PH wrote:Normally it would be the retailer's obligation to put the defect right for their customer, replacing something that is such a bad match isn't doing that. However it's complicated by you not being the original purchaser, I can understand the manufacturer not wanting you riding round on a faulty product but I don't know what obligation they have to you. I'd go back to the shop and say you're not satisfied, see what they say.
It's not the retailer's obligation. It is the manufacturer's.
A manufacturer that manufacturers faulty goods for sale in the UK is responsible to repair or replace them, independent of the retailer, numbers of consumers who have purchased and used an item, or whether distribution was via 50 other countries.
When manufacturers issue product recall notices they are required to provide the distribution chain with notifications of the recall, state what the risk is to consumers, and arrange for the collection, repair, replacement, etc of faulty goods. No sales contract or proof of purchase is required.
The collection, repair replacement, etc. is *typically* through the retailers who sell the product, but it doesn't have to be, and that the retailer has sold something faulty does not create any obligation for the retailer unless they are negligent (e.g. re-sell goods that have been returned as faulty, sell a product that they have been informed is subject to recall, etc.)
That said, the manufacturers with the best reputations have reasonable control over the distribution and sales of their products, and use their retailers to help them inform customers, replace faulty products, etc.
Second and third hand sales make it harder for them to inform consumers that a part or product requires repair or replacement.
One reason to register a product, even if it is purchased used, is to be informed directly of product recalls and (sometimes) service bulletins.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom