Scammed and so angry with myself.

[Nosandalsforme]

I really fancied a pair of chunky doc marten sandals this summer. Trying to save money though. Kept getting a facebook advert for an online shop selling them at good prices. I was a bit sceptical but there were loads of good reviews in the facebook comments but decided to go for it. The picture on the site was the definite, genuine article and I paid £55 which is still better than the usual £90+. The site seemed to be US based and said the order would ship from the US.

A package has turned up from China with the cheapest, nastiest obviously fake DMs. Really horrible material on the soles and uppers and the “DM label” on the back is in Chinese and badly stitched on. They are also tiny and no way the size they are supposed to be. They are not even the style of DM sandal that I had chosen.

I know, I know, I should have checked the returns policy before ordering. I always do this and am so bloody upset with myself. I was just so excited about the bargain and it all looked above board. Anyway, it turns out that to return any goods, you have to email their customer services to explain the problem and ask for a return address – it isn’t published anywhere. Of course, I’ve received a really rude reply saying that I got what I ordered and they will not issue me a refund.

Their site is still advertising genuine DMs. I realise my money is gone and I’ve checked my bank statements, they haven’t taken any more from me but is there anything I can do here other than lick my wounds and be hugely upset with myself. DH is furious with me for being sucked in too and keeps going on about what we could have done with that money. Please don’t pile on and call me an idiot – I honestly can’t feel worse than I already do.

Bad luck OP. Chalk it up to experience. I've been very tempted by similar ads on Facebook too.

I doubt it. China isn’t governed by tradings standards etc. So their laws are different. Sadly. You’d have to check their laws on shopping returns. Worth a check.

But all I can say is. If it’s too good to be true. It likely is. Dr martens are a British company. All shoes are made in England. If any containing them say coming from America etc. It’s likely tk be fake.

No. I’m wrong. They come from China too. And Thailand

How did you pay them the £55?

Use the charge back scheme if you paid with debit card. Use the section 75 scheme if you paid by credit card. If you used paypal you can get a refund. But if you paid by bank transfer you're goosed.

I'd spam their Facebook page comments with pictures of what you got. They'll block you I suppose but it might stop someone else being scammed before they do.

You just have to put it down to experience and never order anything from a Facebook ad again. So many are scams!

If you see something you like, come off Facebook and Google the product or company to find their actual website, so you can see if they are legitimate or not.

You could try to put a comment on their Facebook profile, but they will most likely delete it.

Oh. If it was by credit card. You might be able to get the money back!

I paid by credit card. Off to google section 75 now.

I did seem strange that a US company would sell a British product at a cheaper price but then they were last year's model (which didn't bother me) so I assumed it was a legitimate sale.

Definitely learned from experience but I could just cry right now.

As it was under £100, section 75 protection isn't applicable unfortunately.

@Brahumbug

As it was under £100, section 75 protection isn't applicable unfortunately.

This.

What a pain, OP.

Oh. It was only £55. You’re not protected.

I had similar with a pair of fancy boots, what arrived was horrid shiney plastic in lurid colours, nothing like the tasteful picture. I e mailed the company who had a return address in the uk but they wanted to charge me what amounted to almost half the cost of the revolting things to send back. I complained.... several times, said i would leave reviews everywhere i could and put their site out on my facebook, mumsnet site and tell everyone they were a rip off site, they refunded full price including postage. Worth pushing, e mail every day send photos side by side with what you ordered and keep at it until you get somewhere. Review everywhere so no one else falls for it. Good luck. May be worth seeing if you can raise a dispute with the credit card? Not sure if thats a thing but i seem to recall doing this years ago when i ordered something from US and it never arrived.

You can ask for a chargeback on your credit card:

Credit cards Chargeback is particularly useful where the cost of the goods or services was under £100 and Section 75 doesn't apply. For all credit card transactions over £100 you also have rights under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.

No harm in asking the bank!

www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-do-i-use-chargeback-abZ2d4z3nT8q

Meant to post the link too...

You’ve already received a (rude) refusal, so you need to send a threatening email.

Spend a decent amount of time on it. Demand a full refund or you will - bombard Facebook/Twitter/Insta etc - report to trading standards - report to the CMA - report to anyone else you can think of, etc etc.

I had this with an air con unit on Amazon. Should have realised from the long delivery time. It was useless and the company told me I broke it and they would give me five pounds back. When I raised a case they said that they would not be able to feed their family. Not your usual response and also, Not. My. Problem. Sorry OP, however you will only make the mistake once and you are not alone.

I had this with clothes. Told bank not received and they put fund back within a couple of days

I got scammed when I bought a Xmas nativity Garland from a similar ad last year. What actually arrived was a tiny wooden cowshed!

OP this happens to the best of us, please don't kick yourself any more! I don't think it's fair that your husband is furious. I understand £50 could have gone to something else but it's not life changing money is it. This month I forgot to cancel a subscription (got dates wrong) and got charged £25 for something I didn't need. It's frustrating but life goes on. Be glad you didn't pay the £90! Don't think there is anything you can do as section 75 won't apply as less than £100.

Oh and recently my mum got scammed, bought what she thought was a sideboard for her hallway but it was tiny and you could probably fit paperclips in the drawers... luckily we were able to have a laugh about it.

Just as an additional point, your partner needs to pack it in. Everyone makes mistakes and him making you feel worse about it is a really shitty way to get on. Most partners would sympathise with you and then help try to fix the problem (ie look up ways to get money back as posters have suggested on this thread).

Is he usually this much of an arse? I know for some people, myself included, £50 is a sizeable sum, but it’s not as if you lost hundreds/thousands of pounds.

Ultimately, you shouldn’t feel this bad about making a genuine mistake. Is something else going on, here? I hope you’re okay. Don’t beat yourself up over it. We have all made mistakes. It happens.

I hope you get a satisfactory resolution, OP.

We bought a prom dress that turned out to be dreadful. I was so careful, read lots of reviews with photos on different sites, read q&a about the company on various message boards and whilst what we received wasn't quite in the same league as your Docs, and is fixable with a lot of work, it's still really disappointing.

I did very similar with a baby carrier from a Facebook ad. I paid by debit card and then the page suddenly disappeared, I never got the item. I called my bank and explained and I got my money back.