Credit card protection or chargeback?

koolkat66

I bought 3 cabinets online totalling £270. Only one was over £100. Paid with Halifax Mastercard. Now the company has not delivered the items, not is replaying to emails and the phone has a message saying the are closed 'due to unforeseen circumstances'. Lots of angry reviews on Trustpilot...so I am not holding my breath.

Will I be able to recover my money if the purchase was over £100 but each single item wasn't, or would I be better off applying for a chargeback?


Cristina

eskbanker

Section 75 coverage only applies if items are over £100, so chargeback for non-delivery would be a more fruitful approach....

Terry_Towelling

The values of the cabinets is irrelevant here. MasterCard rules (same as Visa for the most part) will permit a Chargeback for non-receipt of merchandise for all of them.

Your issuer may require you to demonstrate how you have tried to resolve the matter with the retailer. They may also ask you to wait until the agreed-upon delivery date has passed, or, if no such date was agreed, that at least 30 days have elapsed since making the purchase (this 30 day limit may have changed since I worked in cards).

These waiting times may possibly be waived if the retailer has gone bust and you can provide evidence of that.

Based on what you have said, you should be fine.

koolkat66

First of all, thank you for your replies, I feel better.

I bought the cabinets on the 25th February, estimated delivery 2/3 weeks. I had numerous conversation and aemails explaining why I needed the items by the 18th March, and in the email I asked them to cancel the order if at any point they realized they could not deliver. I always had ressurence of delivery on time. Last week I was given a deliver date for the 18th, but not tracking number. Since then, no delivery and no communication. I just noticed that the bunch of very angry reviews had been removed by Trustpilot. Based on our agreed delivery time of the 18th, I am thinking that another week before the chargeback request would be reasonable, and it would take me in the 30 days from purchase. I read somewhere on this site that if I ask the seller for cancellation and refund, should they not comply with the request, I will not longer able to ask for chargeback, is that right?

Terry_Towelling

I don't want to get too bogged down with contractual issues Vs chargeback rules because that will make for a very confusing read, but there are some pitfalls in this area.

Your question about cancelling and asking for a refund could be a problem if you do so before the agreed delivery date. That could be seen as buyer's remorse and you could be viewed as in breach of contract.

If there is a documented delivery date that has expired, the retailer could then be in breach of contract and subsequent cancellation should not count against you chargebackwise.

Where there is no agreed delivery date and the retailer's T&Cs don't cover the issue either and your issuer processes a chargeback for you, that doesn't necessarily get you out of your contract with the retailer and they may pursue you for payment by alternative means.

If the cabinets are no use to you after 18/3 but there is no evidence that this was the agreed delivery date and they subsequently turn up within 30 days or before a chargeback is made, you may be stuck with them.

There are other scenarios that I just don't want to go into but, for your case, you may have to wait out the 30 days and show you've been unsuccessful negotiating with the retailer so that your issuer can raise a chargeback for you. To be honest, I'd talk to your issuer now - don't wait to get the ball rolling because it doesn't look like anything's going to be delivered any time soon and they can tell you exactly what they will need from you - and when.

LABMAN

As your order was placed online buyers remorse does not enter it. You can cancel for a full refund including delivery.

Terry_Towelling

LABMAN wrote: »

As your order was placed online buyers remorse does not enter it. You can cancel for a full refund including delivery.

Ah yes, thank you, Labman, just checked and, if I've read correctly, you could have 14 days from the date goods are received to actually cancel the contract.

This is where I have to bow out because I am not sufficiently up to date to know exactly how chargeback rules have (or have not) factored in this legislation.

Certainly, if you don't get your goods within 30 days or by the agreed delivery date, you should have a right to chargeback for non-receipt of merchandise. However, cancelling before or after receipt (although seemingly permitted in law) is probably going to remove that Chargeback right unless it (or another Chargeback right) has been adapted to cater for that specific scenario.

It is conceivable that Chargeback rules have not taken this legislation on board and problems arising after cancellation (made in accordance with the legislation) may have to be dealt with through legal channels.

Anyone out there with current Chargeback knowledge able to cover this off?

agrinnall

Terry_Towelling wrote: »

Isn't that only case within a short space of time?

Yes, but that time doesn't start until delivery is made, so as that hasn't happened yet the OP can cancel. The problem with cancelling is that if the company has no money then they won't be refunding.

Terry_Towelling

Thanks, Agrinnall. I altered my post having read the rules.

You are right that cancelling could be a problem because I don't know how the chargeback rules cater for this scenario (if at all). If a chargeback exists, getting a credit will be part of the chargeback process, if no chargeback exists it could be a problem.

Don't know whether S75 would then have a part to play. If the retailer doesn't refund when it is legally obliged to do so, does that make them in breach of contract? The values of the cabinets could indeed be relevant then. The question might be were they available for sale as individual cabinets (seems so) or as a job lot (seems unlikely).

koolkat66

The cabinets were going to be manufactured and I requested a small alteration to the standard size (1 cm shorter), so I suppose the retailers could say that they are bespoke. However, it is now two days from the agreed delivery date, and nearly 30 days from the order date. I haven't been able to get a response from the retailer, the usual message on the phone saying they are closed due to unforseen circumstances, and no reply to my emails. My credit card provider told me I could start my chargeback as the delivery date has passed. I don't know if the 'bespoke' fact would make a difference though.

Terry_Towelling

The bespoke fact won't make a difference to the chargeback rights but (as you suspect) would make a difference to your ability to cancel the contract if you chose that route.

If you do have evidence of the agreed delivery date and if that has past, you may as well go straight for chargeback - unless you really want the cabinets and are prepared to risk it all waiting for something that may never arrive.