Yankee Candle exploded - what to do?

Enigmatic_Me

I too have just caught up with this thread and that is some mess that candle has made.

I too would be livid and I think what they have offered you is pretty poor. You definitely should not accept what they have offered you. Yes they may well have tested it and all was OK then but the fact is it happened so whether they have tested it or not is really irrelevant.

It is evident from the photograph what has happened and you should not have to claim on your house insurance, pay an excess which will then go against any no claims discount you have.

I too would post details on their facebook page. I used to like their page but got so fed up of reading "good morning what is everyone burning this morning". Just had a quick look on their page to see if any mention of this problem and without looking at hundreds of posts cannot see anything. However, other people need to be alerted to what is/could be a very dangerous situation.

However for a reply, if it was me I would say something along the lines of:

Dear

With reference to my complaint and your reply, I write to advise you that I am disappointed with your reply and your suggestion to claim on my house insurance.

Firstly, to claim on my house insurance I would have to pay a £ excess. Secondly, claiming on my house insurance also means I lose my (no) years of no claims discount I have built up, resulting in a higher premium next renewal.

I would also like to add my dis-satisfaction at the way this complaint has been handled from the start. When I initially contacted you regarding this incident, I was advised to return the product to you, at my own expense.Surely, from a customer service point of view I should not have had to pay to package and mail a faulty item.



I will not be accepting your offer of using the £25 voucher to purchase Yankee Candle products as I am sure you can understand my reluctance to use these products again after what has happened.


I understand you have tested the product and found no fault, however as you will see from the evidence I have already provided you with, this is a faulty product. If the product was not faulty please can you explain to me why this candle has exploded and caused the damage that I have described and evidenced?

What concerns me also is that this is a very dangerous situation. It was extremely fortunate that nobody got covered with the hot wax. I dread to think what would have happened if that had been the case.

As you can see, my walls are completely ruined. The wax also covered other areas which I have spend a great deal of time trying to clean up.

I would like you to review my complaint and I await your comments before I take further advice on this very serious situation.

Yours


Keep it short, to the point and see what they come back with. Wishing you all the luck and keep us posted

Henry_Hoover_2

What poor customer service from YC! Definitely keep on at them OP - you shouldn't have to loose your no claims and pay an excess, it it their responsibility to sort out!

hieveryone

Thanks all - sugarbabe - that's a brill letter, thank you!

There's a part of me that's quite disbelieving about the whole situation really! They do seem to be taking it quite lightly and in their stride - but I'm not sure how far this could go. It is evidently a very dangerous product, I'm quite insulted that they have tried to 're-create' it and told me they have found nothing wrong!

Should I return the £25 gift voucher in the reply letter also?

Thanks again!

Enigmatic_Me

Personally, I would return the £25 voucher. I would await their response then depending on that response my next stop would be trading standards.

I was tempted to threaten with the media but perhaps not at this stage.

I could just see a story like this in the red tops and I am very sure Yankee Candle would most certainly not like to see this story anywhere in the media.

Techhead_2

Don't threaten them with the media (or any thing else). If you do then you've effectively lost.

By all means go to the media at some later point but don't issue threats. Just state what you intend to do.

If you don't get a satisfactory response then you could consider suing them to recover your expenses and cost if redecorating. Don't threaten them, just write with a statement of the facts and what you want to happen. End with something like, if this matter is not satisfactorily resolved within 14days from the date of this letter; it is my intention to start proceedings in the small claims court.

hollydays

You could ring consumer yourself to get advice.Also ringing the fire service to get advice,see what stories they tell you.
I would tell them you had done this already.To say this hadn't happened to anyone else is not the sign of a good company.You need to be very firm with them,go higher.
Do not accept the voucher,return it recorded delivery. (personally I would have asked them to send me a pre-paid label to return it)http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/your_world/consumer_affairs/buying_goods_your_rights.htm
See "dangerous goods".
You need to tell them you want them to arrange for a decorator of their choice to visit to arrange to put the problem right.You could ring them and ask to speak to a Manager(follow up the call with a letter).Insist they call you back.Make them keep you informed,not the other way around.Be very polite,insist you will be sending a letter before action to the top person, if your requests are not met.

Here,it says scented candles should only be put in a glass or metal container though.?
http://www.fireservice.co.uk/safety/candles

My two negative experiences with candles-having a one foot flame shoot out of a tealight,and not realising that a large yankee candle in a jar should have the wick trimmed and should only be allowed to burn down so far.I bought some cheap wax granules from a shop the other day-they are going straight in the bin after reading this.Candle wax is way to volatile for my liking.
see also
http://www.sundaysun.co.uk/news/mr-justice-consumer-advice/2010/07/11/any-light-on-ikea-candle-79310-26825854/

hieveryone

Does this sound ok as an addition to the letter?

As a resolution to this situation, I would suggest Yankee Candle arrange for a decorator of their choice to visit me at home and correct the damage caused by your candle wax. I would also suggest monetary compensation for my time and effort rectifying the problem so far, and the cost of sending both the faulty tart burner and any subsequent letters.

kazzah60

hieveryone wrote: »

Does this sound ok as an addition to the letter?

As a resolution to this situation, I would suggest Yankee Candle arrange for a decorator of their choice to visit me at home and correct the damage caused by your candle wax. I would also suggest monetary compensation for my time and effort rectifying the problem so far, and the cost of sending both the faulty tart burner and any subsequent letters.

I think that sounds very reasonable and calm - just nice and business like

good luck

Enigmatic_Me

yes totally agree with the additions. Excellent and good luck!

hieveryone

It's just occurred to me that my rug and leather armchair are still damaged - I'd been focussing so much on the walls.

May edit to this?

I would also suggest monetary compensation for the other items damaged, my time and effort rectifying the problem so far, and the cost of sending both the faulty tart burner and any subsequent letters to yourselves.