are entitled to your money back.
(c) If the sellers won't give you your money back and the goods are faulty, it will cost you time and money out of all proportion to what you have lost in pursuing them through the courts.
So
(d) you need either (i) to buy it and take a punt on whether it will be OK putting it down to experience if it isn't or (ii) just don't buy it.

It's possible of course that the goods and the seller are genuine and they really have had hassle from customers doing faulty installation - in which case their highly original 'terms and conditions' are an understandable if doubtfully effective attempt to head off future problems!
 
Might they be worried about big claims from personal injury? But like the nasty fingers one reported recently. If installed by an electrician, problem could pass to him?
DW
 
jamesjeffrey said:
If you feel the terms the seller wishes to impose on the sale are unreasonable, don't buy it.
Click to expand...

+1

For what it's worth, I have had an identical unit operating my anchor windlass for two years and it's been faultless. Bought it off ebay. Make sure, as others have said, that you have decent sized relays - it's only a switch...
 
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