Hi fellow Ozbargainers! I need the assistance of this knowledgeable and experienced community.
Purchased a new mattress April 2018. This year mattress started forming impressions under the body, becoming more sizeable. They now exceed 40mm (which is the acceptable threshold according to the manufacturer warranty). Currently sitting at about 48 mm. Both of us are a healthy 75kg, so weight is not an issue. The slumps are obviously annoying after a bit more than a year of use (I should add we were away on our honeymoon for two months). The unevenness of the mattress is making it uncomfortable. Kind of pointless for a bed, am I right?
Contacted retailer, Harvey Norman, for a replacement. I was told that I have to accept a free manufacturer repair per warranty as the defect is 'minor' according to HN. The manufacturer sent an inspector who confirmed the mattress exceeds the tolerance for body impressions - they did not comment on whether defect is major or minor, but said mattress would need to be picked up and inspected at factory, and then repaired.
I find this whole procedure ridiculous. The mattress is less than two years old, cost 3000 dollars and has a 10 year warranty. I do not want a temporary replacement mattress from god knows where while they repair it (my wife is pregnant in her third trimester), they could not pick the mattress up until two weeks after initial in home inspection, and the whole process seems like a big waste of time for me as I have to be home during business hours for inspections, pickups etc. I just wanted a replacement. I pointed out to HN that the mattress is not of acceptable quality per Aus Consumer Law, and I would not have bought it had I known of this. The sales rep didn't even tell me to expect the mattress to have impressions to 40mm as 'acceptable'.
I have contacted Fair Trading, who have not yet got back to me after speaking to HN. Can anyone advise on fastest/best ways forward? Should I just go straight to NCAT? Now I just want a refund and to move on from HN!
You can go down the Fair Trading track however this will take much longer than just having the manufacturer pick up the bed for repair, plus there is the possibility that Fair Trading may advise that the manufacturer are within their rights to pick up and repair whilst providing a replacement (and this seems reasonable to me). If you don't have a specific replacement warranty then I would say you are SOL.