Sky+ box , a standardand SOGA

[ncf355]

Hi,

 

I have a Sky+ box with intermittent issues

 

Have called them and basically as it is outside the 1 year they are quoting £60+ for a call out

 

When we were at a previous address we had a similar issue with a standard box, but when I threatened to cancel the contract a new box was provided without cost (surprise!)

 

However, they now seem to have changed their approach and will not arrange repairs or replacement without cost (I went as far as cancelling)

 

I was of the impression that even when goods are provided as a "free" product that they are in fact subject to the SOGA where part of a service contract (as in the case of say, a free laptop provided with a mobile phone deal)

 

Can anyone offer advice?

[ForestChav]

AIUI. It is classed as part of the contract, so SOGA applies to the box. They guarantee the box for a year and if it doesn't work after that the box is out of guarantee. Nothing you can do about that. If you want to use SOGA the burden of proof is on you to show that the box was faulty at time of purchase. This being the case provided it is less than 6y old (5 in scotland) then sky are obliged to repair or replace the box free and reimburse your costs. Same as any item.

[ncf355]

Cheers FC

[ashmk]

Did you cancel it or just threaten to ?

 

You need to ask to be put through to cancelations, they are the people who had the power to do things. If you cancel it does not happen for 30 days or so, so you can fully cancel and call back in a few days to change your mind.

[buzby]

You probably didn't get a new box, but a white-box refurb, which Sky and Virgin provide as part of their 'green' commitment. Since problems can also be associated with external issued (Dish alignment, birds eating the cable etc, none of this has any relevance to Sky and the available warranty, which is why so many firms sprang up offering to take care of all aspects of your installation (for a fee).

[Surfer01]

Isn't there an EU directive which states that all electronic goods will have a 2 year warranty? See Directive 1999/44/EC, May 1999 from the European Parliament stipulates that by 1st January 2002 all member states must have alt and Two-year warranty loophole (EU law) | This is Money. In additon here is the actual directive Easy Reading Corner - Booklets: Europe on the move. Hopefully someone can make more sense out of it than I can and I woudl be pleased to hear their interpretation as our Sky box is also playing up. Should Sky being repairing a SKY+HD box that is between 12 and 24 months old free fo charge and under warranty. This is our third box.

Also if they replace should the warranty start from the day they replace your box otherwsie they coudl repalce it with one where the fault does nto show up for 2 months and by that time it is out of warranty?

[buzby]

The EU 'directive' is a reccomendation, and as far as I am given to understand is their preferred period of warranty, if the warranty is LESS than this, then this reduced period MUST be shown, so if they say the warranty is 13 months from purchase (NOT use) and they disclose this, that's OK by them.

 

On other well-trodden ground, the warranty does NOT re-start when a replacement is supplied, this is because 'bettewrment' applies. You could arrange to have your box 'go faulty' every 360 days into purchase, get a replacement, and a second year warranty, then third then fourth. Contrast this free four year warranty period with someonr who has a box that goes faulty 26 month in and told to go away as the warranty has expired.

 

The peiod fr the warranty is always calculated from first supply. There may be a limited 3 month extension in certain cases to ensure the replacement does what it is supposed to, but if the kit is that bad (as you suggest) then surely the secret is to stop purchasing and go to an alternative supplier?

[Surfer01]

Thanks Buzby but with a Sky+HD box there is no alternative. If it was replaced with a new box not really an issue on warranty but Sky tend to replace with refurbished boxes and it is a known fact that a number of their so called engineers are more than useless at repairs.

[buzby]

Who says!

 

TIVO HS Series 4 (Launching on Virgin in a few months)

Virgin V+ HD (Currently available) for the Virgin cable users

Foxsat HD PVR - uses same ASTRA Dish and with no EPG charges - best for non-cabled streets.

 

 

There are always alternatives. Not everything will be available, but Sky do not have it all their own way.

[Acropolis]

If thebox is replaced by anyone other than Sky, then you will find it is a refurbished box, this is because of the cost of the box's, most of the box's sky use for this will probably be refurbished as well.

 

The £60 charge Sky apply will cover anything that needs doing and all parts and labour etc.

 

You could send the box off to be repaired yourself, there is a company in Northern Ireland called digi repairs that will repair it for you, normal turn around time is about 5 days.

 

To start off with though, what is the problem that you are having, as it may well be nothing to do with the box and might be another part of the system that is at fault.

[Surfer01]

Ours is under warranty and has gone faulty on 5 different occasions and every time they have replaced the box. Last week was the fourth time and they replaced the box with a refurbished unit which did not even last a week. Now we have to wait 12 days for the tech to come and do a repair so altogether this month we have only had Sky for a few days.

For the OP advise Sky that you are cancelling as this normally gets a free repair. Don't forget that you also require compensation for the tiem that you paid but did nto have Sky. Contact Trading Standards via Consumer Direct and put your complaint to them and at the same time ask about the EU directive and take it from there.

[Acropolis]

What is the problem you are having, is it the same everytime?

 

As I would suggest after 5 box's then it isnt the box at fault.

[Surfer01]

All different faults with the latest one being no signal. First one while watching a movie it would freeze but the sound would continue. Second one picture started breaking up into blocks and had recording issues. Third one recording would break up with picture freeezing. Fourth one worked fine for 5 months then started getting spots across screen as if there was interference and finally when i switched on one morning all I got was a blank green screen with sound in the background. Also had problems with recorded movies. Current one no signal.

As we have other TVs hooked up displaying same fault TVs eliminated. No problem with old Sky digibox so LNB eliminated. That left the Sky HD + box. If you go to AV forums lots of people having problems. If these boxes are supposed to be so good, why does pne have to wait 12 days for a repair? I was told because they had a big backlog of repair!

[Acropolis]

Dont know about loads of problems with the box's, but I know that trying to get hold of them second hand for repairs is a bloody nightmare, I cant get them for love nor money at the moment, digi, PVR2 and PVR3 no problem at all, but HD's not a chance to get them.

[Surfer01]

Have you tried AVForums.com Home as there are people with faulty boxes out of guarantee?

[Acropolis]

What it would cost me to buy the box, and then have it repaired, for what we charge for replacing them when wrong, wouldnt be worth it to be honest, we dont make anything on the other box's so these would be just as bad if not worse.

[Surfer01]

Spend an hour on a box at £45 per hour plus about max £5 on spares and already youa re on a loser. Unfortunately most Sky boxes seem to have intermittent faults which are the worst to try and repair and a right pain if you think you ahve fixed the problem and the unit bounces after you have sold it. Power supply issues are generally dead easy and can be money spinners as they are straight forward.