Major City-Link issues

antyboo

Hi all, new to the forums and am experiencing a real pain with the courier service City-Link. Hope someone can help!

I ordered a guitar from a shop in Southampton, was sent out on Thursday with next day delivery. I had booked the day off work (no pay) in order to receive the goods and spend the day playing. A package came in the morning, i opened it and it was the wrong guitar. Thinking at first it was the music shop's fault i called them up to ask what had happened and the guy couldn't understand it. He had printed his own delivery note on the package and sure enough the one delivered to me had a completely different address (north wales, I am in London) on it. However the bar-coded label was sure enough the one for me.

At first City-link denied that it was them as they don't put labels on things but eventually they admitted their fault. In order to rectify their mistake they were going to pick up my guitar in north wales and the other customers at mine for next day delivery - today, after refusing to do a same day delivery to mine. This morning my new tracking number wasn't working so i ring and am told my package was never collected (the shop i bought from said city-link had evidence the driver hadn't even attempted collection, although it had been guaranteed to be early. And of course the wrong package at my address hadn't been either. They are now saying it will have to be Tuesday delivery for collection on the Monday (they refuse to do Saturday collection).

The customer service have been appalling. Firstly yesterday I was told that my complaint wasn't valid as I was not the account holder, and the refused to use any other service or employ a different courier service to deliver my goods within a reasonable time, although the terms and conditions state this:

c We can carry the goods by any form of transport and by any route we choose and by
employing any carrier or contractor.

Today, their customers service said I could complain and just pointed me to the website. When asking to speak to a manager, they told me it was just 2 people in the office as managers don't work weekends.

I feel completely cheated. I have lost a days wage and look to miss another to wait on Tuesday. I understand from their terms that they are very strict on what they are liable for, and loss of wages isn't one of them. However they have broken their agreement already, see below.

a For any goods we accept to carry, we agree to transport the goods from the place of
collection recorded on the delivery note or automated dispatch system to the place of
delivery recorded on the delivery note or automated dispatch system, unless you
have:

• broken any of the assurances you gave us; or
• failed to pay an invoice for any goods in line with these conditions or any other
conditions or contracts between us.


They didn't deliver to the address on the delivery note at all. They have skipped all accountability and have even lied about phantom collections and have refused many of my request due to "company policy", although i believe these requests to be just and even highlighted in their terms. I DO NOT want these cowboys to get away with this. I understand the problems people have with them so want to see what i can expect. Very upset

Thanks in advance!

visidigi

You have no contract with City Link, stop doing the guitar shop's job for them...

antyboo

visidigi wrote: »

You have no contract with City Link, stop doing the guitar shop's job for them...

And if they're no help?

visidigi

you ask for a refund and buy from a more helpful store. The store have a responsibility for you to get the goods you've ordered. If they wont refund you take it up with your bank.

You're getting stressed out over something you cannot fix - you cannot go after the courier for anything, you have no contract whatsoever with them.

antyboo

visidigi wrote: »

you ask for a refund and buy from a more helpful store. The store have a responsibility for you to get the goods you've ordered. If they wont refund you take it up with your bank.

You're getting stressed out over something you cannot fix - you cannot go after the courier for anything, you have no contract whatsoever with them.

You're completely right, i am getting very stressed out. If the shop seeks compensation or something on behalf of me, is it at all likely anything will actually happen? It's horrible feeling so helpless with this!

Thanks for your help.

visidigi

The shop is the one to compensate you if required.

Unfortunately, despite the best will in the world and all the suggestions from Martin Lewis (he's right btw) it doesn't always work in getting recompensed, sometime, just sometimes you have to cut your losses and move on.

Oh and tell everyone you can find how crap the service was you got - its one of the very finest methods of therapy

arcon5

If the shop seek compensation from the courier then the compensation isn't for you - it is for them!

As said you have no contractual relationship with the courier - the shop do. The fact the courier (being their sub-contractor) messed up and the fact the shop have to go through the compensation claim process is of no relevance to you.

Make it quite simple with the shop

'I ordered a guitar from you - you have still not successfully delivered this to me as we agreed so either refund me or send a new one out.'

If they fob you off saying it's nothing to do with them, then make it abundantly clear it has everything to do with them and if they don't supply the goods ordered you will contact your bank and initiate a chargeback!

If you have to contact the bank then again, keep it simply.

'I ordered a guitar from them, i've not received what I ordered.'

You've been very reasonable so far in chasing this up with the courier - since they are next to useless in sorting it out then stop contacting them and deal with the shop. The shop should be sorting this out not you - again, it's them that sub-contracted them to deliver the guitar, it's them that has the contractual relationship with the courier, it's them that is responsible!!!

antyboo

It is the shops fault for hiring a company which has such a bad track record however I feel they have done all they can reasonably do in regards to the situation. They couldn't even arrange a same day delivery as it was delivered to a business address and they couldn't gain entry. They have offered a full refund if I want it, but to be honest the guitar is a good deal and a hard find so I don't want that.

I'm in communications to the shop, the manager is having a meeting with them on Monday to resolve this and he's saying they will stop using them. He's forwarded my emails to them and has updated me on developments.

The big issue here is that with city links plan of collection on Monday and delivery on Tuesday, I stand to lose a further loss of income. They won't collect on a Saturday.

arcon5

Do you have a safe place to leave it or a neighbor? Or can you take it to a depot? You could ask the retailer to reimburse your lost earnings?

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/delivery-rights