£9 to try on Saint and Sofia trousers

[WideLegPant]

Yes, it's my fault for not checking but it said "Free Replacement & Returns Information" on the item page so silly me for not checking returns costs.

Trousers were £39, they are nice but far too wide legged for me. Shipping was £4 (as under £50 order) and now they are charging £5 to return them. I can send them back with another carrier at my own cost, or free return for store credit +£10 but as there is no way of knowing what fits without paying £5 each time I'm wary of buying anything else, and it's all so expensive.

I thought I might look at one of their coats but I've got the hump now and it's all too much mental weighing up of whether the likelihood of it fitting/suiting is worth the £5 return gamble!

The annoying thing is, it's harder to shop in actual shops now, as loads are closing or have reduced stock, so they say "oh you can just order that size online". But as more people shop online they're having to do away with free returns etc, so it's becoming costlier to just try stuff on.

I barely ever order anything for myself online. I did even consider getting them on vinted but there are no returns whatsoever on there!

I was stung by them too. I ordered a t-shirt which was far too long when I tried it on. I won’t order from them again.

Yes now I've posted this thread I'm seeing all the other "related" s&s threads linked below!

Think of it as less than it would cost you in parking/train fare/wasted time?

You should get the original shipping fee back when you return them so will get the £4 back

That's rubbish 😞 I liked the look of some of their clothes, but I don't think I'll bother due to delivery and return costs.

Pretty sure I won't from emailing them. Distance selling only applies to goods and services over £42..

I'll try and think of it as paying for not going into town!

I nearly started a thread about their (non) returns policy a few weeks ago but I was so angry it just turned into a rant!

I ordered a trench coat that I had had my eye on for ages, was way too expensive but it went on sale so went for it. It looked terrible on and when I went to return it it was marked non-returnable. Which was most definitely not the case when I ordered it!
Also a pair of trousers I ordered at the same time at full price went on sale in the meantime so also became non-returnable...
I spoke to their customer service (was a very nice helpful person) who said they would credit to a gift card as an exception...I returned all the items, no sign of any gift card or credit on my account though.
It's driving me mad trying to sort it all out and the last thing I want to do is order more stuff from them if I finally get the credit but it's way too much to write off.

Sorry you got stung too OP!

As far as i know there is no lower limit for distance selling.

https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/i-want-to-return-something-bought-online-aqsD32m9r5P3

This says standard delivery charge should be refunded

https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/consumer-contracts-regulations-ajWHC8m21cAk#cancelling-goods-and-services

Looks like their T&Cs are unlawful. There is no £42 mentioned as a lower limit to claim

That’s not true. It’s Consumer Contract Regulations you need and there is no lower limit on value.

This is where I got the £42 from
https://www.gov.uk/online-and-distance-selling-for-businesses

I find them a rip off now on quality. I bought a £140 smart jacket that wasn’t just unlined but also had ugly flaps and unfinished hems inside. Fine if you never have to remove it but that’s not how jackets work! The trousers I got were worse quality than M&S I bought a few days later.

The return charge is infuriating.

My review got removed.. So they’re good at social media management but quality and customer service? Not so much.

Thanks (and to @dementedpixie ) so looks like I might get my initial postage back, which will be something!

That's awful!

Thanks (and to @dementedpixie ) so looks like I might get my initial postage back, which will be something!

You might need to push them for a refund of the delivery charge as their T&Cs say they don't refund it even though legally they should

I have a new shopping model in my head. Huge warehouses that cater for loads of different shops and you do a bulk order in different sizes etc - then you go to the warehouse which has a trying on room and pick up your order.

Try it all on, hand back returns which are processed immediately.

If you want to request a different size you can but it would be a bit of a wait.

You definitely need to push them on this as it sounds like they may be acting unlawfully.

As far as I am aware, if you buy something online, even if it is in a sale, you have 14 days from when you receive the item to cancel your contract (in your case, the contract just being the fact that you bought an item). You have to notify the company, and the cost of returning the items is borne by you, but I am pretty sure that they can't just say something bought online is non-returnable and wash their hands of it.

And it should be a full refund, not store credit. If you can show that you contacted them about returning it within the 14 days, then you should definitely pursue it. Quote distance selling rules and threaten to report them to trading standards.

From the gov.uk distance selling rules:

Online, mail and phone order sales
Online, mail and telephone order customers have the right to cancel their order for a limited time even if the goods are not faulty. Sales of this kind are known as ‘distance sellingg_’.
You must offer a refund to customers if they’ve told you within 14 days of receiving their goods that they want to cancel. They have another 14 days to return the goods once they’ve told you.
You must refund the customer within 14 days of receiving the goods back. They do not have to provide a reason.

@ineedanewnametoday
Not with Saint and Sofia, but another retailer tried the same on me (they said the didn't have the size request I wanted). Then tried to offer me a gesture of goodwill by giving me store credit - so I told them by law they are required to return my money.
They then tried to pretend they hadn't received my return (which was BS as had not received it they wouldn't have known what item I wanted to exchange for a different size AND they had called me saying they received the item) - when I pointed this out to them they started ignoring me.

So I told them I am raising a debit dispute with my bank, which I did, and the bank returned my money.

Definitely worth the effort - I found the debit dispute with the bank really easy - just sent them all my emails threads with the company as proof (as well as tracking details of the return etc.).

@RockaLock @december2020
Thanks both for the suggestions. I paid through PayPal so will look into possibly reclaiming the money through them if all else fails. It's just such a PITA calling and emailing them all the time. Won't let it rest though!

I'm in the EU as well and it's not quite so straightforward as they don't send from an EU warehouse like lots of other retailers.