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AIBU?

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Original poster

To be a bit off about M&S taking back my free dress?

187 replies

YoLoZammo · 06/08/2017 01:04

I bought several items in the M&S sale. Couple of things didn't fit stupid sizing so I returned them for a refund. The sales assistant couldn't find one item on my receipt and said I could only have a credit note. I knew it was the correct receipt and I wanted a refund so she took me to customer services. We went through each item on the receipt to try and identify which one it was as it was just not scanning as any of the receipt items. Turns out I hadn't paid for it Shock. I had had no idea when i bought it as i just threw the pile on the counter, and paid when asked. I hadn't counted what was scanned or checked my receipt. Who does! It seemed that the original sales assistant had missed scanning or charging for the item.

So, there we were at the customer services desk, with me trying to return a dress I had never paid for, though i hadn't known that at the time. The sales assistant said they had to keep the dress and there would be no refund or exchange and they would out it back out for sale. I accepted that I should no longer be asking for a refund because it wouldn't be right since I hadn't paid for it in the first place. I did ask him if he could at least put the dress in the Oxfam box by the desk (M&S have a charity clothing collection scheme). Since the shop had already lost the dress through its own incompetence so it didnt seem right that it should profit from me bringing it back. He said he would ask his manager but I knew he wouldn't and it was a fob off.

I left the store feeling a bit off. If I hadn't brought it back then i could have ebayed it or given it to charity shop or waited til i slimmed into it. I lost myself a free dress!!! Ok ok I know that would be wrong and I'm honest as the day.

Has anyone else had this happen to them or have got unexpected free stuff?? Cheer me up!! and share some of your windfall with me

OP posts:
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FlyingFox95 · 06/08/2017 01:23

Aww that is unfortunate but it was right for them to take it back when the issue was flagged to them.

WhatToDoAboutThis2017 · 06/08/2017 01:25

They were right to take it back and you have no right to dictate what they do with their own products.

nocoolnamesleft · 06/08/2017 01:30

You have in your possession the items that you had paid for and still wanted. You have in your possession a refund for items you paid for and no longer wanted. They have in their possession the item you had not paid for, and the items for which they had refunded you.

Sounds fair.

indigox · 06/08/2017 01:30

YABU to suggest they put it in the Oxfam box, why on earth would they?

RedBullBlood · 06/08/2017 01:35

The dress was never yours. Why would you even think they should donate it to charity?

Seeingadistance · 06/08/2017 01:39

Was it that hideous pink one? If so, then the original sales assistant quite rightly couldn't bring themselves to charge you anything for it.

LolaTheDarkdestroyer · 06/08/2017 01:43

It was their mistake! If the dress had fit they would have never got it back so they wouldn't miss it going in the charity box.
On the subject of free stuff..a couple of months ago I got a free garden table and chairs from argos...after sending the item and a couple of chairs were a bit scratched I rang them and said I wanted an exchange,they sent another but a couple of those were the same.

I rang them back and said fuck it just collect the thing I want a refund, they were meant to collect the next day, they didn't show..I got my refund and a free table and chairs fuck em.

splatController · 06/08/2017 01:47

I don't understand your reasoning at all. Managers are usually working towards strict stock control percentages. By putting it back on the floor, they've saved themselves a problem.

findingmyfeet12 · 06/08/2017 01:53

Yes they made a mistake, they didn't con you or even try to.

If you had made a mistake and paid for the same item twice, would you want your money back?

I really don't understand why you think they shouldn't take back the dress and resell it.

10greenapples · 06/08/2017 01:54

Not exactly but i did buy something from argos once and it was broken, I tried to get them to collect it so I could get a refund. However they kept telling me they were going to come and just not show up. (They done it 3 times made me wait in all day and didn't collect it.)so I called them back pretty frustrated and the woman from argos told me to just chuck it and she will refund me. Anyway I wasn't gonna chuck it as I thought I would keep it. After 7 days still no refund so called them back and told them what the woman had said and they said that under no circumstance would they refund without having the item back! Lol so the cheeky woman just tried to stop me from getting a refund.

troodiedoo · 06/08/2017 02:02

They made a mistake and that has now been rectified. All good.

I received a dress with a recent boden order of t shirts. Not on the receipt slip. Legally I'm allowed to keep it as they sent it to me.I didn't ask for it. I'm going to ebay it if I ever get round to it.

LRDtheFeministDragon · 06/08/2017 02:14

Erm ... you seem very sure the sales assistant was at fault, but you didn't check what you were buying or your receipt? How on earth do you know you didn't absent-mindedly shove it in your bag yourself? Unless it had a security tag (and most stuff in M&S doesn't IME), how would you notice?

I think you were quite lucky they didn't assume you were messing them around when you started trying to dictate what they should do with the dress. They could easily have thought you'd stolen it and were trying to get a refund dishonestly.

RedBullBlood · 06/08/2017 02:34

You didn't check the receipt and you ask "who does?". Er, well I imagine most people have a rough idea of what they are spending. Or check the receipt to see if a sale item has actually gone through at the sale price.
Lots of shops will absolutely refuse to refund an article without the receipt, it used to be common for people to nick stuff and try and return it for cash. Please note - I am not accusing you of doing such a thing!

Dumbo412 · 06/08/2017 02:47

Oh come on, you know you didn't pay for it, i don't understand why you assumed you would have any say in how they then dealt with the dress.
It's also a bit off that you were expecting that they would allow you to dictate what they do with recovered stock. In that situation I'd just be bloody pleased I've been believed, and not had the police called on me for trying to return a dress I didn't even buy for a refund.

You must be fairly well off to not even have an idea what your total should come to when shopping in M&S, I always know the roundabout amount I'm spending. So why are you giving this headspace?

gingergenius · 06/08/2017 03:03

You didn't pay for it. Had it been a good fit, you would have benefited from a free dress. As you took it back to the store, they are entitled to do what they wish with it. Because it cost money to make clothes and the sake of that item will make sure (to at least some extent) that the workers who produce their clothing continue to get paid not very much

NipInTheAir · 06/08/2017 03:23

A I the only one thinking you had every opportunity to accept the credit note.

How much should you have paid for it?

LadyB49 · 06/08/2017 03:37

The pink dress. I saw about 20 of them on the 70% off rail yesterday.

KoalaDownUnder · 06/08/2017 03:40

You didn't pay for it, you didn't want it, and now you haven't got it.

I don't see the problem. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Coughingchildren5 · 06/08/2017 03:44

You should have quit while you were ahead and accepted the credit note. Reading between the lines you managed to make such a fuss about the whole thing you have done yourself out of your dress. Are you even sure it wasn't on another receipt??

Enchantedflamingo · 06/08/2017 03:57

But for all they know it was on a different receipt and you were confused Hmm

herecomesthsun · 06/08/2017 03:59

Argos once sent me a random tent! I think I had ordered some cutlery. They were meant to collect it but didn't show up, and then told me I could keep it!
I didn't need a tent so gave it to a theology student who had helped me put a bed together (all very random)

GreenCarnation · 06/08/2017 04:43

I hadn't counted what was scanned or checked my receipt. Who does!

Everybody who is not a millionaire and works on a budget knows exactly what they are spending. The fact that you didn't know means that you have more money than sense. That might sound harsh, but it's true. M&S are right to take the item back and re-sell it if they can.

Why should they give it to a charity shop? You took something out of the shop that you hadn't paid for (albeit innocently). It was discovered and put to rights. Put back on the shelf, so to speak.
Why would you think that they should then give it away to charity, rather than trying to cut their losses?

Woolworths went south.
BHS went South
M&S are not far behind.
Shops must be honest. And customers must be honest also.

HeteronormativeHaybales · 06/08/2017 04:47

Shock Gosh! YABU.

'Entitled' is inflationarily overused, but this fits the definition.

IamNotDarling · 06/08/2017 05:03

This happened to me but they gave me a credit note. I didn't even ask for one but the cashier said it was probably on another receipt. Wasn't an expensive item though.

Mummyoflittledragon · 06/08/2017 05:33

I've got the cream dress with the blue flowers on it. The pink dress looked awful on me. But the cream dress looks good, it's actually different material than the pink one. I'm a bit like a fat version of Margot from the good life though so it's not surpising it suits me. So there are people, who suit these monstrosities. Anyway I digress.

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