Wedding Dress Issue

vhewitt

Hi all,

My cousin is getting married and saw her dream dress in a local shop, it was out of her budget but she managed to track down an ex-stock dress some 100 miles away in a bridal shop. She travelled to see the dress and tried it on and was told by the sales assistant that she would need to loose a stone in weight for it to fit. She has since lost 20 pounds and the dress does not fit! (too tight on the back)

She has rang the bridal shop and they wont commit to a refund and want her to drive a 200 mile round trip for them "to have a look at it". She is obviously reluctant to do this and waste more time and money.

They claim it can be fixed with a panel but a local bridal shop have claimed that it can't so she has had to buy a new dress and is now £400 out of pocket.

Does she have a leg to stand on?

I appreciate that she bought a dress that didn't fit but she did so on the advice of a bridal expert. I feel she was ill advised and I doubt this would have been the case if she didn't live 100 miles away!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

V

System

No matter what she's going to have to go back to the shop. The 200 mile round trip is irrelevant really as it's not the shops issue she lives miles away.

I would say legally it's going to be difficult to get the shop to refund as she did go in the shop and bought the dress even though it doesn't fit. The shop assistant saying you need to lose a stone is probably not legally binding to make them responsible for it.

I think you're relying on the shops goodwill.

Hope your cousin has a good wedding day!

Wicked_witch

I can't imagine she has much chance. She chose to buy the dress knowing it didn't fit, and I doubt the salesperson was any sort of expert in anything except sales. The trouble is that everyone loses weight differently and someone who loses 20lb that comes off their bum and thighs for eg will be a very different shape to someone who loses 10 from their stomach and chest. There was no way for her or the assistant to know beforehand exactly where the weight would come off, so she took a gamble and has been unlucky (unless the shop can make the adjustments).

pinkshoes

What size was the dress, what size was she originally, and what size is she now?

i.e. if she was a size 18 and the dress is a size 10, then there is no way losing a stone would make her fit into the dress.

A little bit of common sense also needed to be applied here...

Can she get it altered?

tinkerbell28

She chose to by a dress that didn't fit.

She's jumped the gun and bought a replacement without giving them a chance to rectify.

That was a very big mistake and I'd say she will have to write it off.

marliepanda

A 'bridal expert' has no expertise (I assume) in weight loss or your friends physiology.

She bought a dress that didn't fit and didn't lose enough to fit into it. She could have lost the weight then gone back for it.

Even IF the salesperson was somehow liable, does your friend have proof of her weight on the day of the visit and her loss?

JReacher1

I would sell it on eBay. If it's a nice dress must be worth a few quid.

hollydays

This seems rather ludicrous. She's blaming the bridal shop because they told her that to fit into the dress she really wanted she'd need to lose weight-obvious to anyone.The weight she's lost still isn't enough, and that somehow is the shops fault.ive heard it all now.sorry to be harsh, but she needs to grow up.
A case of bridezilla..

fluffnutter

Lose more weight?

vhewitt

Thank you to those who have provide helpful responses. Even if she does loose more weight she cant alter her bones so the dress will never fit. I admit she shouldnt have bought the dress, I wouldn't have done it because how can the sales woman know where the weight would come off.

I was merely asking for advice on consumer rights. I am getting married myself and the shops i have visted wouldn't sell a wedding dress that doesn't fit. They said they don't risk their professional reputation and you can always make a dress smaller but you can't make it bigger.

Hollydays - your response is unneccesary and nasty and a great reminder of why i never use forums.

lincroft1710

vhewitt wrote: »

Hollydays - your response is unnecessary and nasty and a great reminder of why i never use forums.

Sometimes the truth hurts. The reply may have been a little brusque perhaps, but hardly nasty and it is an accurate appraisal of the situation.