Dodgy made-to-measure suit

golion

Hi all,

I recently needed a new suit and decided that I would splash out the princely sum of £550 on a made-to-measure number. I know this is a far cry from Saville Row prices (and likely quality), but I thought that I would get a well fitting suit that would last me a good few years.

I went down to the local tailor's shop, where the website promised a "unique garment with a perfect fit". I was measured up and got the suit last week. As you can imagine, it is not a "unique garment with a perfect fit", it is a nondescript garment with a uniquely terrible fit. The sleeves and trousers are too long and the jacket is at least 3 inches too long. The waist is tapered far too low and it sticks out over my hips like a tutu, and there is baggy material in the shoulder region at the back. I know minor tweaks are often required with a new suit, but I spoke to a guy who does alterations and he says that shortening a jacket is about the hardest job he can do with a suit.

As you can imagine, I'm not happy, and I feel like I've been fleeced. I've taken the suit back to the shop and I'm going to speak to the manager in a couple of days (he wasn't available today). I'm not at all happy with the suit, and to be honest, I don't really want it now even if they can patch it up, since I'm not convinced that a suit jacket that's undergone major surgery will ever fit as well as one that was the right size to start with. I don't want to deal with this shop any more - I just want a refund.

Basically, I'm wondering if I can ask to be refunded as the suit is not fit for purpose and is not "as described" - ie. it appears to fulfil the requirements in s. 14 of the Sale of Goods act. Assuming the manager isn't keen to refund me, would I have a reasonable chance in the small claims court?

I'm intending to put this down in writing along with a print out of some pictures of the offending suit alongside some pictures of well fitting suits for comparison.

As an aside, I was wondering when I talk to the manager whether it might be worth mentioning that I found his shop on Google, and if there had been a single review (on Yell.com or similar) which stated what I've stated above, I would have gone elsewhere...

Herongull

I think you have a reasonable case for rejecting the suit under the SOGA. If he refuses, then you need to consider next steps, but if you paid for it by credit card, you can also claim against the credit card company.

paddyrg

You may benefit from an expert witness statement that the suit is of poor quality cut and fit, and not of the standard one would expect from a bespoke/made to measure garment. But first, give them a chance to put things right (and have a load of photos of you in your ballet tutu taken before you go back) - it may be that a junior did the fitting/measurement and ballsed it right up, or confused your arm measurements with an orangutang, or something.

At £550 it could be that the suit is partly pre-made (did you have a completely open choice of fabrics, or a limited one?) then tailored/adjusted to you? It can be quite cost-effective but never really unique. But also bear in mind, a properly fitting suit may not still be cut to everyones taste. A sleeve will come further down the arm than you may be used to - not 3 inches granted, but not finishing at the wrist either, carrying down a little to the hand.

A Saville Row suit would be about £3k to give you some background info.

golion

paddyrg wrote: »

You may benefit from an expert witness statement that the suit is of poor quality cut and fit, and not of the standard one would expect from a bespoke/made to measure garment. But first, give them a chance to put things right (and have a load of photos of you in your ballet tutu taken before you go back) - it may be that a junior did the fitting/measurement and ballsed it right up, or confused your arm measurements with an orangutang, or something.

At £550 it could be that the suit is partly pre-made (did you have a completely open choice of fabrics, or a limited one?) then tailored/adjusted to you? It can be quite cost-effective but never really unique. But also bear in mind, a properly fitting suit may not still be cut to everyones taste. A sleeve will come further down the arm than you may be used to - not 3 inches granted, but not finishing at the wrist either, carrying down a little to the hand.

A Saville Row suit would be about £3k to give you some background info.

I had a pretty wide choice of fabrics and linings. I'm pretty sure the fit is just plain bad, rather than not to my taste - I've shown it to a few people who are much more knowledgeable about these matters that I am and it was universally agreed that it doesn't fit.

The money that I've spent on this is pretty much all the money I can allocate to spending on a suit in the foreseeable future, and obviously I want to get the best one I can for that money. I don't think that I'm going to get the best one possible if it's made by a company that ballses up every single dimension on the first go round! Also, it was the manager of the shop himself who took the measurements.

I know Saville Row bespoke tailoring runs into thousands, but I've seen examples of made-to-measure suits which look great, much better than a similarly priced off-the-peg number. This one doesn't.

paddyrg

In which case, give them a chance to remedy it, but tell them just how unhappy you are and that you are prepared to reject it all together if they do not bring it up to spec. I would really make sure you get an expert witness though