It was established during the legal processes of the "Young Barristers" group that the firm selling German brand "Knauf" products on the Georgian market sold low-quality items and treated customers unjustly. Due to the citizen's concealment of the client's accusations and his own activities, the Georgian company sued him. The litigation was unsuccessful, and the customer was able to establish that low-quality items were really sold under the name.
According to the case papers cited by "Young Barristers," the consumer acquired items from the firm on November 28, 2020, totaling 2,890 GEL in value. A total of 25 bags of Turkish-produced KNAUF K1 glue-cement were paid for, totaling 337.5 GEL. The consumer complained to the business on December 18, 2020, claiming that the artisan he hired to build the floor had used glue-cement "KNAUF K1" that he had ordered. He said that the weak glue-cement used to install the ceramic tile was the reason it lost its tensile strength and failed to adhere to the floor. The consumer asked the business to make good on the loss and provided a computation indicating that a total of 6,448 GEL needed to be refunded. A list of the materials used and those that would be used again was included, and a computation was made to determine the cost of laying the ceramic tile as well as the cost of removing it and re-laying it.
The business requested one bag of glue-cement from the client and informed the citizen that it would inspect the listed items for quality control. The client requested prompt payment for the damage since the new year was quickly coming and he wanted the repair work to be finished on schedule and the money given to the artisan. The customer said he could not wait for the findings of the research on the appropriateness of the glue-cement. While the firm complied with the customer's request, it did retain the right to seek a refund of the paid money and incurred expenditures if the glue-cement was determined to be appropriate as a result of the test.
The case documents show that 23 bags of the 25 bags of glue-cement that were ordered were used. According to the citizen, the glue-cement "KNAUF K1" that the firm gave the expert was not from the batch that was ordered since the client had not requested it. As a result, the business gave the expert another glue-cement in its possession, likely of acceptable grade, called "KNAUF K1." and the quality was greeted with approval. In response, the client also submitted an application to the professional bureau for the report-writing process. It is proven that the sample of the identical glue-cement "KNAUF K1" given by the client from the bought batch is examined objectively by the same specialists and the same expert bureau, and that its quality does not meet set requirements.
The Georgian firm claimed that it sells the goods of the "KNAUF" company directly and that it acts as the company's representative in the market when speaking about the quality of the construction and repair materials that are being offered for sale. The consumer didn't utilize the items from the aforementioned firm for the first time exactly because of the factor of faith in the quality mark. As a result, there was a sense of initial trust and comfort that the contested products were high-quality goods. Granted this reality, the business filed a lawsuit with the court and sought to be paid the 6,448 GEL given as a customer advance. The citizen reacted by providing qualified justification and supporting the claim's exclusion.
The Georgian company also submitted to the court the rules of storage and use explained by the company "Koksal Kardeshler" (supplier of KNAUF K1 from Turkey), according to which glue-cement bags should be stored horizontally on a surface, such as on wooden shelves, and kept dry so that they do not come into contact with water, partially Opened and/or damaged bags cannot be used. The shelf life of the product is 12 months. Probably, it was after this storage period that the company sold low-quality products.
The court did not agree with the claimant firm's assertion that the sold items were perfect and the company paid the sum to the citizen without obligation based on established factual circumstances, submitted evidence, and witness testimony. The glue-cement in question does not comply with the criteria of the EN 12004 standard for test class C1 and is thus unfit for use, according to the expert opinion provided by the National Bureau of Forensic Expertise named after SSP Levan Samkharauli on April 16, 2021.
For information, the business has been active in the market since 2011. The incident took place in Kutaisi. Under the direction of Judge Darina Abuladze, the civil affairs panel of the Kutaisi City Court decided the matter. The "Young Lawyers" organization's leader, Archil Kaikatsishvili, expressed the user's interests.
