SCS suite disaster

joandeerin

Hi there,
I purchased a leather suite from SCS costing £3400.00 with a further £200 paid for Guardsman policy cover. 2 years later, I have a suite which is totally discoloured and the leather is peeling showing an orange colour underneath. All of this is due to everyday use only and since the Guardsman policy only covers accidental damage, this insurance is totally useless.
SCS refuse to even look at the suite. I can prove that one wipe with a damp cloth removes the colour therefor I have been unable to clean my suite for fear of damaging the leather further. I can in turn show that discolouration and wearing of the suite began immediately and has worsend through time and use.
Scs staff have been rude and unhelpfull both instore and their customer service department. They have used the one years warranty as an excuse along with other rediculous excuses such as the use of hair products and medication. One staff member even explained to me that since my suite was "top quality" leather it had less treatments making it less durable than other leathers.

None of these facts were given to me at the time of purchase,so I can only come to the conclusion that my suite was misold to me for the purpose advertised.

I have made endless phone calls to both the store and customer services. I have also sent a letter to head office as requested as well as a letter from a lawyer.SCS have refused to consider their further years warranty since they claim that our first complaint was 3 days outwith the warranty. This is totally untrue and I have telephone bills and letter to confirm this.

I recently read a similar article whereby the customers suite had similar problems. Facts about the suite were omitted to be explained at time of purchase. Like them, my suite is not of satisfactory qualityand is not fit for its purpose for a reasonable length of time.
I am still making payments for a suite which is totally ruined. Surely a suite should last more than two years.

Could you please help or give me some advice on what to do next. I am totally devastated that my dream suite has become my worst nightmare. I really appreciate your help and thankyou in advance for taking the time to read my email.

Thankyou

Joan Deerin
Glasgow

AfterDark

Sounds like terrible customer service, Awaiting Delivery of a leather suite from them at the moment, quite worried now. I as I have a 2 year old toddler and expect it to durable for the amount paid ! Found this on the net from consumer directs site "If you buy something which should last 7 years but breaks down after a year and a day, you can still claim it was of poor quality in reference to the durability aspect. "

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/how-long-should-it-last/

There phone number is on the web link, Phone them so they can direct you to the next step, having some knowledge of retails workings. I'm sure you'll be asked to get an independent furniture techinaction to come and access if the damage has been caused by X Y Z or if it's done to poor quality.

isplumm

joandeerin wrote: »

Hi there,
I purchased a leather suite from SCS costing £3400.00 with a further £200 paid for Guardsman policy cover. 2 years later, I have a suite which is totally discoloured and the leather is peeling showing an orange colour underneath. All of this is due to everyday use only and since the Guardsman policy only covers accidental damage, this insurance is totally useless.
SCS refuse to even look at the suite. I can prove that one wipe with a damp cloth removes the colour therefor I have been unable to clean my suite for fear of damaging the leather further. I can in turn show that discolouration and wearing of the suite began immediately and has worsend through time and use.
Scs staff have been rude and unhelpfull both instore and their customer service department. They have used the one years warranty as an excuse along with other rediculous excuses such as the use of hair products and medication. One staff member even explained to me that since my suite was "top quality" leather it had less treatments making it less durable than other leathers.

None of these facts were given to me at the time of purchase,so I can only come to the conclusion that my suite was misold to me for the purpose advertised.

I have made endless phone calls to both the store and customer services. I have also sent a letter to head office as requested as well as a letter from a lawyer.SCS have refused to consider their further years warranty since they claim that our first complaint was 3 days outwith the warranty. This is totally untrue and I have telephone bills and letter to confirm this.

I recently read a similar article whereby the customers suite had similar problems. Facts about the suite were omitted to be explained at time of purchase. Like them, my suite is not of satisfactory qualityand is not fit for its purpose for a reasonable length of time.
I am still making payments for a suite which is totally ruined. Surely a suite should last more than two years.

Could you please help or give me some advice on what to do next. I am totally devastated that my dream suite has become my worst nightmare. I really appreciate your help and thankyou in advance for taking the time to read my email.

Thankyou

Joan Deerin
Glasgow

Hi,

Have you an independent report showing what the issue is?

Yes - then issue letter before action & sue ..

No - get & do as above ...

Mark

fthl

Fact - high quality leather, such as analine is not as durable as cheaper corrected grain leather.
Fact - some medications will make the bodies PH more acidic and can lead to increased wear, discolouration and for some leathers, peeling of the plastic coating (which many leathers have).
Fact - hair products can also have the same effect.

I'm not saying that the suit isn't faulty, it can be common for some coatings to be poorly applied and then subsequently lack adhesion resulting in the problem you are seeing.

You will need to prove that it is faulty - you will need an expert's report. I doubt a claim based on misrep from point of sale will fly. You'll need to show that you asked about these issues or they lied to you, and actively lied, not lied by omission. A very difficult claim.

Contact the BLC (http://www.blcleathertech.com/) and see if they can arrange an inspection for you.

purplejac

call trading standards, and also consider taking them to small claims court i believe it covers up to £5000 and only costs about £45 to put in a claim, also another one to contact is fira telephone no is 01438 777 700 the furniture ombudsman your sofa should last longer than two years but these people should be able to help you further as to what route to take.

fthl

You'll still need an independent report before suing.

shortchanged_2

I'm sure you can go down the Sales of Goods Act road as if the furniture is only a couple of years old and bearing in mind the cost of the product I think you can argue the case that it has failed the durability test. In that I'm sure the 'average' person would expect a product of that price and purpose to wear better than you suggest it has.
As others have suggested it probably would be worth going down the road of getting an independent assessor to give you an expert report on the condition of the furniture and then if armed with appropriate evidence that the furniture is not of satisfactory quality then you can start the process of legal action.

scattycat69

joandeerin wrote: »

Hi there,
I purchased a leather suite from SCS costing £3400.00 with a further £200 paid for Guardsman policy cover. 2 years later, I have a suite which is totally discoloured and the leather is peeling showing an orange colour underneath. All of this is due to everyday use only and since the Guardsman policy only covers accidental damage, this insurance is totally useless.
SCS refuse to even look at the suite. I can prove that one wipe with a damp cloth removes the colour therefor I have been unable to clean my suite for fear of damaging the leather further. I can in turn show that discolouration and wearing of the suite began immediately and has worsend through time and use.
Scs staff have been rude and unhelpfull both instore and their customer service department. They have used the one years warranty as an excuse along with other rediculous excuses such as the use of hair products and medication. One staff member even explained to me that since my suite was "top quality" leather it had less treatments making it less durable than other leathers.

None of these facts were given to me at the time of purchase,so I can only come to the conclusion that my suite was misold to me for the purpose advertised.

I have made endless phone calls to both the store and customer services. I have also sent a letter to head office as requested as well as a letter from a lawyer.SCS have refused to consider their further years warranty since they claim that our first complaint was 3 days outwith the warranty. This is totally untrue and I have telephone bills and letter to confirm this.

I recently read a similar article whereby the customers suite had similar problems. Facts about the suite were omitted to be explained at time of purchase. Like them, my suite is not of satisfactory qualityand is not fit for its purpose for a reasonable length of time.
I am still making payments for a suite which is totally ruined. Surely a suite should last more than two years.

Could you please help or give me some advice on what to do next. I am totally devastated that my dream suite has become my worst nightmare. I really appreciate your help and thankyou in advance for taking the time to read my email.

Thankyou

Joan Deerin
Glasgow

Hi Joan

Found your post very interesting as my friend has exactly the same problem with a suite purchased from SCS in 2008.
The leather colouring on top of the leather is peeling and quite substantial in parts.
She had SCS come to inspect and they advised a claim on her Guardsman policy ...... but it's not accidental damage, but rather poor quality and therefore not covered.

This is obviously a fob off on SCS part and now she has a report saying the leather is clearly faulty but not accidental.

Not sure where she is going to go from here, but I am going to help her fight this with SCS.
I've been trawling the internet for similar posts and problems and there are numerous people who have purchased leather suites from SCS and have the same problem.... for years so not a 'batch fault'.
I am going to use these posts for her to send to SCS to show it is not an isolated incident.
Hope this helps you make a case also.

Also the guardsman letter advised that the sofa was in total sun and should be protected against this! What a joke, does everyone cover their leather sofa in sunlight, or even ensure it is in a room with no windows! Can't say I have ever seen a notice in the furniture stores to say do not use in direct sunlight!

I bought my sofa from The Sofa Workshop 7 years ago and it is fantastic. Worn well and still comfy. Paid a bit more than SCS but has definitely been worth it.

Sorry to waffle, but hope this information is of assistance.
Always nice to know, your not on your own !

Good luck

inkypinkyponky

Cant help you on that as l am having a dispute over a suite l purchased from same store just over two years ago,the problem with mine is that the cushion inserts are glued together right down the centre! and now its become noticable from the outside,so have sent two letters to the out of warranty dept,which l was asked to do when l rang the store where l purchased it. only to receive a short curt letter to say that it was not their responsibility as it was out of warranty!!!so have sent another letter stating that its obviously a flaw in the making of the suite,what are they going to do about it?if nothing? then l am going to take it to trading standards,but not sure what to do next?? have also emailed them twice neither one has been replied to,any advise please?

scattycat69

joandeerin wrote: »

Hi there,
I purchased a leather suite from SCS costing £3400.00 with a further £200 paid for Guardsman policy cover. 2 years later, I have a suite which is totally discoloured and the leather is peeling showing an orange colour underneath. All of this is due to everyday use only and since the Guardsman policy only covers accidental damage, this insurance is totally useless.
SCS refuse to even look at the suite. I can prove that one wipe with a damp cloth removes the colour therefor I have been unable to clean my suite for fear of damaging the leather further. I can in turn show that discolouration and wearing of the suite began immediately and has worsend through time and use.
Scs staff have been rude and unhelpfull both instore and their customer service department. They have used the one years warranty as an excuse along with other rediculous excuses such as the use of hair products and medication. One staff member even explained to me that since my suite was "top quality" leather it had less treatments making it less durable than other leathers.

None of these facts were given to me at the time of purchase,so I can only come to the conclusion that my suite was misold to me for the purpose advertised.

I have made endless phone calls to both the store and customer services. I have also sent a letter to head office as requested as well as a letter from a lawyer.SCS have refused to consider their further years warranty since they claim that our first complaint was 3 days outwith the warranty. This is totally untrue and I have telephone bills and letter to confirm this.

I recently read a similar article whereby the customers suite had similar problems. Facts about the suite were omitted to be explained at time of purchase. Like them, my suite is not of satisfactory qualityand is not fit for its purpose for a reasonable length of time.
I am still making payments for a suite which is totally ruined. Surely a suite should last more than two years.

Could you please help or give me some advice on what to do next. I am totally devastated that my dream suite has become my worst nightmare. I really appreciate your help and thankyou in advance for taking the time to read my email.

Thankyou

Joan Deerin
Glasgow

Joan - I will be following your post with interest as a friend of mine has had exactly the same problem. SCS did come and look at the suite but said it was an insurance claim with Guardsman -they advised after a visit it was not accidental damage so not a valid claim and my friend is so upset as to what to do next. It has made her visibly ill with the stress.

I have researched this online and have found many complaints of the same scenario.

The guardsman inspector did say that the leather had been contaminated, but he could not confirm if this was in the treatment process before the colour is added over the tan leather or in situ n the house, so that I guess is the difficult one to prove.
Surely with so many similar complaints trading standards should investigate. I have said I would help her with this and have reported to ts.

Good luck

Devonian_Rodders

Hello, I was interested in your post regarding SCS.
Bought a three piece suite from them Sept 09 with assurances from the salesperson it would last for TEN years. Needless to say that after just 15months it has become pretty limp.
I have had a visit from their agents, and they said it was due to wear !! Asked what the suite was meant for, was advised the manufacturer would respond in this way. It has been recommended the manufacturer replace the cushions and chair back fibre filling, but there is no knowing how long this will last.

I did want to post this on site but have forgotten how to raise new posts.