damaged/dented fridge freezer on delivery, plus courier scratched our flooring

pete1975

A_Geordie said:

pete1975 said:

thankyou so much for commenting,   i have various photos which you can see the path of the fridge freezer, after it was dropped and i ask the delivery guys to ring their boss,  they did and i started to film it, i have video footage of them calling their boss and then them taking a photo of the damage, not once on the call did they say to the boos we didn't do it or it was there when we came in,  they actually come into the property to check the route first to make sure there was space to move around and check the floor protection.      
they have actually stated it was there before hand,  which is impossible and if it was they made no reference to me about the floor damage or indeed made me sign any paperwork to say it was there,  it was a pure accident the guy holding the bottom of the fridge it just slipped out of his hands and the corner hit the floor and the guy holding the top was still moving backwards and it was dragged a few inches.      

Well the evidence you have to date will support your case especially if they denied in the video footage that it was already there. It will be up to the judge to determine how much weight should be attributed to your evidence and if it meets the threshold that it was more likely than not, that ArrowXL caused the damage. 

I noticed in an earlier post you said you were in the process of writing your claim. I would strongly suggest you do not rush into it for the sake of submitting a claim against ArrowXL. There's plenty of time to start the claim and it's important that you get everything right in your claim because if you don't you may end up missing important information and thereafter the claim becomes an uphill struggle. 

If you need any feedback on your claim why don't you post it up for posters to critique and provide feedback. 

Also, I would recommend you use the Money Claims Online service (https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk/web/mcol/welcome) as opposed to the Civil Money Online Claims service (https://www.moneyclaims.service.gov.uk/make-claim) which is currently a pilot scheme and I find it a bit naff personally compared to the MCOL service which is straightforward. 

thanks i'll get some time to go through it and and post something up as you have suggested for some help.  just to add the video only captures them telling the boss that the customer has to put a claim in and then we will in investigate and get back to them, as the boss is saying that the guys are taking a video of that.  I have time stamped video footage of them coming into the house,  then of house i have video footage taken when they are talking to the boss which shows after they brough the fridge into the house,  the t&cs even state that even if we didn't have any floor protection then they have a right to request us to sign a waiver,  they didn't ask to sign a waiver or mention one and they state they have reasonable grounds to leave if one is not signed so why didn't that happen..   tbh carrying it through and then dropping it i'm not sure what floor protection would have been needed to protect it,  we had robust cardboard on the hallway floor but they were carrying it not dragging it through the house.    

pete1975

Afternoon would you kind people guide me on my response to appliances direct, i've covered everything feel like im rambling but i wanted to get everything down as i was worried if it does go to court i would be accused of not providing all the information.   

29th July initial claim submitted to ArrowXL after i was advised by Appliances direct that ''Regarding the damage to your floor, since the delivery was handled by ArrowXL, you'll need to raise a property damage claim directly with them. You can contact their customer service team on 01942 943700.

 

7th August rejection of claim

Where David from ArrowXl stated on the rejection letter

‘’The transport manager has investigated what happened on the day of the incident and from the evidence provided and the statements taken from the crew members a decision has been made to reject the claim at this stage.

 

This is due to the points below:

• Term & Conditions were sent by Email & SMS on the 25/07/2025
•   Adequate Floor Protection
  Please ensure you have placed adequate covering to protect your flooring/carpets as no claims can be made for damage caused to unprotected flooring/carpets. Please note that the Delivery team are forbidden to remove any safety clothing, including footwear.
• The depot has advised the crew did ask if flooring protection was going to be provided and to sign the damage waiver. The crew had notified the depot of existing damage to the floor before delivery’’

In response to the rejection, I stated that the delivery crew arrived and asked to see the room in which the fridge would be delivered to and to check the route which they did, the floor was protected and they said that they would be carrying into the house due to the step at the door and not dragging it.  At no time did they say the floor was not adequately protected or asked me to sign a waiver as you’re their T&Cs state they should.  If true, why did they not reject to carry out the delivery or call the office to state the reasons above.   The remark of crew had notified the depot of existing damage to the floor before delivery is completely false, I’m sure if this is the case then paperwork for the homeowner should be presented and signed to cover the delivery crews, it has never been provided because it never happened.  (You will also see from the photographs taken immediately afterwards show that there are the scrapings of the floor right next to the scratch, these would move when someone walks past or took up the floor protection) so are consistent with the damage occurring very close to when the photograph was taken. 

 

I appealed the rejection as the option was provided by ArrowXL and stated the following

 

‘’ Dear David,

Thank you for your email and for outlining the reasons for rejecting my property damage claim. I do not agree with the decision and wish to formally appeal.

While I acknowledge the points you raised, I strongly dispute the version of events described in your findings and in the statements from your delivery team.

1. Adequate Floor Protection
Adequate protection was in place prior to delivery, and I took reasonable steps to safeguard my flooring. Your delivery team entered my property before carrying in the fridge freezer to check the route and assess the floor protection. At no point did either delivery team member state that the protection was inadequate, missing, or that the floor was damaged.

You note in your email: “Delivery team are forbidden to remove safety clothing, including footwear”. My claim is not that damage came from footwear — it was caused when the bottom corner of the fridge freezer was dropped. One crew member was the bottom of the freezer and other delivery crew member was positioned at the top, the crew member at the bottom dropped the fridge freezer onto the floor and the crew member at the top continued walking backwards, dragging the fridge freezer for a short distance until being told to stop.

2. Crew Statements and Existing Damage
I completely disagree with the crew’s account. At no time during their initial inspection did they say the protection was inadequate or that a damage waiver was required. No existing damage was present before the delivery or was mentioned verbally or via a paperwork which they wish for me to sign. You stated: “The crew had notified the depot of existing damage to the floor before delivery”. This is incorrect and I believe you that you meant after delivery.

I have previously provided you with a video recording of my conversation with the crew, which I took while they call their supervisor on the phone which confirms:

·         I requested delivery crew member “Anton” to call his manager after the damage occurred.

·         At no point during the phone conversation with his manager did he say the damage was pre-existing or deny responsibility.

·         His manager instructed him to advise the customer that I would need to submit a claim online.

·         The other crew member photographed the damage immediately afterwards, which will be evident from the time stamp of the photograph.

·         As a Logistics provided your delivery crews are required to follow the manual handling operations 1992 and part of that regulation is that the delivery crew need to assess the delivery area before undertaking any manual handling task, this assessment is crucial for identifying potential hazards and reducing the risk of injury, and from the T&Cs you have forwarded to me these also state that the delivery crews asses the route and area before they deliver the appliance inside the house. The statement your delivery crew stating they noticed floor was damaged is dishonest at best and at worst fraudulent. 

I have now downloaded CCTV footage from the front of the property showing:

•  The crew arriving before taking the fridge freezer into property (timestamped)
•  The fridge freezer being carried in the property after that inspection (timestamped).
•  The crew taking the old appliance and outer cardboard box and placing them in their vehicle after the delivery (timestamped)

This timeline will match the damage photographs being taken after the fridge freezer entered the property by your delivery crew member.

3. Damage Waiver Process
At no point was I asked to sign a damage waiver for inadequate floor protection or no floor protection — a process you have stated is standard for your delivery teams. I did not sign such a waiver. If I had refused, the correct process would have been for the crew to call head office and refuse to deliver. That did not happen and yet another fraudulent statement by your delivery crew.

4. Photographic Evidence
Photographs clearly show the scratch direction, and the resting place of the fridge freezer are linked. Small plastic fragments from the surface of damaged floor remain visible in the images — these could not have been present for long, as they would have been easily displaced by a slight breeze when someone walked past.

Given the above evidence outlined above, supported by both photographs, video and CCTV footage, I request that my claim is reinvestigated in full and I request that assessor is sent to the property.

I will await the decision from the appeal but bearing in mind how your company has responded so far, and the false statements already made by your delivery crew I'm willing to pursue reimbursement via a small claims court, I hereby request a decision on my appeal within 14days from the date of this email.  

Please confirm receipt of this appeal email.

 

11th September I received on email appeal rejection 64641 stating on the email

‘’ The depot has investigated your claim 64641, which you raised to appeal. They have concluded to stay with the original decision and reject your claim. Unfortunately, we cannot progress with this property damage claim any further for you and advise you may need to seek independent legal advice.

 

Please see attached documents

 

Kind Regards

David

‘’

Which then attached the appeal rejection letter, which looked is the same as the initial rejection letter of the 7th august with no consideration of evidence in fact it’s a recycled rejection.

 As I mentioned in my previous email  I’ve taken legal advice and I was advised that my claim should be with Appliances direct rather than ArrowXL based on my contract was with appliances direct, despite my initial enquiry with appliances direct being told that’s not the case and to follow up with arrow.

 To recap the points above and which I have yet to receive anything other than a rejection on are;

 ·        Crew checked routing and flooring protection before taking the fridge freezer from the house (I have the cctv footage of this on my driveway. 

·        Delivery crew stated the damage was already on the floor, and no flooring protection was on the floor, I have asked for evidence of the damage to the floor after they inspected the floor and a copy of the signed waiver as per arrowxl T&Cs advising that I was happy for them to proceed to deliver into the property.

·        I videoed directly after the damage where I asked them to call the office and I have this footage and at no point do they state we didn’t cause the damage or indeed state it was on the flooring , which is not a normal response when accused of doing something,  also the supervisor you can hear state ‘the customer will have to put a formal claim in via the website’  there was no conversation where he crew stated ‘ the customer says we damaged the floor but it was already there, or indeed we did not do it’’  During this call this is when one of the crew members took a photo of the damage,  the timestamp of this will match my video footage, and show this photo was taken after the fridge was delivered and not before.

You are correct in your email of the 16th December the damage area is the area in the hallway before the kitchen. 

I’m happy to have appliances direct employ their own flooring company but as I’ve stated before the flooring is Amtico, and as such you are required as part of the warranty to have a registered Amtico flooring person install and or repair the flooring to ensure the lifetime warranty is kept in tact.  Its very hard to find a local approved Amtico installer,  Amtico do not provide just one tile,  they come supplied in a box,  I'm more than happy for Appliances direct to have have ownership of remainder of the tiles in the box once the repair is completed,  the flooring is glued to a sub floor and the company have said that sometimes trying to remove one tile damages the sub floor which then further tiles need to be removed to make good the sub floor before relaying. 

Would appreciate your final decision as as soon as possible but understand with Christmas there are limited working hours because I would like to start 2026 with a repaired floor and move on but I'm not happy to proceed with a small claims action for the cost, I've already spent many hours responding to emails and providing evidence and yet i have received false statements from ArrowXL which have made it all the harder to communicate with them over this. 

Kind Regards

Peter Smith

''

saajan_12

Don't quote all the back and forth to them, it'll make it too long and unreadable. Simply state your position on what happened on the day, and why they are responsible. Eg 
" There was no inadequate protection issue because xyz. There was no prior damage because abc". 
Not "You stated it might be inadequate protection, then I denied, then you provided abc argument, then I showed this proof". 

pete1975

saajan_12 said:

Don't quote all the back and forth to them, it'll make it too long and unreadable. Simply state your position on what happened on the day, and why they are responsible. Eg 
" There was no inadequate protection issue because xyz. There was no prior damage because abc". 
Not "You stated it might be inadequate protection, then I denied, then you provided abc argument, then I showed this proof". 

thanks i understand what you mean,  i guess i was making sure everything was covered because most of those emails have been back and for with the delivery company and not the appliance company.

pete1975

morning all,  I plan on submitting my small claims submission today for the damage floor,   I have some further emails back and forth with appliances direct over the last few weeks they initially offered without liability - £50,  then £100,  and final offer was £150.   
The flooring company have estimated £400 as they have to purchase the flooring tiles from Amitico.  Amitico will charge for a call out so i didn't want to pay out more and not recover it.      

The following is  was one of the mails back from the appliances direct claim team 

''Thank you for providing all the details.

I have reviewed the matter and considered your request to revise the original offer of £100. I appreciate the frustration caused by the back-and-forth between the courier claim process and myself. I want to clarify that I have not rejected your claim and remain willing to offer a contribution towards your costs.

From the evidence provided, the damage appears to be a scrape of some kind. As you are aware, ArrowXL have rejected the claim and accepted no liability. Therefore, we are unable to accept responsibility for the total costs requested, particularly given the nature of the damage shown.

However, I have reviewed and authorised a final contribution settlement of £150 to amicably close this matter.''

 

I rejected this and suggested as way of settling before the small claims of a sum of £300 as final settlement which I thought was fair and that leaves me with some of the cost they said no they will robustly reject all claims in the small claims court.   

 

I’ve gathered all my emails and documents that I have including the T&Cs of ‘arrowxl’ delivery company that were sent to me via text message and area on that T&C states  that ‘a damage waiver must be signed by the customer’

We were never asked to sign a waiver or signed a waiver the delivery crew neither produced one either,   I have requested a copy of the waiver both with arrowxl and appliances direct in writing, it was always ignored just recycled rejection messages,  I asked recently to appliances direct for a copy of the waiver if they were going to product this in court and they replied.

‘’ Having reviewed this matter, I can confirm that delivery confirmation was issued to you via text/email by ArrowXL on 26/07/2025.

As you may be aware, couriers in the UK are not legally required to obtain a physical signature upon delivery. Deliveries are completed digitally and on a contactless basis, and signed-for services or waivers are optional rather than mandatory.

Should you require further clarification on their delivery procedures, you may wish to contact ArrowXL directly.’’

But arrows T&Cs state it must be signed by the customer as per screenshot above. And appliances direct did say that the crew requested a waiver to be signed

I’ve never been to a small claims court, so should i not press them on a copy of the waiver,  and instead wait for the case in court and reference that there isnt a waiver, ive requested it several times and then state that the T&Cs state one must be signed,  but then i seem to remember the suggestions before are that the T&Cs of arrowxl do not apply to me as my contract is with appliances direct.  My main concern was that they would create a false one with a fake signature and produce that. 

Boohoo

pete1975 said:

morning all,  I plan on submitting my small claims submission today for the damage floor,   I have some further emails back and forth with appliances direct over the last few weeks they initially offered without liability - £50,  then £100,  and final offer was £150.   
The flooring company have estimated £400 as they have to purchase the flooring tiles from Amitico.  Amitico will charge for a call out so i didn't want to pay out more and not recover it.      

The following is  was one of the mails back from the appliances direct claim team 

''Thank you for providing all the details.

I have reviewed the matter and considered your request to revise the original offer of £100. I appreciate the frustration caused by the back-and-forth between the courier claim process and myself. I want to clarify that I have not rejected your claim and remain willing to offer a contribution towards your costs.

From the evidence provided, the damage appears to be a scrape of some kind. As you are aware, ArrowXL have rejected the claim and accepted no liability. Therefore, we are unable to accept responsibility for the total costs requested, particularly given the nature of the damage shown.

However, I have reviewed and authorised a final contribution settlement of £150 to amicably close this matter.''

 

I rejected this and suggested as way of settling before the small claims of a sum of £300 as final settlement which I thought was fair and that leaves me with some of the cost they said no they will robustly reject all claims in the small claims court.   

 

I’ve gathered all my emails and documents that I have including the T&Cs of ‘arrowxl’ delivery company that were sent to me via text message and area on that T&C states  that ‘a damage waiver must be signed by the customer’

We were never asked to sign a waiver or signed a waiver the delivery crew neither produced one either,   I have requested a copy of the waiver both with arrowxl and appliances direct in writing, it was always ignored just recycled rejection messages,  I asked recently to appliances direct for a copy of the waiver if they were going to product this in court and they replied.

‘’ Having reviewed this matter, I can confirm that delivery confirmation was issued to you via text/email by ArrowXL on 26/07/2025.

As you may be aware, couriers in the UK are not legally required to obtain a physical signature upon delivery. Deliveries are completed digitally and on a contactless basis, and signed-for services or waivers are optional rather than mandatory.

Should you require further clarification on their delivery procedures, you may wish to contact ArrowXL directly.’’

But arrows T&Cs state it must be signed by the customer as per screenshot above. And appliances direct did say that the crew requested a waiver to be signed

I’ve never been to a small claims court, so should i not press them on a copy of the waiver,  and instead wait for the case in court and reference that there isnt a waiver, ive requested it several times and then state that the T&Cs state one must be signed,  but then i seem to remember the suggestions before are that the T&Cs of arrowxl do not apply to me as my contract is with appliances direct.  My main concern was that they would create a false one with a fake signature and produce that. 

If I was you I would go to https://legalbeagles.info/forums/ and start a thread there as they are very good when it comes to court claims.

It's up to you if you go to the court route as it will take months before you sit in front of a judge(think that's that title) and they decide on the evidence before them and not all cases go the way of the claiment so bear that in mind.

Saying that when they get the court claim paperwork they may fold or get to the day before court case and offer payment.

Only you know if this battle is worth it to you for your time and stress it will be on that journey.

All the best and keep the thread updated please.

A_Geordie

Some points to note:

1. Have you sent Appliances Direct a letter before action? If not, you need to send that before you issue a claim. 

2. On this statement

should i not press them on a copy of the waiver

The answer is no. If you know you never signed a waiver, why are you wasting your time asking for a copy that doesn't exist? It's not your job to do their job and if they want to produce evidence to support their defence which includes a waiver, that is up to them, but you'll know that it is not a waiver you signed. If the signature produced on the damage waiver is a fake, then you must notify the other side in writing you intend to challenge the authenticity of the document. The Civil Procedure Rules presume that a document submitted for evidence is deemed to be authentic unless notice is given to challenge it. However see #3 below. 

3. I would not be too concerned with the Arrow T&Cs because as a general rule of law, any terms that are incorporated into the contract must be brought to your attention before the contract is entered into. If they are provided afterwards, they do not apply unless you agree to them. But that's an argument you have to make to the judge, don't assume it.

4.I don't think your evidence is slam dunk so you have to be open to the fact that a judge could say that because you didn't produce before and after photographs, it is not conclusive that they caused the damaged, or that there could have been at least some pre-existing damage. On that basis either your claim will fail or you will have a reduced compensation amount. Have in the back of your mind your absolutely minimum amount you would settle for, and be prepared to offer that as way of settling the dispute when you get to the mediation stage. 

5. Make sure in your claim form you specifically state you are also seeking costs. Otherwise if you are successful, you may not be entitled to your application fees, cost of attending a hearing and other recoverable costs.

6. Appliances Direct does not have any registered solicitors in their company so there's a good chance that if they are going to defend the claim, it will be handled in-house by someone who is not a qualified lawyer with legal knowledge or someone with limited legal knowledge. The other option is for them to instruct an outside law firm to assist but the costs of doing that is likely to exceed £400 very quickly. For example, a rate for a junior lawyer is £288+VAT per hour and a paralegal is £198+VAT per hour so from a commercial standpoint, it's not viable for them to take it all the way.

So there may be a chance that if you hold out, you could get full payment but do not assume to be the case. Some companies defend out of principle every single dispute and settle very little claims, but you will only really be able to gauge the situation once legal proceedings are underway. 

7. Make sure your particulars of claim stick to the necessary facts and are succinct. Do not rely on AI because you will find that if there are any non-existing references to the law or court cases, you will find yourself in hot water with the judge. I wouldn't advocate using AI at all because this is a straight forward dispute but if you must use it to help support you, please validate it by doing your research. If you can't validate using a viable source, don't put it in. 

Boohoo

A_Geordie said:

Some points to note:

1. Have you sent Appliances Direct a letter before action? If not, you need to send that before you issue a claim. 

2. On this statement

should i not press them on a copy of the waiver

The answer is no. If you know you never signed a waiver, why are you wasting your time asking for a copy that doesn't exist? It's not your job to do their job and if they want to produce evidence to support their defence which includes a waiver, that is up to them, but you'll know that it is not a waiver you signed. If the signature produced on the damage waiver is a fake, then you must notify the other side in writing you intend to challenge the authenticity of the document. The Civil Procedure Rules presume that a document submitted for evidence is deemed to be authentic unless notice is given to challenge it. However see #3 below. 

3. I would not be too concerned with the Arrow T&Cs because as a general rule of law, any terms that are incorporated into the contract must be brought to your attention before the contract is entered into. If they are provided afterwards, they do not apply unless you agree to them. But that's an argument you have to make to the judge, don't assume it.

4.I don't think your evidence is slam dunk so you have to be open to the fact that a judge could say that because you didn't produce before and after photographs, it is not conclusive that they caused the damaged, or that there could have been at least some pre-existing damage. On that basis either your claim will fail or you will have a reduced compensation amount. Have in the back of your mind your absolutely minimum amount you would settle for, and be prepared to offer that as way of settling the dispute when you get to the mediation stage. 

5. Make sure in your claim form you specifically state you are also seeking costs. Otherwise if you are successful, you may not be entitled to your application fees, cost of attending a hearing and other recoverable costs.

6. Appliances Direct does not have any registered solicitors in their company so there's a good chance that if they are going to defend the claim, it will be handled in-house by someone who is not a qualified lawyer with legal knowledge or someone with limited legal knowledge. The other option is for them to instruct an outside law firm to assist but the costs of doing that is likely to exceed £400 very quickly. For example, a rate for a junior lawyer is £288+VAT per hour and a paralegal is £198+VAT per hour so from a commercial standpoint, it's not viable for them to take it all the way.

So there may be a chance that if you hold out, you could get full payment but do not assume to be the case. Some companies defend out of principle every single dispute and settle very little claims, but you will only really be able to gauge the situation once legal proceedings are underway. 

7. Make sure your particulars of claim stick to the necessary facts and are succinct. Do not rely on AI because you will find that if there are any non-existing references to the law or court cases, you will find yourself in hot water with the judge. I wouldn't advocate using AI at all because this is a straight forward dispute but if you must use it to help support you, please validate it by doing your research. If you can't validate using a viable source, don't put it in. 

That's some really good advice.

I did suggest that the OP go to Forum - LegalBeagles Forum start a thread on there as they have vast knowledge of bringing/defending court cases 

Also the OP can have a look at thread about past Arrow court cases for reference and advice.on how to proceed.

A_Geordie

Boohoo said:

I did suggest that the OP go to leaglebeaglesand start a thread on there as they have vast knowledge of bringing/defending court cases 

Also the OP can have a look at thread about past Arrow court cases for reference and advice.on how to proceed.

Yes, some good suggestions for the OP too. 

pete1975

A_Geordie said:

Boohoo said:

I did suggest that the OP go to leaglebeaglesand start a thread on there as they have vast knowledge of bringing/defending court cases 

Also the OP can have a look at thread about past Arrow court cases for reference and advice.on how to proceed.

Yes, some good suggestions for the OP too. 

Thankyou, i will register on that site and ask for advice aswell.  sorry i missed your response.