Successful reclaim (faulty goods) turned into debt collection!

Majobor

Help!

I put a claim for goods not as advertised for some "custom" made curtains I bought from Hillary's blind. They were just poorly made, short and not fully lined. Not what I signed up for.

It was a debit card payment, so claimed from the bank. The bank agreed to refund but now Hillary's has passed the debt to a debt collector as unpaid!

How do I fight back?

Please, please, do not buy from them. Rip off. (I know now there is a thread about them - too late for me).

Thanks for any info/help

zoob

I’m assuming you spoke to Hilary's and give them a chance to sort them out also you’ve have returned the curtians and they’ve refused to sort or refund you before you’ve done chargeback

Majobor

I have spoken to them. They laughed at me. Even before putting the claim. I have offered to return them, sent them a letter, everything. They don’t want to know.

tehone

There is no debt. You paid with debit card, this was accepted by Hilary's, in accordance with their merchant agreement.

You later in line with your debit card t&c requested a chargeback, your bank investigated and line with the agreement refunded you the money.

The merchant is not allowed to pursue for this money

born_again

tehone wrote: »

There is no debt. You paid with debit card, this was accepted by Hilary's, in accordance with their merchant agreement.

You later in line with your debit card t&c requested a chargeback, your bank investigated and line with the agreement refunded you the money.

The merchant is not allowed to pursue for this money

Opps. That is wrong. In fact any chargeback can end up with
being passed to a debt collector. What is weird is why Hillarys did not reject the chargeback as they have a right to do.

"custom made" makes a big difference. As does customer still having goods.
You can not end up with goods & money. Unless retailer is happy to allow.

Ectophile

Majobor wrote: »

How do I fight back?

Ultimately, you don't need to. Tell the debt collectors to take a hike - you don't owe any money.


If you receive any letters, just file them for future reference. The only thing you mustn't ignore is letters from the court. If it gets to that, you need to go to court to defend yourself.

tehone

born_again wrote: »

Opps. That is wrong. In fact any chargeback can end up with
being passed to a debt collector. What is weird is why Hillarys did not reject the chargeback as they have a right to do.

"custom made" makes a big difference. As does customer still having goods.
You can not end up with goods & money. Unless retailer is happy to allow.

I think I am correct, the chargeback was not disputed and therefore the merchant has given up their right to that payment.

I did neglect to note, that the goods do need to be returned

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

born_again wrote: »

What is weird is why Hillarys did not reject the chargeback as they have a right to do.

I don't believe retailers can just reject a chargeback, otherwise they all would, I think they can dispute it and the bank decides which party gets the funds.

tehone wrote: »

I did neglect to note, that the goods do need to be returned

I think the OP only has to take reasonable care of the goods and make them available for collection. The bank may stipulate this needs to be done as part of the chargeback process but as that is done and dusted I don't think it matters.

OP there is a board here for dealing with debt who might advise better on debt collectors but I think you can advise the debt collection agency the debt doesn't stand then they should then stop contacting you and go back to the retailer.

Should Hillarys wish to take you to small clams they can, your claim would appear to be the goods were not of satisfactory quality.

If this goes to small claims (or to protect yourself if Hillarys want to collect the goods) it may be wise to get a local curtain maker to put something on paper to agree with your view point to support your claim.

I doubt it would be difficult for a big company to draw something up stating the goods were fine.

Potbellypig

Ectophile wrote: »

Ultimately, you don't need to. Tell the debt collectors to take a hike - you don't owe any money.


If you receive any letters, just file them for future reference. The only thing you mustn't ignore is letters from the court. If it gets to that, you need to go to court to defend yourself.

OP - This is the advice you need to take onboard regarding the debt collectors.

born_again

tehone wrote: »

I think I am correct, the chargeback was not disputed and therefore the merchant has given up their right to that payment.

I did neglect to note, that the goods do need to be returned

We have to advise customer that the retailer has the right to chase them directly if the customer wins.
Many companies are not aware they can contest a chargeback, so lose by default.

Visa/Mastercard regulations do not have any legal standing. As such a retailer has the right to chase for funds they have lost via legal means.

Telling the OP to ignore the debt collection co is not good advice. If they take it further and go to court and get a CCJ on this. The OP would not be impressed by the advice.
Far better for the OP to contact them and advise is in dispute with the co over the debt.

Mr_Singleton

born_again wrote: »

If they take it further and go to court and get a CCJ on this.

That would be way way down the line where the OP would have had a chance to contest the charge in court.