If you've bought a mobile phone, it must be:
You can find out more about your rights in the section Introduction to your legal rights.
Note that different rules apply depending on whether you bought the item before or after 1 October 2015.
If you've bought a mobile phone that is faulty before it has been used, you should be entitled to a full or partial refund. This won't be the case if you had a reasonable opportunity to examine it when buying and the fault was so obvious that you should have noticed it.
Whether you're entitled to a full refund depends on whether you've 'accepted' the phone.
The Sale of Goods Act states that you have a 'reasonable time' to examine goods after purchase before they're regarded as 'accepted' by you. It doesn't specifically state how long a 'reasonable time' is; it depends on factors such as how often you use the item, the type of fault (e.g. whether it's obvious or not) and whether you've continued to use the item despite knowing it has a fault.
If you've accepted the phone, you may be entitled to a repair or replacement. The seller is entitled to refuse either of these if the cost of doing so would be excessive in comparison to the alternative. Whatever solution is agreed, it shouldn't result in undue inconvenience to you.
If you've only had the phone a few weeks before a fault has arisen, you may be entitled to a refund (assuming that you didn't have a reasonable opportunity to examine it when buying and the fault wasn't so obvious that you should have noticed it). This will only be considered as long as the phone hasn't been accepted (see above).
Alternatively, you may request that the phone be repaired or replaced. If the fault is only minor and can easily be put right, it's reasonable to accept a repair. This repair should be completed to a satisfactory standard at no additional cost to you. If the repair isn't carried out to a satisfactory standard, you're entitled to seek a refund.
If you return the phone in the first 6 months from the date of purchase to request a repair or replacement, you don't have to prove that the phone was faulty at the time of sale. There is an assumption that the phone was faulty unless the seller can prove otherwise. If you opt for a refund rather than a repair or replacement, the onus will be on you to prove that the phone was faulty at the time of sale.
If you've had the phone longer than a few weeks or have had a reasonable opportunity to check it, you may be entitled to a repair or replacement. However, this will depend on the circumstances. A repair should be carried out within a reasonable period of time and without causing you significant inconvenience. Any repair should restore goods to a satisfactory condition.
If the phone can't be replaced or repaired economically, you're entitled to a refund. The seller can make a reduction from the price you paid to allow for the use you've had from the phone.
When you buy a phone that is faulty, you'll be entitled to a full refund so long as no more than 30 days have passed starting on the first day after all the below have happened:
You won't be entitled to this if you had a reasonable opportunity to examine the phone when buying it and the fault was so obvious that you should have noticed it or if the seller informed you of the fault before you bought it.
If you request the seller to repair or replace the phone within the 30-day period, then the 30-day time limit will be paused. Once this has been done, you will then have the remainder of the 30-day period or 7 days (depending on which one is longer) to check if the repair or replacement has been successful and decide whether to accept or reject it.
It'll be up to you to prove that there is something wrong with the phone if the seller doesn't accept this.
A refund must be given within 14 days of the seller agreeing that you are entitled to it.
If you don't want or aren't entitled to a refund you can request for the phone to be repaired or replaced without being charged for it so long as it won't cause you significant inconvenience.
The seller is entitled to refuse to carry out either of these options if the cost of doing so would be excessive in comparison to the alternative or if it would be impractical.
The item should be repaired or replaced within a reasonable time. A repair should be completed to a satisfactory standard and a replacement should be of satisfactory quality.
In the first 6 months from the date of purchase, when you return the phone to request a repair, replacement or refund, you don't have to prove that it was faulty at the time of sale. There is an assumption that the phone was faulty unless the seller is able to prove otherwise.
You'll be entitled to reject the phone and ask for a price reduction or refund if any of the below apply:
You'll be entitled to a price reduction or you can reject the phone, depending on whether you choose to keep it. If you choose to keep it, you can claim a reduction in price, which must be an amount appropriate to your circumstances and could be the whole price.
If you reject the phone then you should get a full or partial refund. This will depend on whether the seller will take any use of the item into account.
If you're out of pocket in any other way, you may be entitled to compensation over and above the price of the phone.
If the seller tries to deny their liability
If you're entitled to a refund, replacement, repair or compensation, it's the seller who must sort out your problem. The seller can't tell you to go back to the manufacturer.
When you buy a mobile phone, you'll need to be connected to a network.
See Telecommunication networks for more information on how to resolve any problems you might have with the network service provider.