& Your legal questions answered.

Send your questions to askdean@people.co.uk

I PAID a deposit for a sofa in January and was told it would be delivered in between six to 12 weeks. It hasn’t arrived 36 weeks later. I‘ve asked for a refund but the retailer says the deposit is non-refundable. Graham Jones

deposit may have been nonrefundable but you paid it based on the promise/statement the sofa would be delivered within 12 weeks. As it hasn’t happened the retailer is breaking the contract and must return your deposit. Ask if they are a member of RetailADR or the Furniture Ombudsman – or any other ADR scheme – and complain to them. MY neighbour has installed a big, ugly air conditioning unit on to the side of their house. It’s noisy and I can hear it when my window is open. What can I do? Frederick Gammon

your local planning office to see if they needed planning permission to install the unit. If the planning is in order, go to the environmental health department and make a claim about the noise.