Has anyone got anything from Brighthouse?

[CouchWoes]

My corner couch is a mess. It was bought 2nd hand about 6 years ago. There's massive holes which have been sewed up by my, the arms are completely collapsed. And a few of the seats are collapsed inwards. It's embarrassing.

I cannot get any 'good' versions of credit (SCS/DFS 0% etc) as an ex ran up a load of credit in my name in my early 20s behind my back resulting in CCJS and all sorts.

I know Brighthouse is a rip off long term but I might get accepted?

I would buy 2nd hand again but about a year ago I tried and a 'non smoker' brought a couch that absolutely stunk of smoke and was stained, I had to turn them away and she got really angry. Plus it's quite a large lump sum before Xmas.

Any experience of Brighthouse please?

Before you do anything look at pages offing free stuff on marketplace or even for sale.
I have set my ‘map’ to cover a very affluent area nearby and can’t believe what some people are selling for next to nothing. Nearly new just because they want to update their colour scheme!
You would obviously need to arrange some sort of transport.
Alternatively, go to places like Sue Ryder or local furniture projects they stock sofas and furniture at a very cheap price or for free.

Sorry, just read your post again properly!

Look for furniture projects local to you.
Free & you can check items out before delivery so no nasty surprises.

Didn't Brighthouse go into administration last year?

How long ago were the bad debts/CCJ's? They only stay on your credit file for 6 years, have you chekced it recently? It may not be as bad as you think.

I did back in my early teenage years! Think I was about 18 biggest mistake off my life cost me and arm and a leg.Have you tried sofa club? They do klarna etc..

I tried to get a phone for DD last year and couldn't. I've checked experian and my rate is awful.

I'll have a look at sofa club, but klarna is only 3 split payments so is alot over Xmas months but is worth a look. Thanks

Bright house is a non starter. Have you even looked at their website?

British Heart Foundation have furniture shops. Not sure if they deliver but might be worth a look?

I know you've been burnt before but you've just been unlucky
I wouldn't go down the credit route
Some people change their sofa every year (something I learned when also looking for a second hand sofa) so there are plenty of free and cheap decent second hand ones out there
Or what about charity furniture shops like the Red Cross ? So you can easily go and view them ?

@IsDaveThere

Didn't Brighthouse go into administration last year?

How long ago were the bad debts/CCJ's? They only stay on your credit file for 6 years, have you chekced it recently? It may not be as bad as you think.

Yes, they are in administration but appear still to be trading. Be careful op.

I would stay clear of BH I am sure they went bust last year,anything furniture wise from them will be well worn out by the time you finish paying for it anyway.
British Heart Foundation are brilliant all their stuff is clean and always have the fire safety certificate on them.
FreeCycle is worth looking at as is Age UK shops.

Avoid BrightHouse like the plague. Ikea Ektorp is cheap and comfy and lasts.

Try furniture direct online think it was snap Finance

Don't let one bad 2nd hand experience put you off looking for free / cheap 2nd hand sofas, as it's a better option than Brighthouse.

I agree with looking at charity shops or places like Gumtree/eBay. I think you got unlucky when buying second hand last time, obviously you've got to be careful especially if it's a private seller rather than a charity but they're many bargains out there too, could be someone fancying a change of decor or moving. I know a lady who won a sofa for 1p on eBay. I myself bought a £3000 sofa (including the man and van I hired separately) it was only £400 a few years ago, it looked brand new, the people had moved into their new home and couldn't fit it inside the house assembled so needed a quick sale. I recently sold a Furniture Village sofa that was only a few years old and still great condition for £20 as I needed it gone asap. So they'll be people maybe ordering new sofas just before Christmas and wanting rid of their old ones quickly so selling cheaply hopefully

You might not get what you want but there are lots of sofas going free or cheap on local freecycle type Facebook pages. All you would pay for then would be transport. Or BHF, they’re not especially cheap anymore I find though.

I’m sorry, but getting yourself into debt for a nice sofa is bonkers. There are other ways. And as long as you get something clean and comfy, what does it matter?

BH aren’t doing any new sales due to their administration, only continuing to accept payments for existing loans.

Ah I didn't realise. Will stay clear

I mean this really gently but are you ok OP? Are you in a bit of a stress about this? I ask because if you had looked at BH’s website before coming to MN (to see if they actually had a sofa that you could afford and would fit in your space) it would have been clear it wasn’t an option. So just wanted to check how you’re doing.

British heart foundation have really nice stuff.

I know it’s nice to have something brand new for Christmas but I’d suggest the credit charges will mean you will be paying it off for years.

I’d go with second hand for now. If you shop carefully you can get amazing furniture from charity shops that you can view and sniff first!!

My pal got an immaculate back leather two seater for £90 delivered to her room. And wooden bunk beds (no mattress) were £40.

Put by the amount you’d pay to brighthouse for a few weeks and you’ll have the money. For example £15 a week for just 2 months will give you £120 cash. You could buy a good secondhand soda for that and it’s paid for.

Whereas if you buy a similar brighthouse overpriced sofa it will be worth say £400 but overpriced at £800. So you’d be paying that off at £15 a week for just over a year instead of just two months.

Alternatively you could turn your couch upside down and see what the problem is. It could be that the straps holding the seat pads up have stretched or something.

There could be something a handy diy pal could fix for you? I ‘fixed’ an uncomfortable mattress by putting a duvet on it under the sheet I sleep on top of so I didn’t feel the springs. Worked fine.

Perhaps stuffing a pillow or folding a duvet up under the cushions may help plump it up a bit. Rip up a cheap pillow and use the innards to re-stuff the arms of the couch and sew up neatly afterwards?

A new throw over the top and it will be better?

As others have suggested, local FB pages often have free/very cheap sofas.

We have 2 sofas in our living room, both of which came from BHF. They are in really good condition. I could afford new sofas but prefer to buy second hand if I can. We recently sold an excellent sofa bed for £80 as we didn't need it.

@TuftyMarmoset

I mean this really gently but are you ok OP? Are you in a bit of a stress about this? I ask because if you had looked at BH’s website before coming to MN (to see if they actually had a sofa that you could afford and would fit in your space) it would have been clear it wasn’t an option. So just wanted to check how you’re doing.

I didn't look at their website, no. There used to be a Bright house shop locally (in a shopping centre I haven't visited in years in all honesty) so I would have just gone there in person if I was going to go ahead. I'm sure I would have figured out that they weren't about anymore at some point

I'll keep checking my local FB.

Thankyou for the advice :)

Please don't go to Brighthouse or their like.

Where we live there are loads of charity shops with excellent quality suites all really well priced . If you explain how things are for you they may let you pay in instalments.

Also we have local 'free stuff' Facebook page where people give things away and people put out an appeal for what they need.

Please don't get into unnecessary debt when there are so many places that will help you.

I wish you all the best and hope that your life circumstances change for the better.

We got a leather lazy boy recliner for just over £100 secondhand, it’s ruddy fabulous. We had to hire a van to pick it up and nearly gave myself a hernia hoicking it into the house, but hey, about £900 cheaper than new!