An interesting 'official' post on the BT Community Forum regarding warranty on an eBay purchase. Fair comment to be honest.
"Basically the answer is that any warranty that a trader or manufacturer provides when selling to a customer in the course of their business, would not automatically pass to a third party if the original customer sells the item in a private auction.
Firstly, the statutory entitlement of quality and fitness for purpose only applies when buying from someone who is 'acting in the course of a business’ – such as BT. Customers do not have any legal recourse as regards quality where they are buying through an individual who is selling an item as a one-off private sale (although they must have legal title and it must be as described in the advert).
Secondly, when buying second hand, there is a general recognition in law that the reduced price the customer pays reflects the risk in taking ownership of something with a greater likelihood of developing faults or breaking down completely. The customer pays less because it is recognised that they will have to pay the repair costs themselves rather than relying on the trader's or manufacturer's warranty.
The only situation where this would not be the case is where the individual selling the item has obtained prior consent from the trader or manufacturer to assign the benefit of the contract with the original purchaser, to another party. We have no record of any such request in this case, and even if we had received a request, we would be unlikely to agree to it for the reasons detailed above.
If the item broke down shortly after it was sold, it is possible that the final customer may have a claim against the seller on the grounds that the seller should have known that the item was already faulty and so mis-described it, but that is a difficult one to prove.
I trust this answer your question."
