B and Q third party online seller issues

AW

I purchased garden matting online from a B and Q authorised seller and tried to cancel the order the same day. There was no facility to request cancellation the only time the company got in touch was to say a few days later it was too late to cancel as the order was being shipped. There is no facility to contact the company directly, I have been phoning B and Q customer service who say they are sending emails to the company asking them to call,I never hear back. I now have the goods, they took my money on the day I ordered the product, it's been nearly 2 weeks. Does anyone have any advice how to get the items sent back as B and Q are not the greatest help.
Thank you

RefluentBeans

As you have the product now - have you tried contacting the seller directly? I believe in this case, B&Q would be acting in a similar manner to a marketplace (like eBay). The returns page says that there should a contact seller link on the original order. If that’s not there, then ask B&Q for the contact details of the seller to make your own arrangements for a return if you can. 

On their returns page - it says some items are eligible to be returned to a B&Q store where they will post the item back for you as long as it meets the criteria (being ready to send and not on the list of items that can’t be returned). 

If you’ve tried contacting the seller directly to arrange returns, then keep going with B&Q directly and make it clear that you haven’t had a response from the seller. 

AW

When you press the link to talk to the seller it comes back as unable to leave a message. I was told by B&Q staff I am not able to take the item to the store, hopefully I will hear from the third party soon. Thank you for your help 

RefluentBeans

Ah I see - that’s an interesting question then. 

I would assume that there is a contract with the seller and B&Q in which they should provide timely customer service; so as annoying as it is, keep trying with them. And if they aren’t able to help escalate as far as you can. You’re attempting to follow B&Q’s return policy, and I assume that the seller didn’t stipulate any other terms for return? So hopefully B&Q will have a process for dealing with a situation like this. 

You said that you received an email from someone that the order couldn’t be cancelled - was that the seller or B&Q? If the seller, did it provide any other information you could attempt to contact them on (being sure to keep a note of it). Have you been able to Google the seller to see if they have any public information you can contact them on? Whatever you do, keep a record of your communication. 

Ultimately, you have expressed your desire to cancel via the methods as outlined in the policy so I would imagine you’ve ‘paused’ the clock to initiate a return. 

Kimflower

I’m here seeking the same answer when I found your post. I bought a garden parasol set several weeks ago, base, parasol and cover as a complete package…the seller has offered me a return on the faulty parasol which they have refunded but have deducted the money for the base as that’s not faulty?.. B&Q have told me it’s nothing to do with them and can’t help in any way….I thought my purchase would come with some level of contract with B&Q but apparently not.
I never realised this when I bought it….seems we are in the same boat as it were.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Kimflower said:

I’m here seeking the same answer when I found your post. I bought a garden parasol set several weeks ago, base, parasol and cover as a complete package…the seller has offered me a return on the faulty parasol which they have refunded but have deducted the money for the base as that’s not faulty?.. B&Q have told me it’s nothing to do with them and can’t help in any way….I thought my purchase would come with some level of contract with B&Q but apparently not.
I never realised this when I bought it….seems we are in the same boat as it were.

Worth pointing out their terms to them (the "company" means B&Q):

https://www.diy.com/customer-support/terms-and-conditions#icamp=footer_terms_conditions

8.2.2 for Products from a particular Seller in an order which, when considered together, are priced up to and including £50.00 (excluding any applicable VAT), the Company may make an automatic decision to resolve the situation and, if so, the Company will inform the Seller and the Buyer of such resolution. The resolution can include paying the Buyer a full refund. The Seller and the Buyer agree to abide, and comply with, such resolution; and

8.2.3 for Products from a particular Seller in an order which, when considered together, are priced above £50.00 (excluding any applicable VAT), the issue will be escalated to the Company’s account manager who will assess the issue, contact the Seller and discuss and propose a solution. If the Company fails to get a response by the Seller within 24 hours of such contact, the Company reserves the right to resolve the dispute regardless of the price of the item. The Seller and the Buyer agree to abide, and comply with, such resolution. The Company’s account manager might request the Seller to provide evidence of (by way of example only) delivery of the relevant Product (e.g. carrier confirmation of delivery) and/or return pick up of the item. The Seller is responsible for providing evidence and acknowledges that if the Seller fails to do so, the Company’s account manager is likely to decide to resolve the issue in favour of the Buyer. The Company will use reasonable endeavours to resolve any dispute within 72 hours of the Seller or the Buyer providing the required evidence (as required by the Company).  

tightauldgit

Kimflower said:

I’m here seeking the same answer when I found your post. I bought a garden parasol set several weeks ago, base, parasol and cover as a complete package…the seller has offered me a return on the faulty parasol which they have refunded but have deducted the money for the base as that’s not faulty?.. B&Q have told me it’s nothing to do with them and can’t help in any way….I thought my purchase would come with some level of contract with B&Q but apparently not.
I never realised this when I bought it….seems we are in the same boat as it were.

If you bought it as a package and not separate items I don't think they can refund for part of the package. Fair enough if they want to replace one part that's faulty but I dont think they can just refund your parasol and leave you with a base and a cover that's no use to you. 

I'm completely unfamiliar with this BandQ marketplace thing so I don't know their specific terms but you always have recourse to the small claims court if necessary

AW

RefluentBeans said:

Ah I see - that’s an interesting question then. 

I would assume that there is a contract with the seller and B&Q in which they should provide timely customer service; so as annoying as it is, keep trying with them. And if they aren’t able to help escalate as far as you can. You’re attempting to follow B&Q’s return policy, and I assume that the seller didn’t stipulate any other terms for return? So hopefully B&Q will have a process for dealing with a situation like this. 

You said that you received an email from someone that the order couldn’t be cancelled - was that the seller or B&Q? If the seller, did it provide any other information you could attempt to contact them on (being sure to keep a note of it). Have you been able to Google the seller to see if they have any public information you can contact them on? Whatever you do, keep a record of your communication. 

Ultimately, you have expressed your desire to cancel via the methods as outlined in the policy so I would imagine you’ve ‘paused’ the clock to initiate a return. 

I've not thought about googling the seller I will have a look and see if they have their own customer service. The company is  Far East Direct UK Ltd, the only time they replied (contact via a link from B&Q)was to tell me it was too late to cancel, before this my messages to cancel were ignored.i will ring B&Q again tomorrow. Thank you for the advice just feel trapped 

AW

AI've not thought about googling the seller I will have a look and see if they have their own customer service. The company is  Far East Direct UK Ltd, the only time they replied (contact via a link from B&Q)was to tell me it was too late to cancel, before this my messages to cancel were ignored.i will ring B&Q again tomorrow. Thank you for the advice just feel trapped 

RefluentBeans

Looks like the company is a wholesale import/export with multiple different categories of sales. You can try and contact them directly (Googling their name brings up a phone number). 

From B&Q’s T/C’s it looks like it looks like if you’ve written your expression to cancel the contract within the 14 day period you just send the parcel back via a recorded delivery. I’d check with B&Q and see if that’s the case and if so - send it back. This is written in their T/C Section B - part 6. Their is also a dispute section (Section B part 8, talked about by the_lunatic_is_in_my_head) so just be aware of that if they play any funny business. 

Hope that helps! 

AW

Thank you so much, I phoned B&Q customer service again this morning and was told just to be patient they will contact me, that's not good enough