Undelivered items/refund under distance selling regs?

NealW

I ordered the components to put together a new PC just recently, ordered online, choosing only items that were shown as 'in stock' by a reasonable number. Paid for next day delivery. Waited a few days and the order tracking on their page still showed 'waiting in warehouse queue' so I thought I'd ask the question via their customer service forum.

They replied that 3 of the items were out of stock (even though they were showing 10+ in stock when i ordered, and still showing 10+ in stock at the time of their reply)

I said OK, and specified alternative parts that were actually in stock. They said OK and 'upgraded my delivery to 'before 12' to make up for the inconvenience.

Then I got an email saying the order had been dispatched, minus yet another component that was out of stock (again, still showing 10+ in stock on the webpage, even now) which would follow on at some unspecified later date.

Obviously I was a bit annoyed about that so asked what the deal was. No reply.

Next day came and I waited at work for the 'before 12' delivery. Never came. Checking the courier's tracking site and it says 'unable to deliver, calling card left'. They NEVER came and there's no trace of a calling card.

I again asked the retailer to sort it out for me, no response. The courier concerned is notoriously bad and I refuse to waste my own time on hold to them trying to rearrage delivery. So now the products are presumably just sitting in the courier's depot somewhere.

Even when I do receive the delivery, it's missing a vital component so the whole thing is useless until they decide to send me that.

To be honest I'm just sick of the whole affair and want my money back. I can then spend it with a company that does provide good service.

So given that delivery was never made, am I entitled, under the distance selling regs, to demand a full refund right now and just refuse delivery of the items if/when they eventually show up? The retailer can then sort out return of their products by their crappy couriers on their own.

NealW

Found this on another page:

Can a consumer cancel an order before they receive the goods or where goods are lost in transit?

Yes. Where the Regulations give consumers rights to cancel, this right is unconditional. If consumers cancel before they have received the goods you must refund the total price of the goods, including any delivery charges. Consumers who have cancelled may refuse to accept delivery of the goods. Refusal in such a situation cannot be treated as a breach of contract.

Which suggests to me I can just email the retailer and notify them I am cancelling under the distance selling regs, I expect a 100% refund and they can deal with the courier themselves to get their stuff back. Am I missing anything?

neilmcl

Yes you can cancel, but bear in mind if the retailer is charged by the courier for returning the items undelivered then they can recover this cost from you, I think as long as their T&Cs mention that you are liable for return costs.

pmduk

Who was it you bought from? I'd like to know who to avoid.

Zofinger_2

NealW wrote: »

Found this on another page:

Can a consumer cancel an order before they receive the goods or where goods are lost in transit?

Yes. Where the Regulations give consumers rights to cancel, this right is unconditional. If consumers cancel before they have received the goods you must refund the total price of the goods, including any delivery charges. Consumers who have cancelled may refuse to accept delivery of the goods. Refusal in such a situation cannot be treated as a breach of contract.

Which suggests to me I can just email the retailer and notify them I am cancelling under the distance selling regs, I expect a 100% refund and they can deal with the courier themselves to get their stuff back. Am I missing anything?

Can i ask where you got this from - could you provide the link please? I need it to quote as i want to cancel goods which i have not received, yet the retailer is saying i cannot and must accept the goods.

neilmcl

Zofinger wrote: »

Can i ask where you got this from - could you provide the link please? I need it to quote as i want to cancel goods which i have not received, yet the retailer is saying i cannot and must accept the goods.

http://www.oft.gov.uk/advice_and_resources/resource_base/legal/distance-selling-regulations/ - click on the business guide download.