united-kingdom consumer-protection
Consumer rights
<p>I’ve recently purchased a part for my washing machine it did say product out of stock and usually takes up to 10 days but 16 days on still nothing go to tracking and it shows no info available. When I have contacted them I received the following response. What is an acceptable time to wait and can they give me an indefinite time scale?</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We are really sorry for the delay with your order.</p>
<p>The part you ordered is not currently in stock.    We are a company
who are very dependent on our suppliers, we would need to wait for new
stock to arrive until we're able to dispatch your order. We
understand you are dependent on us for this item, likewise as advised
above we are very dependent on our suppliers. However the estimated
delivery dates are subject to change depending on availability.</p>
<p>At this time they are unable to give an estimated delivery date for
your order.</p>
<p>Please be assured that as soon as your order becomes available it will
be dispatched to you as soon as possible to avoid any further
inconvenience.</p>
<p>Once again, we apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank you
for your patience.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Consumer goods are to be delivered in a reasonable time: 30 days. This assumes (as implied by the question) that the contract has no specific date of delivery. <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/28/enacted" rel="nofollow noreferrer">The law says</a></p>
<blockquote>
<p>Unless there is an agreed time or period, the contract is to be
treated as including a term that the trader must deliver the goods—
(a)without undue delay, and (b)in any event, not more than 30 days
after the day on which the contract is entered into.</p>
</blockquote>
