argos used hairdryer!

RadoJo

My OH bought me a car stereo, which was faulty and did not work when installed. We took it back and got a replacement. This one didn't work either, and as we were taking it out to go back to the shop AGAIN a CD popped out! We returned it to the store, and I said I was not happy being sold an item which had obviously been returned as faulty. They tried to claim it wasn't, at which point I produced the CD belonging to its previous owner and they sheepishly admitted that it 'might have been mistakenly put in the wrong place'.

I would have been more inclined to believe them had the THIRD stereo they offered me not been the original one I had returned the day before - cue red faces all round and a thorough inspection of the ultimate replacement to ensure that it really was new!

dangeroussports

Did you get any compensation ? At least the cost of driving backwards and forwards!

RadoJo

To be honest, the entertainment value of watching the staff squirm was worth the journey, which was only a short one. My OH found it hysterical, so although I could have been inclined to point out the time wasted, I had to take him out of the shop before he lost it altogether.
The thing which tipped him over the edge was that it was a Snow Patrol CD that came out of the second stereo - not a band I would listen to (unless I was depressed) and the guy in the shop apologised for having sullied my car with it - clearly not a fan himself either! All in all, for the amount of time I wasted at work recounting the tale, I probably broke even...

dangeroussports

So long as its light hearted and everyones giggling its fine.

Some people throw their toys around and spit dummies!

RadoJo

Well, the staff who started off a bit sceptical and unhelpful were soon falling over themselves to apologise and actually showed us the 'faulty bin' with the two stereos in it and giant Fs written on them to prove that they really weren't going to be sold again.

I think the thing that seems to rile people is when they point out something like this and the staff seem completely disinterested, or worse, when it seems like common practice to re-sell items which have been reported as faulty. I understand that sometimes it isn't practical to test every return, but using the next poor sod to check whether it really works or not is an sneaky (albeit quite clever if it is deilberate) policy!

lindos90

well, thanks for all your replies, I may go back to argos tomorrow, Ill let you know the outcome.....yes it does seem to work (only turned it on and off, not used it), but if it was a return, it may redevelope a problem a few uses down the line, and dont want to return it after it blows up in my face!

Also for me it is the principle, why should I pay full price for a used item? if i wanted a second hand hairdryer I would have got one off the flea market, (which was on that day, oh the irony!!!) or a catalogue return stall. I dont quite understand what Dave B is getting at, every thing you buy being previously owned?.......M&S own lots of knickers before customers buy them, but we would not expect that the manager would have worn them all before selling them??!! and as for condoms, well we will not go there......

ps Radojo, what was the CD you found in the car sterio, was it a good one??!

grannybroon

Hi lindos

I have sent you a pm - hope it got through OK.

Some posters here on this forum seem to want to proke an argument.

I would urge you to return product because from your first post it would seem it has been a return for whatever reason. I think a previous poster mentioned the fact that you might have bought as a present to give someone - how awful would that have been with fingerprints and hair!.

Best wishes

GB

HugoSP

Dave_Brooker wrote: »

So if a customer asks to open a packet and examine a piece of stock, the people in the shop should jump up and down on it and throw it away afterwards?

Your post seems a little emotive but lets answer the question anyway...

Depending on what type of shop the practice will be different.

If it's a catalogue or Argus type shop then customers will not need to open boxes up as that is not the way they work. You see the product in catalogues etc and there are sometimes displays. Goods that are returned usually go via a different route and get reinspected or sent on for stock disposal through the trade etc. So an item that may have cost £20 retail and is returrned will get put into lots and maybe sold to market traders etc for £5. These retailers build these losses into their business plans. However pressure on sales staff etc can have a role to play here.

If it's a retail store where stock is out on the shelves, then you will often have a display item out anyway. If the customer does want to look in the box then the box can be reinspected by the sales assistant and put back. Most customers will avoid an opened box in favour of another. If several boxes are being opened then that is a management issue.

I have been able to open boxes in the likes of B & Q etc after asking permission from the sales staff. I usually need to do this if there is no display item out, or if I want to ascertain what is included in the box. I have also bought items that have been opened and ascertained that they are to all intents and purposes new and unused.

It's all a question of the retailer striking the right balance.

dangeroussports

But peasant scum will always find a way to cheat a retailer.

lindos90

well decided not to take the hairdryer back at all, it has a guaruntee, so if it is faulty hopefully it will happen in the first twelve months, decided not to dwellon the hair I found in the box......then my husband passed me an argos suppliment from the sunday paper, 3 days since I bought the damn thing, they have now been reduced from £18 to £10, oh the injustice, i bet all the ones they have left are brand spanking new ones!!!!!! You have to laugh dont you!