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UNSOLICITED GOODS - Oxendales / Home Shopping Direct / N. Brown Group Plc

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The below copy e-mail explains it all:

Original Message

From:

To: [email="general.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com"]Home Shopping Direct[/email] ; [email="Order.Enquiries@jdwilliams.co.uk"]Order Enquiries[/email] ; [email="order.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com"]order.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com[/email]
Cc: [email="tradingstandards@southend.gov.uk"]tradingstandards@southend.gov.uk[/email]
Sent: Sunday, September 18, 2005 1:44 PM
Subject: UNSOLICITED GOODS

Re: Mrs. XXXX of XXXXXXXXX

I thank you for your 12:29PM Sunday, September 18, 2005 e-mail response.

As explained previously (see below), your 90 year-old customer (my Mother) CANNOT get the items to a Post Office. They are too large for her to carry and, as she walks with a stick, your forcing her to attempt to do so is likely to result in physical injury.

I also regard your "Alternatively please ask the account holder to contact us directly" as highly unreasonable because, as explained previously, she can ill-afford to make telephone calls to your 8p per minute 0870 numbers (see my 7/9/05 e-mail copied below) in yet another attempt to rectify a problem entirely of your making.

Further (as also explained previously and admitted by you on the telephone), these goods were not ordered by her and have been delivered only as a result of an error within your organisation. In other words, you are aware that they are goods known not to have been ordered by my Mother and, therefore, are UNSOLICITED GOODS within the terms of the Unsolicited Goods and Services Act 1971.

As a result, I regard your "Returning the parcel to us with (sic) 28 days it is the customers (sic) responsibility. If the parcels are returned over the 28 days there will be a late return charge on each item" threat to my 90 year-old Mother as a demand for payment for goods known to be unsolicited - which, I believe, amounts to an offence under the Act.

As a result of your unwarranted threat and your apparent refusal to take note of my attempts to resolve this matter, I have advised my Mother to regard the items as an unconditional gift which she does not have to pay for or return. That being the case, the caretaker's offer to dispose of same in the communal rubbish bin (see my 16/9/05 e-mail copied below) is looking more attractive.

Regards.

P.S. I will be out of the country now until 4/10/05 and look forward to returning to find that this matter has been resolved in a reasonable manner.


Original Message
From: "Home Shopping Direct" <[email="general.enquiries&#64;homeshoppingdirect.com"]general.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com[/email]>
To:

Sent: Sunday, September 18, 2005 12:29 PM
Subject: JDW11304

Dear Mr

Thank you for your recent e-mail.

Under Data Protection legislation we are not able to answer any enquiries made on behalf of an account holder, without the account holders written permission.

Please ask the account holder Mrs XXXXXX to send a signed letter authorising you to make enquiries on her behalf to:-

The Data Protection Compliance Officer
Customer Contact Centre
Martin House
23 Hunts Bank
Manchester
M3 1AX

Alternatively please ask the account holder to contact us directly.

Returning the parcel to us with 28 days it is the customers responsibility. If the parcels are returned over the 28 days there will be a late return charge on each item. Please return the parcel via the post office.

I apologise for any inconvenience caused, these measures are in force for the security of our customers.

Should require any further help please contact us by e-mail.

Yours sincerely

Saima Masood
Internet Customer Service Team.

So that we may reply as quickly as possible we ask that you please include your original e-mail with each reply.



Original Message
From:
To: "Home Shopping Direct" <[email="general.enquiries&#64;homeshoppingdirect.com"]general.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com[/email]>
Sent: Saturday, September 17, 2005 12:12 PM
Subject: Re: JDW8073

> You appear to have overlooked the "I am 50 miles away from my Mother's
> address and the unsolicited goods to which I referred" part of my 14/9/05
> e-mail so have not realised that it is irrelevant when I will be available.
>
> I will leave it to you to arrange a specific time and date with your
> customer although it may be useful to know that she will not wait in for 10
> hours for your courier so a precise time will have to be specified.
>
> Good luck.
>
> Regards.


Original Message

From: "Home Shopping Direct" <
[email="general.enquiries&#64;homeshoppingdirect.com"]general.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com[/email]>
To: <>
Sent: Saturday, September 17, 2005 10:27 AM
Subject: JDW8073

Dear Mr XXXXXX

Thank you for contacting us.

I am sorry that our courier has not collected the parcel. We will now have to arrange a collection by a different courier company.

The first step is for us to know which date is best for you to be available. To be confident about collecting the parcel on your chosen day we ask that you give us five working days notice before this date so that we may make arrangements.

Please be sure that the date you provide is a weekday and one where you will be at home between 8.00am and 6.00pm as our agent will need your signature for the parcel.

The second step is for you to include the following details inside the parcel you are returning.

Your customer number
Your name and address
The item number
The reason for return

Our collection agent will provide you with a receipt for the parcel. For your peace of mind, please keep this receipt until the item is shown as a return on your account. Returns can take up to 14 days.

I trust this has explained your enquiry and we look forward to hearing from you with your preferred date for collection.

Remember if you would like to choose an alternative item from our catalogue simply reorder via our website in the normal way.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Senior
Internet Customer Service Team.

So that we may reply as quickly as possible we ask that you please include your original e-mail with each reply.



Original Message
From:
To: "Order Enquiries" <[email="Order.Enquiries&#64;jdwilliams.co.uk"]Order.Enquiries@jdwilliams.co.uk[/email]>
Sent: Friday, September 16, 2005 9:09 AM
Subject: Unsolicited goods received (Oxendales) Account Number: XXXXXX

> It appears my hopes were unfounded.
>
> I regret to have to advise you that, despite 5 working days having now
> passed since your Thursday 8/9/05 e-mail (Friday 9/9/05, Monday 12/9/05,
> Tuesday 13/9/05, Wednesday 14/9/05 and Thursday 15/9/05), the promised
> collection by your courier has not occurred and neither has a card notifying
> a failed collection attempt been received by my Mother.
>
> As your couriers are unreliable, either an alternative will have to be found
> or an alternative method of resolution will have to be agreed.
>
> If you are able to identify a more reliable courier service, please advise
> my Mother by telephone of the specific and precise time and date for the
> collection so that she can arrange to be in at that that time.
>
> Alternatively, the block's caretaker has volunteered to dispose of your
> package in the block's communal rubbish container.
>
> Please advise which 'way forward' you prefer. If the latter, please confirm
> same in writing.
>
> Regards.

Original Message
From:
To: "Order Enquiries" <[email="Order.Enquiries&#64;jdwilliams.co.uk"]Order.Enquiries@jdwilliams.co.uk[/email]>
Sent: Wednesday, September 14, 2005 11:07 AM
Subject: Unsolicited goods received (Oxendales)

> Many thanks for your reply.
>
> You have misunderstood my message slightly (I am 50 miles away from my
> Mother's address and the unsolicited goods to which I referred) but,
> nevertheless, I thanks you most kindly for your kind assurance that a
> courier would call to collect either today (the 4th working day since your
> message) or tomorrow (the fifth working day since your message).
>
> I have to say my Mother has received such an assurance on the telephone in
> the past and nobody came but, as you have put it in writing this time, I am
> more hopeful.
>
> Here's hoping.
>
> Kind regards.


Original Message

From: "Order Enquiries" <
[email="Order.Enquiries&#64;jdwilliams.co.uk"]Order.Enquiries@jdwilliams.co.uk[/email]>
To: <>
Sent: Thursday, September 08, 2005 2:12 PM
Subject: Re: Received Orders (Oxendales)

Dear Mr xxxxx

Thank you for your recent e-mail.

I am very sorry the parcel has yet to be collected and apologise for any inconvenience caused.

A courier will come to collect the parcel within the next 5 working days.

If you are not at home when the courier calls a card will be posted. You will need to call the telephone number on the card to rearrange collection at a more convenient time.

Please can you include the following information on a note inside the parcel:

· Your name and address
· Your customer number
· The item number
· The reason for return

It is also important that you obtain a receipt for the parcel and that you keep it until the item is shown as a return on your account.

Please allow upto 14 days for the item to show as returned.

If you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us by e-mail.

Yours sincerely

Mark Duffy
Internet Customer Service Team.

In replying to this e-mail, please attach your original e-mail to ensure a speedy and accurate response.



on 07/09/2005 00:03:06
To: [email="order.enquiries&#64;homeshoppingdirect.com"]order.enquiries@homeshoppingdirect.com[/email]

Subject: Received Orders (Oxendales)

Name: XXXXXXXX
Subject: Received Orders
Contact email address:

Account Number:
Item Number: OBO86NN
Item Description:
Enquiry: I am contacting you on behalf of my elderly (she is over 90)
Mother, who has pleaded with me to do so.

She tells me she attempted to resolve this matter on the telephone but can
ill-afford to keep calling you on your 8p per minute 0870 number and, as I
am sure you will agree, she really should not have had to do so in the
circumstances.

She received these items some weeks ago now. They were not ordered by her
and, when she telephoned when they arrived, she was told there must have
been an input error (I assume a 'typo' resulting in her Customer Number
being appended to someone else's order) and she should re-wrap the items,
label them and take them to a Post Office. When she explained that she
could not manage that (the package is quite large and she walks with a
stick), the person to whom she spoke (unfortunately, she did not take a
name) said a courier would be sent to collect the package instead.

That was over a month ago now and, rather than a courier calling to
collect, the only thing to have happened since then is a £22.99 charge
appearing on her account. Being a member of a generation which is
terrified of debt, she is, as I know you will appreciate, terribly worried
about that.

Please, please, please will you send the promised courier as soon as
possible and write to her acknowledging the errors (the spurious order and
charge to her account).

Many thanks.

7/9/05

This email and any attachments are confidential. They may
contain privileged information and are intended for the
named addressee(s) only. They must not be distributed
without our consent. If you are not the intended recipient,
please notify us immediately and do not disclose, distribute
or retain this email or any part of it. Unless expressly stated,
opinions in this email are those of the individual sender
and not N Brown Group plc or any of its subsidiaries.
You must take full responsibility for virus checking this
email and any attachments.

Please note that the content of this email or any of its
attachments may contain data that falls within the scope
of the Data Protection Acts and that you must ensure that
any handling or processing of such data by you is fully
compliant with the terms and provisions of the Data
Protection Act 1984 and 1998.

N Brown Group plc. Registered office: Griffin House, 40 Lever Street,
Manchester, M60 6ES. Registered in England No.814103.
Their - possessive pronoun (owned by them e.g. "They locked their car").
They're - colloquial/abbreviated version of 'They are'
There - noun (location other than here e.g. "You can buy groceries there") OR adverb (in or at that place e.g. "They have lived there for years") OR adverb (to or towards that place e.g. "Go there at noon") OR adverb (in that matter e.g. " I agree with you there").

Comments

  • crutches
    crutches Posts: 1,065 Forumite
    your poor mother! keep up the good work on her behalf!
    Every day above ground is a good one ;)
  • April2
    April2 Posts: 508 Forumite
    Won in the end!

    Yesterday, she received a letter authorising her to dispose of the pillows as she saw fit, confirming that all charges (including a later 'fine' for not returning them within 28 days!) would be deleted (I confirmed online that that had happened) and enclosing a £5 cheque for the inconvenience (most of which will pay for the 0870 calls she kept making despite my advice).
    Their - possessive pronoun (owned by them e.g. "They locked their car").
    They're - colloquial/abbreviated version of 'They are'
    There - noun (location other than here e.g. "You can buy groceries there") OR adverb (in or at that place e.g. "They have lived there for years") OR adverb (to or towards that place e.g. "Go there at noon") OR adverb (in that matter e.g. " I agree with you there").
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