Lifestyle giftcards

PercySu

I received a Lifestyle gift card - one of those you can exchange for e-gift cards at various retailers. I was after a particular item at Dunelm. I exchanged my card, ordered the item online, part paid with my gift card and part with debit card.  An hour later I got a message saying my item wasn't in stock. The order was cancelled and they refunded the part I paid by debit card back to my bank account but the e-gift card part was refunded as another Dunelm e-gift card.  I'm now stuck with a Dunelm card I don't want as there's nothing else I want to purchase and I can't convert it back to a Lifestyle card and use it elsewhere.  I'm furious that a gift card that someone was kind enough to buy me for my birthday now has to be spent in Dunelm and I have no choice in the matter.  Dunelm are refusing to refund me the equivalent value in cash despite the fact it was an error with THEIR online stock system and I'm stuck with the card with nowhere to go.  What are my rights? 

powerful_Rogue

PercySu said:

I received a Lifestyle gift card - one of those you can exchange for e-gift cards at various retailers. I was after a particular item at Dunelm. I exchanged my card, ordered the item online, part paid with my gift card and part with debit card.  An hour later I got a message saying my item wasn't in stock. The order was cancelled and they refunded the part I paid by debit card back to my bank account but the e-gift card part was refunded as another Dunelm e-gift card.  I'm now stuck with a Dunelm card I don't want as there's nothing else I want to purchase and I can't convert it back to a Lifestyle card and use it elsewhere.  I'm furious that a gift card that someone was kind enough to buy me for my birthday now has to be spent in Dunelm and I have no choice in the matter.  Dunelm are refusing to refund me the equivalent value in cash despite the fact it was an error with THEIR online stock system and I'm stuck with the card with nowhere to go.  What are my rights? 

Nothing to do with Dunelm. You paid using a gift card and that is how they will refund.

You would need to ask Lifestyle if they could convert it back, but im 99.9% sure their T&C's will cover them not doing this.

As for rights, you're entitled to a refund in the same way you paid - Which Dunelm have done.

born_again

PercySu said:

I received a Lifestyle gift card - one of those you can exchange for e-gift cards at various retailers. I was after a particular item at Dunelm. I exchanged my card, ordered the item online, part paid with my gift card and part with debit card.  An hour later I got a message saying my item wasn't in stock. The order was cancelled and they refunded the part I paid by debit card back to my bank account but the e-gift card part was refunded as another Dunelm e-gift card.  I'm now stuck with a Dunelm card I don't want as there's nothing else I want to purchase and I can't convert it back to a Lifestyle card and use it elsewhere.  I'm furious that a gift card that someone was kind enough to buy me for my birthday now has to be spent in Dunelm and I have no choice in the matter.  Dunelm are refusing to refund me the equivalent value in cash despite the fact it was an error with THEIR online stock system and I'm stuck with the card with nowhere to go.  What are my rights? 

To be refunded via the means the payment was made.

So debit card for what that part was & gift card for the other part. But Dunelm will refund to their card, as they do not sell or have option to refund to any other card.

Best option is to wait for item to come back in stock.

Pollycat

PercySu said:

I received a Lifestyle gift card - one of those you can exchange for e-gift cards at various retailers. I was after a particular item at Dunelm. I exchanged my card, ordered the item online, part paid with my gift card and part with debit card.  An hour later I got a message saying my item wasn't in stock. The order was cancelled and they refunded the part I paid by debit card back to my bank account but the e-gift card part was refunded as another Dunelm e-gift card.  I'm now stuck with a Dunelm card I don't want as there's nothing else I want to purchase and I can't convert it back to a Lifestyle card and use it elsewhere.  I'm furious that a gift card that someone was kind enough to buy me for my birthday now has to be spent in Dunelm and I have no choice in the matter.  Dunelm are refusing to refund me the equivalent value in cash despite the fact it was an error with THEIR online stock system and I'm stuck with the card with nowhere to go.  What are my rights? 

Is your item likely to come back into stock?

mr_stripey

treat yourself to a new duvet or something!

There is no other outcome other than getting the part you paid with a gift card being refunded to a gift card. 

Grumpy_chap

The OP had a Lifestyle gift card and they used the value of that gift card to purchase a Dunelm e-gift card which was successfully delivered.  That is one contractual process completed successfully.

The OP then used the Dunelm e-gift card plus some additional funds to place an order at Dunelm.  That order could not be fulfilled so the amounts were refunded back to the payment types - Dunelm e-gift card plus the additional funds.  No link between this contractual process and the purchase of the Dunelm e-gift card from Lifestyle gift card.

Assuming the Lifestyle gift card is this one ( https://www.lifestylegiftcards.co.uk/gift-cards ) the choice of places where it can be redeemed includes Sainsbury's, M&S and Waitrose etc.  I would always exchange the value for a trader such as this and then just spend in normal cycle as one will always need groceries.  The money not spent on groceries can be released as fungible asset to spend at a place such as Dunelm where I might not wish to hold the gift card value if the chosen items cannot then be purchased.  Obviously, that does not help the OP in this instance but might be worth consideration in the future.

flaneurs_lobster

So this is a gift card that allows you to buy gift cards that allow you to buy goods?

Absolutely nothing can go wrong there then.

Just gift cash.

PercySu

So I use my birthday money to buy a duvet ☹️.  Not happy. I would've exchanged it for Pandora if I'd know and bought myself some jewellery.  And certainly wouldn't have spent my birthday money on groceries - thanks for the suggestion!  This just doesn't seem fair as Dunelm's mistake in their stock system is at fault.  

MyRealNameToo

When did you buy the gift card? 

mr_stripey

it's not a case of "using your birthday money for groceries" - that would have been a good way to expend the card, and then use the money you would have spent on those groceries, or a duvet or whatever to buy a birthday present?

Woodstok2000

mr_stripey said:

it's not a case of "using your birthday money for groceries" - that would have been a good way to expend the card, and then use the money you would have spent on those groceries, or a duvet or whatever to buy a birthday present?

I agree with this. My daughter get these fairly often from well meaning relatives, but they rarely cover the shops she likes so we give her cash and we use the vouchers on regular grocery shopping.

It would be much easier if people just gifted cash!