DFS Woes..not recognising my SOGA right to reject...but offering "upgrade"? (LONG!)

gazjam

My first post!

Bought sofa 8/11/10 which had impression dents and creases in the leather which I was told was "normal" due to the way DFS ship their sofa's tight in the shipping container.

The marks would come out after 4-6 weeks I was told and if they did not, someone would come with a heat gun(?!!!!!!) and shrink the leather removing the creases.
The sofa itself is great, a big 4 seater, thick top grain leather looks great in my room...but it was delivered with transit marks on the leather.
w_ww.dfs.co.uk/sofas/leather-sofas/raven
Also, (becasue of crap fibre stuffing I suspect), the seat cushions have "puddling" dents in them where you sit - quite bad actually. Plumping the cushions sorts it but the minute you sit in it they are back.
Anyway to cut a long story short, I have written to them rejecting the sofa under SOGA.

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LETTER SENT (describes my problems)

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(Store Manager)
DFS London Road
Tollcross, Glasgow G32 8NS
Cc: DFS Head Office

Sale of Goods Act 1979 (as amended)
Sir,
I took delivery on 8/11/2010, of a new Raven 4 Seater Sofa for £1147 which I am highly unsatisfied with as the sofa is not of satisfactory quality, appearance and finish as well “as advertised”. I have contacted your branch in writing several times to resolve the problem in good faith, but unfortunately have had no response.
The problems are:
• Sofa delivered “as new” with bad transit markings on leather (photos enclosed) which were not explained to me at time of purchase, and were not indicated by either the model in the showroom or the photograph on DFS website.
• After just a week’s light domestic use (I live alone no children) there was movement in the wooden frame of the sofa it and creaks when you sit in it. This would indicate a weakness in the construction.
I signed the delivery paperwork “Not Checked” and upon close inspection I telephoned the Branch 9/11/10 to state my disappointment in the sofa.
I was explained to me by two Staff Members (Tracy/Natalie) and by a DFS Inspector (Kevin, who inspected the suite 13/11/10), that such transit damage “was to be expected” as the sofas are packed in tight whilst shipping. It was also explained that such marks may come out on their own over 4-6 weeks after delivery and if not, someone would come out and tighten the leather with a heat gun.
He stated that he could guarantee the sofa did not leave the manufacturers with these transit marks. I asked why then were they were delivered to the customer with them, and told him I felt this was unacceptable when buying a “new” sofa. It’s DFS’s job as a supplier to deliver the sofa undamaged and unmarked to the customer and to be told the marks “may” come out is unacceptable.
At the time of this inspection I made clear that I did not commit to any repair of the sofa, and confirmed with him that in his opinion the condition of the sofa was “acceptable”, even after less than a week’s light domestic use. This is despite the appearance and finish of the leather being unsatisfactory and not consistent AT ALL with a brand new sofa.
THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE AT ALL. It should have been delivered to me as advertised without any impression dents and transit marks. The fact that the sofa would be delivered with transit marks was not made clear to me at time of Sale by your Salesperson.


Honestly? I would not have bought the sofa if i knew DFS would be happy to deliver a sofa to this standard. The inspector Kevin told me he the sofa was “as expected” and the problems I reported were to be expected with the delivery methods that DFS use.
I reject this as the sofa was delivered with leather of unsatisfactory finish, not acceptable for a brand new sofa and certainly not as advertised by DFS prior to the sale.
Also,
At point of Sale I asked the Salesperson why the 4 seater raven sofa on display had deep dents in the sitting areas…as it looked bad. Her reply was that it was because “people had been sitting in it” and the one i would be getting would not look like that.” This was witnessed by my father at the time of the sale and was a large part of my buying decision.
The DFS inspector was made aware of these comments on the day of his visit and his response was that the Salesperson SHOULD NOT HAVE TOLD ME THAT.

Honestly I am unsatisfied with both the quality of the DFS sofa and the level of after-sale Customer Service. I had contacted the Branch in writing immediately and in good faith, making them aware of the problems and giving adequate time to address them.
On both 10/11/10 and 13/10/10 I have contacted the DFS London Road branch in writing, letting them know of the problems (with photographs) giving them a reasonable time-frame to deal with my complaint. I have had no help or comment from your store.
I do not wish a repair or “customisation” of my new Sofa as I bought a new sofa… as advertised, of satisfactory finish which has freedom from minor defects as per Sale of Goods Act legislation.

I wish to reject the goods under Sale of Goods Act 1979.


Please respond to my complaint within 14 days from receipt of this letter.
I would remind you of my consumer rights as set in Law.

Thank You,

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Now,
the Manager phoned last night and said that DFS would not collect the sofa from my property. I quoted SOGA and he just held his ground stating he would not collect the sofa.
...and he invited me to take the case up with Trading Standards if that was my wish, but he would not budge on his decision.
He DID make an offer to "upgrade" the sofa, by replacing the seat cushion fibre fill with foam, which if I was honest (and it was done to good enough quality) would solve a big part of my dissatisfaction.
Also, any transit marks in the leather would be taken out.
*I would also ask that the back cushions have additional stuffing put in them as well as part of the solution.

So no point moaning about my lot , I'd prefer not to go down months and months of letters/emails etc - all I want is my sofa!
Sleeping on it I'm actually considering his suggestions as an option.
The marks on the leather aren't as bad as they were when delivered and seem to be coming out over time.

What do you guys think?
Having had some time to think about his suggestion,it seems a reasonable(ish) solution?
He's speaking to the sofa manufacturer today ands will phone back on Friday.
My last sofa was from DFS and I got nearly 10 years out of it, so generally happy with them up till now.

thanks for any help, comments or suggestions.

somethingcorporate

Your letter was quite long and a bit casual for my liking!

You need to be clear about what you want, either stick to your rejection or get them to repair - do not flip flop between the two. You can reject under the SOGA as you have indicated but it would leave you waiting with ordering a new sofa .

What do you want them to do?

gazjam

thanks for the reply, your right about the letter reading it back!

What do you think about the manager refusing to honour my SOGA rights?
Get trading standards involved?

Regarding repair or rejection, if the sofa is fixed properly it will be a "good" piece of furniture worth keeping, but I'm loath to agree to a repair until I know specifically whats being done - good quality foam etc etc.
When the manager phones back I'll ask for specifics before and if I agree to a repair.

I DO need to make my mind up about what I want lol, just looking to get some feedback on my situation with DFS

thanks.

Optimist

If you wish a full refund then I would suggest at this point forget the trading standards bit just send a short precise letter giving them 14 days to collect and refund or you will commence court proceedings.

You could even let them repair and if it still isnt up to the standard a reasonable person would expect it to be, then you could still reject it.

Courts especially county courts are very consumer friendly so if you do threaten court action and they still don't budge then go through with it.

bifold

The sofas from China and Italy are packed quite tight in the containers which will dent the fillings(if they loose pack the containers you get far more damage)
In the winter they do take longer to bounce back and a month is a fair estimate,The heat gun expands the dented fibres/fillings rather than shrinks the leather to be honest.
I think foam seat upgrades and extra fillings to the backs with a little heat applied is a good offer.I have been in the uphostery trade for over thirty four years,and have real working knowledge of container packed furniture.

gazjam

forgot to say, the Sofa is out on finance and payments begin March.

gazjam

bifold wrote: »

The sofas from China and Italy are packed quite tight in the containers which will dent the fillings(if they loose pack the containers you get far more damage)
In the winter they do take longer to bounce back and a month is a fair estimate,The heat gun expands the dented fibres/fillings rather than shrinks the leather to be honest.
I think foam seat upgrades and extra fillings to the backs with a little heat applied is a good offer.I have been in the uphostery trade for over thirty four years,and have real working knowledge of container packed furniture.

thanks!
its good to have a second opinion about the managers offer, especially from someone in the know
I had a think about the offer...its not unreasonable.

The transit marks were in the leather itself, so I take it the heat applied will smooth out the creases n dings in the leather as well as expanding the fibres?

gazjam

Optimist wrote: »

If you wish a full refund then I would suggest at this point forget the trading standards bit just send a short precise letter giving them 14 days to collect and refund or you will commence court proceedings.

You could even let them repair and if it still isnt up to the standard a reasonable person would expect it to be, then you could still reject it.

Courts especially county courts are very consumer friendly so if you do threaten court action and they still don't budge then go through with it.

thanks,
good to know the best way to go about this.

bifold

gazjam wrote: »

thanks!
its good to have a second opinion about the managers offer, especially from someone in the know
I had a think about the offer...its not unreasonable.

The transit marks were in the leather itself, so I take it the heat applied will smooth out the creases n dings in the leather as well as expanding the fibres?

In effect as the fillings expand it tensions the leather,If you get them to slightly dome the new inserts it will allow for a bit of flatning out in time.
The display sofas in DFS are ordered in advance of going on sale and often sit for weeks in the warehouse,(so the transit creases have lifted out before display)
Always good to buy your furniture towards the end of the sale as the display sofa is a pretty good guide how your sofa will look overtime.

gazjam

thanks for that.
Good info.

gazjam

*update 10 March*

Despite having to write numerous letters, make phone calls and generally stick to my guns, at last I'm satisfied with the outcome of my DFS sale.
The trick is to always be polite but stick to your guns - eventually they HAVE to deal with you as per S.O.G.A. law.

Big thumbs up!
Yesterday DFS Glasgow London Road service manager (Kevin), came out and fitted new foam seat inserts, and took the fiber fill from my old seats and packed out my back and arm cushions till they were practically bursting. The suite now looks and feels fantastic - far better quality...a HUGE step up from what it was.
Honestly he couldn't have done more to make sure I was satisfied. In fact he saved the day for DFS as far as I'm concerned, and I'll be passing my commendation for him to head office.
I'm all for giving credit where credit is due.

Great, good final result.

Big thumbs down..

I wouldn't buy from DFS again because of the shocking customer service when something goes wrong.

e.g.
Complete lack of communication about whats being done with my query.

Why I SPECIFICALLY wont go near DFS again
After numerous phone calls, emails over a period of Months (with no response AT ALL), I eventually spoke directly with the Branch Manager.

The branch manager Derek Chalmers was dismissive of my concerns over the phone. Not rude exactly...but obstructive and unhelpful, as if I was bothering him to speak about my complaint. I explained the backstory...he got irritated, telling me (Quote) "not to keep repeating myself as he doesn't actually have to speak to me"
He refused point blank to collect the sofa from my house after I rejected it under SOGA. He just laughed it off..seriously.
It felt like I was being taken for a mug.
It took literally 20 minutes of repeating myself on the phone that "I reject the sofa under SOGA etc etc" to get him to acknowledge that DFS had a responsibility to fix or return the sofa.
It was only when I mentioned my solicitor getting involved and I quoted specifics of the S.O.G.A. (I caught him out telling porkies about it) that he changed his tack and then we started dealing with the problem correctly.
This should not have been his default position and was TERRIBLE customer service.


So the moral of the story is to be persistant, keep your chin up and stick to your guns..eventually things WILL be put right.