Q: Evaluate whether the law relating to the remedies for defective goods can be considered satisfactory.
In this essay I will outline the remedies available in cases of defective goods from the Sale of Goods Act 1979 and the criteria that constitutes a material breach. I will then go on to outline the other remedies available in supply of goods cases such as hire purchase and hire etc., using the Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act 1973 and the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. After discussing all the remedies available, I will then evaluate the adequacy of the law relating to these remedies through case examples and decide whether this law can be considered satisfactory.
The remedies that a consumer can have, in Scotland, for defective good are outlined in section 15B of the Sale of Goods Act 1979. This section states that if the seller is in breach of the contract of sale then the buyer’s remedies will be an entitlement “to claim damages and if the breach is material, to reject any goods delivered under the contract and treat it as repudiated.” This means that the buyer can claim compensation for any damage or loss that may have been incurred by the breach of the seller. Also, if the breach is material, meaning there was an express breach of the contract or any implied breach breach under ss. 13 – 14 of the act, then the goods can be rejected and the contract can be repudiated, meaning there is a denial of the existence of any contract the consumer will not perform their previous contractual obligation.
S.15B (2) also says that when ‘a contract of sale is a consumer contract’ then any term breached, express or implied, will be seen as material. As long as the express or implied term that has been breached relates to the fitness for purpose or the quality of goods, the goods consistency with their description and if a sample has been