dfs furniture - very poor leather suite - even poorer service

number9

Wasn't sure where to post this thread so I hope this is ok...

We bought a leather suit in Nov 2004 consisting of one chair, 2 seater sofa and 3 seater sofa. Cost >£1500 + a now seemingly worthless "5 yr guarantee" which apparently only covers stains... making a total >£1700.

We bought it on their 4yrs/first year int free offer.

Over a year ago we complained to them that the coating was becoming dull, lifting and worn in places and was becoming tacky in some areas to the point that you or the cushions stuck to it.

They sent 2 guys out to look at it and they sprayed some colouring onto the worst offending areas saying that's all they could do. The colour did not actually match very well but the most annoying thing was the most senior blokes attitude who kept asking what we had spilt on it (nothing!!).

Now, another 12 months on and the suite is now almost 4 years old it is in a terrible condition despite being well looked after. My wife has recently complained to the Carlisle branch from which it was bought and a representative again visited. All they did was sympathize and their only offer was that if we wanted it re-covered DFS would pay half of the £1000 estimated cost of the work!! So, then we could have work done on this defective suite for £500!! THANKS !! (sic)

It now looks as if it is ready for the scrapheap even though we haven't yet finished paying for it. We do not feel that it has lasted as long as a quality suite of this value should. We have taken care of this suite and our home is well looked after - acknowledged by the rep.

DO WE HAVE ANY RIGHTS/HOW CAN WE APPROACH THIS PROBLEM WITH A VIEW TO REPLACEMENT?

I have seen many,many threads on forums relating to DFS complaints but could not quite find the answer/similar circumstances.

vikingaero

If you bought on credit then I would send a letter to the credit company making them jointly liable. They may ask you to find an independent assessor/expert to look at the suite and go from there.

THE_LONE_RANGER_4

To be honest you should have made a big issue of this at the first time of complaint,from what i have heard via here and other site dfs can be a tad bit awkward if you bought on credit terms but play ball a little quicker if you pay on credit card, from what i have seen the leather used by many firms is of a poorer quality hence how they can sell the suite so low and that is not an excuse or insult im just pointing out why it may have deteriated so quickly good leather treated well with the correct products should last a life time.

petrafyde

I think you'll find that if you state you think that the suite 'is not good for the purpose it was bought' they'll pay attention. (you wanted something comfortable, which enhanced the look of your front room).

You're still within the five year guarantee. Do you still have that by the way? The guarantee? If so, read it carefully.

IIRC by forcing you to pay £500 of that £1000 they are violating your rights as a consumer whilst guarantee is in force (unless ofc you can find something which states they can ask you to contribute to the cost of repair). You should take this further. There isn't much time left on your guarantee, so act fast

Good luck

number9

My wife has pursued DFS and they recently sent out an upholsterer to survey the suite. He has offered to recover the entire suite (3 seater,2 seater and single seater) for £500 which in effect would give us a "new" suite. They would provide a replacement suite for the period we would be awaiting the work to be carried out.

We don't have £500, however! Secondly, I don't feel that we should be paying anything anyway. I have checked our bill and we had purchased "5yr leather guarantee" at £183 - not the "5yr anti stain guarantee".

On the back of the bill terms of the anti-stain guarantee fill up almost all of the page and there is only a very small paragraph entitled "5yr leather..." which shows almost no details just a list of excluded stains...

The full terms are given (today's terms anyhow) here: http://www.dfs.co.uk/leather-care.php

I now feel that our complaint (which was initially made at 2yr 9 mths - but DFS argue they only cover suites for 2yrs..) is well in date and we have never received proper terms and conditions regarding the guarantee (mis sold??). The back of the bill does not in any way infer that the 5yr leather guarantee is in addition to/related to the anti stain policy explained in great detail.

I'm not sure what to do. £500 (if they extend the payment term...) gives us a great remedy. However, I do not feel we should be paying anything but don't want another protracted argument and a patched up suite should they attempt to fix as before.

number9

ps!

I am inclined to put the above comments in writing to DFS and cite that if they don't honour the guarantee then we will have no alternative but to pursue via the Small Claims Court.

Anyone had similar problems with DFS/took them to court? Anyone clued up on the "5yr leather guarantee" and its scope?

d.edna

Doesn't leather change colour with time?

smcaul

d.edna wrote: »

Doesn't leather change colour with time?

It shouldn't do once it is taken off the cow!!!

That is assuming it has been treated and tanned correctly!

number9

With ours' the colour and coating has lifted and faded in places there is no shine or lacquer to it at all.

d.edna

smcaul wrote: »

It shouldn't do once it is taken off the cow!!!

That is assuming it has been treated and tanned correctly!

So wait, why does the black leather go like white?

vivatifosi

I am ex-furniture industry and a good leather suite should last a very long time. I've got a 25 year old Charles Eames chair that still looks as good as the day it was produced. Its all about treating leather correctly.

If you aren't getting luck with DFS, check with the furniture ombudsman scheme, of which DFS is a member. The ombudsman scheme is run by FIRA, the testing body of the furniture industry and I cannot stress enough in what high regard they are held by the industry, or how tough they can be. It is definitely worth getting them involved.

However, one of the main problems with leather furniture is not so much spills, it is inappropriate cleaning with the wrong materials, so make sure that you can't have done this before you contact them.