Millies Cookies - incorrect order refund policy

Wonka_2

Alderbank said:

So for example instead of 'Happy Birthday Marian' you got 'Happy Birthday Marion'?

Their published T&Cs, which are a binding part of the contract, are pretty clear on this:

14. If upon delivery the product is damaged, different from the one you have ordered (for example of a different colour or the wording is incorrect), or the order is incomplete, when you receive it, please notify us immediately for investigation, if found to be the case we will credit or refund your purchase.

It sounds like they are trying to claim that 'refund your purchase' only means they might give you a partial refund.
That doesn't fly - the ordinary meaning of 'refund your purchase' is 'give you back what you paid'.

Exactly the example except the missing letter moved it from a 'male' name to a 'female' name (and I'm not being deliberately obtuse but an trying to remain anonymity

And the 'refund your purchase' was the basis I was pushing on - and they confirmed that their policy was at their discretion and could involve a partial refund or credit

Wonka_2

eddddy said:

Wonka_2 said:

... their final offer is a 50% refund which they claim is at their discretion or a £10 Millies Cookies voucher.

Total order price was just under £30 inc postage and paid by credit card

Going a little off-topic..

Does the company agree that they've made an error? Or might they be thinking that you're trying to 'scam' them into getting a refund for birthday cookie that was completely correct?


If they agree they made an error, it seems amazing that a "high street brand" is kicking up such a fuss over £15.

For example, the damage to their brand's reputation from this thread, and you telling friends to avoid them is likely to be much greater than £15.

If, instead, they'd said - "We're really sorry that your special day was spoiled - here's a full refund plus a £10 voucher" - you might have laughed off the error, and praised them to friends and and family for the nice way they treated you.


(It's a bit like back in my student days, there was a pizza place who would not charge you for a pizza if they made a mistake with the toppings. So students were really pleased if they made a mistake. And their policy made them very  popular - even though they very rarely made mistakes.)


The cookie stores are franchises. Out of interest, have you been dealing with a franchisee at a store (who might not be very business savvy, and might not understand about brand reputation), as opposed to somebody at head office?

Yes company agreed they made the error - they asked for a photo and confirmed their error vs order

And it's not a franchise but suspect the mail order option is sub-contracted - but payment/contract etc is with Millies and complaints are through Millies/SSP Head Office

My ask was simple - refund or vouchers to the value of the original order or a replacement to the recipient - no compensation nor an apology were asked for but they were unable/unwilling to do either 

Okell

TBH if this happened to me (or in my family) I'd push Millie's about this - but only so far and only as a point of principle.  ie that they didn't deliver what was ordered.

But if they were adamant that they weren't going to budge I wouldn't waste any more time on it.

(Especially as it was eaten!)

Wonka_2

Okell said:

TBH if this happened to me (or in my family) I'd push Millie's about this - but only so far and only as a point of principle.  ie that they didn't deliver what was ordered.

But if they were adamant that they weren't going to budge I wouldn't waste any more time on it.

(Especially as it was eaten!)

And principle was where it had got to - and I would've walked away until @eskbanker suggestion re chargeback which has now been actioned. Will be interesting to see whether they challenge it, and if so on what grounds

Okell

Fair enough.  I'd stretch to trying a chargeback too.

(Although... as delivery to completely the wrong address would not be covered by chargeback, even with proof of mis-delivery, I'm not certain how far you will get with just a wrongly spelled name.      Apologies to born_again... )

born_again

What basis was the chargeback done on?

Only one I can think of working would be "Goods not as Described" 

RefluentBeans

I’m not overly convinced a chargeback would work in all honesty. The cookie was eaten, and the card companies won’t necessarily want to wade into a naming issue. 

You should however push back against Millie’s for this - but as others have said it’s pros and cons. You can’t have your cake and eat it to - or perhaps you can’t reject your cookie and eat it to! 

saajan_12

Wonka_2 said:

Alderbank said:

So for example instead of 'Happy Birthday Marian' you got 'Happy Birthday Marion'?

Their published T&Cs, which are a binding part of the contract, are pretty clear on this:

14. If upon delivery the product is damaged, different from the one you have ordered (for example of a different colour or the wording is incorrect), or the order is incomplete, when you receive it, please notify us immediately for investigation, if found to be the case we will credit or refund your purchase.

It sounds like they are trying to claim that 'refund your purchase' only means they might give you a partial refund.
That doesn't fly - the ordinary meaning of 'refund your purchase' is 'give you back what you paid'.

Exactly the example except the missing letter moved it from a 'male' name to a 'female' name (and I'm not being deliberately obtuse but an trying to remain anonymity

And the 'refund your purchase' was the basis I was pushing on - and they confirmed that their policy was at their discretion and could involve a partial refund or credit

Yeah that's not how it works.. their T&Cs form part of the contract of sale, so they can't pick and choose when to deny them. Even without the term, I think you would be entitled to a fix or full refund. 

You didn't just buy 'a cookie' but a decorated, personalised cookie. You gave them the option of fixing it or refunding. You don't have to agree to a lower price for partial delivery. 

Wonka_2

born_again said:

What basis was the chargeback done on?

Only one I can think of working would be "Goods not as Described" 

Accepted by bank after they had read the emails - goods not as described, accepted by retailed but retailer has not refunded - let's see what the outcome is

Wonka_2

RefluentBeans said:

I’m not overly convinced a chargeback would work in all honesty. The cookie was eaten, and the card companies won’t necessarily want to wade into a naming issue. 

You should however push back against Millie’s for this - but as others have said it’s pros and cons. You can’t have your cake and eat it to - or perhaps you can’t reject your cookie and eat it to! 

The cookie was only eaten after Millies accepted the issue and gave their permission - there was no way of returning it, nor did they want it returned.

Millies (or a representative acting on their behalf) have made it clear they're not interested