CONSUMER ADVICE AT ONSEN®

Take advantage of our knowledge in dealing with dishonest mattress sellers!
Read our examples and learn how to return a product if it doesn't meet the agreement.

ONSEN® is not only the producer of the most functional memory foam mattress on the Polish market but also the best orthopedic pillows and other products that serve your health. The primary goal of the ONSEN® brand is always education, with the result being the increased consumer awareness of Poles and Europeans.

Our dream is to provide reasonable people with reliable knowledge to overthrow the status quo. Thinking differently, together with them, we create a new reality based on functional and unparalleled products. This also includes providing free legal advice regarding consumer rights related to mattress and other product purchases. We have become a kind of consumer rights advocate, mainly for mattress customers.

In the majority of cases, the telephone advice we provide has immediate effects. Consumers use the legal arguments we suggest in their fights against dishonest sellers, allowing them to win disputes in a very short time. Some cases require greater involvement on our part. These are the cases we publish below.

If your situation is similar to any of these, do not hesitate to use the information provided below in your fight for your rights. However, if you believe that your case is different and requires our involvement, please contact us. We will objectively assess it and attempt to find a solution that satisfies you.

Non-conformity of the mattress with the contract

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This concerns a consumer who purchased a mattress from a brick-and-mortar store. It turned out to be non-compliant with the agreement and had defects that rendered it unfit for use. She was refused a return, with the suggestion that purchases made in physical stores are not eligible for returns. It was also suggested that there were biological traces on the mattress.

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What happened?
In July 2023, we received a message from a consumer in Małopolska. She informed us that a few months earlier, she had visited one of the physical mattress stores to choose a mattress for herself. She informed the salesperson that she had a warm bedroom and was looking for a mattress that would not radiate heat but would provide perfect air circulation.

The consumer indicated that she was looking for a mattress without memory foam due to concerns about heat retention. She was offered a mattress from one of the leading international companies, which was supposed to provide excellent air circulation and did not contain memory foam.

The salesperson did not provide her with information about the parameters of polyurethane foams used to build this mattress, using their trade names. However, he repeatedly assured her that heat would not be reflected on this mattress, and its firmness would be suitable for her. Based on this, she decided to purchase the recommended mattress, paying the requested amount and setting the delivery date.

After receiving the mattress, the consumer placed it on her bed. After about 20 minutes, she noticed that it started to sag and radiate heat towards her. This caused her body to overheat. She then cooled the bedroom, but it had no effect because the mattress reflected body heat.

The consumer packed the mattress back into the box and the next day tried to return it to the store. However, she was refused, and it was argued that the construction of the product was supposedly based on American patents confirming its quality. Moreover, she was informed that she could not, under any circumstances, return a mattress purchased in a physical store. It was also stated that her genetic material must be on the mattress, according to the seller's assessment.

The consumer was left with a mattress wrapped in plastic and cardboard that she could not use. After several weeks of increasing frustration, she turned to us for legal assistance in returning the mattress that did not comply with the agreement. During this time, she noticed that the parameters of the mattress declared by the manufacturer differed from the actual ones.

What did we advise?
After receiving the necessary information from the consumer, including proof of purchase and the evidence she had, we proceeded with a legal analysis. We also checked whether the seller and the manufacturer included the required parameters of the mattresses in their offers. We then prepared a professional set of information to help the consumer fight the dishonest seller.

It turned out that the construction and functionality of the mattress significantly deviated from the information provided to the consumer. Both the seller and the mattress manufacturer posted unreliable descriptions of the materials used to build it on their websites. They used proprietary names for polyurethane foams, which had no connection to the widely used technical symbols worldwide. Additionally, the technical parameters of the materials used differed from those declared in the offer.

We informed the consumer that polyurethane foams are always marked by their manufacturers in the same way. The full foam parameter must consist of a letter designation (V, T, or HR) followed by a sequence of four digits, where the first two indicate density in kg/m³, and the next two indicate hardness in kPa. A sequence of five digits is also allowed in the case where hardness is specified in N.

The failure to specify the specific parameters of polyurethane foams must be understood as a deliberate attempt to mislead and confuse the consumer, as well as a violation of Article 25 of the Unfair Competition Act by not indicating essential product characteristics, thus acting to the detriment of the consumer.

We also pointed out that according to Article 546(1) of the Civil Code, the seller is obliged to provide the buyer with the necessary explanations about legal and factual relationships concerning the item before concluding the contract. Failure to provide information about the complete parameters of polyurethane foams that make up the core of the purchased mattress constitutes a breach of this obligation.

We emphasized that according to Article 546(1) §1 of the Civil Code, if the buyer is a consumer, the seller is obliged to provide clear, understandable, and non-misleading information in Polish before concluding the contract, sufficient for the correct and complete use of the item sold. The consumer was not provided with clear, truthful information during the sales process, and the true properties of the mattress and its composition were concealed.

We also stated that according to Article 546(1) §3 of the Civil Code, the seller is obliged to ensure the availability of appropriate technical and organizational conditions for selecting the item sold and checking its quality, completeness, and the functioning of its main mechanisms and basic components at the sales location. The seller did not provide the consumer with the opportunity to test the quality and functionality of the mattress in conditions even remotely close to natural ones. This was due to the fact that testing the mattress in the store took place for a short time and required the consumer to have full awareness and control over body movements, which is not the case when sleeping. The conditions in the mattress store also did not correspond to the microclimate in the bedroom.

We have also informed that according to Article 556 of the Civil Code, the seller is responsible towards the buyer if the sold item has a defect (warranty). At the same time, Article 556(1) of the Civil Code indicates that a defect consists of non-conformity of the sold item with the contract, specifying an open catalog of such defects. This catalog is defined in Article 556(1) points 1-4 of the Civil Code and relates to situations where the sold item:

lacks properties that such an item should have due to the purpose specified in the contract or resulting from circumstances or destination;
lacks properties that the seller assured the buyer of, including presenting a sample or pattern;
is not suitable for the purpose that the buyer informed the seller of when concluding the contract;
and the seller did not raise any objections regarding such a purpose;
was delivered to the buyer in an incomplete condition.

The mattress sold to the consumer did not have the properties that were implied during the sales process. It also lacked the properties that were explicitly assured to the buyer, especially in terms of not providing air circulation and likely having memory foam. It was also unsuitable for the purpose the consumer informed the seller of when making the contract, as it did not provide the promised functionalities.

Furthermore, it should be noted that the product does not conform to the contract based on Article 43b(1) points 1-2 of the Consumer Rights Act because its description, quality, and functionality significantly deviate from what was determined during the negotiations. Moreover, it is not suitable for a specific purpose, which is to ensure air circulation and prevent heating during sleep, as the consumer informed the seller before the contract was concluded, and the seller accepted this information.

The mattress purchased by the consumer also does not meet the conditions specified in Article 43b(2) points 1-4 of the Consumer Rights Act, which the consumer has also demonstrated. Importantly, the non-conformity of the mattress with the contract was deliberately concealed, indicating the seller's bad faith.

According to Article 556(2) of the Civil Code, if the buyer is a consumer and the defect is discovered within one year from the date of delivery of the sold item, it is presumed that the defect or its cause existed at the time when the risk passed to the buyer. At the same time, in accordance with Article 43c of the Consumer Rights Act, the trader is liable for non-conformity of the product with the contract existing at the time of its delivery and revealed within two years from that time, unless the period of usability of the product, determined by the trader, its legal predecessors, or persons acting on their behalf, is longer.

It is presumed that the lack of conformity of the product with the contract, which became apparent within two years from the delivery of the product, existed at the time of its delivery unless proven otherwise or unless such presumption is inconsistent with the nature of the product or the nature of the lack of conformity of the product with the contract. The consumer discovered the defect immediately after receiving the mattress and testing it in natural conditions, informing the seller the following day, immediately after the seller opened the sales salon.

It is also impossible to argue that the mattress cannot be returned due to the alleged presence of the consumer's genetic traces on it. It should be noted that the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union in case C-681/17 directly states that the return of a purchased mattress is allowed even if it has been removed from its packaging. In the reasoning of the judgment, the Court of Justice of the European Union pointed out that potential use of the returned mattress does not render it unsuitable for further use. As an example, it mentioned hotels where the same mattresses serve various customers over the years. Furthermore, it noted that there are techniques that allow the mattress to be cleaned so that its resale does not pose any health or hygiene risks. In the assessment of the Court, a mattress is a product similar to clothing. To assess its specific functionalities accurately and, consequently, to evaluate its features correctly, the consumer must unpack it. It is impossible to determine its properties through the foil or other packaging. From a logical standpoint, this would be entirely absurd.

The consumer has submitted a statement of withdrawal from the contract due to the above. She has demanded a refund of the full price of the mattress along with statutory interest. She has also requested the collection of the defective product because the mattress's dimensions make it excessively difficult to deliver to the location specified in the sales contract, which, in accordance with Article 561(2) §2 of the Civil Code, allows her to make it available for collection at her place of residence.

Are you in a similar situation? Use this information in your fight against an unscrupulous seller!

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