My neighbour broke my lawn mower can I make him pay for the repair? DEAN DUNHAM replies

My next-door neighbour borrowed my lawn mower and broke it. He says the mower was old and it wasn’t his fault. 

I want him to pay for its repair – what are my rights? K.S

Under English law, when you borrow goods, you generally have four basic obligations to the lender.

1) You must take reasonable care of the borrowed goods. This means using them in a way that avoids damage and returning them in the same condition that you received the goods – except for normal wear and tear;

2) If the goods are damaged while in your possession, you are typically responsible for repairing or replacing them – unless, however, the damage was due to factors beyond your control;

3) You must return the goods at the agreed time. If no specific time was agreed upon, you should return them within a reasonable period;

4) You must only use the goods for their intended purpose and not misuse them.

Dean Dunham advises trying to resolve an issue with neighbours by discussing the problem with them before taking legal action

So, the legal answer to your question is if you can prove the damage was not as a result of general wear and tear, you will be entitled to demand that the repair costs be paid. 

The age and condition of the mower will be a big factor with this, as it will be harder to prove your neighbour was to blame if it is indeed old or worn out.

However, here we are talking about a dispute with your neighbour, so a much more cautious and light approach should be taken. I always advise that you try to resolve an issue with neighbours amicably by discussing the problem and trying to reach a consensus. If this does not work, you could look to see if your home insurance policy will cover the cost of the repair.

If all else fails, you could take the matter to the small claims court, but this is the absolute last resort and is a course of action that I would not advise in your circumstances.

I assume the cost of the repair will not be significant, which means the negative impact of falling out with your neighbour will greatly outweigh the gain of obtaining a court judgment in your favour.

My washing machine has broken down after seven months, but the manufacturer won’t help as it says I did not register my warranty – can it do this?

E.M., via email.

Manufacturers can decide on the terms of their warranties, and consumers do not enjoy an automatic right to a warranty under consumer laws. So long as the terms of a warranty are fair and clearly communicated to the consumer before they buy the item, they are binding.

Nearly all white goods manufacturers require the consumer to call a number or send another form of communication to register their warranty, and this stipulation is usually displayed on a prominent sticker on the actual goods. If this is the case here, your manufacturer is within its rights to refuse to help you.

However, the good news is that the warranty does not really matter. This is because the Consumer Rights Act says that if there is a manufacturing fault with goods (which means the consumer did not cause the problem by misuse and it was not due to wear and tear), they are entitled to a remedy. Here, that would typically be a free repair or replacement.

You can exercise this right under the Consumer Rights Act for six years from the date of purchase. So you do have rights in the case of your broken washing machine, but there are two key points for you to know. Firstly, the retailer you purchased the machine from has an obligation to help you here – not the manufacturer.

Secondly, when you complain about goods and more than six months has elapsed since the date of purchase, it is for you as the consumer to prove that the goods are faulty.

Usually, the retailer will send an engineer to your property to make an assessment. If they refused to do this, you would have to organise for a local engineer to inspect the goods and confirm that the problem is indeed down to a manufacturing fault.