Argos have now said that the item will now not be in stock

shaun4d

Hi Guys,

Just wondering if someone could inform me of what rights I have with the problem I am having with Argos. I ordered a TV cabinet in-store at Argos at a really cheap sale price and was told that it would be delivered in 40 days and I was given a delivery date. Approaching the delivery date I get a call from Argos saying that the item will not be delivered on the set date and i will be notified within 5 days with a further delivery date. After then waiting a week and not receiving a call, I called Argos myself in which they said that they are waiting for the item to come into stock, i was then put on hold and then told that the cabinet will probably not come into stock and I should cancel the order and get my money back.

Now if the cabinet has been advertised and I have paid for it, and Argos has had my money for nearlly 2 months am I able to demand that I get the cabinet I ordered or receive a cabinet that I am happy with, which is in stock?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thank you in advance

visidigi

Simple answer, no.

They can only give you what they can get, they only have to put you back in the position you were in before you ordered.

e.g. a full refund.

The days of a company making money of your money for 2 months are long gone, interest rates aren't what they used to be.

Krojan

If they've said the won't be stocking the item anymore then, in all honesty demanding the one you've ordered isn't going to get you anywhere as you'll never get it, as for getting a different cabinet they would likely only offer you one to the same value as the one you've ordered, maybe slightly more as a good-will gesture.
You might be able to try to get something back financially on the lost interest on the funds they've held for the period of time, but I wouldn't hold your breath as you'd probably have to go via small claims court which would probably cost you more.

Your best bet would be to request a refund and take your business elsewhere and chalk it down to experience I'm afraid.

McKneff

I have to agree with the others, I'm afraid, absolutely nothing you can do, just get a refund and shop elsewhere in future.

malchish

shaun4d wrote: »

Hi Guys,

Just wondering if someone could inform me of what rights I have with the problem I am having with Argos. I ordered a TV cabinet in-store at Argos at a really cheap sale price and was told that it would be delivered in 40 days and I was given a delivery date. Approaching the delivery date I get a call from Argos saying that the item will not be delivered on the set date and i will be notified within 5 days with a further delivery date. After then waiting a week and not receiving a call, I called Argos myself in which they said that they are waiting for the item to come into stock, i was then put on hold and then told that the cabinet will probably not come into stock and I should cancel the order and get my money back.

Now if the cabinet has been advertised and I have paid for it, and Argos has had my money for nearlly 2 months am I able to demand that I get the cabinet I ordered or receive a cabinet that I am happy with, which is in stock?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Thank you in advance

They are in breach of contract. By taking your money and feeding you by "delivery" promises they implied that they will supply the item. If they did not, you are entitled to the like one. it is a question of claiming, and how far you want to take your claim.
The danger for Argos is, that advertising a low priced item that is known to be hopelessly out of stock for this price may be in breach of consumer Protection from Unfair Trading regulation. (luring a customer by a good deal, then pushing toward more expensive alternative).
Waiting for the cabinet for 2 months (while missing on other good deals etc) would have brought significant inconvenience to you.
Basically, claim for damages incurred because of breach of contract (implied terms are also terms! even if their t&c do not mention such a ridiculous situation as making a consumer wait 2 months and then not supplying - it would be implied that they should have supplied if not told you of no stock straight away).
If you are prepared to go all the way to court, you are likely to win before any hearing, settling with Argos at the stage of your letter before action. Argos won't want to be questioned re. "CP from unfair trading", because it is a criminal offense.
another option for you is to report to Citizens Advice direct line (former consumer direct) first.

malchish

visidigi wrote: »

Simple answer, no.

They can only give you what they can get, they only have to put you back in the position you were in before you ordered.

e.g. a full refund.

The days of a company making money of your money for 2 months are long gone, interest rates aren't what they used to be.

No, they need to place you in a position you were had they fulfilled the contract properly! They have no right to rescind the contract without your agreement. Only if you want to cancel/reject the contract, then they need to make a full refund to place you in a position you were before the contract with them.
In practice, people rarely claim damages greater than a refund - some do not want to bother, for some it is not important and they are happy with a refund, some get intimidated by "you will get nowhere" advice, such as visidigi gave you. The companies will always claim that you have no rights beyond refund. However, because the area is untested for such small disputes, and in your case the circumstances strengthen your position, you can well try the cheap small claims court route - and I doubt Argos will defend, it would be too expensive for them. They will agree to replace by the cheapest like-for-like available alternative, or pay you damages enough to get this alternative product. But not without a fight (not legal, just scare-mondering fight) first. Even if they will defend, the most you stand to lose is your court fee (about £30?).

malchish

But the companies are not allowed to charge cards before despatch. Charging before despatch is against the company's deal with credit/debit cards.
Charging the card and then holding the money implies despatch, or a firm promice to despatch. It is likely that the contract would by deemed to be in force by a court . However, thank you for the informative post, Argos will certainly use this argument of "no contract yet" and the OP needs to prepare to address that.

Fosterdog

malchish wrote: »

No, they need to place you in a position you were had they fulfilled the contract properly! They have no right to rescind the contract without your agreement. Only if you want to cancel/reject the contract, then they need to make a full refund to place you in a position you were before the contract with them.

Argos do have a right to rescind the contract, as does OP. If a contract only allows one party the option to rescind then it would be an unfair contract term thus unenforceable. All OP is entitled to is a refund of the amount paid, as a good will gesture there be an offer of a voucher to help cover the costs of a more expensive item but it would probably be just £5 or £10 and if offered should be snapped up.

malchish wrote: »

But the companies are not allowed to charge cards before despatch. Charging before despatch is against the company's deal with credit/debit cards.
Charging the card and then holding the money implies despatch, or a firm promice to despatch. It is likely that the contract would by deemed to be in force by a court . However, thank you for the informative post, Argos will certainly use this argument of "no contract yet" and the OP needs to prepare to address that.

OP clearly states in the first post that the item was ordered in store so any rubbish you spout about not taking payment before dispatch goes out the window. What should Argos have done? Ordered the item to be delivered to OP and then make them go back to store to pay at a later date? I don't know of any company where you can buy in store and have an item delivered to your home without paying up front. If it was illegal as you suggest then the companies wouldn't offer it as an option as it's more hassle for them.

visidigi

malchish wrote: »

No, they need to place you in a position you were had they fulfilled the contract properly!

No they don't, proof please.

malchish wrote: »

Only if you want to cancel/reject the contract, then they need to make a full refund to place you in a position you were before the contract with them.

No, not true, proof please.

malchish wrote: »

In practice, people rarely claim damages greater than a refund - some do not want to bother, for some it is not important and they are happy with a refund, some get intimidated by "you will get nowhere" advice, such as visidigi gave you.

No not true, proof please.

malchish wrote: »

The companies will always claim that you have no rights beyond refund. However, because the area is untested for such small disputes, and in your case the circumstances strengthen your position, you can well try the cheap small claims court route - and I doubt Argos will defend, it would be too expensive for them.

And you think it would win? what provable loos has the OP had by not being provided with item he ordered, which he knew would take a while to fulfil, which the manufacturer clearely cannot provide?

Again, proof to back up your statements please.

malchish wrote: »

They will agree to replace by the cheapest like-for-like available alternative, or pay you damages enough to get this alternative product.

Proof please.

malchish wrote: »

But not without a fight (not legal, just scare-mondering fight) first. Even if they will defend, the most you stand to lose is your court fee (about £30?).

So, let me get this straight, you are now saying that Argos will scare monger a customer - just where do you get this information from?

You also admit, that if they defend you will lose , genius, so your entire arguement is based on the fact you beleive the company won't defend and will just cave in? And thats your 'consumer rights' advice?

Seriously, PROVE IT.

Zandoni

The OP has probably run away now but I'd be inclined to phone the HO and see if there's anything they can do.

Legally it may be OK to just give the money back, but I feel they should do something to compensate for all the messing about.

shaun4d

Thank you for all your replies, even if a few of them were getting a little heated. I have taken them all into consideration and do believe myself that once I hand over my money for an item then a "contract" is formed whereby Argos must supply me with the requested item. Otherwise companies could change their mind whenever there has been a mistake in pricing etc.

However this is just my opinion and probably not the law so I am just going to call Argos again and say, "Wouldn't it be a nice gesture for argos to atleast provide me with a TV cabinet for the same price or reduced price."

Once again, thank you very much for your help