Paid for sofa from online shop, now seller has gone quiet

catflapuk

Hello,

I'm quite worried I got ripped off. I ordered a sofa from a small online shop - initially everything was fine, i.e. great help from customer service before the purchase and so on. When I ordered it I got an automated email asking me to make a bank transfer to pay for the sofa + delivery charge which I did.

I soon got a confirmation of payment and an email saying I ought to make sure the sofa fits through the door. They asked me to reply to this email which would then be seen as final confirmation. At this stage I gave the company information on the doors' width etc. and asked whether they could confirm this would work. Someone told me a delivery man will be in touch in order to discuss, but I heard nothing for days and did no longer get a response to any emails nor did anyone ever pick up the phone.

I decided to cancel the order and asked for a refund. I gave them a week in order to process it but I have not heard back. I'm quite worried I lost my money. I paid £744 altogether.

What is the next step I could take? I pretty clueless as email and phone are not working and their business address is in the North while I am in London. I'd appreciate any advice?

Thank you!

imoneyop

catflapuk wrote: »

When I ordered it I got an automated email asking me to make a bank transfer to pay for the sofa + delivery charge which I did.

There's your big mistake. Bank transfers are non-reversible, so you are going to struggle to get the money back. Had you paid by card you could have done a chargeback for non-delivery.

Your only way of getting the money back is by small claims, but that is by no means certain.

Who are the retailer?

harrys_dad

You may have been scammed I am afraid. Never ever ever pay for anything by bank transfer. Does their website have a UK geographic address and even more importantly a geographic phone number? Have you actually spoken to anyone? What number did you call? Perhaps you could post the website link here?

catflapuk

Thanks for your help! I know I made a mistake. I am sure the company exists, it has a UK address and freephone number and is listed on amazon. My worry is that if it's a small and new business (2 years old) they may not have huge amounts of money in their bank accounts and they may have already used my money to pay for their bills etc. My suspicion is that they are not doing well financially and I will not get my money back for that reason.

I am a bit reluctant to post the website and name and shame at this stage as the internet never forgets.

unholyangel

catflapuk wrote: »

I am a bit reluctant to post the website and name and shame at this stage as the internet never forgets.

On the flip side, it may save someone else losing money to them also.

Are they a limited company? If so, have you checked for them on companies house?

catflapuk

Hello,

yes, they are a Ltd. and exist on companies house. I think I am going to chase them again. Damn, and you always think this happens to other people only.

Dewlia

Hi There,

If you get no response from the company you can report them to Trading Standards via the Citizens Advice Consumer Service. Your complaint will get passed to your local trading standards dept and will also be seen by the Trading Standards dept that the business is located in. The more complaints they receive, the more likely they are to investigate the company.

Citizens Advice Consumer Service may also be able to offer advice or point you to websites for the small claims process.

harrysmum08

I think the same thing has happened to me. I checked the company on companies house website. I checked the address out. I did it all - I am an intelligent and educated person who knows my way around the internet and so thought I had been thorough, but since paying the money via bank transfer we have heard nothing.

And it was for a car.

Please no 'told you so's. I am pregnant with my third child, we thought we had done the right thing - even checked with a solicitor. The car does exist, we checked the HPI etc. The company has filed tax returns for the last four years.

So trading standards is next step?

forgotmyname

The company details may not belong to the people that scammed you.

I reported a clothes collection company for using the details of another company a while back.

Seems companies house were already aware of what was going on but couldnt say anymore.

New leaflets arrived with a different name but the same phone numbers so i reported them again.

That one stopped leaving leaflets. But we still get lots of them.

mattyprice4004

catflapuk wrote: »

Hello,

yes, they are a Ltd. and exist on companies house. I think I am going to chase them again. Damn, and you always think this happens to other people only.

Stating the obvious, but have you rung the number recently?

keyser666

What was the online url for the website?