Undercharged by shop

tobtas

Good Evening,

I went to purchase some wedding rings at the weekend for myself and my fiance. The jeweller wrote out a receipt and charged my debit card (money has already left my account).

The jeweller called today and said I had been charged for a slightly smaller ring than the one I purchased and that he wants me to pay the difference. The difference is significant enough that had I been told the correct price at the time I would not have made the purchase. As things stand, I have a receipt saying exactly what I was going to get for the price I paid.

Personally I feel that the original price should be honoured and I shouldn't have to pay anything else. What I am unclear about though is what my rights are as a consumer in this situation. I have not yet received the rings I purchased (mine needs to be made and my fiance's needs to be resized) and I've read some confusing views online about the process of purchasing things in the UK, a lot of which seems muddled by the differences involved with purchasing items online.

None of the rings I purchased had any price tags on them and the receipt clearly details the prices for each ring. The price I paid was the price I was told at the time, as far as I knew I was paying exactly what I should have paid.

Am I under any obligation to pay any more? Could the jeweller refuse to complete the order unless I pay anything else? Or is the jeweller obliged to keep their end of the bargain as per the receipt?

Thanks

bigadaj

In theory as you've paid you've completed the contract and so should be due the goods agreed.

In practice probably a little less clear cut. Was the difference sufficient to be obvious that you'd been charged far less than reasonable?

The jeweller can't force you to pay extra, but he may refuse to supply and simply reimburse what you have paid.

You could then sue but it may well be more costly than worthwhile and no guarantee that you'd win.

Is this a small local shop or a national chain?

Mojisola

Ask for a refund and look elsewhere for rings.

lovinituk

If they had overcharged you, would you have been happy for them to keep the difference?!

Mistakes happen. Pay the extra or get a refund and go elsewhere.

Enterprise_1701C

Can you call them and explain that you would not have purchased the ring had it been the price that they have now given you? Maybe you can come to a satisfactory arrangement? If it is that big a difference that it would have made you reconsider then they must be able to give you the opportunity to cancel and get a refund.

eddddy

From a legal perspective, it sounds like the contract was completed, so the shop must stick to the terms you and they agreed.

I guess you could describe the current situation as "seller's remorse".

But the difficulty is that the shop still has the rings - and they might refuse to give them to you unless you pay more. That would put the shop in breach of contract, and you could sue them - but do you want that hassle?

YorkshireBoy

eddddy wrote: »

From a legal perspective, it sounds like the contract was completed, so the shop must stick to the terms you and they agreed.

I guess you could describe the current situation as "seller's remorse".

But the difficulty is that the shop still has the rings - and they might refuse to give them to you unless you pay more. That would put the shop in breach of contract, and you could sue them - but do you want that hassle?

So it would have been better to use a credit card then? Because if the retailer was in breach of contract then the OP could have gone elsewhere for a comparable quality pair of rings and claimed any consequential losses on top of the original order value from the credit card provider?

chattychappy

Were you given any T+Cs at the time of purchase? Do they say anything about price changes? (Even if they allow a price change, such a term might not be binding.)

In the absence of the above, they have no option but to supply what was ordered at the price agreed. If they refuse, then you could purchase an equivalent and sue them for the cost, as mentioned above. If you go this route, it would be best to warn them in advance and communicate in writing only, so you have a record of what was said.

If you want to go a more amicable route, you could offer to split the difference. This might avoid a ballyhoo, though I understand that even this amount extra could be too much.

BTW, I think they are cheeky and probably trying it on. You rarely buy rings, they sell them all the time. If they get their pricing wrong they should expect to take a hit. In a previous life I was involved in sales. It was rare for me to make a mistake, but if I did I would never ask the customer to take the hit. I would usually tell them though, just so they know I wouldn't be able to repeat the deal.

Vectis

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

So it would have been better to use a credit card then? Because if the retailer was in breach of contract then the OP could have gone elsewhere for a comparable quality pair of rings and claimed any consequential losses on top of the original order value from the credit card provider?

Not sure that makes sense? If they went elsewhere and bought comparable rings they would presumably pay the full price and the OP doesn't wish to do that.

Vectis

Depends how much you want the rings, I guess? As yours hasn't even been made, and the other needs resizing, the retailer could turn around and say 'sorry, we can't supply it' and give you a refund.

Talk of 'contracts' and suing the retailer is just that, talk. If they gave you a refund what would your losses be? None, you'd just go someplace else and buy your rings.

Phone them back, tell them your situation (you wouldn't have bought them at that price etc) and see what they say. If they still say they want the extra money then you have a choice, pay up or get a refund.

bigadaj

Vectis wrote: »

Not sure that makes sense? If they went elsewhere and bought comparable rings they would presumably pay the full price and the OP doesn't wish to do that.

Yes it does, the difference could be claimed back from the credit card provider under section 75.