Exchanging lightbulbs that clearly don't meet their lifetime use rating

Rikushix

So I'm a pretty big fan of efficient energy, and ignoring all those letters to the editor you see in the Vancouver Sun about how LED bulbs are nowhere near as efficient/long-lasting/safe as they're claimed to be, I bought a big Phillips 42W LED bulb for my upright lamp in the corner of my apartment. Last night I turned it on and it burned out.

I bought the bulb in September (from IKEA...I think). Supposedly these things last seven years; I don't use the lamp that much. Maybe two or three hours per night and that's only when I'm home in the evening. Considering they're like $20+ each I'm more than a little annoyed.

I'm pretty sure I don't have the receipt - though it might be buried somewhere. What's my route for exchanging the bulb? Do I contact Philips or IKEA, and would I need the receipt with either?

edit: the closest thing I can find to the bulb on Philips website is this one, which is just like mine except mine does not say "1CT" anywhere on the base, so I'm assuming for all intents and purposes they're the same bulb. I read "lasts 7 years" on a separate Philips page - this one says that it lasts 8000 hours. I've had mine for about 250 days and that's being generous, so it still clearly hasn't come anywhere near the lifetime of the bulb.

Didgeridoo

I would suggest contacting the manufacturer. Most stores only have a ninety-day exchange policy, so even if you found the receipt it wouldn't do you any good.

Philips is more likely to handle the problem. They'll probably just send you a replacement bulb (or a coupon for one)

Rikushix

Roger. I will give Philips an email/call.

And for the record I have tested both a) the LED bulb in another lamp and b) a working incandescent bulb in the original lamp, so I'm virtually certain it's the bulb and not the lamp.

HadjiQuest

I had this problem once as well, and I didn't do anything about it.

I'd be really curious to see if the Manufacturer gets back to you, and what the policy is. When it happened to me, I was only actually able to use the "7 year" bulb for 2-3 days (less than an hour each time) before it died.

Rikushix

We'll see if I actually call them.

I figured it out. What really happened is that my mother bought this bulb for me while she was out shopping in September; I paid her back. I still have the box the bulb came in, and she still has the receipt from Home Depot (not IKEA). The box explicitly says rated for 12,000 hours and lasts 7 years given 3-4 hours of use per day, 7 days a week.

I'm giving it back to her tomorrow and she says she'll go to Home Depot. She says she's taken LED bulbs that have burned out far quicker than normal before and they'll exchange it for a new one, even though it's well past the 90 day return date.

I know second-hand that Home Depot is one of those stores that totally bends over backwards for customers - at the detriment of their employees - but my mother is not the type to bitch out businesses until she gets what she wants. So it remains to be seen if this is actually the proper route to take if/when these kinds of things happen.

JAEF

I've always had the best luck with faulty products when dealing directly with manufacturers, even if they can take their time with product turnaround. It's their product, so there are fewer excuses to make (or overhead to consider, with retail stores) and they typically want to make good to maintain brand loyalty, as long as you're not trying to pull any bullshit (my 5 year old laptop took a swim! I demand billions!)

EggyToast

When I had CFLs burn out early (after about 6 months, leaving a great burnt plastic smell), I read some of the warranty details and found that I had to interact with the manufacturer, who asked me to pay return shipping both ways. Which ends up costing the same as simply buying another bulb in most cases, at least at the time. Now the bulbs are cheaper and shipping is more expensive.

If you can, try to deal with Home Depot first, and if you call the manufacturer, make sure you point out that you're very disappointed that they're selling a faulty product. Say that you'd understand if the product got more dim over time, or if after a couple years it died, but about 8 months of very light use? But try it with HD first.