Refund for pre-ordered bank card?

[Deleted User]

Good afternoon, 

I am a member of an online finance platform (UK based), whereby you top up your account with funds, then receive upto 9% cashback on purchases when their card is used.

Several months ago in late 2023, the platform opened up pre-orders for a "metal card" variant which would allow the user to obtain enhanced cashback for a twelve month period upon arrival of the card, which is currently scheduled for later in 2024. To clarify, none of these enhanced benefits etc can be obtained prior the arrival of this metal card. The cost of this metal card varied, however the most expensive being £1250, and had to be paid via their platform, meaning I had to transfer funds from my bank account to my account with them, then make the payment from their, I assume to eliminate the possibility of chargeback.

I have now lost faith in the company due to several reasons and have decided to withdraw from the platform. I have contacted them and requested a refund for my "metal card pre-order" however they state that no refund will be provided outside their 14 day cool-off period.

My question is, as this was an online pre-order for a service that has yet to be delivered, do I have any legal protection in order to obtain a refund?

Many thanks. 

Aylesbury_Duck

[Deleted_User] said:

Good afternoon, 

I am a member of an online finance platform (UK based), whereby you top up your account with funds, then receive upto 9% cashback on purchases when their card is used.

Several months ago in late 2023, the platform opened up pre-orders for a "metal card" variant which would allow the user to obtain enhanced cashback for a twelve month period upon arrival of the card, which is currently scheduled for later in 2024. To clarify, none of these enhanced benefits etc can be obtained prior the arrival of this metal card. The cost of this metal card varied, however the most expensive being £1250, and had to be paid via their platform, meaning I had to transfer funds from my bank account to my account with them, then make the payment from their, I assume to eliminate the possibility of chargeback.

I have now lost faith in the company due to several reasons and have decided to withdraw from the platform. I have contacted them and requested a refund for my "metal card pre-order" however they state that no refund will be provided outside their 14 day cool-off period.

My question is, as this was an online pre-order for a service that has yet to be delivered, do I have any legal protection in order to obtain a refund?

Many thanks. 

Difficult to say without the precise terms, but if you challenged it legally (and you may wish to, because £1250 is not a small sum) then their case would have to show that they've incurred costs already as a result of your order.  They may just refund you once they read your letter before action and realise you're serious, or they may contest it.

eskbanker

[Deleted_User] said:

My question is, as this was an online pre-order for a service that has yet to be delivered, do I have any legal protection in order to obtain a refund?

I could be wrong but suspect that a transaction within the confines of a membership arrangement may be treated differently from a standalone purchase - feel free to name the finance platform!

[Deleted User]

Thank you both for taking the time to reply, it is very much appreciated.

I will read up on the "letter before action" and get that sent over to get things moving. I was hoping that they would issue the refund without it resorting via legal means as I do believe they have a positive future, but it's things like this that have pushed me away from the platform, certainly for the time being. 

As for the platform it is called Plutus.it

Alderbank

I suspect this is about the Revolut Metal card 'Show off to your friends with a solid reinforced steel card, exclusive to Metal customers'.
https://www.revolut.com/metal/

They offer various tiers of service and can be paid for either monthly or one annual payment each year.
As you have paid £1250 it sounds like you have chosen to pay in advance for one year service.

The T&Cs say that after the customary 14 day cooling off period 'If you pay the full subscription once a year, we won't refund any of the full year's subscription you paid, but we won't charge a break fee. You’ll also be able to continue using your subscription for the rest of the annual billing cycle that you’ve paid for.'

This is a fairly standard term for subscription services.

However you have two possible 'outs'.

• You say the service hasn't started yet. If it doesn't get off the ground within a reasonable time you will be able to claim they have breached the contract and you are entitled to be returned to the condition you were in before signing up - that is you have had no benefits so you get a full refund.

• The card 'benefits' include things like insurances. In the case of enhanced bank accounts, which are similar, some customers have been able to complain that they were mis-sold because they were not told that they could never benefit from certain benefits. For example, if a customer was over 65 and the included travel insurance only applied up to age 65 it was mis-sold if that was not explained and agreed.

tl:dr
You have bought but are entitled to use a full year of the service. However if the service is late or parts could not apply to you, you might have a claim.

[Deleted User]

Alderbank said:

I suspect this is about the Revolut Metal card 'Show off to your friends with a solid reinforced steel card, exclusive to Metal customers'.

They offer various tiers of service and can be paid for either monthly or one annual payment each year.
As you have paid £1250 it sounds like you have chosen to pay in advance for one year service.

The T&Cs say that after the customary 14 day cooling off period 'If you pay the full subscription once a year, we won't refund any of the full year's subscription you paid, but we won't charge a break fee. You’ll also be able to continue using your subscription for the rest of the annual billing cycle that you’ve paid for.'

This is a fairly standard term for subscription services.

However you have two possible 'outs'.

• You say the service hasn't started yet. If it doesn't get off the ground within a reasonable time you will be able to claim they have breached the contract and you are entitled to be returned to the condition you were in before signing up - that is you have had no benefits so you get a full refund.

• The card 'benefits' include things like insurances. In the case of enhanced bank accounts, which are similar, some customers have been able to complain that they were mis-sold because they were not told that they could never benefit from certain benefits. For example, if a customer was over 65 and the included travel insurance only applied up to age 65 it was mis-sold if that was not explained and agreed.

tl:dr
You have bought but are entitled to use a full year of the service. However if the service is late or parts could not apply to you, you might have a claim.

Thanks for your insight. I think I posted the company name at the same time as you replied, but thank you anyway. 

Just to clarify further if it helps, the £1250 I paid for the Metal card is effectively a "bolt on of perks" to my current subscription, (I pay a separate £20/month subscription).