"Non refundable deposit" query

devoncop22

Hi 

Not sure if anyone can help. Yesterday we had a bedroom fitting company rep to our house to quote. After measuring up he explained the proposed cost and date of fitting and asked for a deposit of £600. This was paid by direct bank transfer and a contract agreeing the full amount was signed though no copy was left with us and no details of any cancellation policy was given.

Today we were contacted with the proposed actual fitting arrangements which turned out to be very drawn out and unsuitable so I had to email and cancel the agreement and spoke to the rep who attended to explain this.

He informed me that "company policy " was that the deposit was non refundable and urged me to reconsider. 

My understanding was that the Consumer Rights Act 2015 gave me 7 or 14 days cooling off period to cancel and also required the rep to leave me a copy of a cancellation form (which he failed to do). I understood that the Act overrides any company policy regarding the refunding or otherwise of deposits.

Am I correct ?

I really cannot afford to lose £600 at the moment so any help would be hugely appreciated.

Many thanks

Ian

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

I assume you paid the £600 whilst the salesperson was there? 

AFAIK this would be an off premises contract which as you say comes with the right to cancel. 

You'd have to notify them clearly that you are withdrawing from the contract under The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013* and as such they are obligated to refund any money paid without any fee imposed. 

If they refuse then you'd be looking at letter before action and small claims, if it was a limited company you can search companies house by name or company number:

https://www.gov.uk/get-information-about-a-company

to see how many directors there are, whether they've had lots of businesses in the past, how long the company has been trading, etc. The accounts under filing history will also show you the worth of any assets they hold, all of this should give you an idea of whether they are likely to pay or not.

If they have an excuse (beyond company policy) pop back for more advice. 

*Consumer Rights Act 2015 is slightly different to the regs covering the right to cancel  

devoncop22

So grateful for that detailed response.

Very helpful. The salesman was indeed next to me in our house as I paid giving me the relevant account details. 

The company is a family firm in existence for many years in the NE so assets will not be an issue.

Do you think requesting a chargeback via (my) Starling Bank is worth trying as a disputed transaction is of any use by the way ?

I have sent them an email today so will await their response and I will quote the 2013 regulations you mention if there is a problem with the refund.

sheramber

After measuring up he explained the proposed cost and date of fitting and asked for a deposit of £600.

Did you agree to them starting the fitting immediately, as in before 14 days were up?

devoncop22

No definitely not. Date of starting suggested around the start of May, and was nailed down subsequent to payment which was going to be 2nd May 2023 (and was subsequently moved to May 9th).

born_again

devoncop22 said:

Do you think requesting a chargeback via (my) Starling Bank is worth trying as a disputed transaction is of any use by the way ?

>>This was paid by direct bank transfer <<

There are no chargeback rights on bank transfers. They only cover card payments. 

devoncop22

Yes it was a stressful day yesterday so my brain was a bit scrambled .... Of course you are right.

So far my email requesting a refund appears to be being ignored so I will give it until Monday and then send a letter before action and see what happens.

Many thanks for replying.

devoncop22

Update:

I now have an email from the Company stating that when the Accounts Dept return on Monday my refund will be processed .

Whether this shows the sales rep was lying about the "non refundable deposit" in order to try any pressurise us into still going ahead with the full install or whether quoting chapter and verse on the Consumer Rights legislation has caused a rethink we will never know but fingers crossed for a happy ending.

We have decided to refresh our current bedroom ourselves at considerably less cost to bank balance and stress levels !

Murphybear

Which firm was this?  We bought a house some years ago and got Sharps in for a quote for a fitted wardrobe that would fit easily into a recess.  They started out with a £12 k quote and kept reducing it until it was £1600 but the final offer was only good for that day

My husband decided that it was still too high for what it was and he went to B & Q and bought sliding mirror doors and the fittings. Can’t remember how much it cost but it was a fraction of Sharp’s price.  He was very good at DIY and made a lovely job of it.  When we sold the house to a young couple they kept admiring his handiwork.  

He gave Sharps a nickname - “Sharks”. 

devoncop22

It was Mattinsons Bedrooms.

They have good reviews online.

The contact with the salesman was less than satisfactory in a number of ways though. I am still keeping my fingers crossed re the refund but will push it legally if it doesn't arrive.

You are right about using a bit of effort and inspiration ourselves and tweaking things over a couple of days and we have managed to change the whole look of two bedrooms for less than a quarter of the cost of what we were quoted and the disruption was minimal.

Lesson learnt !