DFS sofa bed - advice needed

angelpye

Hi all, I am really hoping you can help us with this one.

We bought a sofa bed in December, spending £1000, in order for my partners parents to be able to stay over regularly in order to take care of dd2. When we were there we clearly said we needed a firm bed - accepting that comfort may mean not getting the style we wanted. We explained that my partners father has a bad back and so the mattress and bed base were the most important feature - and informed the sales man that it would be used on average twice a week.
We discussed the pros and cons of what was on offer - the sales person strongly advised on the canvas style bed base over spring mesh and also the foam mattress over spring.

When my partners parents stayed they said it was fine so all was well....no. A few months later I noticed a wooden board in the bed under the mattress - when I asked them about it they said the bed wasnt firm enough. Soon after due to teething issues I spent the night with baby in the study and woke with pain... the sofa bed was so uncomfortable that my lower back ached for the whole day, I also had pelvic pain which I believe was from trying to stay still in my sleep and not slip into the middle.

I asked my partners parents and they admitted that they have been uncomfortable since the start but because it cost so much and they didnt want to cause a fuss they tried to just put up with it.... not good enough.

DFS said they had to send a technician out to look at the problem, he came out and said that 'technically all is fine' - ie the bed is not broken (the bed mechanism comes with a 10 year guarantee - which will last as no adult now sleeps on it!).

What can I do? I feel conned. I know I was clear about what we wanted and needed. The salesman has a job to do ie sell stuff but can they really not give us a refund for a product that does not live up to what was discussed?

visidigi

You were in store and you selected the item - if the comfort of the bed was so important then it would have been prudent to have taken the family along to try the bed out - once you are in store selecting an item then the rights are different to Distant purchases - the issue with a bed item is that each customer has a different requirement - a different individual need, which the retailer cannot be expected to accomodate for if the primary users are not there to test the item before purchase no matter how clear you may have been on your requirements.

A bed is a very individual thing - not every mattress suits everyone.

You are no entitled to a refund on this occasion I am afraid.

mountainofdebt

The other thing to bear in mind is that sofa beds are, imo, the bed of last resort and are only suitable for occasional use and certainly not for use twice a week.

I appreciate that they are used because usually there isn't the space to have a proper bed but even with a proper bed, one man's firm mattress is another's soft, which is another reason why it would have been a better idea to take the in-laws with you when purchasing

pinkshoes

visidigi wrote: »

You were in store and you selected the item - if the comfort of the bed was so important then it would have been prudent to have taken the family along to try the bed out

It's very difficult to know how "rigid" a bed is, just by lying on it in a shop. Are you suggesting the whole family should have brought their PJs along and slept in the shop overnight??

Angelpye, it might be worth putting the complaint in writing, but personally I have never known ANY sofa bed to be rigid or comfortable. I would almost go as far as to say they are a rubbish invention, as they make a lousy bed as well as a lousy sofa.

If you wanted rigid, why did you not just get a futon? SO much cheaper, and you won't get much more rigid than that!

visidigi

No I am not saying that at all, but the in laws stated they had been uncomfortable from the start, so this isn't a quick complaint against a product, its had a reasonable amount of time to be used, additionally the sending of a technician who has confirmed there is nothing wrong with the item, therefore DFS won't be budging on this and they don't have to by law.

I am saying they had a specific requirement, they knew they had a specific requirement but are now blaming the salesman for the lack of comfort, which could have been potentially avoided by a simple group visit.

I agree with all comments about a sofabed being a last resort too.

The OP asked if they cant have a refund by law and by law, they can't - there is nothing DFS are obliged to provide now that the technician has confirmed the sofa is working and functioning as designed.

bifold

The mesh base and sprung mattress would have been firmer so you had poor advice from the saleman.A bed sofa will never give the same comfort as a bed.
you could claim to be miss-sold the item,Prehaps DFS might as a GOGW change the base and mattress for you,It depends on the GSM at the store.
I swapped one over when I worked as a service upholsterer at DFS.

mountainofdebt

pinkshoes wrote: »

. Are you suggesting the whole family should have brought their PJs along and slept in the shop overnight??

Perhas a tad ott but given that the sofa bed was being purchased for use specifically for use by the PIL rather than being a-just-in-case-we-have-guests-who-need-something-to-sleep-on purchase (and especially if the FIL has specific needs) it would see a logic step to at least involve them in the purchase.

Flyboy152

pinkshoes wrote: »

It's very difficult to know how "rigid" a bed is, just by lying on it in a shop. Are you suggesting the whole family should have brought their PJs along and slept in the shop overnight??

Angelpye, it might be worth putting the complaint in writing, but personally I have never known ANY sofa bed to be rigid or comfortable. I would almost go as far as to say they are a rubbish invention, as they make a lousy bed as well as a lousy sofa.

If you wanted rigid, why did you not just get a futon? SO much cheaper, and you won't get much more rigid than that!

How do people choose beds?

angelpye

Ah, I was expecting that a sales person would answer. Just to point out, when I say firm I didn't say rigid and didn't mean rigid. Firm is firm, definition simplistic and obviously not meaning a bed that is so slack you roll and slide to the middle and into theother person if sharing. The reason I was so clear to the salesman is because I expect a salesperson to know the product. Bad or achey backs are not uncommon so I don't think expecting a stable base for the princely sum of a grand is unreasonable . I spent a good few mornings waking with stiff body and disorientation from a futon so wanted an alternative.

ilovemymac

Problem here seems to be expectation. Like those cars that drove into water and tried to become a boat sofa beds are trying to be two things and don't really cut the mustard as either. Manufacturers get away with it because they know people will buy them because they think they're convenient and it doesn't really matter because they'll only be slept on from time to time. Shame the salesman wasn't honest about that in the first place. Think about what makes your regular bed comfortable - most likely the mattress is thick and properly sprung. Sofa beds don't have that do they? A thin piece of foam that doesn't even flatten out properly is about as good as it gets. So it's not really rocket science that despite what a salesman says it won't be comfortable. I feel sorry for the OP, but like the others I don't really think there's a lot that can be done. After all it does do what it says ie open out from a sofa to a bed. And weren't her rels so sweet in not saying anything because they didn't want to cause upset....

d.ross_2

Sofa beds are not beds. They are a poor sofa, that opens into a put you up bed for very occasional use. This is also the case with futons. You will never get the same sort of support that you will get with a proper bed and mattress.