I robot is not fine now, and for the owners of the company’s Roomba vacuum cleaners, it can be a worse thing. The lawyer tells what the rights of a Finnish consumer are if the worst happens.
According to a Finnish lawyer, it may be impossible for a consumer to minimize all risks in electronics shopping. However, a credit card is one good tool. Adobe Stock / AOP
- The popular robotic vacuum cleaner Irobot is in the economic selection despite the new collection.
- If the company crashes, it may also affect the operation of the equipment sold.
- The Finnish lawyer recommends consumers to minimize risks by using a credit card.
Known for its Roomba robot vacuum cleaners, the US-based Irobot is in the grip. As the EU authorities have been tormented, Amazon’s intentions to buy Irobot, among other things, has reduced more than half of their employees.
Since then, the situation has become so bad that the company’s leadership has said frankly that Irobot may not survive even the next 12 months. Things can be considered to have turned relatively fast, as 10 years ago, the market share of Roomba vacuum cleaners was a whopping 35 percent. Tens of millions of them have been sold over decades.
The fear of the EU Commission was, among other things, that Amazon could favor Roomba vacuum cleaners in his online store at the expense of competitors. The $ 1.4 billion store never came to fruition and the soup was ready.
The plight of the irobot has naturally raised the question of whether the consumer comparing robotic vacuum cleaners ends up in Roomba, who recently introduced as many as eight completely new models.
US technology publication Zdnet Tells you what all the Romba owners should be prepared for if IROBOT went bust and there is no successor to operate. Although this scenario is unlikely in the near future, it is good to be aware of the risks before investing hundreds of euros in a new robotic vacuum cleaner.
What would happen to sold vacuum cleaners?
If the Irobot stopped being one day and put the tag on the door, the vacuum cleaners would continue to operate, but limited. Customer service and software updates would cease, as would all the functions that require connection to Irobot servers.
Even if the vacuum cleaner could still be controlled through the Irobot application, for example, bugs or security openings could not be repaired.
The availability of official spare parts would be reduced at first and eventually ended. However, many are already buying unofficial spare parts from third parties, so the effect would not be great.
Right to a price reduction or even to the deregulation
Lawyer Timo Niemi says Iltalehti that the Consumer Protection Act does not take a stand on whether the seller should tell the buyer about the financial problems of Irobot.
– In principle, one could rely on the general contract law loyalty principle, but it is very open to interpretation, says Niemi.
“If we were to decide that, on the basis of the principle of loyalty, the buyer should have been told about the difficulties of the irobot, the consumer could be entitled to compensation from the seller for his potential financial injury,” he explains.
According to Niemi, the elimination of upgrading is a defect in the legislation, at least if the updates are relevant to the usability or security of the device.
– Depending on the importance of the error, the consumer is entitled to either deregulation or price reduction. The seller of the device is responsible for these. That is, if the updates stop, the buyer should consult the seller.
Niemi previously stated in our Chromecast story that the time to purchase the device is essential when considering the defect. Depending on the price, the life of electronics is 4-5 years in the Consumer Disputes Board.
Do you dare to buy Roomban?
According to Niemi, the ordinary consumer has little opportunity to avoid all risks in electronics shopping.
– Risks can be reduced by the fact that when purchasing an expensive device, especially when purchasing an expensive device, the consumer is looking for information about the manufacturer’s financial situation, but in practice this is difficult or even impossible.
However, in many cases, one payment method is particularly useful from the point of view of minimizing risks.
– It is much easier to prepare for the seller’s financial difficulties and bankruptcy by paying their purchases with a credit card, Niemi says.
If the purchase has been paid on a credit – for example with a credit card – the lender is responsible for the seller’s breach of contract. Indeed, the consumer may, by law, claim compensation from a credit company if the seller does not deliver the purchase or the product is liable for the seller.