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European Guarantee

profile.country.GR.title
thanassists
Explorer

European Guarantee

Hello,

 

I bought a new sony alpha 6000 in Greece last year. In the invoice it is stated that the product has 1 year guarantee.

However, in the site of the EU it is clearly stated that for electronic products the legal guarantee period is 2 years.

 

Obviously the 1 year guarantee claimed by the seller comes in contradiction with the 2 years according to european law.

 

Any ideas if there is a small "window" in law that allows sellers in Europe to offer less guarantee or is this an abuse to consummer rights?

 

Any similar experience and ways to deal with it?

 

Best regards

 

3 REPLIES 3
profile.country.GB.title
Sean_Mc
Moderator

Hi there,

 

I would recommend getting in touch with Sony Support in Greece for further assistance with your query here.

 

Best wishes,

 

Sean Mc

profile.country.GR.title
thanassists
Explorer

Hi!

 

Thank you for the link, I just sent!

 

I would be interested though to know about similar experience from other users.

 

Best regards!

profile.country.DE.title
darkframe
Expert

Hi @thanassists,

 

well, here in Germany there are actually two different words for what you named "guarantee" and I guess that it's the same regarding your cause. In fact we do have "guarantee" and "warranty". Actually on German TV you will find broadcasts about "guarantee vs. warranty" at least once a week. Complicated matter...

 

Okay, I'm no lawyer but here's my explanation whatsoever according to what I've learned from TV:

 

Guarantee is granted by either the seller or the producer. There's no given time limit. In case the seller gave you a guarantee of 1 year the seller ensures (or has got to make sure) that the product will be working as proclaimed for at least this one year. In this period of time the producer/seller (in most cases the seller) has got to repair or replace the product in case of malfunction, unless you are the cause for the malfunctioning (camera fell into water or such). The important aspect is, that there is no problem with the product as such but that the device which you bought personally does not work as proclaimed.

 

Warranty (just my term for it, sorry, I'm no native speaker) is a different aspect. Warranty comes into question as soon as the product you bought has had a "problem" already before (!) you bought it. This "problem" or malfunction may not be visible from the first day on but shows up thereafter. A well known example is Samsung's desaster with the Galaxy Note 7 (exploding batteries). This warranty prescribes after 2 years generally.

 

Well, hopefully I could clarify things a bit but please don't rely on my words too much. If you're in trouble you'll better contact a lawyer.

 

Cheers

darkframe

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