Selfridges refusing repair/replacement

dfraniel

Hi all

I'm having a bit of a mare with Selfridges at the moment over a bag I purchased towards the end of last year.

I bought a leather 'tour bag' (travel bag / hold-all) online last November during the Christmas Comes Early promo. The bag retailed for £640 and I paid £512 after discount. The item was described as follows on the website: Recently established in 2014, Estemporanea has created a range of luxury goods, inspired by innovative thinking and Italian artisanal tradition. In an effort to achieve the perfect balance between contemporary individuality and dynamic practicality, the Tour bag was born to cater to all manner of travelling needs. Fashioned in soft pebbled leather, it has double carry handles with an optional shoulder strap, opening to reveal enough space for overnight and business trip essentials.

About 4-5 months the pins/screws that attach the leather handles to hinges on the sides of the bag started to become loose and I would have to screw them back into place. On a couple of occasions. In hindsight I should have called up Selfridges straight away but it wasn't until a month or so later that one of the pins fell out completely that I contacted customer services about requesting a repair or replacement.

I sent the bag off and waited to hear back. I received acknowledgement that the bag had been received a few days later and that I'd hear back within 5 working days. Having heard nothing for five weeks I called customer services, it took two more weeks, two further calls and then finally a tweet to get any word on the status of my return.

Selfridges said the brand inspection had been declined on the basis of wear and tear. I was pretty surprised as I really didn't think it was going to be an issue, the bag itself is in really good shape and I don't want a refund (it's a great bag!) but it's unusable as one of the handles is no longer attached! They say they sent To the manufacturer in Italy and they concluded it was wear and tear so that is their final decision.

I'm aware of Consumer Act and fit for purpose,

dfraniel

Hit post too soon. Continued...

Satisfactory quality etc. I would expect a bag that cost £500+ tonladt longer than 7 months. Wear and tear implies that it was damage caused in every day use, therefor have Selfridges not inadvertently admitted that the item is not of satisfactory quality as I would certainly expect a luxury leather good to have a much longer useful life than 7 months!

Any advice on next steps appreciated!

bris

Cost means nothing when it comes to designer goods. The old adage that the price reflects quality is right out the window when you buy overpriced names.


The bottom line is you now need to prove the bag is not fit for purpose and the result is not wear and tear.
This might be a bit difficult as the independent inspector can't know what you have been carrying about in it, over loading and heavy items will strain it.


It's really up to you to prove your case now.

bengal-stripe

dfraniel wrote: »

About 4-5 months the pins/screws that attach the leather handles to hinges on the sides of the bag started to become loose and I would have to screw them back into place......until a month or so later that one of the pins fell out completely

Get some Loctite, which is a kind of glue that prevents nuts and bolts working loose due to vibration. Available in permanent and removable versions.

http://www.loctite.co.uk/threadlocking-9150.htm

Four drops of the stuff should solve your problem for good.

Le_Kirk

bengal-stripe wrote: »

Get some Loctite, which is a kind of glue that prevents nuts and bolts working loose due to vibration. Available in permanent and removable versions.

http://www.loctite.co.uk/threadlocking-9150.htm

Four drops of the stuff should solve your problem for good.

Good advice and if the OP receives the bag back from Selfridges/the manufacturer and still has the pin that fell out, that should indeed solve the problem for good.