Virgin experience nightmare. Product no longer available, No offer of refund. Please help.

LaHostessAvecLaMostess

steve_naive said:

LaHostessAvecLaMostess said:

steve_naive said:

longjohnjohnson said:

You, in effect, purchased a gift voucher for a specific retailer who has essentially gone bust.  I suspect your rights are the same as anyone else in that position.

Their T&C's do state that if the voucher is redeemed (and it appears it was as the code was given to the supplier) then no refund is due.

There's also

1. Variations

   Please note that Operators and Suppliers reserve the right to alter any part of an Experience or Product. Experiences and Voucher Products may occasionally be withdrawn for reasons outside of our control, and we cannot be held liable for any costs incurred as a result of this. Should this occur, you will be advised and offered the opportunity to exchange your Voucher for one with the same face value. If alternatives are not available, no refunds can be offered but a Gift Card for the same value will be offered. Please see "Cancellations" below for further information.

I don't think it's particularly unfair for them to offer a replacement voucher for a different experience.  It's arguably more than you're entitled to in law.

Without wishing to dispute the legality of the T&C's, does it not trouble you that Virgin can advertise something under their banner for which they essentially eschew all liability for should things go wrong?

People unwittingly buy into the brand thinking they are somehow covered by Virgin's reputation. Which is clearly not the case.

My family recently bought an experience for our elderly father that turned out to be as legitimate as a 6 pound note. Lost £100 with zero comeback. Virgin simply replied 'read our terms and conditions'. 

Great.

No, as I think most of us are fully aware of what gift cards entail, and perhaps more specifically what we're giving up by using them. Which is one of the reasons why I never give them as gifts and would only purchase them with some sort of financial incentive to do so (along with as much confidence as possible that the retailer is going to stay in business/not screw me around.)

This is really no different than buying a gift card at a Tesco checkout and the company the gift card is for going bump a month later.  I wouldn't expect Tesco to refund me, they fulfilled their part of the bargain by giving me the gift card in return for my cash.

I understand that in order to have any realistic chance of getting my money back I need as direct a link to the "retailer" as possible.  Gift cards put a massive barrier in the way of that.

Let's not pretend that most people are canny consumers. If they were, Virgin Experience Days would not exist. 

Last time I checked, Tesco provide gift cards from major outlets such as Amazon and Apple. Not Bob's Caravan Tours of Sutton Coalfield. 

You buy a Virgin partners' product, and assume the outfits they deal with have been properly vetted. Once problems arise you receive a 'computer says no' response. All perfectly legal. But I'm afraid 'caveat emptor' is a somewhat sneery attitude to take. Especially with Christmas approaching! 

It doesn't matter what the gift cards are for, and even if it did there have been numerous very large and well-known brands that have gone pop over recent years, with people holding gift cards almost always being left out of pocket when they do. So it's really immaterial if the vendor is "Bob's Caravan Tours" or say, Debenhams when it boils down to it.

I can only assume that Virgin Experience Days are giving consumers some sort of kickback (lower prices being the main one) vs purchasing directly which is why people choose to use them.  But there's no such thing as a free lunch, and if you're getting it cheaper you'd be wise to ask why.

If I buy a gift voucher from anyone, I assume all responsibility once the voucher has been issued. I don't particularly assume the companies have been vetted, but that means little as companies can "go rogue" at any time anyway.

steve_naive

With all due respect, it's apples and oranges. 

VED's sole remit is to provide experiences. The risk they take is to partner up with sketchy outfits that de facto represent the Virgin brand. Apparently they could care less, which is fine, it's in the T&C's they quote when things go wrong:

'Not our problem'. 

I think the 'risk' Virgin take in having their reputation tarnished is nothing to be surprised about, we've seen it with their shoddy broadband practices, which is too tedious to go over again. They appear to be doing well out of it. 

I'm surprised at how VED is run, you are not. Let's leave it there. 

 

Aylesbury_Duck

steve_naive said:

With all due respect, it's apples and oranges. 

VED's sole remit is to provide experiences. The risk they take is to partner up with sketchy outfits that de facto represent the Virgin brand. Apparently they could care less, which is fine, it's in the T&C's they quote when things go wrong:

'Not our problem'. 

I think the 'risk' Virgin take in having their reputation tarnished is nothing to be surprised about, we've seen it with their shoddy broadband practices, which is too tedious to go over again. They appear to be doing well out of it. 

I'm surprised at how VED is run, you are not. Let's leave it there. 

 

And there's your answer.  It's a model that works for them, so why would you be surprised they employ it?  As with many voucher schemes and gift cards, I suspect a percentage of people never redeem or fully redeem their vouchers, which presents a tidy profit to the voucher seller for almost no outlay.  Of the rest, the voucher provider will have screwed the actual service provider to the floor on price, so no wonder the service providers end up at risk of going bust. 

I suspect Virgin are astute enough to know there are enough people that hold the view that they're a reputable brand, so it doesn't really matter if a few customers lose out, there are plenty of others looking for a bargain.

LaHostessAvecLaMostess

steve_naive said:

With all due respect, it's apples and oranges. 

VED's sole remit is to provide experiences. The risk they take is to partner up with sketchy outfits that de facto represent the Virgin brand. Apparently they could care less, which is fine, it's in the T&C's they quote when things go wrong:

'Not our problem'. 

I think the 'risk' Virgin take in having their reputation tarnished is nothing to be surprised about, we've seen it with their shoddy broadband practices, which is too tedious to go over again. They appear to be doing well out of it. 

I'm surprised at how VED is run, you are not. Let's leave it there. 

 

Their sole remit is to supply gift cards for experiences, which they do.  There are other retailers whose remit is solely to supply gift cards, none of whom I expect will take any responsibility if the end retailer hoofs it with the money or goes bump.

The Virgin brand has been meaningless for well over a decade.  Most of it has little to do with Virgin.  Virgin Media is just a rebranded NTL service (now owned by Liberty Global/Telefonica.)

Alderbank

Aylesbury_Duck said:

I suspect Virgin are astute enough to know there are enough people that hold the view that they're a reputable brand, ...

Virgin Trains didn't have much of a reputation before they lost the franchise

steve_naive

LaHostessAvecLaMostess said:

steve_naive said:

With all due respect, it's apples and oranges. 

VED's sole remit is to provide experiences. The risk they take is to partner up with sketchy outfits that de facto represent the Virgin brand. Apparently they could care less, which is fine, it's in the T&C's they quote when things go wrong:

'Not our problem'. 

I think the 'risk' Virgin take in having their reputation tarnished is nothing to be surprised about, we've seen it with their shoddy broadband practices, which is too tedious to go over again. They appear to be doing well out of it. 

I'm surprised at how VED is run, you are not. Let's leave it there. 

 

Their sole remit is to supply gift cards for experiences, which they do.  There are other retailers whose remit is solely to supply gift cards, none of whom I expect will take any responsibility if the end retailer hoofs it with the money or goes bump.

The Virgin brand has been meaningless for well over a decade.  Most of it has little to do with Virgin.  Virgin Media is just a rebranded NTL service (now owned by Liberty Global/Telefonica.)

True enough, but I suppose most people still associate Virgin with Richard Branson and erroneously believe it's all one big company. Either way, it's a recognised brand name.

I've just had word from them that my family have essentially been scammed out of £100 by - and let me phrase this to your liking - a company they have a tenuous, non binding connection with??

I particularly enjoyed the cheery way the bad news was delivered. 'Hi! Great talking with you today!! - it's a no, read your terms and conditions'. 

Ah well. 

LaHostessAvecLaMostess

steve_naive said:

LaHostessAvecLaMostess said:

steve_naive said:

With all due respect, it's apples and oranges. 

VED's sole remit is to provide experiences. The risk they take is to partner up with sketchy outfits that de facto represent the Virgin brand. Apparently they could care less, which is fine, it's in the T&C's they quote when things go wrong:

'Not our problem'. 

I think the 'risk' Virgin take in having their reputation tarnished is nothing to be surprised about, we've seen it with their shoddy broadband practices, which is too tedious to go over again. They appear to be doing well out of it. 

I'm surprised at how VED is run, you are not. Let's leave it there. 

 

Their sole remit is to supply gift cards for experiences, which they do.  There are other retailers whose remit is solely to supply gift cards, none of whom I expect will take any responsibility if the end retailer hoofs it with the money or goes bump.

The Virgin brand has been meaningless for well over a decade.  Most of it has little to do with Virgin.  Virgin Media is just a rebranded NTL service (now owned by Liberty Global/Telefonica.)

True enough, but I suppose most people still associate Virgin with Richard Branson and erroneously believe it's all one big company. Either way, it's a recognised brand name.

I've just had word from them that my family have essentially been scammed out of £100 by - and let me phrase this to your liking - a company they have a tenuous, non binding connection with??

I particularly enjoyed the cheery way the bad news was delivered. 'Hi! Great talking with you today!! - it's a no, read your terms and conditions'. 

Ah well. 

Sounds about right.

I have no distinct liking for the Virgin brand, as I've understood for well over a decade that about the only company under the Virgin umbrella that seems to be in anyway premium (or really owned by it) is Virgin Atlantic.  The rest are typically "nothing special" brands who use the Virgin branding to appear more trustworthy.

Toadsmail

longjohnjohnson said:

You, in effect, purchased a gift voucher for a specific retailer who has essentially gone bust.  I suspect your rights are the same as anyone else in that position.

Their T&C's do state that if the voucher is redeemed (and it appears it was as the code was given to the supplier) then no refund is due.

There's also

1. Variations

   Please note that Operators and Suppliers reserve the right to alter any part of an Experience or Product. Experiences and Voucher Products may occasionally be withdrawn for reasons outside of our control, and we cannot be held liable for any costs incurred as a result of this. Should this occur, you will be advised and offered the opportunity to exchange your Voucher for one with the same face value. If alternatives are not available, no refunds can be offered but a Gift Card for the same value will be offered. Please see "Cancellations" below for further information.

I don't think it's particularly unfair for them to offer a replacement voucher for a different experience.  It's arguably more than you're entitled to in law.

I understand VED protecting themselves from people changing their minds etc. My issue is that I bought 6 vouchers for a specific experience for my sons birthday. Within 2 months of purchase the supplier closed buisiness. There are no similar experiences available. I would have accepted having to travel further to an alternative venue for the same or similar experience. I assumed that Virgin was a decent/respectable company to deal with.
Being offered a different experience is forcing us to do something we didn't pay for as I purchases a specific experience, not gift vouchers.

LaHostessAvecLaMostess

Toadsmail said:

longjohnjohnson said:

You, in effect, purchased a gift voucher for a specific retailer who has essentially gone bust.  I suspect your rights are the same as anyone else in that position.

Their T&C's do state that if the voucher is redeemed (and it appears it was as the code was given to the supplier) then no refund is due.

There's also

1. Variations

   Please note that Operators and Suppliers reserve the right to alter any part of an Experience or Product. Experiences and Voucher Products may occasionally be withdrawn for reasons outside of our control, and we cannot be held liable for any costs incurred as a result of this. Should this occur, you will be advised and offered the opportunity to exchange your Voucher for one with the same face value. If alternatives are not available, no refunds can be offered but a Gift Card for the same value will be offered. Please see "Cancellations" below for further information.

I don't think it's particularly unfair for them to offer a replacement voucher for a different experience.  It's arguably more than you're entitled to in law.

I understand VED protecting themselves from people changing their minds etc. My issue is that I bought 6 vouchers for a specific experience for my sons birthday. Within 2 months of purchase the supplier closed buisiness. There are no similar experiences available. I would have accepted having to travel further to an alternative venue for the same or similar experience. I assumed that Virgin was a decent/respectable company to deal with.
Being offered a different experience is forcing us to do something we didn't pay for as I purchases a specific experience, not gift vouchers.

Incorrect.

You purchased gift vouchers for a specific event.

The company has essentially gone bust and arguably you have no comeback at all.  Virgin, being a relatively respectable company, offered you credit for another event.  Take it, and then stop buying gift vouchers.

Toadsmail

wesleyad said:

Also to add, you may have had the intention of only buying the voucher for the Dodgems, but in fact you have bought a generic virgin voucher. Virgin are saying you still have this so they have fulfilled their end of the contract.

Put it another way, you buy £500 of currys vouchers to buy a specific laptop, which then goes out of stock. Curreys would not have to refund you the £500, they would say spend it on something else. The fact you only wanted the laptop is irrelevant. As others have said, this is a reason to be careful when converting cash into vouchers.

Not A generic gift voucher