Item returned not faulty?

pigsmightfly

Hi,

I would just like some advice please

I run a small website supplying women's accessories. Someone purchased an item from me before Christmas and contacted me last week to say it was faulty and they wanted a refund.

Obviously knowing my distance selling regulations and wanting to keep them happy, I asked them to return it to me and once I had received and checked it, if it was faulty I would refund in full including the postage they had paid.

I got a rather sharp response saying it is faulty and that was all.

Anyway a week later the item has been received however that in no way was a fault. The item has absolutely been misused and it is so obvious. All the items are sell are brand new and I always double check them before they are sent out although I am aware small faults can happen but this really is just down to the product been mishandled.

My worry is, if I were to reply to them stating this (which how I would word it I don't know) I obviously don't want them bad mouthing me/my business yet I feel like they are totally just trying to pull a fast one after breaking it themselves and I will end up out of pocket. If it was a genuine fault I am obviously more than happy to put it right and cover all costs but I'm feeling like I'm being taken for a ride here.

Should I just be silently annoyed but let it go this time or reply and see what happens? Any advice from anyone who has dealt with this before? Thank you x

bris

Don't worry this happens a lot. The response is that the item was subject to misuse and is not faulty, please send xxx postage for the item to be sent back to you.
There are always people who will try it on, but it's up to you how you stand up to them.

arcon5

If they purchased it before Christmas you are entitled to reject their request for a refund if offering a repair or replacement is a more cost-effective remedy to you.

If you can prove the fault is down to misuse then you could stand your ground and refuse a refund - but if you think they will bad mouth you then is it worth it? Probably not, especially if your business is sensitive to bad reviews.

Why not tell the customer you will send out a replacement? Probably cheaper than refunding.

Depending if you're up for a fight or not... tel the customer they can pay postage.

pigsmightfly

arcon5 wrote: »

If they purchased it before Christmas you are entitled to reject their request for a refund if offering a repair or replacement is a more cost-effective remedy to you.

If you can prove the fault is down to misuse then you could stand your ground and refuse a refund - but if you think they will bad mouth you then is it worth it? Probably not, especially if your business is sensitive to bad reviews.

Why not tell the customer you will send out a replacement? Probably cheaper than refunding.

Depending if you're up for a fight or not... tel the customer they can pay postage.

Thanks, they've demanded a refund and not a exchange which got me thinking to start with but the particular item in mind has gone out of stock now and I don't have any more to replace it with anyway.

I think any business is sensitive to bad reviews - bad mouthing always travels faster than good reviews I always think.

Just very annoying and sad that there are people out there that do this....:(

Takeaway_Addict

pigsmightfly wrote: »

Thanks, they've demanded a refund and not a exchange which got me thinking to start with but the particular item in mind has gone out of stock now and I don't have any more to replace it with anyway.

I think any business is sensitive to bad reviews - bad mouthing always travels faster than good reviews I always think.

Just very annoying and sad that there are people out there that do this....:(

How much are we talking about?

If its £10/£20 then I would just refund and take it on the chin, I would also monitor their account very carefully and if they do it again ban them

arcon5

pigsmightfly wrote: »

Thanks, they've demanded a refund and not a exchange which got me thinking to start with but the particular item in mind has gone out of stock now and I don't have any more to replace it with anyway.

I think any business is sensitive to bad reviews - bad mouthing always travels faster than good reviews I always think.

Just very annoying and sad that there are people out there that do this....:(

Your refund can also be deducted to take in to consideration the use the customer has had. I'd be inclined to respond saying you will issue a refund but since they've had plenty of use of the item you are deducting 100% off the refund price

If they leave negative reviews - contact your happy customers and try to counter it by inviting them to leave a review and for every positive review you will offer a 20% discount off next order - should dilute the bad review and encourage repeat business