Paid deposit on Bathroom - changed my mind about 1 item, where do I stand?

Charl__x

First of all, I apologise if this is in the wrong place.. I was not sure where this would fit in, so feel free to move it if needs be

Ok, so went to a local bathroom place today.. placed an order for a shower enclosure, w/c, basin and shower head with valve. The catalogue price for the Hudson Reed shower head and valve was £655, but the guy did it for £605. In total, the order came to £1754, so my mum paid a £500 deposit and will pay the remaining balance on delivery.

However, since we got back, I have noticed that we can get the exact same shower head and valve set for £430ish! I've told my mum and she's abit gutted. So what are our options for ringing them tomorrow or going in and asking them to take it off the order?

The salesman said the paperwork would not be sent over to their warehouse until the Monday, which was when we were advised to ring the warehouse, which is at another location, to arrange a suitable day for delivery... so Im guessing the paperwork would still be at the showroom, and he could easily take off the shower and amend the cash my mum would have to pay on delivery?

Any advice on how to go about this - is it abit naughty to change your mind about something once a deposit has been paid, or should we have a number of days in which we could change our mind, as with buying any other sort of item?

Thanks in advance

Fleeting_Glimpse

Hi

If they are a good reputable firm you should be ok...as long as the item has not arrived or they could insist you pay a restocking fee.

I think you'll be fine as you have other items on order with them

Charl__x

Thanks for the advice. I doubt the item would have arrived because we placed the order with them not long before the store closed yesterday, and I can't imagine it would have arrived today.. but it probably will have by Tuesday. Even if they did insist on a re-stocking fee, it would still be cheaper to get the shower from elsewhere, as it's nearly £200 cheaper! So I don't think my mum would mind that, unless it was a ridiculous amount they asked for.

She rang them this morning to ask if the order could be ammended, but the salesman who took our order is not in until Tuesday and the other guy said he couldn't do anything, and we would have to wait until then. I'm guessing it's because of the commission and all?

I've been advised to send them an email, so that they have proof we requested the order to be changed as early as possible so not to cause any problems. So I might try that.

Rosebery_2

Personally I'd be telling them the reason you want to cancel that part of the order and if they can match the price quoted by their competitor then you won't cancel it.

If one guy can do it for £ 430 then so can another (unless its a shop vs the internet when t'internet company doesn't have the same overheads). Depend if he wants £ 430 of turnover at a reduced margin or £ 0 turnover at whatever margin he makes at £ 605!

Cheers

Charl__x

Rosebery wrote: »

Personally I'd be telling them the reason you want to cancel that part of the order and if they can match the price quoted by their competitor then you won't cancel it.

If one guy can do it for £ 430 then so can another (unless its a shop vs the internet when t'internet company doesn't have the same overheads). Depend if he wants £ 430 of turnover at a reduced margin or £ 0 turnover at whatever margin he makes at £ 605!

Cheers

Yeah, the cheaper price is the internet. Infact, I haven't seen it anywhere online for more than £500! Doing abit more digging, I actually found it for £401 + £7 delivery, and thats from a reputable site.

I have sent a nicely worded email, confirming the amendments I would like made to the order, stating that I can source the same shower for cheaper elsewhere - I stated the price of £401, so we'll just have to see what happens. I suppose there is a chance that they may offer to drop the price, but I cant imagine they will drop it by £200. I'll let you know what they say tomorrow, if we hear back off them.

Thanks for the advice

Rosebery_2

You are probably correct - its unlikley he can match an internet price. One thing you will need to consider, though, is will you get the same backup from the internet supplier if the thing goes wrong and how much that may be worth to you.

Cheers

Alan_M_2

It's normal for a supplier to charge a 20% restocking fee.

jennytiger

I think if you have ordered everything from the one shop, you know where to go if you have any problems.

There are companys on the internet who can undercut the local bathroom suppliers, but you have no service from them.

elvch01

This is a common issue, made all the more common by the availability of "cut-price" goods over the internet.

My father was a plumber for 40 years and came across this sort of scenario ever increasingly before he retired. He used to buy-in & stock parts ready for use and naturally added a margin to them. He would reluctantly agree to fit "user supplied" parts but would point out that he would not take any responsibility for them.

Taking the hypothetical case above, if the shower were to break-down, my father would have replaced it ASAP if he had supplied it (from stock if possible) making no labour charges, but would charge for labour to remove & refit a user supplied shower. It would also be the user's responsibility to return the shower for replacement.

To put it simply, the extra you pay is for the after-sales service should you need it - although I admit the markup for the particular item you mention seems high

mikey72

Agree with that, I work to the same.
I have noticed that I am rejecting more stuff now as well, and quality is generally poorer. So be aware of this.
I haven't changed suppliers, I'm still using branded product, I think the recession is making companies try to squeeze out a few more pennies here and there.
(Recent shower screen I had 4 delivered, with various paint defects that I wouldn't accept, and wouldn't have left the factory last year)