Legal Assistance for Consumer Purchases
Questioner
Ir/Madam, At the beginning of this year we bought a new sofa. We explicitly stated that we wanted a very durable one. Due to busy family life, children, etc. Here a number of options were presented and finally a coarser furniture fabric was chosen. This also turned out to be the most expensive fabric of the sample package. Complete price of the sofa is approx. 2,500 euros. In May we received the couch and after a few weeks we noticed that the fabric fluffed a lot. This is not only at the seat/back cushion but also at the armrests. Besides the fact that it is visible to the eye you can also feel it when you stroke it with your hand. In July we informed the store of what we had noticed and that this did not meet our expectations (especially because we had emphasized at the time that we wanted a good sturdy fabric), they indicated that they wanted photos that they could then forward to the supplier. After a number of reminders we received a response from the store today and they now indicate the following: Manufacturer says that this is inherent to the fabric, because it is coarse in structure and will therefore fluff more than an average other woven fabric. In addition, they suggest purchasing a fluff machine to remove the fluff. This does not seem to be the intention with a sofa of such an amount? What can we do with this situation? What are our rights? Thanks in advance. If you would like more information, please let me know.Lawyer
The shopkeeper has not fully informed you about certain properties of the material he has proposed; you could therefore appeal to non-conformity of the purchased item or error. What do you want to achieve because you then have the right to demand repair or replacement. But neither applies if you do not want a fluff bank. In that case, the purchase agreement will have to be dissolved or annulled. Your case lends itself to a legal e-mail, a short legal letter in e-mail.Questioner
Thank you for your answer. What is the route to follow now? Is that first speaking to the shopkeeper personally and telling them what we plan to do? Or is that sending a legal letter straight away?Lawyer
Send a registered letter to the retailer explaining the defect and also stating that you did not have to expect this given the price/quality ratio and the information you received in advance. There is a case of non-conformity and you are terminating the agreement because repair or replacement is not an option. You are demanding your money back and that the sofa is collected, free of charge. I would also like to take this over for you; will you contact me?Lawyer
I agree with Mrs Ferwerda's answer. Speaking personally is of course an option, but unfortunately furniture stores often try to shift everything to the supplier and do nothing until then. A direct letter is therefore best advised.Neem de volgende stap
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