This is a genuine AIBU: do I take on Tesco tooth and claw, or retreat gracefully?

[hester]

This is trivial, but I'm livid (am very stressed and on a short fuse, to be fair). Bleedin Tesco delivery tonight - I know, I know, it's Tesco, but I've always found their call centre charming and helpful when I ring to complain about bizarre substitutions.

Tonight - I'm upstairs with baby - dp accepts delivery. Including 152 nappies - £19 worth - of nappies that are two sizes too small. So I ring Tesco and they tell me I have to take the nappies back to the delivery centre, two bus rides away. I politely decline, tell them I am a working mother of two small children and I don't have a car (hence needing a delivery service). They then tell me the only other option is to have it picked up when I do my next order. But they won't refund me in the meantime.

I think this is not good enough. They have charged me for something I didn't order, and are now telling me I have to spend more money to get a refund. My favoured solution is that they refund me NOW, and pick the nappies up at their convenience (I'm on a main road in London, not the outer Hebrides, they must have vans down this road every day of the week). They think IABU.

How hard should I fight this? I'm aware that my area of weakness is that my dp did accept the delivery. But still...

I think, given the idiotic nature of the substitution. that you would be within your rights to place a new order for immediate delivery and demand that the delivery fee is waived. That way, you have made a new order (as they suggested), they can take the dud nappies away (as they suggested) and you don't lose out (as you would doubtless prefer).

It's a reasonable compromise, IMO. And you would get your refund pretty quickly after the new order, surely?

Who did you complain to? Was it the delivery store or customer service?
The delivery store will probably do everything they can to avoid costing themselves time or money, whereas customer service genuinely want you to be a happy customer.
Try calling 0800 50 55 55. They're open office hours, tend to pick up pretty quickly and (if you're nice and polite) should be able to help.

If the nappies were a mistake rather than a bizarre substitution which was explained to your dh, then Tesci should rectify the problem. My elderly parents use Sainsbury's because they can't get out to the shops. It would be impossible to check orders properly while the delivery man waits. Whenever they are sent something they didn't request my mum just rings up and they give her a refund and tell her to keep whatever it was they sent as it's not worth their while picking it up.

Presumably if the delivery man said to your DH "we don't have the nappies you ordered so I've brought some which are two sizes too small" he would have declined? I think Tesco ABU and should sort it out.

Definitely call back and try to talk to someone different about it, you never know.

First of all...if I am correct, they count as unsolicited goods.

Basically, they have to collect them....if they don't within a certain amount of time then they are yours. It's their responsibility to collect...not yours to deliver them.

I would demand a full refund for the goods that you did not receive.

Then I would hunt out the contact details for the chief exec....explain clearly and concisely what has happened and then wait and see what happens.

You should get a response within a week....hopefully an apology too...and a refund/compensation.

YANBU.
I would stand my ground.
I would also like to know who on earth thinks an acceptable subsitute for nappies is a pack 2 sizes too small
This would be my gripe, even if your DH accepted them. I mean, a similar brand, or same brand different style perhaps? But a different bloody size?? Who would imagine that?
I would not be very happy. Be firm but fair.

DP accepted them so it's completely reasonable that they don't send an extra van to collect/replace them, sorry. They always alert you to subs and you can return them there and then. Yes it was a stupid sub but stupid subs are a risk with home shopping.

I think it's reasonable to ask very very nicely for them to fit you in on another round to swap the nappies, but I don't think it would be reasonable for you to go in all guns blazing and demand they do.

I still don't think u abu at all! Even tho Dp accepted the subsitute your pressume it's a similar item that you can use. You cannot use nappies 2 sizes to small!! Let us know the outcome please

YANBU

That is not good customer service! Ok, your DP did accept the delivery but you kind of expect to get what you have ordered unless they point out a substitution. I certainly don't look through all my delivery before I sign for it.
I'd follow it up if I were you through the local branch manager or customer services manager.

Ok so I now notice that they did point out to your DP that it was a substitution (sorry I'm trying to respond to AIBU without reading the thread so I the OP gets my gut reaction!)

I now think you shoudn't follow it up further - they highlighted the substitution so the mistake was made on accepting it. Worth you asking if they could help put it right but I don't think they should be obliged to.

But if husband was told it was a substitution-he wouldn´t think that they´d send a different size, would he?

Of course they should refund!

The picker was daft to put in a different size, but if you accept a sub it is strictly speaking your own fault.

Now they have said they will collect them next time and refund so that is fair enough really.

Tesco are mostly ok. One time they delivered the wrong thing to me (packets looked similar and were not a substitute just a mistake by the picker) and they did refund right away even though it was a couple of weeks until my next order and they could collect them.

YABU in not making this your idiot DH's problem. He's the one who accepted the substitution, he's the one who should sort it out.

YANBU.

Poor customer service imo.

And shouldn't be a bother for them to collect nappies if you are in London.
And they should really deliver you the proper sized nappies, the ones you actually ordered, as now presumably you are short?

Waitrose would never treat you so shabbily!

Why not send dp out to the regular Tesco with your receipt

It was a silly substitute but don't people usually check subs when they get them to make sure they're suitable? Our Tescos are usually pretty good about subs, but I always check exactly what they've given us before accepting it.

OP, did the driver say to your DH

We have Brand A size 10kg nappies, so here are some BrandA size 7kg nappies (ie specific)

Or, we didn't have the nappies you ordered so we've made a subsitution (vague.)

If the former I think you have to rely on Tesco's goodwill.

If the latter, I think you have a case for asking for a refund and delivery of the correct size.

Doh "We have no Brand A size 10kg nappies, is what I meant.

About a year ago tesco delivered same brand as ordered nappies but different size. We live in middle of nowhere and as I only had enough to get through the night it meant a drive to the store the next morning. I called customer services explained the problem and they refunded me, gave me £20 vouchers for my trouble and free delivery coupon for next order.

Orders are picked an packed in your nearest store and if the numpty highly trained store person doesn't have kids I think some of them just don't understand the implications of just picking another pack of the same brand rather than the same size but different brand iyswim. Customer service lady agreed and said they would highlight it as a training issue.

I'd push it if I were you.

I don't see this as tesco's problem. The delivery driver presumably pointed out the subs when he handed your DP the receipt. It's your DP's fault for not checking properly.

If you have specific sub requests you can enter them on the website before you submit the order. You can even select that they don't sub certain items at all.

Although the sub doesn't make sense to you, the person doing your shopping could have been a 17 year old boy who doesn't have a clue about nappy sizes.

My most stupid sub was them giving me a cheese and ham pizza instead of plain cheese. That would have been fine if my shopping hadn't been filled with vegetarian mince, quorn stuff and linda maccartney sausages!

OK, husband could have checked.

But who would imagine that anyone would be stupid enough to substitute a different size?

Love the sexist assumptions on this thread about stupid DHs who don't know about nappy sizes