Hi members I would like to ask for your opinion on an issue I have with a pair of COD black ops headset. To give you a bit of back ground to this issue I had purchased this headset back in Sept 10 around a month ago I was using this headset and when I finished I took these headsets off and heard a crack. It seems that a crack has formed in the plastic on both ears. I contacted Madcatz to get an RMA or repair for these. After conversations and me sending in some pic's I have been advised that they are refusing a repair or RMA as they do not feel this is anything to do with them. I guess from my standpoint is that these are a premium headset which cost me £180 now should I expect better quality and chase this or should I let it go ! Your thoughts please....
I'd pursue it, but not with Madcatz, unless you bought it off them directly? Got more legal clout with the retailer you bought them off and also your credit card company if you get no luck with retailer and assuming you used a credit card.
bloody hell how big is your head! on a serious note they look VERY cheap and nasty. And on another note you must have been mad to spend £180 on them when there is a raft of audiophile grade gear that would be better!
Wow 180 pounds i would Demand better quality, i would not class that as wear and tear but then again they can always say it was accidential damage cause by you not covered blah blah i'd still chase it but maybe the super glue may have to come out. Can i see a picture of the whole product
Physical damage is a tough one when it comes to RMA's. It's very difficult to prove that its a manufacturing fault or for you to prove that you did not accidentally drop them.... There is always contents insurance, if you have it?
I created a dedicated thread to help Bit-Tech users with problems like this, have a read... http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=217849
Under the Sale of Goods Act 1979, if a defect manifests before 6 months has expired from the date you bought the goods then there is an assumption the goods were defect when they were first bought. Things get a little more difficult after 6 months but I've successfully contested the quality of goods for a refund in the past. You just need to push and fight for your consumer rights.
Tbh from those pictures it looks like someone was attempting to open up the headphones and damaged them in the attempt. The first picture in particular seems to show the edge of the plastic being chipped away like someone was attempting to lever it open. You can try pursuing it through the retailer you purchased them from but you'd have to prove that the damage was caused by an inherent fault and wasn't something you did. I don't think you're going to be very successful tho if the damage on the headphones is as it appears in those photos.
It does look like there has been some considerable force applied to result in the damage. That's just a layman's opinion though.
Actually since it was only bought less than a couple of months ago it is the retailers responsibility to prove how the fault occurred. The customer is quite within their rights to claim a full refund or replacement/repair. Just check out the link in my signature for the legal speak. In this circumstance the Sale of Goods Act 1979 and Section 75 or Chargeback would be relevant articles to bring to bear.
I agree. There are some familiar marks on the plastic that is caused by forced dismantling. Good luck! I think you are going to struggle in this instance. Things like that don't just happen from normal use.
September 10 was over a year ago. Even if it had been bought in September 11 and been within the first six months of purchase I think the retailer would have good grounds to claim the damage had been self-inflicted judging from the marks on the plastic in the photos.
What year was it bought kelvinb? Assuming September 2010 then your last hope would be Section 75 if it was purchased on a credit card.
thanks for you comments all, these were bought in sept 2010 paid by visa debt card. As for the damage i think the damage was caused when I pulled them away from my ears to take them off. As you can imagine due to the cost of these I am very careful when using these so no force was really used. It seems that the bridge conneting the ear cups uses a T (imagine this upside down) and when this was pulled apart (as they are very tight fitting) this has pushed against the outside and caused the crack.
For me I would be happy in purchasing the replacement cover or paying for the repair just to settle this rather than throw away £180 worth of gear. I guess i would just expect a little more quality fot paying this amount of money
Sale of Goods Act 1979 is the only leverage you have and it'll be your responsibility to prove they were of inferior quality when bought.
Given the chips on the housing which are highly indicative of tampering or attempt to dismantle I can't see him being succesful tbh.
MadCatz isn't renown for quality products, based on my experience. They usually aren't terrible, but are low. I would classify your problem as probably manufacture error.. someone probably tight a screw too tightly, and with temperature change or something, the plastic expended and crack. But I can say, for the price you paid, most of the money was for the COD logo/name. As it is usually the case. It's always best to avoid product like these. I think you could have gotten MUCH better for your money by getting a proper headphone. It will be very hard to prove this. From the picture, without reading the text, I though you drop them or hit them hard. I would not be surprised that even if you get an RMA, you'll get them back as you sent them, with a letter saying that they don't cover accidental damages or something like that.
they probably thought you sat on them.. I would be suspicious with that too- unless the client came in all roid raged up, he wouldn't be getting a refund