Hi-Fi Corp has zero respect for the Consumer Protection Act

On 14 September 2023 I bought an HP 15s i5 1155G7 8GB Ram 512Gb SSD laptop from HiFi Corp (Greenacres). On the 7th of November (less than 8 weeks later), the battery failed and suddenly did not want to recharge. The next day I logged a repair with HP. Since HP does not have a repair center for these type of laptops, they have outsourced it to Ensure. It took them more than 5 weeks to replace the battery, and I received the laptop back on the 14th of December. I later learned that the Ensure repair center is in Saudi Arabia...

Less than 3 weeks later it would fail to connect to the internet after waking from sleep-mode, on some days numerous times. At these times there will be no wi-fi connections available, as if the wireless adapter was missing. The only way to fix the problem would then be to restart the laptop.

The manager at Hi-Fi Corp Greenacres told me that they do not have a technician on site, and would need to send it to the repair center again. I told her that I bought the laptop for my business and cannot be without the laptop (again) for the minimum of 3 weeks she asked it for. I suggested that I will take it to a reputable technology company in PE for an assessment, which I did. This company confirmed that there was a problem with the wireless adapter, and that it might have been damaged when opened to replace the battery. [I also have had trouble with trying to connect an iris camera to this laptop - so there are more faults with it.]

I shared with her that the CPA clearly states under point 56 (3) that: "If a supplier repairs any particular goods or any component of any such goods, and within three months after that repair, the failure, defect or unsafe feature has not been remedied, or a further failure, defect or unsafe feature is discovered, the supplier must: (a) replace the goods; or (b) refund to the consumer the price paid by the consumer for the goods.

It is now 11 months later, and Hi-Fi Corp has refused to adhere to the CPA. I have logged my case with the CGSO (Ombudsman), who were unable to resolve it. I then registered a complaint with the NCC on 3 June. It has been 5 months now, and they have not lifted a finger to implement the CPA. I am left to assume that there might be some sort of under the table agreement between Hi-Fi Corp (part of the JD CONSUMER ELECTRONICS AND APPLIANCES group) and the NCC.

The bottom line is that I am stuck with a laptop which had two faults within 4 months from the purchase date, and the supplier (Hi-Fi Corp) has been ******** of their legal obligation to refund me for this product. People should know that at this store the guarantees offered are not protected by the Consumer Protection Act, as Hi-Fi Corp has no respect for the law.