Hi guys, just a quick update. I explained the situation to my mother and she still wanted to try in person at the store, before we did anything else. We have just visited the store and were told that we would have to phone Comet, where they would then try to diagnose the problem over the telephone (I'm not sure how, given that the laptop does not display anything on the screen) and that they would then probably want to collect the laptop and test it (at a cost of £49.99 to ourselves) and if it was found to be a manufacturer fault, it would be repaired/replaced. I explained that we already have an independent report, but the member of staff said they would still require us to pay for them to test the laptop themselves and we would get this charge reimbursed if it was a manufacturer fault. I also discovered that the laptop was actually collected on the 29th June 2009 and that the collection date of 25/12/2009 is referring to another item purchased at the same time, which was not in stock. Apparently anything not in stock is given the collection date of 25/12/2009 by the Comet computer system. The member of staff themselves mentioned the 6 year period of able to make a claim and that goods should be expected to last a reasonable amount of time, which I was shocked at, they could not however, help us further instore. Obviously my mother is very relucant to incur further costs, especially given the fact that they have already taken the time and money to seek an independent report. All this being said, I have prepared a letter for my mother to send to Comet, to see if they will be willing to resolve this situation for her, before having to send a 'letter before action' or seeking resolution by County Court. I wondered if anyone could take a look at the letter I have drafted and see if I have any glaring omissions or if there is anything that you think I should change. As I have stated earlier, this is all new to me: Obviously I understand that the laptop has been used for sometime and as such a letter before action or any claim at County Court will have to take this into account when working out what compensation is being sought. Thanks for any advice you can give me, it is very much appreciated.

Ok, my mother is due here shortly, as we were going to visit the store the laptop was purchased from with the laptop, original receipt and engineers report, in order to ask for them to resolve the situation. However I will tell her about the advice you have offered and advise her that we may be better off corresponding with Comet in writing (as I fear we will only get fobbed off within the store). I'm not sure if they will correspond with me from the outset, but it can't hurt trying. I take it head office is where I should be directing my correspondance (by registered post)? Thanks again for all your advice, I will report back when I hear anything from Comet.

Thanks again for your response. Without wishing to put the cart before the horse, can I just ask, if this situation isn't resolved ammicably and we have to go down the County Court route, you say we should claim for a percentage of the cost of purchasing an equivalent replacement and court costs. Would it also be possible (or indeed wise) to also claim for the cost of the independant engineers report?

Many thanks for your response Bankfodder. I will have a look at that link and see if I can find the relevant bits of the act to include in any correspondance. My parents weren't strictly looking for a full refund or a replacement, but would be happy for a repair. However as the laptop has been deemed 'uneconomical to repair', your suggestion of a percentage based reimbursement would seem to make sense and I will ask them if this is something they would be happy to go with. I'll also do a bit of research on 'Letter before action' and County court claims, as this is all new to me. I'm not sure how to flag this thread to other members, but hopefully 'Comet Response' will come across this thread and maybe offer some assistance. Thanks again.

I note that 'Comet Response' has responded on similar threads on the forum and I thought it might be prudent for me to pm them with the link to this thread, however I can't send PM's due to having only just joined this forum. Is there any other way I could flag this thread up to them?

Hi guys, I hope someone can give me some advice. My parents won a brand new laptop (and all accessories) in a Christmas draw at their local club in December 2009. They were obviously thrilled with this and very much enjoyed using the laptop. However, unfortunately the laptop stopped working around 5 months ago (16 months after the date it was purchased). They originally put this down as a bad loss, however were recently told that this was in no way reasonable and that the Sales of Goods Act state that goods should be of 'satisfactory quality', which they clearly were not. Since then my parents have taken this laptop to a local independant computer repair shop and paid for it to be inspected and have a report that states that the laptop is 'beyond economical repair' and this is through an inherent fault in the graphics card/motherboard and not through any accidental damage or misuse. I have done a little research and it appears that you have a case against the supplier as they have liability for the goods they sell for up to 6 years and clearly my parents laptop falls within this liability. However I am unsure how the fact that they won this laptop in a draw affects their consumer rights? The laptop and accessories came with the original Comet receipt (which they still have), however the receipt is in the name/address of the lady who buys all of the prizes for the Christmas draw each year. She is aware of the problem and is happy for my parents to seek redress, however I don't think she is willing to seek it for them. Does anyone know where my parents stand in terms of the 'Sales of Goods Act' given the above circumstances and the fact that they were not strictly the original purchasers? What would you advise my parents do next?