How long should manufacturers support products

[stevenrw]

I have a friend who bought a Samsung laptop from PC World a while back. High spec, and heavy price tag to match (£1400). He declined the offer of extended warranty.
Its about 3 years old now and has developed a hardware fault. He took it back to the PC world store he bought it from and having looked at it they say there is a board that has failed. Now that Samsung has withdrawn from the personal computing maket in the UK they are telling him the part required is no longer available.
So he has to consign a £1400 machine to landfill - after 3 years?
Any views on this?
It was marketed as a gaming machine but he has only used it for general computing/web browsing so he has not flogged the life out of it. Surely manufacturers must support products for longer than that?

[Adrian]

I am not an expert, but I believe there is something in consumer law that states that you can claim against the store that sold it if you can prove that you could reasonably have expected it to last longer. I know that domestic appliances and such like are covered by this but I'm not sure whether it applies to computers.

[Steve]

It maybe covered by the sale of good act which makes the seller responsible in England , once the warranty has expired for a period  up to 6 years of age depending on the item etc etc.

I suspect that they cannot just say the tough luck at that age , he should be entitled to some money back.

[zappaDPJ]

Currys/PC World are notorious for not honouring warranties of any sort: http://www.itv.com/news/2015-09-22/currys-refuse-to-repair-800-tv-broken-by-fly-because-it-was-an-act-of-god/

However the law says...

Customers are entitled to have faulty goods replaced or repaired for up to six years, at no charge, which the retailer should carry out "within a reasonable time but without causing significant inconvenience."

If the seller doesn't repair or replace an item, customers can claim some money back on the original purchase price, minus an amount for the usage they have had of the goods.

The rule covers a fault that was present when you bought the item, or a defect that occurs from a manufacturing problem rather than as the result of usual wear and tear.

The seller (not the manufacturer) is responsible for the items, so the Sale of Goods Act applies to online and independent retailers, as well as High Street shops.

[nowster]

I certainly wouldn't pay £1400 for a laptop in the first place. They're single board machines and very difficult to repair.

You might have trouble using the Sale of Goods Act (as amended) after six months as after then the onus is on the purchaser to prove that the fault was caused by something that existed at the time of sale.

As many businesses routinely write off the value of computers after three years, that may work against your friend. I'd suggest he contacts Citizen's Advice for some suggestions.

In future, I'd suggest avoid dealing with Dixons Stores Group (Currys or PC World). Very capable laptops can be obtained from firms which refurbish equipment that's been discarded by businesses. Often you can get a "Grade A" (indistinguishable from new) laptop with a very respectable spec for less than £400.

[stevenrw]

Thanks everybody for your comments.
I seem to recall something along the lines of Adrians point, that irrespective of the 1 yr mandatory guarantee period, if it is deemed to have failed before reasonable time it should be rectified.
However, my friend would be happy to pay for the repair (if "happy" is the right word) but he's effectively being told it can't be repaired at any cost wether he pays or not and that's the real issue here. He is not being given any options other than landfill.
He should certainly IMHO go back to PC World in the first instance and try to speak to somebody with some stripes on their sleeve.
Also a call to his credit card company might bear some fruit, even if to officially backup what's been suggested in this thread.
I'll keep you posted with developments.

[zappaDPJ]

I would recommend taking the laptop to an independent computer repair shop for a quote. If the parts are still available then it's probably repairable.