Must I pay after so long?

I bought a phone on hire purchase agreement from a furniture store in December 2014.

It was brand new from the box. In less than 7 days, the phone started freezing and becoming slow. I took it back to the shop and they told me that they would take it for repairs. I told them that the phone was still very new and it didn’t deserve to be sent to a technician. I requested that they exchange and give a different phone. I was told that they would contact their suppliers and call me.

After a week, I went back to them and I was told that the supplier hadn’t responded to them. A month passed, still awaiting their call, but nothing. I paid for December but didn’t pay for end January 2015. Around March 2015, I went back to them and I honestly don’t remember what they were saying regarding my phone. I never bothered to check on them again. I waited for 6 years and 9 months for them to call and explain themselves but they failed and instead I received a call from a firm they use to collect their debts, saying that I owe them for the phone that I only used for less than a week. They say I should pay them the full amount, which I can pay but will they bring back my phone?

This is insane. Yes, you breached the terms of your hire purchase agreement and that’s always a bad thing to do. Even though you didn’t have the phone, you were still committed to make the payments. However, this situation is completely absurd. They’ve had your phone for SEVEN YEARS and they still expect you to pay for it?

I’ll contact them and suggest they either need to fix this issue immediately or find a psychiatrist.