This is how the Hungarian warranty rule changes in 2021

According to an amendment to the regulation adopted in the summer, the warranty for durable consumer goods sold in Hungary changed significantly after the 1st of January.

Anyone who bought a high-end Apple iPhone in Hungary before December 31 could count on the previously standard 1-year (mandatory) warranty. After January 1, 2021, the dealer will probably get a three-year warranty for the same product. All this is due to the double amendment of the decree, which in several respects transforms the legal institution of the guarantee, which is considered to be an absolute Hungaricum, writes hwsw.hu.

The changes in the legislation mainly affect the companies selling the products as a guarantor. Still, most manufacturers voluntarily adjust to the Hungarian legal conditions, especially for the limit value-based warranty period from January 1, which provides the consumer with a unique warranty period of up three years.

The most important changes are summarised below by the consumer protection consulting company Cp Contact:

• The warranty will be banded; instead of the previous mandatory 1 year, a 1, 2, 3 year warranty must be calculated depending on the product’s value (between 1,000-100,000 HUF, between 100,000-250,000 HUF, or over 250 thousand HUF). This change does not affect the mandatory warranty rules set out in other legislation (housing warranty, warranty for repair and maintenance services).
• It is not possible to pull indefinitely to repair defective products. After a maximum of 30 days, the replacement will be mandatory (with an 8-day deadline). If the product cannot be repaired, it must be replaced within 8 days. Several deadlines will change; it will be scarce for companies that have carried out all repairs/inspections on-site with external companies.
• The content of the warranty card will be clarified (due to changes in the rules this will have to be touched on anyway); there will be an electronic warranty card.
• New products have been included in the mandatory warranty (hoverboard, drone, doors, windows, bathtubs, shower enclosures, etc.).
• The legislator clarifies when and how the repair service must notify the dealer.
• If the repair exceeds the 15-day deadline, the trader will be obliged to notify the consumer of the exact deadline for the repair.
• If the company requests an expert opinion to decide the error’s origin, the specialist opinion’s mandatory content cannot be deviated from.

An important aspect – presumably both traders and manufacturers will put more emphasis on this in the future – is that the trader is only obliged to provide a guarantee based on business to consumer contracts if an invoice is issued to a company or organisation a given legal entity is not entitled to use the services under warranty (it may, however, enforce, warranty rights).

The situation is quite unique in case of high-value IT equipment, as there are typically business solutions (for example Lenovo ThinkPad or Dell Latitude notebooks, various network devices, servers, etc.), for which the manufacturer has so far mostly given a three-year warranty, mainly with an on-site repair or on-site repair option. Besides, support for most business products can be extended to additional years, so up to 5 or more years of warranty (strictly speaking, this is not a warranty) can apply to that product.

Solutions for the consumer segment have so far mostly been sold by dealers with a one or 1+1 year warranty, with a statutory warranty in the first year and a so-called “manufacturer’s voluntary warranty” in the following year, which usually corresponds to a simplified warranty often under special conditions specified by the manufacturer, such as product replacement, the warranty period may not have resumed.

From January 1, this will also change, meaning that someone who replaces their expensive smartphone after two and a half years, for example, can expect to be guaranteed for another three years.

The new warranty rules are unlikely to have a greater or lesser effect on certain market processes and prices, so traders will, for example, have an interest in not exceeding the gross purchase price threshold of HUF 250,000 (€ 700) possible where the price of the product is already at this level.

Besides, especially for expensive products, the dealer will be interested in repairing the defective product or having it fixed by a service partner all as soon as possible, but no later than within 30 days. The additional costs incurred in this regard will be borne by the trader or passed on to the consumer. Still, the extremely fierce price competition in the IT products segment is unlikely to leave much room for manoeuvre for market players in this area.

Based on this, the new warranty rules will put more pressure on traders, which experts say could lead to favourable market developments. Still, they will undoubtedly benefit the consumer, who may have significant additional rights against the trader in the event of unsatisfactory performance.

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Source: hwsw.hu