is it legal to ask for a refund?

CyberGhost

i bought a toy from forbidden planet, and it was faulty(broken arm), i went to exchange it, they did it, when i got home opened the box damn! broken leg, it was broken in the place where i didn't notice it in store, now i just want to return and get my money back, can i get it back? i mean the product was faulty 2 times!

BoB_BoT

Yeap, if the product is not of merchantable quality you can ask for a refund.

CyberGhost

thanks BoB!

gonna go tomorrow to ask for the refund, oh God i hope everything will go ok and without a fight

Cake Fiend

I'm not sure whether they have to give you an actual refund (although if they're reasonable people they will) - they could just give you a credit note to the value of the toy.

The best thing to do would probably be to get one of the staff to inspect a third figure for damage, and if it's in perfect condition, to swap it for that - that way you get your toy in the end!

CyberGhost

well if they won't that means - war! calling manager and stuff..., plus legaly i'm right, and they didn't notify me if they have any special rules there

i already went twice, i wanted to make a present for my friend but i've had enough with this sh*t, it's better i give him money and he buys what he wants himself

smiaras

This post has been deleted.

Hyzepher

Consumer rights that priority over any store policy - if the store cannot replace the broken product with a perfectly working one then you have a case to get a full refund. You are not obliged to take a credit note - as you didn't get what you paid for. If you are unhappy about the replacement or any store policy just refuse and say that you will be in touch with the Consumers Assoc. or some such body - I'm sure you will get what you want then.

Be prepared before you go in - most shops do not know the law and being better prepared than them can be a great advantage.

Hyzepher

CyberGhost

Thanks!

Great advices!

i won't accept anything but my money, no credits, no exchanges

gonna go today

APM

Most shops out of goodwill will give a cash refund for products that are unwanted but some (namely HMV) will insist on giving credit notes.

Wheres products that do not fit their discription, not of merchantable quality or unfit for the use they were bought for I'm almost sure your entitled to a full cash refund or a replacement product.

projectmayhem

they don't have to give you a full cash refund, they can give you vouchers or the option of an exchange. but forbidden planet are good people so you should get your money back

Sleipnir

You're certainly entitled to a full refund at this stage.
You would only (legally) be offered only a credit note if you returned the product purely because
"you didn't like it"
or
"it didn't suit the room" or whatever.

If you've bought something and it broke, you then went back to the shop and got a replacement and it broke forcing you to go back again, you're definately entitled to a refund. As others have said "not of merchantable quality"

Insist or threaten them with reporting them to Consumer Affairs & the small claims court (although a dolly is hardly worth that hassle!)

CyberGhost

nah it isn't worth the court(that of course if it won't get personal and out of principle - which some shops usually make happen with their attitude), but i just will say(if i need) it to scare them

smiaras

This post has been deleted.

CyberGhost

the piece is obviously broken so i doubt there will be any problems

CyberGhost

Hey guys!

i came back

before i went into the shop, a prepared my left for a war but to my surprise the guy took the toy without problems, of course he checked that it was really broken, while he was checking it, he almost broke it himself lol!

the salesman was very polite,

so all in all

i like Forbidden Planet! i'll recommend them to all my friends

oneweb

It often depends on the salesperson you go back to. And the sort of day they're having. Regardless the store policy, they could be up their own arse trying to make themselves feel important. (I know some ppl like that)

Always linger for a second to see who's in good form.
And be nice about it. Say you got it but you're disappointed. Don't go screaming THIS IS A FUPPIN OUTRAGE!!! WHAT A DISGRACE YA SHOWER O WANKORS!!! ;)

Full refund. And the store should investigate the batch of stock. (But don't tell 'em that bit)

CyberGhost

And the sort of day they're having. Regardless the store policy

OH yeah! the customer is always wrong!

leonotron

If it is faulty they have to give you a full refund, you do not have to accept a replacement or a credit note. That's the law

CyberGhost

leonotron - does that apply to the products that i just don't like and want to return or to the damaged ones only?

Sleipnir

Originally posted by CyberGhost
leonotron - does that apply to the products that i just don't like and want to return or to the damaged ones only?

No it would only apply to products that are damaged or faulty.
Some retailers will give you a refund if you don't like what you bought (such as Dunnes and M&S) but others will just give you a credit note.

The Brigadier

If you buy an item and it is not faulty you have NO rights at all.

If a shop does offer you ANYTHING it is in addition to your legal rights. It is also good customer care.

CyberGhost

If you buy an item and it is not faulty you have NO rights at all. - i wouldn't agree with that

what if go the store and want to buy a DVD player that plays divx files too, i myself don't know a thing about technology so i trust the sales person(which i never do, cause in Ireland 95% sales persons don't know what a hell do they sell), who of course he/she doesn't know anything him/her self, he/she recommends me something, i go home, unpack find out that it doesn't play divx files, what now? is it my fault? i think i have a right to go back and ask from a refund!

and the incompetence of the sales person cost me time! which is money

sceptre

@ CyberGhost

In that case the goods wouldn't be fit for the purpose for which they were sold (ie being able to play mpeg4/divx files) and wold fall squarely within the remit of the 1980 Act. The difficulty would be in being able to prove that the guy said it could play divx. Either way, a half smart shopkeep would offer an exchange.

CyberGhost

"The difficulty would be in being able to prove that the guy said it could play divx"

well that's the whole fecking problem!

sceptre

It /is/ the whole problem yeah.

Say I went into a leccy shop to get some device for warming bread (we'll call it a toaster). I speak nicely to a store clerk who recommends the latest offering from Philips. I take it home in its box to find that the plonker has managed to sell me something that seems to be a device for heating water (we'll call it a kettle). I take it back to the shop, say there appears to be nothing wrong with it and that I want an exchange. I only want an exchange because yer man isn't going to give me a refund (which I should be entitled to - I asked for a bread heater and got a water heater). If he tells me to take a running jump the only thing I can do is argue. Which I really shouldn't have to do. You could make the case that I should know the capabilities of the device but I relied completely on the advice of the store guy. Am I an idiot. Well no (not even if I got a kettle instead of a toaster).

It's a problem, trouble is there's no way around it unless I get a signed note from the store guy saying it's a bread heater (or a divx player).

shabbyroad

uh, playing dvix with a toaster ? are you mad ?!?

My experience has been that in situations where you need to revisit the store it's always easier to catch flies with honey. Store employees are, by and large, just regular people like you and I.
It's amazing how far a smile and hello will get you; phrases like "hello <insert name from namebadge> - how's your day been ?" will get their attention and works better than ranting. If they're obviously hassled (i.e. there's dozens of customers and the manager has phecked off for an externded lunch) then a bit of sympathy for their situation and acknowledging that they need to hear a complaint like they need a hole in the head.... usually works for me. I've managed to get goods exchanged and refunded when I probably had no right to do so.

Example : yesterday my wife bought a dress (for a christmas party next weekend) and arrived home to find that the security tag was still attached. removing the tag would destroy the dress and there was no way she could go back into town this week (and why should she?). A polite call to the shop with no ranting and they immediately apologized and offered a 25 euro voucher if she came back in to the shop. After explaining that it really wouldn't be possible they offered to send someone out to our house to remove the tag. Obviously much more convenient but my wife suggested she go to one of their partner stores near our home and save them a journey - no skin off anyone's nose. The store was delighted and insisted on giving her the voucher anyway.

....flies with honey....

Spacebutler™

Yo i work in Forbidden Planet and damn straight, we are a cool bunch of people. lol
thsi boards.ie thing is cool. I just registered

RasTa

Forbidden Planet sucks !

CyberGhost

yea, it usually takes just a smile but in some cases, you have to shout and complain so they take you seriously

as for sucking - it-direct REALY SUCKS! i hate that shop and everyone there! especially one guy!

Spacebutler - cool man! what is your job in the shop?

maxheadroom

Originally posted by shabbyroad
uh, playing dvix with a toaster ? are you mad ?!?

http://www.casemodgod.com/kitchen_toaster_pc.htm

Spacebutler™

Thanks guys, well im nice and try to help anyone in any way i can. The one guy you mention......i know who you are talking about. lol. Ive delt with costomers bringing stuff back and i allways offer them straight away do they want to swap for a new one. But a refund requires the manager, and it depends what manager is on and like one of you said what mood he is in ect. i only work at weekends!

CyberGhost

lol maxheadroom!!! nice one!!!

God i love case modding!

rubadub

You buy something and it is faulty, you are entitled to a refund, you don’t have to accept a replacement.
You buy something and you don’t like it, you are not entitled to a refund, most decent shops who care about their goodwill will exchange it or give vouchers.
BUT the loophole is you can always claim it is faulty! I have brought cds back after 1 year with the receipt and claim they don’t play on my PC (a growing problem these days, so I hear) they try it in the store and tell me it works, I say not in mine and I get cash back. Why the one year delay? I say I work weekends and can’t get into town much.
I brought a digital camera back as it turned out to be crap, I said I didn’t have a USB port rather than it was crap- I got cash back, there was no need for them to give me cash in this case, goods weren’t faulty and did fit their description (clearly said USB on the box but I pleaded ignorance). The more unscrupulous customer could actually damage the goods themselves and bring it back for cash. Argos are great for exchanges, no questions asked but within 16 days. HMV too, buy a cd, copy it and return it for vouchers, not an exchange. This way your multiple exchanges do not appear on the receipts you bring back, just says you paid with vouchers each time. Hmv have a huge staff turnover so I could go in every day for a while when I worked in town and not be recognised.

CyberGhost

HMV too, buy a cd, copy it and return it for vouchers, not an exchange. This way your multiple exchanges do not appear on the receipts you bring back, just says you paid with vouchers each time. Hmv have a huge staff turnover so I could go in every day for a while when I worked in town and not be recognised.

Thanks! have to try that out sometime!

gaui3d0pnbz86o

i work in cust services in a large store,

a cust being nice will always be treated better then someone shouting the odds. ive had people throw goods at me- digital cameras and the like- and i mean throw at my face, ive been threatened, verbally abused, a collague of mine was punched and another a knife to his neck after work(they waited outside till the shop closed). this is just a small fration of what ive to put up with. also whats with people who are drunk thinking they have a right to a refund on a year and a half off goods with no reciept?

so if someone comes up to me shouting and being abusive before calmly explaing to me what problem is, i just get security to remove them from the building until they are calm, then deal with them.

if someone with the same problem comes up to me , and explains it, and is willing to listen to me, they usuall get sorted out and get what they want!

people in cust service are there to help! but only if you help them by being nice!!

Spacebutler™

I know how you feel. I was threatened big time before by some nacker s**t because i was keeping an eye on him. It was quite obvious he had intentions to shoplift, you can just tell. However it annoyed him that he couldnt because we were watching him. I say if you have no intention to commit a crime you should have no problem being watched, most staff are asked to watch people by the managers.

well what can ya do, lol

anyone else get the same problem?

CyberGhost

wow flameboy! you have a patience man!

if someone would dare to throw something at me, i'd probably beat them

gaui3d0pnbz86o

patience is a virtue,

but at times its hard, what makes it worse is my low low wage!

SouperComputer

Originally posted by Spacebutler™
I know how you feel. I was threatened big time before by some nacker s**t because i was keeping an eye on him. It was quite obvious he had intentions to shoplift, you can just tell. However it annoyed him that he couldnt because we were watching him. I say if you have no intention to commit a crime you should have no problem being watched, most staff are asked to watch people by the managers.

well what can ya do, lol

anyone else get the same problem?

attended a seminar about dealing with these fu{ks a month ago.

best approach is not to watch them, or anthin. Just try the "pushy salesman" approach.

its worked a treat for a a good few times on drunks and skangers alike. Just keep asking questions, "what do you have in mind..." What budget" blah blah, better still try to divert the converstaion to a product that is displayed in the outside window, or at another retailer!!

¬zero64

you entitlled to a full refund/replacement , you choose. if a product is faulty .the law is on your side, we have reasonably good consumer laws in ireland........

¬zero64

JOIN A UNION AND GET REPRESENTED

Capt'n Midnight

maxheadroom - Video Toaster

I must say I disapprove of this copying and then returning ...

Argos DVD recorders - 533/3064 , 533/3071 , 512/6958
Argos USB CDRW Drives - 676/4742 , 676/4728 , 676/4883

Absolam

You buy something and it is faulty, you are entitled to a refund, you don’t have to accept a replacement.

Not true. The Sale of Goods Act allows the retailer to choose, at their own discretion, whether to provide a refund, or a replacement (i.e. another of the exact same product). The replacement would have to be of merchantable quality though, and you're entitled to satisfy yourself that it is before you have to accept it. In reality, most retailers will give you the choice, but they don't have to.

Capt'n Midnight

Does this only apply to DOA's ?
ie. when do you have to settle for a repair instead of a replacement ?

Then there is the whole credit note thingy - IIRC you don't have to take a credit in lieu of refunding payment in it's original form - but since they don't have to give you payment....

the bit about refunding payment in original form - you can't return goods to get a cash advance on your credit card - esp since the store would get billed 1.x% by visa and Co.

Also I don't consider orange car indicator bulbs to be of merchantable quality since they fade so quickly and esp since they cost so much more than a clear bulb..

rubadub

Originally posted by Absolam
Not true. The Sale of Goods Act allows the retailer to choose, at their own discretion, whether to provide a refund, or a replacement (i.e. another of the exact same product). The replacement would have to be of merchantable quality though, and you're entitled to satisfy yourself that it is before you have to accept it. In reality, most retailers will give you the choice, but they don't have to.

i would still stand by what i said. it was up to the retailer years back but AFAIK it is not the case anymore, unless it has changed back again. not causing arguments but do you have any links to say otherwise?
i know you will ask me if i have links, so i will say now i do not. but have been offered full refunds in many shops and been told by the assistant that i was entitled to cash. i am almost certain i saw it on an irish "watchdog" type program a few years back

Absolam

Read the Sale of Goods Act. This is the definitive piece of legislation binding all retailers, and where it does not confer rights on the consumer, these rights remain with the retailer. Therefore, when the Act states 'entitled to a refund or replacement', and doesn't state by whose choice, the right isn't conferred, but remains with the retailer. Notwithstanding, of course, any sensible retailer will always give a customer more than their entitlement in order to maintain their business..hence the pro customer policies of the likes of M&S, Tescos etc..

jank

sorry to bring this up again but whats the story with refunds on clothes?

got a present of a jersey which was too small and is also going out of date soon
so i asked for it to be returned for a larger one and the away one
they didnt have the away one in my size so gave me the same one but larger while refusing a refund!

almost all other places have the other jersey
so can they do that!?
the item wasnt even worn and the tags and all still on it!

sceptre

Originally posted by jank
so can they do that!?
the item wasnt even worn and the tags and all still on it!

Yes they can (read the rest of the thread). There's nothing wrong with the jersey, it's just too small for a jank.

Pataman

also you didnt buy it so they have no contract with you

RuggieBear

Originally posted by jank
sorry to bring this up again but whats the story with refunds on clothes?

got a present of a jersey which was too small and is also going out of date soon
so i asked for it to be returned for a larger one and the away one
they didnt have the away one in my size so gave me the same one but larger while refusing a refund!

almost all other places have the other jersey
so can they do that!?
the item wasnt even worn and the tags and all still on it!

My uncle bought a coat from a particular shop....he went out in it a few days later and realised that there was a design flaw in the jacket in that there was a flap that kept getting caught on the front zip....this really annoyed him because it got so stuck he needed somebody else's help to get out of the jacket. :mad:

Anyway he decided to bring it back 2 days after purchasing it and ask for a credit note. Basically some snooty bitch told him that since that there wasn't actually a fault with the jacket and the way the jacket was designed he wasn't getting one.

My uncle drove straight down to the small claims court in Wicklow and for the cost of 9euro filed a suit....

Anyway 2days later he got a call from the manager of the shop, apologising and promising to refund the money for the jacket, the 9euro for the small claims suit, as well as a voucher for a meal in a nice local restaurant with a good bottle of wine....:D


P

slave1

Good thread with good gereral advise

I have two specific queries, I bought a DVD writer off a reputable web based site in September, stopped working and I've sent it back.
Their return procedure has this

When we receive the parcel we test the item, repair it if possible or exchange it.

a) Can I not ask for a full refund?
kinda loss faith in a piece of kit when it dies after little use ( about a dozen or so writes )

The price of this piece of kit has dropped significantly ( about 90 yo yos)

b) can I get a refund based upon what I paid, avers to current price

I'd like some impartial views on how to handle this before I chase the company up

Tks