Very disappointed with m&s marks and spencer service on wine product

asranjan

VERY DISAPPOINTED WITH M&S MARKS AND SPENCER SERVICE ON WINE PRODUCT

I generally buy a lot of wine bottles from M&S over the past many years. Occasionally sometimes I pick one which has gone sour. It happened again me recently and doing a decent thing, I took back the two unopened bottles back to the M&S Store at Pudsey and told them I would like to have an exchange (not a refund, but an exchange) as I didnot find the quality of the product as satisfactory.

The initial person at Customer Desk, Thomas said they cannot exchange wine bottles (even if it is unopened).

Then came the line co-ordinator Jo, she too said the same thing.

Then the food manager Catherine came and said that due to Health and Safety reasons she could not exchange wine even if it was unopened. She then said, she could possible do it if I had the receipt (as a good will gesture), but without receipt, nothing can be done, even if the bottles clearly said it was M&S wine. She even pointed out that the labels were a bit dirty (I immediately took the pictures to say they were not too bad).

Finally the Store Manager Justine came and said, it is company policy to not exchange wine (I later checked their website and it said about refunds and returns, could not find anything about exchanges). This is because once a wine bottle is taken back, it has to be destroyed even if it is unopened, in case it has been tampered, not that she suggested I tampered with it, she was quick to add. Still she said as a good will gesture, she is willing to exchange one bottle and not both, she brought three bottles of wine, asked me to choose one of similar price and gave me back one of my previous unopened wine bottle. I said, since I found it sour to taste, even I too would be using that wine, so is it fine that I will be out of pocket due to a product I thought was bad? She just shrugged it off and said there is nothing else she can do about it.

I said, I will write to their Head office expressing my disappointment, that I didnot expect such a treatment from M&S store in Pudsey. Couple of years ago, I was not only given an exchange of opened bottle, but also money back. But now I am hughely disappointed that even unopened wine bottles are not exchanged. HUGUELY DISAPPOINTED....

I am writing this in many other websites about my experience, so that others are aware of the same. Let me see what the Head office (or maybe even Mark Bolland) comes back on this...

Azari

What you should have done was tried the other bottles of wine and then taken back all of those that were unsatisfactory.

Of course, you could not have known this until you had this experience (I wouldn't have, either).

As far as this incident goes, surely, all you need to do is try the remaining bottles and take them back if they are unsatisfactory.

Thanks for this post because it alerts all who read it of the need to try wine and not take it back unpoened.

Meepster

Erm...how did you know the two unopened bottles weren't "satisfactory"??

Oh and without proof of purchase, you aren't entitled to anything at all...

asranjan

Hi...thanks for your reply...I have brought 100s of diifferent bottles from M&S. There were 3 bottles of same wine...After drinking one, I just thought it is decent to take back only the unopened ones. I simply wonder if they did not exchange unopened ones, then what would they have said to the one I had already opened...And yes you are right...The point of sharing experience is for enlightening people such things happen even now...

nearlyrich

People's taste in wine differs, maybe it's not for you make a note of one's you don't like and don't buy it again, M & S used to give you money back at the drop of a hat but these days they have had to tighten up to make a living in the real world. I wouldn't like to chance getting a bottle of wine someone may have tampered with to be honest and just because you know you haven't ???

ThumbRemote

nearlyrich wrote: »

People's taste in wine differs, maybe it's not for you make a note of one's you don't like and don't buy it again

Alternatively, the wine could have gone sour, just like the OP said. Given they've tasted the wine I'd tend to accept their opinion on it.

asranjan

I didn't ask for money back, only an exchange of equal value of a unopened item...if an item is reported as bad, they should send it back for analysis, not put on shelf for others...

ThumbRemote

The thing is, you are assuming that if one bottle from the batch is bad, they all will be. M&S are assuming it's only that bottle that was bad.

CrazyClum

You wanted to exchange them because you didn't like the taste?!

Might try that next time with one of their twin pack puddings after eating one!

Jeez, they say the customer is always right but this is ridiculous!

Azari

CrazyClum wrote: »

You wanted to exchange them because you didn't like the taste?!

That's usually what you do when you buy wine that is sour.

Might try that next time with one of their twin pack puddings after eating one!

That's exactly what one would be expected to do if they tasted as if they were off.

Jeez, they say the customer is always right but this is ridiculous!

The most ridiculous thing in this thread is your post.

~Jem~

I personally would have opened another bottle and tried that too, it may have just been one dodgy bottle.

If in doubt over what to do, call the store for advice first. They may have then said, open the others and try them, if they all taste bad bring them back.

It's always best to keep receipts too. It's been known for people to pick things up off shelves and go to try and get a refund.