Faulty goods 30 day right to reject your tamper

The box looked fine until the parts bag had no bolts, the tamper felt nothing like the five kilograms in the title, or the head parted from the handle on the first afternoon on MOT Type 1. Faulty goods and the 30 day right to reject matter because an amazon.co.uk order still sits under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 when you buy as a consumer. Section 22 is the window where rejection and a full refund is the remedy, not a goodwill gesture.

The examples come from the earth rammer comparison: Harbour Housewares kits with missing fasteners, DFENG listings where reviewers weighed a tool far lighter than the claim, and Spear & Jackson reviews that describe snaps at the head. They show what not as described can look like. They are not a finding that every unit is faulty. This page is not legal advice. A qualifying purchase through our links, tag pcuk26-21, can earn a commission at no extra cost to you. The top pick, the Roughneck ROU64379, is on amazon.co.uk.

In short

Many consumer purchases give you 30 days from the day after delivery or installation to reject non-conforming goods for a refund. Section 20 requires that refund without undue delay and within 14 days once rejection is agreed, normally to the same payment method. After 30 days, section 23 puts repair or replacement at the trader's cost first, unless that is impossible or disproportionate. Missing bolts, a false weight, and a snap on first use are the patterns buyers raise. The marketplace order still binds the seller on the invoice.

The 30 days, and when they start

Section 22 ties the short-term right to a breach of contract. For goods the period is 30 days, unless a shorter period is agreed and is fair. The clock does not start when you click Buy Now. It starts the day after ownership passes to you, which on a home delivery is usually the day after the carrier records it. If the trader must install the goods, it begins the day after installation. Notes on section 22 on legislation.gov.uk also say time can pause while a repair attempt runs.

A shop return timer is a different document. For a tamper that arrives incomplete mid-week, ask whether you are still inside section 22, not whether a retail button is still green. Ownership still passes when you receive the goods if Amazon fulfilled the parcel. The trader is the business you contracted with, and this article does not guess that name. Count from delivery before you accept a partial refund or a repair that uses up the dry weather.

Section 9 covers satisfactory quality, fitness for purpose, and defects you were told about. Section 11 covers the description. You do not need those numbers in the message. You need a clear statement of the mismatch: wrong mass, missing parts, or failure on first reasonable use. Inside 30 days, section 22 lets you reject rather than take the seller's preferred remedy.

What not as described looks like on a tamper

Harbour Housewares tampers arrive as a three-piece iron head and tubular handle. UK reviewers report bolts missing from the bag, so the tool cannot be assembled as sold. A handle that loosens after an hour is a different problem, covered in the bolted tamper handle article. A kit without fasteners is not the product in the photograph. It breaches the description before you strike a blow.

DFENG listings in the same set show a specification weight of 2.1 kg while the marketing text implies a heavier tool. Reviewers say they weighed the tamper and rejected the heavier claim. A 5 kg class rammer for MOT Type 1 that weighs about half that may fail section 11. It is not the hardcore tool you contracted for. The earth rammer comparison lists specification weights from amazon.co.uk.

Spear & Jackson's ash-handled rammer avoids bolted joints, yet UK reviews describe the head connection failing early. Satisfactory quality is what a reasonable person would expect for the price and the description, not a laboratory test. A snap on a modest lift of hardcore is a photograph, not automatic proof. The seller may argue misuse. That is the dispute the short-term right is meant to settle quickly.

DFENG reviewers also measured a plate proud in the middle by about 1 to 2 mm. An uneven face can feel like a soft base. Document the gap with a straight edge before you blame the sub-base, which is the point of when a hand tamper is not enough. A sectional tamper that loosens after you retighten it, or regret at the cheapest 4 kg kit for a drive, is not section 22. The Act covers a tool that does not conform, not a job you under-specified.

How you reject

Say it clearly enough that a reasonable trader knows this is non-conformity, not a change of mind. Write through amazon.co.uk's message centre or the return flow that records dates. Name the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the fault: missing bolts, a weight mismatch, a snap, or a misdescription. Ask for a full refund, and for return postage if they want the tamper back.

Section 20 then requires a refund without undue delay and within 14 days of the trader agreeing you were entitled to reject, by the same payment method unless you agree otherwise. Keep the delivery confirmation, the listing text, the weigh-in photo, and the replies.

A replacement is not your only option inside the section 22 window. If you want the refund so you can buy the one-piece Roughneck ROU64379 at £45.99, say so while the short-term right applies. If the patio could not wait and you have already bought another, keep the receipt. This page does not cover consequential loss. Ask who funds carriage before you send a 5 kg head, and store the tamper out of the rain so a later crack is not blamed on you.

Repair or replacement after that

After the 30 days, section 23 lets you require repair or replacement at the trader's cost and within a reasonable time, unless that is impossible or disproportionate beside the value of conforming goods or a price reduction. Final rejection comes after those routes fail. The notes on section 22 say the short-term period pauses if the trader attempts a repair during it. Note the dates if they collect the tamper in week three and return it still loose two weeks later.

A missing Allen key is a sensible repair if the head and bolts are sound. A split tube or a crowned face is not. You may prefer a refund and a one-piece Roughneck to another sectional kit. A hand tamper versus plate hire budget is the practical plan while you wait. A partial refund after the window is negotiation, not a statutory cap. A few pounds on a tamper that never matched the listing does not restore a right you have already given up.

What this page will not decide for you

This article will not decide whether your order is a consumer contract, whether a business buyer has the same remedies, or whether the seller is insolvent. It will not treat a chargeback or Amazon's A-to-z Guarantee as a substitute for sections 20 and 22. It will not say you win because Harbour Housewares reviewers once missed bolts, or that every Spear & Jackson handle fails. The UK review text is an example buyers use, not a certificate.

For a binding answer, read sections 9, 11, 20, 22 and 23 on legislation.gov.uk, or take the order to Citizens Advice or a solicitor. Loose bolts on a complete kit are maintenance. A soft base after thin lifts may be the wrong tool for MOT Type 1, not a faulty one. The law gives you a calendar. It does not compact the heap.