comet auction wrong item delivered

coolcraig

hello everyone, i recently bought a fridge freezer from a auction comet site, i paid £215 which included delivery, after 13 days of waiting my goods were due for delivery yesterday, the delivery men arrived and started to unload the fridge freezer, i stopped them as the fridge freezer wasnt the correct 1 it was white instead of silver, also it wasnt even the same model number, also was damaged dents ,scratches etc..
i refused delivery believing they had just sent the wrong one, i then rang comet auctions and was informed that they had listed the wrong one and infact the fridge freezer i bid on and won wasnt actually for sale, they had listed the wrong one..
to say i wasnt happy was an understatement as i have had my old fridge freezer removed and scrapped,so i am now without any fridgefreezer..
i went on to complain that i was left without a freezer 1 week before xmas and i had to pay for disposal.comet advisor told me that was my fault and i shouldnt have disposed of my old 1,
i asked to speak to a manager and was told i would not be able to speak to 1 untill tuesday,i also asked for advisirs name which he refused to give me, he was very very rude and just said read the sales of goods act,
i am fuming i have 3 small children and i am stuck without a fridgefreezer 1 week before xmas, do i ahve any rights here or is a refund the only option?
they have had my money for 2 weeks,it has cost me a 2 hour call at 10p per minute, i have disposed of my old fridge freezer and paid £40 aswell and have been told i wont be getting the item i won as it was a mistake,and had to be talked to extremely rudely by comet auction phone help..i would appreciate any help on this matter

prowla

It seems to me that they offered an item and sold it to you; they had plenty of time (the auction duration) to decide that it was wrong, but waiting until the hammer fell and they reneging is pretty poor.

You could also read the site's T&Cs to see if there is anything there to help you - does it say they are binding?

BTW, if the number was an 0870, then go to saynoto0890, where you can often find there is a less expensive number.

coolcraig

on t&c i can see this, does this cover comet from what they did? i thought a contract was formed when money is taken and delivery takes place?

On delivery, if the goods are faulty or do not conform to description, you may contact us within 7 days. In such event we will provide a full refund of the sum paid by you as a winning bid and any delivery charges. The nature of the products for auction prevents replacement products being provided in the event faults or failure to conform with description. We will arrange collection at our own expense. Products bought at auction may not otherwise be returned.

arcon5

I'd hazard a guess a contract has been formed, usually it's the case on dispatch for the item described. The only problem is getting them to honour the order, i'm betting you could push enough for them to send the correct item but it wouldn't be a quick process and usually better in writing.

Personally, this close 'til christmas where time is of the essence, i'd just claim a refund and go elsewhere.

unholyangel

According to their own website, a confirmed bid is a legally binding intent to purchase. If they intend the contract to be binding for the consumer but not them, its unfair contract term

So on the face of it all, it looks like you may have a legally binding contract with them.

Take screenshots/print out info relating to the purchase asap. While I'm not saying comet will delete it or change it.......well, this isnt exactly uncommon for companies to do.

Also, you paid £40 for disposal of your old appliance? Not much use to you now but comet offer to do this for £9.99 on their clearance site

savemoney

'loss of a bargain'

loss of bargain n. the inability to complete a sale or other business deal, caused by another's breach of contract, intentional interference with one's business, negligence, or some other wrongdoing. The amount of monetary damages resulting from this loss can be determined in a lawsuit. (See: damages)

coolcraig

i would like to take this matter further but i cant find any info on who to write to regarding this matter e.g. comet auctions, , i asked advisors name to which he refused, i asked to speak to a manager and was told not untill tuesday..i asked for a complaints proceedure and they hung up on me...they are the most uncaring ,rudest after sales i have ever come across ever, i was treat like i had done something wrong..

paddyrg

Or is it just a legitimate mistake - someone made an error, so the status quo is restored to a time before the mistake occurred. Can you blame Comet for your disposing of the old fridge at a cost of £40 before they delivered the new one? Did they tell you to do so? It would seem unlikely that they would, so you were acting on your own volition and that's not their fault. Just looking at this from the other side

dzug1

unholyangel wrote: »

So on the face of it all, it looks like you may have a legally binding contract with them.

Which may be impossible to fulfil - ie the desired goods don't actually exist for some reason

coolcraig

dzug1 wrote: »

Which may be impossible to fulfil - ie the desired goods don't actually exist for some reason

no they do sell this item but only from new..it wasnt suposed to be sold on auction site and as listed by mistake

unholyangel

dzug1 wrote: »

Which may be impossible to fulfil - ie the desired goods don't actually exist for some reason

So they've advertised a product that doesn't actually exist in the physical world somewhere and have made one up in their heads?