Consider the following scenario:
I purchase a power tool for several hundred dollars from a dealer, using my credit card.. The item has a 3-year warranty, which gives me some peace of mind. The dealer is an authorized warranty service center, so that's good too.
The dealer's return policy indicates that they do not accept returns once an item has been used (the item is used for yard work, so this seems reasonable, as it would likely get dirty).
One week after purchase, upon attempting to use the tool for the second time, it is inoperable (essentially, it wouldn't start). I immediately returned it to the dealer so they could diagnose the problem.
I receive a phone message a few days later indicating that they have serviced the tool under warranty and it is available to pick up. They mention that they had to re-weld some internal components, as some connections had broken internally. This takes away a large amount of my peace of mind with the purchase.
At this point, my preference would be for one of two resolutions:
A refund on the tool. Having such a major failure within such a short period of time doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling about the manufacturer's quality assurance. This is unlikely due to the dealer's return policy.
Replacement of the tool with a new item. I'm willing to believe that I may have just gotten a "lemon." I would find this resolution satisfactory if offered.
I definitely am hesitant to be stuck with the repaired item, even if it is warranted for another couple of years. I plan to pursue the above two resolutions with the dealer.
My question is: if they refuse both of the above offers, would it be reasonable for me to request a credit-card chargeback? I'm not a lawyer, but my reading of information on the Internet suggests that this sort of issue might be covered as a dispute over the quality of the goods that I purchased. However, I wanted to solicit additional opinions on whether that would be an appropriate way forward.
Edit: Thanks for the answers below. As an update, I was able to resolve the issue amicably; they replaced the item with a new unit. Luckily, I never had to consider the "nuclear option."