Remind Me - Faulty Bed Delivered, Delivery Charge Refund?

scullster

Its been a while, but I'd appreciate your help / insight....

Bought a bed via the telephone, value £180 + £20 delivery, and on a credit card (so I DSR apply, so to does Consumer Credit Act...). When I made the purchase, having had a recent bad experience with another retailer, I sought confirmation that the items were not seconds, and that I would reject items which appeared to have been opened / resealed, seconds or damaged (call me psychic).

Opened the first of 6 boxes to discover faults on one of the components. Blatently obvious to the manufacturer whoever packaged the goods.

Called the online retailer to complain. They advised me to unpack each of the items, identify any other damage and they would replace. I refused on the grounds that there were 6 boxes to go through, and that I'd have to repackage them all before storing them in my shed pending the replacement items.

I declined and asked for a full refund - I also offered to send photos of the damage.

They agreed, I sent an email with the photos outlining that I advised them at the point of sale that I would reject faulty or seconds, and that I was seeking a full refund.

I received a phone call today arranging collection but they couldn't tell me whether I would get the delivery charge refunded as well but they don't usually refund delivery.

Question is, where do I stand - the item was faulty, its not a case that I've changed my mind.

Thanks in advance

derrick

"Section 3, (this is aimed at the business); -

From page 25; -
What specifically do I have to refund to the consumer if they cancel?

3.48 The DSRs require you to refund any money paid by or on behalf of the consumer in relation to the contract to the person who made the payment. This means the full price of the goods, or deposit or pre- payment made including the cost of delivery. The essence of, distance selling is that consumers buy from home and receive goods at home. In these circumstances, almost every case of home shopping will involve delivery of the goods ordered and so delivery forms an essential part of the contract.

page 27 " 3.57 If the goods are faulty or do not comply with the contract, you will have to pay for their return whatever the circumstances."

vicshippers

Surely the easiest and fastest solution would be to isolate the faulty parts and have the retailer replace those parts? If you have already opened the boxes, you are going to have to pack them back up well enough for them to be returned and checked by the retailer.

scullster

vicshippers wrote: »

Surely the easiest and fastest solution would be to isolate the faulty parts and have the retailer replace those parts?

Usually I'd agree but we're talking about bunk beds... by their nature the components are large and numerous. Why should I go through each individual box and component to search out faulty items to then have to pack them away neatly and safely to get them out of the childrens' way to enable them to sleep in their badroom (freudian slip!). Because of their size, they've got to go back in the garage or shed out of the way until the replacement components arrive (a week minimum) so they'd need packing away so that they don't get damaged or lost.

If it were something much smaller with fewer components which could say be slid under a bed, popped in a cupboard then the inconvenience of going through the components would be far less.

vicshippers wrote: »

If you have already opened the boxes, you are going to have to pack them back up well enough for them to be returned and checked by the retailer.

But I'd only opened and have only opened the one box, one of six. I did [STRIKE]mention[/STRIKE] state that in my original post. So I don't have to pack them up well enough to return them to be checked - I've avoided that.

scullster

derrick wrote: »

"Section 3, (this is aimed at the business); -

From page 25; -
What specifically do I have to refund to the consumer if they cancel?

3.48 The DSRs require you to refund any money paid by or on behalf of the consumer in relation to the contract to the person who made the payment. This means the full price of the goods, or deposit or pre- payment made including the cost of delivery. The essence of, distance selling is that consumers buy from home and receive goods at home. In these circumstances, almost every case of home shopping will involve delivery of the goods ordered and so delivery forms an essential part of the contract.

page 27 " 3.57 If the goods are faulty or do not comply with the contract, you will have to pay for their return whatever the circumstances."

Derrick - thats a gem of a quote, a slam dunk.

scullster

Derrick et others...

Well, call me a psychic but I received notification yesterday that the refund was being processed, exactly 30d after I originally wrote and requested it.

And Guess What? They've delivered the cost of the bunk beds but not the delivery charge which was about £20.

So I'm going to call them tomorrow to chase it up, and then I'll chase with a letter recorded delivery quoting OFT's advice to business on DSR.

In the event that they choose to ignore the DSR - what would then be my best course of action? Small claims or Consumer Credit Act?

neilmcl

It's nothing to do with the DSR, you returned it because the bed was faulty not because you changed your mind, DSR doesn't apply, SOGA does, and in that case the advice is the same they must refund delivery costs.

scullster

Not managed to find that bit in the sales of goods act yet which discusses refund of delivery charges in the event of a fault - DSR explicitly mentions it.

derrick

scullster wrote: »

Not managed to find that bit in the sales of goods act yet which discusses refund of delivery charges in the event of a fault - DSR explicitly mentions it.

SoGA Part 5A Section 48A/B/C

" 2 (ii) to rescind the contract with regard to the goods in question. "

scullster

The retailer's are playing the stalling game, numerous phone calls to their sales team have resulted in "we'll pass your request to accounts". "Accounts" don't have phone lines, and "we don't refund delivery charges ever, we simply arrange for collection".

So in the first instance, I'm simply passing it to my credit card company as a section 75 claim. I only need to submit one form and no costs - this seems easier than small claims court although without the personal satisfaction? We're talking £20, but its the principle.