help please with Zenith windows!

I had a double glazing salesman call for a quote for windows and after a long afternoon he cut the price down and down and said it was a special advertising deal etc etc

I agreed and then he asked for a payment up front £199. I asked if it was a deposit and he didn't answer - then I asked about a cooling off period and he din't tell me that either.

The next day in a call from their office they told me that it was an admin fee!!!! how ridiculous. So I said I would cancel the contract and have a refund under the cooling off period. But they refused.

Any idea what I can do please? They have now cancelled the contract but did not allow me a cooling off period as I thought they should.
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  • surfsister wrote: »
    I had a double glazing salesman call for a quote for windows and after a long afternoon he cut the price down and down and said it was a special advertising deal etc etc

    I agreed and then he asked for a payment up front £199. I asked if it was a deposit and he didn't answer - then I asked about a cooling off period and he din't tell me that either.

    The next day in a call from their office they told me that it was an admin fee!!!! how ridiculous. So I said I would cancel the contract and have a refund under the cooling off period. But they refused.

    Any idea what I can do please? They have now cancelled the contract but did not allow me a cooling off period as I thought they should.


    Have you got a copy of the contract that you signed? Does it mention cooling off period or waiving your rights?

    What have you got in writing?

    Definite hallmarks of aggressive selling from what you've said - hard to prove - but a useful route to take.
  • surfsister
    surfsister Posts: 7,527
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    thanks!! the contract is at the new house will look tomorrow!
  • photome
    photome Posts: 16,351
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    get a quote from one or two independants who dont give you an inflated price to start with.

    Zenith, Anglian,Everest to name a few all give an over inflated price to start with
  • tykesi
    tykesi Posts: 2,061
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    surfsister wrote: »
    I agreed and then he asked for a payment up front £199. I asked if it was a deposit and he didn't answer - then I asked about a cooling off period and he din't tell me that either.

    So when you clearly didn't get satisfactory answers to these questions why on earth did you go ahead and pay it?
  • soolin
    soolin Posts: 72,034
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    photome wrote: »
    get a quote from one or two independants who dont give you an inflated price to start with.

    Zenith, Anglian,Everest to name a few all give an over inflated price to start with

    I've got an Anglian conservatory I'm incredibly pleased with the quality - but I had to be really tough at refusing the initial quotes as they were triple the rest of the market quotes. Even after some very heavy negotiation I still paid more than for other companies- but I feel the difference was worth it looking at what they were offering .
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the eBay, Auctions, Car Boot & Jumble Sales, Boost Your Income, Praise, Vents & Warnings, Overseas Holidays & Travel Planning , UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know.. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
  • photome
    photome Posts: 16,351
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    soolin wrote: »
    I've got an Anglian conservatory I'm incredibly pleased with the quality - but I had to be really tough at refusing the initial quotes as they were triple the rest of the market quotes. Even after some very heavy negotiation I still paid more than for other companies- but I feel the difference was worth it looking at what they were offering .

    Each to their own but what is the difference they were offering, many companies use the same profiles and the same reinforcement internally.

    what really gets me with these companies is the price they start at, why not be upfront and quote the one price take it or leave it ( as do many independants)
  • soolin
    soolin Posts: 72,034
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    photome wrote: »
    Each to their own but what is the difference they were offering, many companies use the same profiles and the same reinforcement internally.

    what really gets me with these companies is the price they start at, why not be upfront and quote the one price take it or leave it ( as do many independants)

    The changes were quite material, Anglian were able to do me an obscure glass wall , all reinforced glass- others told me it wasn't possible and I needed either a short brick wall and a fixed panel or clear glass like the rest of the conservatory. The doors were exactly as I wanted them with no bar in the middle, the cheaper quotes wanted to do small doors or larger ones with a dividing bar down the middle.

    The difference was around £1600 in the end after discounts and some tough negotiation , less than 10% of the overall cost. Oh and the one biggie for me, they would take a card deposit , the other one we considered were strictly cash or bank transfer only.
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the eBay, Auctions, Car Boot & Jumble Sales, Boost Your Income, Praise, Vents & Warnings, Overseas Holidays & Travel Planning , UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know.. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
  • Like soolin, I managed to get a fairly hefty discount out of Safestyle for my double glazing and doors to replace the crap wooden framed ones that the house had when we moved in.

    My parents were visiting, so they were with me when the rep was there and helped me out (I'd had quotes from a couple of local firms, I think one of them when bust after I'd got the work done).

    The quote started off at around £13,000 (iirc) for 6 windows (1 with privacy glass, 2 with casement openings) and 2 doors - we got the guy down to about £4k in the end, which I was happy enough with.
  • lincroft1710
    lincroft1710 Posts: 17,545
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    The quote started off at around £13,000 (iirc) for 6 windows (1 with privacy glass, 2 with casement openings) and 2 doors - we got the guy down to about £4k in the end, which I was happy enough with.

    Which is what annoys me (and probably many others), starting out at a ridiculously high quote and working down to the true cost, instead of just quoting that figure first and not wasting everybody's time!
    If you are querying your Council Tax band would you please state whether you are in England, Scotland or Wales
  • tykesi wrote: »
    So when you clearly didn't get satisfactory answers to these questions why on earth did you go ahead and pay it?

    A fair question but worth remembering the whole M.O. of many of these salespeople (not all) is to do exactly what the OP alluded to.

    Stay in your house for hours.
    Start at a high price and work down to try to make it seem like a bargain
    Call it a special offer.

    All these things will combine to wear down the person and sometimes lead otherwise savvy individuals to make a daft decision.

    These practices are illegal because they make people potentially take transactional decisions they otherwise wouldn't have.
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