Ongoing issues with DFS

Weybridge78

Hi all. Earlier this year, we purchased 3 sofas from DFS, on a 0% interest credit plan over 3 years. After the delay of the delivery of the sofas to the DFS warehouse, we called DFS to organise a delivery date and have been having a couple of issues since, which I will summarise below.

1. DFS said they would deliver the 3 sofas on a Monday afternoon
2. We paid £80 to DFS to remove the old sofas, to also be collected on the same Monday
3. On the Monday, I called DFS to ensure everything was okay for delivery. They said yes.
4. The company that DFS outsources removals to, came to our house first on the agreed Monday
5. The time slot in which DFS were meant to deliver the new sofas, was nearing the end
6. We called DFS again and were told that the sofas would no longer be delivered on the same day
7. We explained to DFS that we needed 1 sofa to be left in the living room, since the new sofas could not come on the day. We asked DFS to organise another collection of the remaining sofa. The person on the phone said that I would need to directly speak to the people from the removals company, which we all thought was ridiculous.
8. We told DFS that even the removals company said it is not their responsibility to organise removals on behalf of DFS
9. DFS agreed after some time, and said we would need to pay another £80 to organise removal of the remaining 1 sofa. (I need to check whether this £80 was paid to DFS or the removals company).

Although the sofas were delivered on Thursday that week, we have been trying to get a refund of the second £80 payment from DFS, considering that it was their fault that we had to keep 1 sofa in the living room, and the delays of the sofa delivery. DFS not only have been taking ages to answer the phone, but have repeatedly ignored our calls for a manager callback, and have said that we need to contact the removals company for the refund. Unsurprisingly, the removals company said we need to speak to DFS. This has been ongoing for around 2 months.

Does anyone know what we can do in this case? I feel that DFS are messing us around but it's not even possible to get in touch with them!

Aylesbury_Duck

With hindsight, it would have been better to turn the removals team around empty-handed.  Now you've created justification for them charging you for two removals.

Your contract for sale and removal is with DFS, so you need to deal with them.  They've subcontracted the job and you have no contractual relationship with the subcontractor.

My advice is to do one of two things.  Either pay the second £80 to have the second sofa removed, or arrange to dispose of it yourself, if you definitely need it gone to make room for the new furniture.  That clears the way for the new furniture to arrive, and then you can pursue DFS for the £80, if not as a straightforward refund for the second removal, then as a discount for mucking you about.  

sheramber

Did they remove the sofa that you had kept back?

Weybridge78

sheramber said:

Did they remove the sofa that you had kept back?

Yes, after paying the additional £80.

Aylesbury_Duck said:

With hindsight, it would have been better to turn the removals team around empty-handed.  Now you've created justification for them charging you for two removals.

The removals company had already destroyed and removed two of the three sofas by the time DFS told us they would not be delivering on the same day.

stephenmann

Weybridge78 said:

Hi all. Earlier this year, we purchased 3 sofas from DFS, on a 0% interest credit plan over 3 years. After the delay of the delivery of the sofas to the DFS warehouse, we called DFS to organise a delivery date and have been having a couple of issues since, which I will summarise below.

1. DFS said they would deliver the 3 sofas on a Monday afternoon
2. We paid £80 to DFS to remove the old sofas, to also be collected on the same Monday
3. On the Monday, I called DFS to ensure everything was okay for delivery. They said yes.
4. The company that DFS outsources removals to, came to our house first on the agreed Monday
5. The time slot in which DFS were meant to deliver the new sofas, was nearing the end
6. We called DFS again and were told that the sofas would no longer be delivered on the same day
7. We explained to DFS that we needed 1 sofa to be left in the living room, since the new sofas could not come on the day. We asked DFS to organise another collection of the remaining sofa. The person on the phone said that I would need to directly speak to the people from the removals company, which we all thought was ridiculous.
8. We told DFS that even the removals company said it is not their responsibility to organise removals on behalf of DFS
9. DFS agreed after some time, and said we would need to pay another £80 to organise removal of the remaining 1 sofa. (I need to check whether this £80 was paid to DFS or the removals company).

Although the sofas were delivered on Thursday that week, we have been trying to get a refund of the second £80 payment from DFS, considering that it was their fault that we had to keep 1 sofa in the living room, and the delays of the sofa delivery. DFS not only have been taking ages to answer the phone, but have repeatedly ignored our calls for a manager callback, and have said that we need to contact the removals company for the refund. Unsurprisingly, the removals company said we need to speak to DFS. This has been ongoing for around 2 months.

Does anyone know what we can do in this case? I feel that DFS are messing us around but it's not even possible to get in touch with them!

When you look at Trustpilot there's an increasing number of feedbacks related to failure to deliver (although these are sadly way outnumbered by people happy at the point of sale). We're in the same boat and even had a text (re delivery slot #3 tomorrow) at 8am this morning and then a call at 10:30am to say the delivery had been cancelled for a third time. I imagine that this is just the tip of the iceberg as people fail to get their sofas in time for family gatherings (if not cancelled by COVID19) at Christmas.

What will be interesting is if DFS is actively warning new customers of its delivery issues or is continuing to say it will be a 12-week wait. Such that sofas are knowingly "missold".

While the delay is annoying, it's the poor communications and expectation management that's really the problem IMO. Especially when the reasons for delay seem to be inconsistent.