When is a warranty not a warranty?

[Simon G]

I had a similar problem with an Xtar Dragon from Fogstar. It went wrong after 15 months, and although it had a 2 year warranty Fogstar claimed they only covered the first year.

Xtar wouldn't answer my emails so I was stuck with it and I no longer buy Xtar products or anything from from Fogstar.

That's crap. I'm sort of surprised Fogstar didn't offer to help because they are obviously in contact with Xtar or whoever is the UK distributor for Xtar.

I'm not surprised Xtar ignored you though, trying to contact/communicate with these Chinese companies is virtually impossible on anything other than sales.

 

[schlinky]

It's tricky though, if I send you a mod and it's not working right when you get it and I say "No worries, I'll refund you, lob it in the bin" and you say "No it's ok, it sort of works I don't want you to be out of pocket" ..... and then you come back 8 months later, when I've spent the money and say "actually......" I'd probably tell you to take a hike to be honest. Personally it feels like an unreasonable amount of time has passed.

Is it also possible that the fault (in this 'popping incident') could be with the battery and not the charger.

In an ideal world someone would open the unit and check that it's working 100% as intended, because I wouldn't recommend using it until it was. This stuff can be dangerous and whatever (common) brand you buy it's just cheaply made Chinese electronics in reality.

I've been really lucky with my Nitcore, I'm still using the same one that's .. i dunno, 6 years old at least, but I never leave it unattended and make sure it stops charging at 4.2v

I'm not sure what you mean by 'when I've spent the money', what money? There was never a 'lob it in the bin' option.

The unit arrived, didn't work as intended, I made the best of a bad situation and it's taken 8 months to become untrustworthy. I suspect it's over charging which is dangerous.

Is it my fault? Is it Evolution's fault? Is there a warranty? Who's obliged to make good on that warranty?

I'm not sure how within the warranty period is 'unreasonable'.

 

[ZenAnarchi]

It is very difficult to blame the consumer who has paid for a faulty product. Neither the manufacturer nor the seller would be able to sell a product if they stated it only lasts 8 months. For myself, I see three very distinct and extremely important principles that should govern these types of issues:

The Law
Consumer protection laws vary from country to country, so I am sure I cannot opine on English law in this regard. Here in Norway, the law states that any production error or otherwise faulty product must either be replaced or refunded within one year of purchase. This is solely the vendor’s responsibility, and it is the vendor who seeks recompense from the manufacturer.

Ethics
EV. Is not naive; they purchase from China because it is cheaper, even though there is a clear risk for them. EV makes a profit, they wouldn’t do it if they didn’t. But when their risk-taking has consequences, especially serious consequences (f ex your house catching on fire), they have a moral and ethical responsibility to try and hinder any possible damages or injuries. It’s called a society, we all live in it, even them.

Business sense
In this day and age, where reviews and outrage are readily available for all to see, it doesn’t make good business sense for a retailer to shun customers. Many vendors show their TrustPilot scores proudly on their websites. When EV f*cked me over, the first thing I did was write a scathing review several different places. My whinging alone didn’t help, but a reputation is difficult to build, and even harder to repair. I would think selling vape gear is a challenge to begin with, not helped by shooting yourself in the foot with poor customer service.

You shouldn’t feel guilty or embarrassed in this situation, you have tried to be an honest and responsible consumer. It is EV that won’t accept their responsibility, and their lack of social care and compassion is in unacceptable. As I’ve said here, I will never use a penny there again

Sorry for the rant

 

[MHL]

It is very difficult to blame the consumer who has paid for a faulty product. Neither the manufacturer nor the seller would be able to sell a product if they stated it only lasts 8 months. For myself, I see three very distinct and extremely important principles that should govern these types of issues:

The Law
Consumer protection laws vary from country to country, so I am sure I can opine on English law in this regard. Here in Norway, the law states that any production error or otherwise faulty product must either be replaced or refunded within one year of purchase. This is solely the vendor’s responsibility, and it is the vendor who seeks recompense from the manufacturer.

Ethics
EV. Is not naive; they purchase from China because it is cheaper, even though there is a clear risk for them. EV makes a profit, they wouldn’t do it if they didn’t. But when their risk-taking has consequences, especially serious consequences (f ex your house catching on fire), they have a moral and ethical responsibility to try and hinder any possible damages or injuries. It’s called a society, we all live in it, even them.

Business sense
In this day and age, where reviews and outrage are readily available for all to see, it doesn’t make good business sense for a retailer to shun customers. Many vendors show their TrustPilot scores proudly on their websites. When EV f*cked me over, the first thing I did was write a scathing review several different places. My whinging alone didn’t help, but a reputation is difficult to build, and even harder to repair. I would think selling vape gear is a challenge to begin with, not helped by shooting yourself in the foot with poor customer service.

You shouldn’t feel guilty or embarrassed in this situation, you have tried to be an honest and responsible consumer. It is EV that won’t accept their responsibility, and their lack of social care and compassion is in unacceptable. As I’ve said here, I will never use a penny there again

Sorry for the rant

Exactly that ^^

 

[Simon G]

I'm not sure what you mean by 'when I've spent the money', what money? There was never a 'lob it in the bin' option.

The unit arrived, didn't work as intended, I made the best of a bad situation and it's taken 8 months to become untrustworthy. I suspect it's over charging which is dangerous.

Is it my fault? Is it Evolution's fault? Is there a warranty? Who's obliged to make good on that warranty?

I'm not sure how within the warranty period is 'unreasonable'.

I meant if I sold something to Zou, I was talking to him with a hypothetical scenario.

It's nobody's 'fault' but if I understand you correctly, Evolution offered you a replacement and you turned it down? I think that was a mistake. Unless I'm misunderstanding this sentence.

"I did contact evolution vaping when it first arrived and they agreed to replace the unit but because I wouldn't be able to return the faulty unit (disability) I didn't want them to be out of pocket so I persevered."

 

[ZenAnarchi]

I meant if I sold something to Zou, I was talking to him with a hypothetical scenario.

It's nobody's 'fault' but if I understand you correctly, Evolution offered you a replacement and you turned it down? I think that was a mistake. Unless I'm misunderstanding this sentence.

"I did contact evolution vaping when it first arrived and they agreed to replace the unit but because I wouldn't be able to return the faulty unit (disability) I didn't want them to be out of pocket so I persevered."

I can’t say that I agree with you here… They only offered a replacement if he returned the item. This may sound reasonable, but not everyone has the capacity or capability of returning an item. At the very least, they should pay for return postage and a pickup if necessary. But a video of the problem should more than suffice, and they should send a replacement free of charge. EV doesn’t send the faulty item back to China, either. This is a cynical ploy from EV to make it more difficult and limit their losses.

I will add that I have purchased a lot of gear over the years that I have had problems with. As long as you can provide a video or proof, the quality vendors send a new one, no questions asked

 

[Simon G]

I can’t say that I agree with you here… They only offered a replacement if he returned the item. This may sound reasonable, but not everyone has the capacity or capability of returning an item. At the very least, they should pay for return postage and a pickup if necessary. But a video of the problem should more than suffice, and they should send a replacement free of charge. EV doesn’t send the faulty item back to China, either. This is a cynical ploy from EV to make it more difficult and limit their losses.

I will add that I have purchased a lot of gear over the years that I have had problems with. As long as you can provide a video or proof, the quality vendors send a new one, no questions asked

Maybe I have misunderstood, I thought the refund was offered but he 'Didn't want them to be out of pocket' so didn't take it.

 

[ZenAnarchi]

Understand, but for me, the point is that he tried to make it work, and didn’t/couldn’t return it. He tried to be a responsible consumer. But even though he declined the first time, it doesn’t make the product less faulty or dangerous, and EV should bloody well take responsibility for it

 

[zouzounaki]

I meant if I sold something to Zou, I was talking to him with a hypothetical scenario.

It's nobody's 'fault' but if I understand you correctly, Evolution offered you a replacement and you turned it down? I think that was a mistake. Unless I'm misunderstanding this sentence.

"I did contact evolution vaping when it first arrived and they agreed to replace the unit but because I wouldn't be able to return the faulty unit (disability) I didn't want them to be out of pocket so I persevered."

hmm, i agree with this in the particular. circumstances, but only because you are an individual person, and not a company. there are laws and regulations that apply to the vendor in @schlinky ’s case and it seems to me they are trying a fob off.

on a separate note, one of those elfins you sold me five years ago fell apart. can you send me over another one?

 

[schlinky]

Thanks, yeah I do feel a bit fobbed off. I don't feel like me trying to make the best of things should work against me when it's still within warranty.

I'd always assumed your warranty was with the company you bought the item from. I've never heard of a vendor having their own period before. I'd just assumed that I'd get in touch and say "yeah, you know that intermitent fault I mentioned? It's dangerous now" and they'd say "ok cool we'll send another"

Looks like I'm buying another charger, from another vendor.