Ordering from Next online - beware

frozen_wastes

Afternoon All,

I've been online shopping for the best part of 11 years now. Apart from some late deliveries I haven't really had any underhand experiences.

Until Now!

A few months ago I ordered some curtains from Next Directory Online. I was given no choice at the checkout except to sign up online and pass my credit card details over. Nothing unusual there, got the curtains next day.

Now yesterday I ordered some clothes from them. I added my items to the basket, signed in, and checked out. I selected a stored delivery address and hit the "complete order" button, thinking that payment details were on the next page.

Well, that's it. Order completed & confirmed. No payment details entered. Immediate Suspicions were aroused! If I haven't paid for something, it's never for free. But at the same time:
- There's no stored payment details on their site
- There's no order or payment history on their site
- There's no way at all of seeing if you've borrowed money against them.

It's all very weird and it all seems underhand. That very first purchase from them, wasn't just a purchase. It seems like they've deemed me to have somehow entered into some sort of consumer credit agreement with them. I've just checked my email history and all I got in the first place was an order confirmation and a "thank you for registering with next" email.

It's only when you get lost inside the FAQ's on their site that you see words like APR and such like. I've never knowingly agreed to any "Consumer Credit Agreement" with them, and if I did, they never sent me a copy!

What's going on here? It strikes me as being an illegal loan. How can such a big company try this on? I thought they were a fairly reputable bunch until now.

Cheers

Frozen_Wastes

KingElvis

You sure you haven't signed up to a store card or other such high interest shizzle?

Did the cost of the curtains come off your credit card? It could be they've just stored your payment details so you don't have to enter them all again, this probably happened when you created your login.

Have they reserved the amount for your new purchases against said credit card?

Malky

This happened to someone else on here recently. When it came down to it, all it took was a quick read of the T&C's

These terms and conditions set out the basis on which you can use our website and place orders for items from the Next Directory. By ordering goods from Next Directory on or after 03/08/10 you are deemed to have understood and accepted these terms

and.....

A Next Directory Flexible Account ("Next Account") may be opened for you

And the next bit. Did you receive this?

When you apply to open a Next Account, a Credit Agreement will be sent to you and you must read this carefully, sign both copies and return one copy to us

frozen_wastes

I've checked my CC statement, my Curtains came off my CC at the time of purchase. My new purchase is not seen on my CC.

If I login to next right now, here's what I can see:
- Option to adjust contact details (phone address etc...)
- Option to adjust sign in details (email, password etc...)
- Option to adjust delivery details.
That's it.

x There's no credit card details available to edit anywhere.
x There's no order history, or account balance.
I have no reason to believe my last order was charged to my credit card.

I'm sure I haven't *knowingly and explicitly* signed up to a credit agreement (Store Card or otherwise). If I have, then they've used devious words to dupe me.

Malky

It's possible they have opened an account but then again they may have just stored your CC details from your last transaction. Perhaps give them a call just to clarify

gratefulforhelp_2

They have probably opened an automatic credit account for you, watch out for them charging you £3.50 for the directory when it next comes out, you prob inadvertently agreed to this when you ticked to agree to Ts and Cs.

DON'T get the curtains dry cleaned, the linings will disintegrate!

frozen_wastes

And the next bit. Did you receive this?

Quote:
When you apply to open a Next Account, a Credit Agreement will be sent to you and you must read this carefully, sign both copies and return one co

---

I never received a Credit Agreement from Next in the post. I never signed anything. I went on their website, with the *implicit* understanding that I was *purchasing* goods, not entering into a credit agreements. That fact was not clear when I signed up months ago. It's not clear now when I login to my account and hunt around their website now what my login actually pertains to, and it's not clear from any of the emails that they have sent me.

Terms and Conditions for shopping websites are just a tick box as far as I'm concerned. I don't read them when it comes to purchasing goods, I generally expect them to be in line with what T's & C's on other online shopping websites say. I'm not too clear on Consumer Credit Law, but I would expect it to say that the provider of credit must make it very clear to me that I am entering a credit agreement. This hasn't happened when it comes to Next online.

climbgirl

There have been other posts on the site saying the same thing - that when you buy something online, using the normal online basket checkout, paying on a credit / debit card, they sign you up for a credit agreement. It is probably buried in the T&Cs and as you say, most people just tick that box without reading it, which is what they rely on.

I'd call them and pay off whatever it is you've just bought, then get them to close the account. Properly. They are notoriously difficult to deal with and will just deactivate the account, not actually close it. But persist.

Then report them to the Financial Ombudsman - I think this is a particularly nasty practice, signing people up to credit agreements and actively hiding what you're doing. The more people who report it, the more likely they are to take action.

frozen_wastes

I just got off the phone to Next. They advised me to pay off the balance when I get the statement and then close the account straight afterwards. They also stated that the agreement is valid because I ticked the "T&C's" box.

I've just read this website http://whatconsumer.co.uk/consumer-credit-act-required-information/
and it says that credit agreements must be presented "clearly, legibly and prominently". Would you say that burying the simple fact that you're entering a credit agreement in T's & C's nobody reads is Clear and Prominent?

I had a look at the Financial Ombudsman website. It looks like it doesn't have the teeth needed to shut this sort of practice down. It seems like it's only any use to me if I have an active dispute with money hanging in the balance (which I don't). What can they do for me? Personally I'm just annoyed and wasted time faffing over this. I just want Next to be fined for breach of the Consumer Credit Act, and have their shoddy underhand practices shut down, with plenty of bad publicity to boot. Seems like the Ombudsman isn't the person for it. I've reported it to consumer direct before opening this thread, but hey, what chance of any action?

climbgirl

frozen_wastes wrote: »

I've just read this website http://whatconsumer.co.uk/consumer-credit-act-required-information/ and it says that credit agreements must be presented "clearly, legibly and prominently". Would you say that burying the simple fact that you're entering a credit agreement in T's & C's nobody reads is Clear and Prominent?

Completely agree with you, it's not clear at all and a pretty insidious practice. I'd report it to everyone you can think of frankly, perhaps the OFT is a better bet?

nic_santorini

yes this happened to me too last week. Put things in the basket and clicked on the basket to go and put a code in for free postage and packing and it said thank you for ordering and there was no go back button, where there is usually, I actually wanted to change my mind at this time, like you can with ANY other account. I then had to click on buy now, or else there would have been a credit account set up for me - what a bloody cheek, they also charged me for a NEXT catalogue that I did not want instead of P & P. This is really underhand and I will never order anything from them again.