QVC Purchasing Nightmare

billii007

Hi everyone. I am very new to any kind of forum, so I hope people will be kind and informative.

I have mobility problems, so do most purchasing online. I purchased a Sony Nex Camera Bundle from the QVC UK website in summer of 2014, using my mastercard (I always pay off in full every month )

Anyway, I waited a few days, item did not arrive, did not receive any emails, called them up a few days later, they stated order was being processed and I would get an email when it was dispatched.

Around 10 days later, no email, no parcel, so called them again. I was then told the item had been delivered to my flat. I live in a terraced house thats been converted to two flats. I asked the other flat owner, she stated she had not taken anything in for me (shes usually very good and I have no reason to doubt her)

I called QVC back and explained they must have the wrong info, and I had not received my order. They were adamant that either I or someone at the property had. I live alone, with family that visit to help me from time to time to help out. I asked for proof of delivery, they sent me a copy of a squiqqle ....NOT my signature.
But they refused to help or look into this any further, and were very rude over the phone claiming they believed their couriers and believed the item had been signed for by someone at my address, even though I had sent them copies of my credit card as proof of signature.

So I called my credit card company who fought a successful chargeback and got my money back for me.

Now, I have been sent a letter from a collections agency who claim I have a debt with QVC of the same amount (£455)

I am absolutely gobsmacked. I am not about to pay for something I have not been delivered, and want to know what I can do about this. I have an excellent credit history and not not want this 'debt' marked against my name, or spoiling my history. Can someone please throw some light on what I can do or who I should turn to. Please bear in mind, I cannot travel on my own, and I don't have much cash to spare, so hiring solicitors or going to wait in line at the citizens advice bureau is not a very good option for me.

I need to know a good way of fighting this....even if it means them taking me to court. I did call them to ask them to take me to court, but they laughed and said they wouldn't do that until they had tried the collections agency route and that the agency would just keep adding amounts on unless I paid quickly.

I am not about to call them again, they are the vilest company I have come across.

Any and all suggestions are very welcome

billii007:(

hollydays

Is the collection agency moorcroft?

pinkshoes

I think I would write to the debt agency denying the debt, stating clearly that as no goods were received, then no money is owed.

unholyangel

Personally I'd write back to them stating you do not owe the debt and remind them that it is for them to prove the debt exists, not for you to prove it doesnt.


Ask for them to refer it back to QVC - and also check QVC's T&C's to see what their privacy policy says about passing your details on to a third party (most companies would cover themselves this way but always wise to check as the more ammo you have against them, the better).

In the meantime, anything you could use to prove you never received the delivery should be documented and filed away in case it is needed (ie a receipt/invoice if you bought a replacement item elsewhere, a letter from work saying you were at work that day, letter from electorate showing who's registered there or from landlord if you have one). It doesnt need to prove beyond all doubt....just on the balance of probabilities.

A copy of any communication with qvc at the time/phone bills showing you called them after delivery was supposed to have happened, a copy of your chargeback claim can all help substantiate your claim (or rather....help undermine their claim).

Do not acknowledge the debt in any way though. Providing you dont, it will remain up to them to prove the debt is owed.

Did they try to defend the chargeback at all at the time? Was it a chargeback or a section 75 claim?

ConsumerGuy0016

billii007 wrote: »

So I called my credit card company who fought a successful chargeback and got my money back for me.

Now, I have been sent a letter from a collections agency who claim I have a debt with QVC of the same amount (£455)

This is quite interesting, and not something I've come across before.

It all points to one of two things; the courier company rejected their claim for compensation, or that they never had insurance in the first place (seems unlikely).

I don't think the Debt Collection Agency will bother taking you to court - they'd need solid proof that you had received the item. QVC are just chancing to see if you'll bite and pay the money.

Zandoni

I think it might be worth talking to your credit card company too, surely QVC woul have tried to stop the chargeback.

billii007

Thank you to everyone who commented, its given me a huge surge of confidence, and I just got off the phone from the debt agency.

Yes, (hollydays) it was Moorcrofts Debt Recovery Ltd (do you know some thing else that might help me further?)

I called them and recorded the call. I explained the whole matter. Initially i was quite cold, but I have to admit, I was quite pleasantly surprised.
The guy who dealt with the matter was very nice and took the time to go through everything, asking questions and making a statement on my behalf.
I already had a small file of letters sent to me by QVC and my credit card company, but as the order was placed in May last year, and I have since changed my mobile phone provider, I don't think I can get a hold of call details.

However, as an update, I can confirm...after calling QVC about the fact that I had not received the order, they stated they would do an investigation and get back to me. Then they sent me a letter...copy main part of letter below:

I am writing to you today regarding your outstanding claim against order number xxxxxx Sony Nex6 Camera.
Our records show that the goods were dispatched to the above address on the 20th May by a DX POD courier service and signed for on the 21st May @ 13:43. The DX manager has confirmed that the GPS co-ordinates and photographic evidence place the courier at the correct location at the stated time.
DX terms and conditions clearly state that they will attempt to obtain a signature and printed name details from any person at the delivery address. This will not necessarily be the customers named on the package - but could include the acceptance of a signature from those located within a Multi-occupancy address.
In view of the above, therefore, we take the view that it is likely any issue which has arisen from your purchase has arisen after delivery to your address and we are unable to issue a refund in respect of your claim. Accordingly, we would strongly advise that you refer the matter to the police, with whom QVC will of course co-operate.

Senior loss prevention specialist


I then went to the police, who stated that as far as they were concerned, unless I knew who had the parcel, a crime was no committed, they could not file a statement, and that as I had purchased using a credit card, I should call my CC company.
The one thing that kept sticking out to me was the fact QVC had mentioned DX POD's T's&C's. My contract wasn't with DX, it was with QVC.
I had spoken to QVC on an earlier occasion and asked how the item would be sent out (its an expensive package and I wanted to check) They told me I would receive and email telling me when the item would be delivered and I would need to be present for the delivery with some sort of ID as it was an expensive item. So I made sure I had my passport to hand. But I never received any emails. I waited and called them after 10 days, to be told it had been delivered.
They claim DX can give it to anyone at the address, so if there was someone working on the front garden, or a roofer (or suchlike) they would be able to hand it over and then wash their hands of the matter?

With regard to the claim with my credit card company...I'm not sure if it was a chargeback or a claim under section 75...I will have to call on Monday to check...not sure what the difference is either.

Card company managed to get funds back successfully in August, but QVC disputed and appealed. So I had to follow up with my signature and statement, etc.

Interesting to note, that at the same time QVC were appealing the claim from the credit card company, they wrote to me again, stating: (copy of letter below)

Dear Ms xxx

We write in respect of the above-mentioned order purchased in May 2014.
Regretfully, we have to advise that the bank have charged us back for the amount of £xxx and would therefore appreciate if you would contact us as a matter of urgency to arrange settlement of the item without further delay.

Recovery department.

---

A week later, QVC sent me another letter, stating:

We refer to our earlier communications in connection with the above and regret to note that we do not appear to have received any reply or acknowledgement. As previously advised, payment for this order has not been completed, and we would therefore request that full credit card details be provided in order for us to recover the full amount sue.
Please note, failure to respond to this request will result in the matter being referred, without further notice, to Moorcroft, our debt recovery agent, in order to take further action.

Recovery Department

---

Whats interesting to note, is that QVC are writing this to me, while they still have my money, (or at the very least whilst the money is being held to to the dispute).
I called my Card company who told me to ignore the letters as they were nothing less than bullying tactics, trying to scare me into paying them.
My card company managed to get the funds back again in last week of Sep, but told me that QVC could still reject the claim, and that they had 45 days to do this, so to sit tight for 45 days.

In last week of October, I called my card company to ask whether QVC had been in touch and was told, no. So I then placed an order for another camera with Fotosense at the end of Oct. The order was fulfilled and I now have a camera, at long last!

(sorry this is so long, but I thought it would make sense to have all the details ready for you guys, in case you could help any further.

I spoke to Moorcrafts today and gave them the same statement as above, and told them I would not be paying as I had not received the goods I had paid for. The guy I spoke to did laugh when he asked me what proof QVC had for delivery and I said a signature that was definitely not mine, and GPS co-ordinates .....he said, with all honesty, that doesn't prove much....all it takes is a driver to drive down my street to provide the co-ordinates.
Anyway, he took the statement and when asked whether QVC could ruin my credit score with this 'debt' they wanted paying, he said it was a strange one, because a debt is something that usually accrues when someone has ordered and not paid for a service...like gas, electricity or insurance, etc. This dispute was about something I had not received, so he was a bit surprised that QVC maintain its a debt. He assured me that Moorcrofts could not place any info on my credit file, but wasn't sure if QVC could (i'm sure they have to take me to court and prove I owe them the money, before they can do that....no?)
Lastly Moorcrofts stated they would take the statement back to QVC and see what they wanted to do, but did say that if QVC maintained it was a debt they wanted paying, then moorcrofts would have to keep contacting me for it, as QVC were their client after all.

Thats about it. I can find out about whether this is a chargeback or claim under section 75 on Monday.

Let me know if you need any more info

Lots of thanks to everyone.

frugal_mike

For info:

A chargeback is a service that some card providers provide that allows you to dispute payments on your card and get the money back. It's not backed by anything in law as far as I know.

A Section 75 claim refers to Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. This section states that credit providers are jointly and severally liable for all terms of a contract for all transactions over £100 and under something like £30,000. If a retailer or tradesman breaches the contract (such as by failing to deliver your goods), you can hold the Credit Card Provider responsible. Ultimately you could sue the Credit Card Provider in court and they would be liable for anything the retailer was liable for.

billii007

frugal_mike wrote: »

For info:

A Section 75 claim refers to Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. This section states that credit providers are jointly and severally liable for all terms of a contract for all transactions over £100 and under something like £30,000. If a retailer or tradesman breaches the contract (such as by failing to deliver your goods), you can hold the Credit Card Provider responsible. Ultimately you could sue the Credit Card Provider in court and they would be liable for anything the retailer was liable for.

So, say for arguments sake, the card company performed a chargeback,....could I still insist the company help me out with the ongoing consequences of the claim back of monies?
I mean...I have a feeling if I call them on Monday, they will just say 'well, you got your money back that you paid to QVC through us, now whatever QVC do, is between you and them, and so deal with it yourself' (or words to that effect....I mean, they have no reason to help me now that they managed to get my payment back from QVC...if QVC insist on trying to get money from me some other way...are the credit card company obliged to help me?
Would they be obliged if it was a section 75 claim?

Thanks for your help

wealdroam

I may have missed it, but what was the original purchase price?

If it was over £100, then as stated, Section 75 of The Consumer Credit Act makes the credit provider equally responsible for performance of the contract.

Whether the money was refunded under chargeback or S75 is not important in this case.

What is still relevant is that as there appears to be a continuing dispute over this purchase then, if purchase price was over £100, then the credit provider are still equally responsible with the seller for sorting it out.

If the seller will not let the matter drop, then you need to go after the credit card provider.

lisyloo

I don't see that you need to do anything (although I would probably formally dispute the debt).
I wouldn't do anything beyond one letter.
It's up to them to sue you and prove it and they have little proof (a squiggle is not proof).
I would keep your replacement camera receipt.
A judge is unlikely to think you kept the camera if you bought a replacement. Beyond one letter formally disputing that there is a debt there is nothing for you to do except perhaps keep a eye on your credit report ( I don't believe they can put anything on).