Question about asking for a deposit back on a chicken coop

rosielx

I was hoping someone on here may be able to advise. In the middle of February I ordered a custom chicken coop and paid a 25% deposit to a local company.

I know they are busy with other orders but after nearly seven weeks I hadn't heard a thing so decided to follow up with a friendly email. The day after the email I followed up with a telephone call as I hadn't heard back by email. I was promised that I would receive an email back or a phone call to my mobile but received neither.

I've just sent another short and polite email to confirm that I have still not heard from them. I'm beginning to wonder what's happening. I have the receipt but it has not delivery date on it and I have a record of the deposit from my bank account to theirs.

Question is where do I stand regarding requesting a refund of the deposit on the coop? It has been customised to include wheels but these are an optional extra on this model.

agrinnall

Would I be right in thinking that you paid by bank transfer? If so then it puts you in a more difficult position than if you'd paid by card. As it stands, you are either dependent on their goodwill to return the deposit or on a threat of court action (which you should be prepared to follow up if the deposit is a large enough sum to make it worthwhile).

rosielx

Yes sadly by bank transfer as they did not accept credit cards or debit cards. I'm on the verge of buying a different coop but am also considering small claims court if they don't sort it out.

spadoosh

Youre in a catch 22.

If they arent responding in a timely manner about the product you ordered its unlikely theyll do better with allowing a refund of deposit.

On the basis that youd be happy with the product if you actually got it i would still try and push for getting it rather than looking to get out as it will be easier.

If you want to get out you need to be prepared to be losing the deposit unless you can prove theyve breached contract (Without time frames that might be very hard)

rosielx

Thanks both for confirming what I suspected. I'm still hopeful but have my eye on a well known plastic brand of coop. I would probably have to buy second hand now to get one within the budget I had set.

unholyangel

If no set time is agreed at the time of entering the contract, the period of performance is 30 days.

How did you order the coop? Online, on the phone, in person at their business premises? Was it built to specifications you provided or did you just select from available options they had?

Depending on the answers to those questions you may have the right to cancel the contract and get a full refund - although as above, it could prove lengthy unless they are forthcoming. Even winning in court doesn't guarantee you'll get your money back (i'd expect a company/trader like this to have stock so should have a better chance than others but still not guaranteed).

Even if you didn't have the right to cancel immediately, you could still write a "time is of the essence" letter - basically saying that you'll give them a further 14 days (or whatever time you feel is reasonable, as long as its not unduly short) and if they haven't delivered by then, you will be cancelling the order and pursuing damages.