Originally Posted by
u2112
... unfortunately - no.
Why? As you correctly stated, you are "entitled to have the goods brought back into conformity." And the EU directive, as well as the corresponding German law (§ 439 (1) BGB) offers two options for this procedure ("Nacherfüllung"), namely repair ("Nachbesserung") or replacement ("Ersatzlieferung"). However, while you as the buyer have the right to ask for a specific way, the seller can refute this according to (§ 439 (3) 1 BGB) if (non verbal translation) "the cost for the requested option are unreasonable". Now, what is "unreasonable"? The textbook example is: "buyer purchases new car, bulb of left headlight fails on Day 1 - buyer comes back and requests a new car." Obviously, it is not so simple in real life.
A few simple rules:
- if the repair costs more than the new product => replacement or money back, not entitled for a repair
- if the repair costs a small fraction of the new product => repair, not entitled for a replacement
- if the repair (or replacement) takes significantly longer than the replacement (repair) => time-saving option, unless the buyer agrees to wait
Thus, it is likely that the dealer would deny a request for a full replacement and prefer going for the repair route. Usually (and depending on the value of the good), the seller has one or two attempts for a repair until an automatic right for replacement or full refund kicks in.
What could be maybe more promising (from a legal perspective): If you did not buy the watch in person in the store, you have the right to cancel the purchase (and send back the item) for at least 2 weeks following the purchase. Some dealers extend this to 30 days or four weeks - if I got it right, this two week window is already over - but maybe your dealer has an extended time period in his terms and conditions. Another thing is that the seller is required to specifically inform you about your right to cancel. If, for example, you have called the dealer by phone and afterwards received an email with the purchase confirmation / invoice, this email must also contain specific information on this. Alternatively, the same could be provided as a print-out accompanying the parcel with the watch. If they did not provide such information, you may be entitled to send the watch back for a full refund. Please note, that if either the website was available in English and/or the communication with you was done in English (i.e., they cannot reasonably expect that you understand German), they also have to provide this information on cancellation and returns in English - if they didn't, the 2 week period for cancellation has not even started...
Cheers,
Christian
P.S.: All this legal stuff aside, I would always recommend a "friendly" approach first - as this is usually time saving and less costly. But knowing the options is never wrong...