Can I get compensation for poor service and mental distress

Ditzy_Mitzy

screech_78 said:

As someone who deals with high level complaints, we pay very little attention to “mental distress”. We hear it every single day and it wears thin. I’m sorry to sound harsh. 

If you’re looking for compensation, you’ll need to show how you’ve arrived at that figure (as it should be your losses) and you’ll also have to show how you mitigated them. If you’re not willing to do that, then you’re asking for a goodwill payment and that’s down to Wren to decide on and you can negotiate if you wish. 

When discussing goodwill gestures, I don’t take into account what a customer earns (some will try to say they should be reimbursed their hourly rate for sending an email). I don’t see why someone who earns £50 an hour should get more for sending an email than someone that earns £10 an hour as everyone’s time is valuable so that’s a no go for me. 

Really, if you can’t justify £3,000 I can’t see you getting anywhere close to that. As a side note, I had no kitchen for almost 9 months. Mostly because we were building an extension and my dad and husband were doing it themselves. Obviously you’ve paid a lot of money but it’s not the end of the world. I wish you luck though. 

Correct.  I used to have a job similar to that of @screech_78 and every other grievance mentioned 'mental distress' or similar.  If everyone who had ever written those words was awarded compensation, the company would have gone bankrupt.  I also never understood the claims about financial losses arising from 'taking a day off work'.  Fair enough if the complainant is genuinely self employed, but hardly plausible for the majority of ordinary workers whose only means of taking days off is to use paid annual leave.  I've never had a job that allowed employees to take days off unpaid here and there, it was holiday or it wasn't.  

Gavin83

Ditzy_Mitzy said:

screech_78 said:

As someone who deals with high level complaints, we pay very little attention to “mental distress”. We hear it every single day and it wears thin. I’m sorry to sound harsh. 

If you’re looking for compensation, you’ll need to show how you’ve arrived at that figure (as it should be your losses) and you’ll also have to show how you mitigated them. If you’re not willing to do that, then you’re asking for a goodwill payment and that’s down to Wren to decide on and you can negotiate if you wish. 

When discussing goodwill gestures, I don’t take into account what a customer earns (some will try to say they should be reimbursed their hourly rate for sending an email). I don’t see why someone who earns £50 an hour should get more for sending an email than someone that earns £10 an hour as everyone’s time is valuable so that’s a no go for me. 

Really, if you can’t justify £3,000 I can’t see you getting anywhere close to that. As a side note, I had no kitchen for almost 9 months. Mostly because we were building an extension and my dad and husband were doing it themselves. Obviously you’ve paid a lot of money but it’s not the end of the world. I wish you luck though. 

Correct.  I used to have a job similar to that of @screech_78 and every other grievance mentioned 'mental distress' or similar.  If everyone who had ever written those words was awarded compensation, the company would have gone bankrupt.  I also never understood the claims about financial losses arising from 'taking a day off work'.  Fair enough if the complainant is genuinely self employed, but hardly plausible for the majority of ordinary workers whose only means of taking days off is to use paid annual leave.  I've never had a job that allowed employees to take days off unpaid here and there, it was holiday or it wasn't.  

I'm not really sure why it should make a difference. They're either losing a days pay/earnings or a days holiday, which I assume they wouldn't wish to use up waiting around for a company to correct their mistakes.

While I would say it's only fair they're compensated for taking a days annual leave were I in that situation, to avoid an argument I would take it as unpaid leave and leave my paid annual leave intact. Easy to show I've lost money and thankfully unpaid leave would be an option where I work as long as you didn't go OTT with it.

photome

RSD7a said:

Thanks for the time taken writing these helpful replies and pointers. 

As I understand it, the consumer Rites act, when purchasing services says suppliers should offer

reasonable care and skill, 

within a reasonable time,

at a reasonable price. 

Surely a  seven month timescale to install a kitchen is by no means reasonable.

Aside from calculating time spent chasing them up to finish the job, which while it adds up isn't going to be that significant, is there no other way of prising an ex gracia payment out of them in recognition of their truly appalling service and the disdain with which we were treated once our money was in their pockets?

that is how Wren do business, there used to be multiple facebook groups full of people who all had the same/similar complaints to you but Wren didnt like those groups so got them all closed down

photome

RSD7a said:

LeRedoute said:

RSD7a said:

Thanks for the time taken writing these helpful replies and pointers. 

As I understand it, the consumer Rites act, when purchasing services says suppliers should offer

reasonable care and skill, 

within a reasonable time,

at a reasonable price. 

Surely a  seven month timescale to install a kitchen is by no means reasonable.

Aside from calculating time spent chasing them up to finish the job, which while it adds up isn't going to be that significant, is there no other way of prising an ex gracia payment out of them in recognition of their truly appalling service and the disdain with which we were treated once our money was in their pockets?

It's not, but you let it drag on for 7 months.

You could have rejected it, but you didn't.

You're really at the mercy of the company as to what they'll give you.

Thanks for these comments. I would say
1. Wren was the party who "let it drag on". We were pursuing them relentlessly.
2. I rejected the kitchen several times. After 7 months the kitchen had been fixed.
3. Yes I am at their mercy.

I'm getting close, now, to leafleting  customers in their showroom in order to get some attention .

that has been tried in the past, Wren dont care

RSD7a

If I may comment on the assertion that the situation described wasn't stressful. What's stressful for one person may not be stressful for another. It's not possible to know what would be stressful for another person. Some people are more resilient than others. As I get older I find I'm less resilient to stressful events. It's been a stressful and distressing saga.

RSD7a

photome said:

RSD7a said:

Thanks for the time taken writing these helpful replies and pointers. 

As I understand it, the consumer Rites act, when purchasing services says suppliers should offer

reasonable care and skill, 

within a reasonable time,

at a reasonable price. 

Surely a  seven month timescale to install a kitchen is by no means reasonable.

Aside from calculating time spent chasing them up to finish the job, which while it adds up isn't going to be that significant, is there no other way of prising an ex gracia payment out of them in recognition of their truly appalling service and the disdain with which we were treated once our money was in their pockets?

that is how Wren do business, there used to be multiple facebook groups full of people who all had the same/similar complaints to you but Wren didnt like those groups so got them all closed down

Facebook groups still there

https://www.facebook.com/groups/383946142657353/?ref=share

RSD7a

Final update. 
After my detailed formal complaint was unanswered and a reminder was ignored, I returned the Edinburgh Fort Kinnaird showroom in early May who promised to get Head Office to deal with my complaint. Nothing happened. Again.
What has made a difference was posting two excoriating reviews on Trustpilot, the second of which sprung their Customer Service team into action and I have today agreed a settlement of £1000. Way under what I was seeking but a small victory nonetheless.

Time to move on.

HillStreetBlues

RSD7a said:

Thanks for the time taken writing these helpful replies and pointers. 

As I understand it, the consumer Rites act, when purchasing services says suppliers should offer

reasonable care and skill, 

within a reasonable time,

at a reasonable price. 

Surely a  seven month timescale to install a kitchen is by no means reasonable.

Aside from calculating time spent chasing them up to finish the job, which while it adds up isn't going to be that significant, is there no other way of prising an ex gracia payment out of them in recognition of their truly appalling service and the disdain with which we were treated once our money was in their pockets?

You did well getting any refund, as above Act only covers if your kitchen was possessed