10 Week old XR-65A90J fails!! Disgraceful!!

[Lac7126]

So after lots of research and merely wishing to have a more up to date TV than my perfectly working but 14 year old Pioneer Plasma TV, my wife and I treated ourselves and spent £3,499 plus additional insurance with John Lewis on a Sony Bravia XR-65A90J, on 18th November 2021. 
Apparently the state of the art TV announced in April 2021. 
It arrived on 24th November. 
It’s had light use (not in the day and not every evening) and on 5th February 2022 my wife turned it on to watch some Winter Olympics. A few minutes later, 2 clicks heard, screen goes blank. An hour of following the power off, try a different socket etc. procedure all to no avail. Red LED flashes 5 times, pause, 5 flashes and so on. 
Spoke to John Lewis (tried Sony Customer Service but it was a Saturday so they’re closed of course…! Obviously we don’t use their products at weekends…) 
The not so local approved repair centre came out to collect it on Monday 7th PM. Asked how many times the red LED flashes and plugged it back in to confirm. Yes, 5 flashes. Looked at each other ‘that’s the screen’….

To cap it all, Sony have already announced the A95K replacement in January 2022 and consequently devalued our A90J which has been £500 less to purchase since January, not because it’s in any sale…,
Still no news, and Sony keep asking me who collected it even when I have replied and they reply to the email containing that information. 
Our 14 year old Pioneer Plasma never missed a beat and I sold it working, albeit for peanuts.  Before that I had a B&O TV which lasted for about 15 years. Had a tube replaced… after 12 years!

Do we ever want to see our - repaired but less than 3 month old TV back - absolutely not. 
Options I’ve give Sony are (and yes, I’ve been in retail for over 30 years, I know about consumer rights!):

1. FULL refund and they can do what they like with it. 
2. NEW replacement (or an “UPLIFT” replacement) and £500 refund. 

I’m absolutely disgusted that a £3,499 TV from Sony, allegedly state or the art technologically, fails (and evidently not the only one of these to fail - or to have the screen fail in early life) after such a short time, is already devalued by Sony, and currently Sony can’t even read an email properly, let alone respond appropriately to my call and as they requested, my follow up email with receipt attached. 
Currently listening to music (as we have no TV…) through my utterly reliable 1979 Quad amplifier and pre-amplifier…

[Hitesh]

Hi, have you had any luck with your refund or new replacement?  I am being offered an old refurbished unit and this is unacceptable!  Who is the MD at Sony UK?

[SkyNet404]

Hopefully you manage to sort it soon, and get back to enjoying a well functional TV.

[Lac7126]

Hi @Hitesh 

Sadly not. No news still of when we will get a supposedly new replacement, so another weekend without a TV. 
If we are offered / receive a refurbished unit it will not get inside the house!

I totally agree with you, that is absolutely unacceptable. 
Like you I’m sure, I purchased a new TV, not a refurbished one and I would not accept a refurbished unit.

Best of luck to you with getting your replacement or a refund. 

[Lac7126]

Thank you @SkyNet404 Fingers crossed we will get a new TV next week but currently I would not hold my breath!

[Hitesh]

Hi @Lac7126 

I am not having much joy, as Sony keep repeating their T&C's to me.

Just unacceptable to be treated so unfairly, we are in 2022 - surely this cannot be happening?

Thank God I purchases it on Curry's finance offer as I will call Financial Ombudsman and find out our rights in the UK - Not Sony's T&C's?

Who can we contact at Sony?  Have you heard of Neil King - UK Director at Sony?

Good Luck with your replacement soon! Thanks, Hitesh

[Lac7126]

Hi Hitesh,

I totally agree with you. You bought a new item, not a refurbished item. If yours can’t be repaired, surely they can’t replace it with a refurbished unit!

Steve Dalton OBE is the MD of Sony UK Tec, in Bridgend. He joined Sony in 1983 when Sony were starting their….. UK TV manufacturing facility!!

No news here yet. Still no idea when we will get a replacement. Diabolical. 

Good luck!!

[HannahEd01]

Hey Lac7126, I think you should get an update soon. Please let us know what happens, keep pushing.

[Lac7126]

Hi @HannahEd01 

Hi Hannah (?),

Do you work for John Lewis by any chance?

Anyway, after 17 days without a TV, the very nice gents (I mean that sincerely!)  from Central Service Ltd. have just delivered the replacement TV.

However...the saga continues....

So, as I discovered, the serial number of the replacement TV is 6000419, but the serial number of our original TV is 6003454. Now call me cynical, but that immediately implies that the replacement is older than our original TV and is therefore repaired.

However, and see photos below, the replacement looks as if it's been laid down in something and wiped or something has been split all over the back of it...

Rear of the replacement TV showing Marks (1)Rear of the replacement TV showing Marks (2)Rear of the replacement TV showing Marks (3)Rear of the replacement TV showing Marks (4)

As the gents from Central Service said, they deliver what Sony provide them, and this is not the first time they've had problems with a replacement TV being unacceptable. However, they also said, while I was on a 40+ minute call to John Lewis to express my dissatisfaction with the replacement unit, that if they take it back now, all that will happen is Sony will provide another unit and that may have some other issue. Unfortunately they had to go as they had other jobs to go to but at least we have a TV...for the moment....

In fact, and get this...the first person I spoke to at John Lewis, who asked to speak to the gents, said to them and myself that it should be "a Grade A unit" and "it will not be new". Note the quotation marks.

So, eventually I was put through to someone else and after explaining everything again (the second person started by saying he hope I was having a good day....let me think about that for a moment....) said he will escalate to Sony and he or a colleague will get back to me.

So, in short, this is TOTALLY unacceptable.

I did not spend £3,499 on a TV to:

a) be without it for 17 days after just 10 weeks of (light) use and

b) buy a CLEARLY second hand TV which the replacement evidently is. Goodness knows what has happened to this in it's short life and which part(s) have been replaced...

So....we are back to 2 options:

1. I get a BRAND NEW TV and the one we were left with is taken away, or

2. a FULL Refund, including the Accidental Damage Insurance of £140 I took out just in case.

😠

Needless to say I have sent the above photos to John Lewis....

I will wait to hear.

UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!

P.S. In the meantime a refund of £500 (as the price dropped by that much days after I purchased) as I have been without a TV for 17 days abd Im still going through yet more issues would be a gesture of good will as a starter!!!!!

[rooobb]

I don't want to upset you, but I think your claim should be supported by a legal if those are your request.

You may get a refurbished unit by contract terms, I understand you may not like it but this is the warranty terms, you may only refuse it if it is damaged in any way (like it seems the unit you have got, so you can send it back and wait for another). You have to consider that also your previous TV was used (even if slightly) and not new anymore.

There is no mention in any consumer purchase I know (except for specific campaign made by some retailers sometimes) of refund due to a price change (all electronics devices tend to become cheaper  as the time goes on) or for compensation of direct or indirect damages (i.e. not having it for 17 days) unless maybe it burns out your home (but even in that case I am not sure you may win).

IMHO the best choice you may have is asking for another unit while keeping the actual one until it is available....

[Lac7126]

Hi @rooobb 

Thanks for your message.

I have been in retail for 33 years so yes, I understand.

However, 17 days without an Item after 10 weeks, and then getting a clearly used and 'tatty' looking Item is totally unacceptable, whichever was you look at it. I purchased a brand new Item, not a used unit from eBay or the like. Also, as this is not my unit (and as the authorised repairers said, although the job would take around 15 minutes, Sony do not supply replacement (new) screens), I have no idea whatsoever of the history of it and from the serial numbers, it would seem logical that the unit I have been supplied is older than my original TV.

I would have thought if Sony care about purchasers of their product, and John Lewis care about Customers who spend what must count as a fairly substantial amount, I would be offered a New replacement or a full refund. 

I am still waiting for the next episode in this saga....