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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

MARKS AND SPENCER CUSTOMER SERVICE IS A JOKE

128 replies

mufti · 01/12/2010 12:30

i have not used this topic before and just need to get this down / off my chest, i think.
i needed new shoes and got some birthday money i have always been a great fan of m & s , and spent loads there, so this is really upsetting.
i only have a SIMPLY FOOD where i live, so first chance i got , i went into large town an hour on the bus.and found a pair, if only they had had my size in, none of this would have happened
as they didnt , i noted the style number, and ordered at home online, getting them delivered to the simply food store, which is a good system normally, as you save delivery charge
so, opened them , threw away old scruffy pair and the packaging.
i went to wear them and found a small split in the leather.
i wore them ,as i had to, no other shoes, then got back into the large town last weds, 24th, and took them to customer service, expecting an exchange
huh, first assistant took shoe away, came back , "you shouldnt have worn them"
i explained ,and asked for the manager - in a meeting
so she fetched what appeared to be a catering manager. who was even less helpful and quite rude
she said i should have returned them sooner, seems it would have not been a problem if they had split since i got them. then they would be classed as faulty goods
she wanted me to leave them, i asked if i should go home barefoot, she accused me of being pedantic!
she offered to make a call to see if there had been problems with any others, i had to get the next bus home for school run, and they are hourly. i told her all this, and i have no other shoes, im not that well off and i had said all this several times by now.
she then said, "well do you want me to help you or dont you?"
i said , " you could take my details and call me back later". she did so, but didnt call
i have spent the week since emailing customers services, who seem enable to read my emails as i told them i have nothing else to wear , i suggested i send them a photo, i suggested they send a replacement pair so i can them return the faulty one, they keep emailing me back saying return them
if you read all that thanks, im fed up, it is a very small split, but it could get bigger , and its just not good enough

OP posts:
pjmama · 01/12/2010 12:34

She's right, you shouldn't have worn them if you needed to return them. I also think it's fairly standard practice that you need to return goods before getting a replacement. Next time don't throw your old ones away until you've checked the new ones.

kreecherlivesupstairs · 01/12/2010 12:50

YABU

TmiEdward · 01/12/2010 12:53

YABU.
I'm sorry you only have one pair of shoes, but you can't expect to return worn goods unless they are totally unfit for purpose. The fact you have been wearing them means that they are fit for purpose.

And your "shift" button doesn't seem to be working either.

perfumeditsawonderfullife · 01/12/2010 12:59

I don't think you are being unreasonable.

I have detected a massive change in the M@S famed customer service.

Two Christmas ago i did a massive christmas shop with them, online and on 20% off day. Ordered it all on the 2Dec and was expecting delivery at the latest the 15th. Nothing came, called and they said they were waiting on one out of stock item. I asked could they send what they had and send out of stock item later. No Confused To cut a long story short, they finally told me all was on the delivery van for 23 Dec. Nothing came. Called Christmas eve, anxious by now and too late to post items. Mega rude man told me I had the good, they were signed for. I told him I didn't, he told me to ask neighbours. I did, came back and told him and he told me i was lying!
I was in tears by now, knowing i had to trudge through the streets at three pm to do an entire shop for gifts with a toddler. Called and got a sane lady who discovered they were signed for in a different city from me, different name and everything. I was given a 50 pound gift card.

I will never order on line with them again.

I think you have a valid complaint op, the goods are unfit for the purpose you bought them, they are shoes and they are expected to last longer than one wear. Check the consumer rights website. Dont take this lying down.

Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:00

where would the shift errors be?

OP posts:
Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:03

thank you perfumed, i dont want to take it lying down or shoeless Smile, and im sorry you had all that hassle
its getting me down now, chap has just emailed me again , and said if i cant send them back , i can return them to store, or telephone.
i told him again, that i tried that last week to no avail, and it will cost me to phone and maybe still get no where

OP posts:
TmiEdward · 01/12/2010 13:04

There are no capital letters in your post, save for SIMPLY FOOD and the thread title. In the English language sentences and proper nouns should start with a capital letter and I should be capitalised when writing about yourself.
HTH.

Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:04

i have worked in retail, and i know a little about the sale of goods act, even told her so in store, pah

OP posts:
Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:06

it doesnt help in the slightest tmi thanks anyway, i know all that, i always type like this, i didnt realise you were being sarcastic, my mistake.

OP posts:
BalloonSlayer · 01/12/2010 13:10

Do you really have no other shoes at all? No flip flops even? Slippers?

And you threw away your old shoes before you had even tried the new ones on?

And given that you had only ONE pair of shoes, why didn't you keep your old pair in case, oh I dunno, it snowed or something and you didn't want to spoil your new ones?

Not disbelieving you entirely, but it sounds to me like you have told M&S you only have the one pair of shoes and you have backed yourself into a corner.

Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:11

i have slippers yes, but they are not shoes
i have wellies for the snow, they are not shoes either

OP posts:
TmiEdward · 01/12/2010 13:16

You could have reasonable worn wellies to return the shoes.

Yes, I agree that M&S customer services has become much worse in recent years. But YAstillBU.

TmiEdward · 01/12/2010 13:17

Sorry, "reasonably"

myheadisconfused · 01/12/2010 13:17

TmiEdward Grin

BalloonSlayer · 01/12/2010 13:19

I suppose that wellies aren't shoes but on that basis I haven't got many pairs of shoes either. I've got boots, trainers, flip-flops, sandals. Not many shoes.

Fifidedeal · 01/12/2010 13:23

YANBU. IMO they should give you the benefit of the doubt and do as you ask. It must be obvious you are a genuine customer not a fraudster and they risk losing a good customer and generating a lot of ill will. I had some boots bought for me as a gift and I wore them several times before returning them - they weren't over the moon but they did it!

Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:26

thats interesting fifi, and were the boots ok?

OP posts:
MrManager · 01/12/2010 13:27

YABU, why on earth would you just check that there were shoes in the box and then throw out the old ones?

Did you throw them down a well - why couldn't you just retrieve them from the bin?

Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:29

well i suppose a wheelie bin is a bit like well in that its deep
i took out of the packaging as i said, i was pleased to get rid of the old ones.

OP posts:
libelulle · 01/12/2010 13:32

YANBU. The fact is that even if there hadn't been a split when you received them, one shouldn't have developed within a week of wear! The shoes were not fit for purpose and you had the right to return them.

But from their perspective, I do see the problem that if you want to return an item, they will want to take it off you - they have no obligation to both give you your money back and let you keep the item. Given the loss of goodwill and bad publicity involved, though, it beggars belief that any store would think it worth their while to press the point and suggest that a customer walk home barefoot!

TattyDevine · 01/12/2010 13:33

If I were you I would contact consumer direct and ask them if a shoe you have bought recently develops a split in the leather after you have worn them, are you entitled to return them under the sale of goods act.

If you can, then I think really its a technicality that you saw it before you wore them or that you wore them anyway. The shoes, if split, were not in a re-saleable condition so its kind of a moot point whether you had worn them or not. As is the issue of slippers wellies, multiple shoes, etc.

If I were you, I would clarify that point with consumer direct, and if you are entitled to return them, send them to Marks and Spencer in the post with the despatch note etc and a covering letter, explaining that whilst the shoes have been worn, you are not happy with the quality of them as they have developed a split and that you require a full refund, and give them 28 days to do so under the Sale of Goods Act 1979.

If I buy a pair of shoes, wear them for 3 days and they split, I'm entitled to my money back. They can't say no on the basis that I've worn them. Therefore I think M&S are on shaky ground and its kind of irrelevant that you noticed the split before wearing them. They dont actually need to know that and it doesn't technically affect your statutory rights as far as I am aware.

doughnutty · 01/12/2010 13:34

What did you expect them to do?

You wanted to remove the shoes you'd been wearing, hand them to an assistant to inspect them and be given an exchange when you knew the store didn't have another pair to give you?

The split in the leather when new is a refundable fault but you made it impossible to make that decision as you wore them knowing they were faulty and presumably only removed them when you got to the front of the queue. Do you realise how unhygienic and unsanitary, minging that is?

In my second paragraph replace the word shoes with the word knickers and you'll see how unreasonable you were being!

And yes, I have had someone return a pair of worn and unwashed underwear with a fault. They were told they would not be refunded as I wouldn't touch them to inspect them.I'd have said the same to you.
YABvvvvU

TragicallyHip · 01/12/2010 13:42

So you wore them to the store expecting to get an exchange, what if they didn't have any in your size? They didn't in the first place so what made you think they would have had any more in? Hmm

YABU you should have worn your wellies!

Original poster
mufti · 01/12/2010 13:55

doughnutty, i would not do that , also £35 shoes, compared to eg £2 knickers is a lot more to lose.
they did have some in my size last week, i looked afterwards.

OP posts:
lborolass · 01/12/2010 13:59

I don't think YABU - if you had the receipt they should have seen that the shoes were new and should have refunded you anyway.

What if you were wearing the shoes for the first time, you saw the split and then popped into the shop to exchange them. Whether you have any other shoes isn't really relevant.

To the people who think mufti is BU - in the above scenario would you go home,change shoes, go back to shop ?

I don't see any difference

mufti - keep on complaining