Is it usual for retailers to demand return of post-damaged items before they are replaced?

[NamelessNancy]

Sorry, it's not a very interesting one but I ordered some craft/activity kits for DS and I to do together this weekend online. They arrived on Monday severely damaged to the point of being totally unusable. I immediately messaged the retailer with images of the damage. Initially they got back quickly to apologise for the inconvenience and ask if I wanted a refund or replacement so I asked for a replacement and thanked them for their help. This was then followed by another message asking me to package the (badly damaged) items carefully and prepare them for a courier to pick up next week. The replacement items will be sent to me after the returned ones arrive back with them. It means it'll be more than two weeks after I ordered them before the replacements arrive. I've also had to sort out new packaging as the stuff it arrived in was totally unusable.

In case it's relevent they are not high value kits - about £15 each. The degree of damage is very clearly seen in the pictures and was acknowledged in their first reply. I'd really expected them to tell me to throw them away and wait for the replacement, not package them carefully etc. I'm really frustrated as the weather is going to be shit this weekend and I thought I'd got a good one planned regardless. I realise it's a first world problem though!

Yes, twice. Once with a pair of jeans that had an undone hem down the side. Another time was a bedroom mirror that arrived with a huge crack diagonally across, plus loose shards of glass in the bottom of the box. Jeans were a free return, but the mirror would have cost us a fortune, so in the end, after many phone calls and emails, they allowed us to take it to our local dump instead.

If you want the stuff urgently then ask for a refund instead and reorder it today. Even if you get the refund later you'll still be getting the items in time for when you need them rather than waiting for the return to happen.

I had it with a jumper. I asked what they'd do with it as if it was going to landfill I'd rather keep it and have a refund of 50% instead of having a new one sent. They said they would inspect it and repair it if they could and put it back on sale!

Yes. I would usually assume you had to return something first before you got a replacement or refund. But bit annoying you had to package it up. I woukdn't order anything from them again.

Yes it's becoming the norm for companies to want their products back first. If the item isn't exclusive to them for all they know you bought it elsewhere, you would be surprised the scams some people try.
With the item in their possession it's easier for them to go back to their delivery company about how they handle purchases. Because of scammers it could also be the delivery companies policy, or whatever insurance company.

there's loads of crafts that can be done with things you already own in the meantime.

Are they paying for the packaging?

Thanks everyone. They are exclusive, own brand items and definitely couldn't be bought elsewhere. I guess I could get a refund after the return and reorder now but cashflow is a bit tight at the moment. We'll have to rethink our weekend.

I was suprised though as when I've had a damaged item from Amazon in the past they just told me to throw it away and sent out an immediate replacement.

No, they are not paying for the packaging. I've managed to repurpose a box another order arrived in this week and the padding from that so it's not cost me anything really other than my time and a whole load of grumbling! It's all very much better packed now than it was when they sent it to me in the first place.

Amazon generally pass the costs of damaged items onto the manufacturer so they DGAF. Smaller businesses are likely to bear the cost themselves so are stricter.

That could depend on the items / seller too. I had to send back damaged items to Amazon too, before receiving the replacement. Other times they didn't even ask for it.

But as a general rule, I'd always assume I have to send damaged items back before receiving replacements.

They will make a damage claim with the courier and get compensated, but it takes a while. Are they a small business? It's actually more cost effective for them to let you just keep them, as it will take man-hours (albeit a relatively small amount) to process the return and presumably throw the damaged goods out. If you've sent photos of the damage that's all they need to process their claim.

No, not a small retailer, a well known national chain. The total weight of the package is about 6kg so I can't imagine the courier will be cheap either. There's no way they could repair or resell, which is clear from the images.

Anyway, it seems it's pretty common now to need them back so I'll just get over it! Thanks again.

Maybe they wouldn't attempt repair or resell

But what we have to do is return to vendor

Then we (the company) can get reimbursed

Just had one last go at contacting customer services and they've agreed to send out the replacement today. Hooray! They still want the damaged ones back, which is fine, but we'll hopefully get the replacements by the end of the week as initially planned. Hope they pack them a bit better this time. (Tbh I don't think it was a courier issue, the packaging was totally inadequate).

To be honest this is what I would have expected of them for a replacement - I'd normally expect the courier to deliver and collect at the same time. Glad you got a good resolution.