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Defective goods / services and consumer rights

Consumers' rights against defective products or services they purchase are protected by the Law No. 6502 on the Protection of Consumers. Let's first look at what is meant by consumer.

Consumer; It refers to the "natural or legal person who purchases a good or service for private purposes and finally uses or consumes it". Accordingly, the goods or services must be purchased for "special purposes". In other words, in the case of goods or services purchased for commercial purposes, the person cannot be considered as a consumer. In addition, a person cannot be called a consumer in goods purchased for agricultural activities.

For example, if a farmer buys a tractor, the farmer cannot be called a consumer. Because the tractor was not purchased privately, it was bought to engage in agricultural activities and to generate income. On the other hand, a person who buys a private car for him will be called a consumer because he buys this car for private purposes. In order to use the optional rights listed below, it is necessary to enter the concept of consumer first.

What should be asked later is what is meant by defective goods and defective services?

  • Defective goods are goods that are in violation of the contract due to the fact that they do not conform to the sample or model agreed by the parties or do not have the characteristics that they should objectively have at the time of delivery to the consumer.

  • A defective service is a service that is contrary to the contract because it does not start within the period specified in the contract or does not have the characteristics agreed by the parties and objectively required.

The consumer has 4 optional rights after the defective goods purchased. In this case, the consumer;

  1. Declining from the contract by declaring that it is ready to return the sold,

  2. Retaining the sold and asking for a discount from the sales price at the rate of defects,

  3. If it does not require an excessive expense, to request free repair of the sold, at the expense of the seller,

  4. If there is a possibility, to ask for the sale to be replaced with an equal number without defects,

The consumer has 3 optional rights after the defective service purchased. In this case, the consumer;

  1. Re-seeing the service

  2. Free repair of the work resulting from the service

  3. Discount or withdrawal from the contract at the rate of defects

The seller, the manufacturer and the importer are jointly responsible for the fulfillment of these rights. The seller is obliged to fulfill the consumer's preferred request. In addition to one of these optional rights, the consumer also has the right to demand compensation from the manufacturer-producer in cases that cause death and / or injury caused by defective goods and / or cause damage to other goods in use. Defects occurring within six months from the date of delivery are deemed to exist on the date of delivery. In this case, the proof that the product is not defective belongs to the seller.

So how will these rights be used? If we inform the seller that we are exercising one of these rights in daily life, the response we usually get is negative. Therefore, in order to use these rights, according to the value of the good or service, the consumer;

  1. District Consumer Arbitration Board (4.750TL and below)

  2. Provincial Consumer Arbitration Committee (between 4.750 TL - 6.860 TL)

  3. Will be able to apply to the Consumer Court (6.860 TL and above). (As of 2018)

With the help of Bursa Consumer Advocate Burak GÜNEŞ, you can open your case without any problems.

Av.Brak Güneş

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