Birkenstocks starting to come apart after less than two weeks

[heydorotheayoullgo]

I bought a pair of Birkenstocks less than two weeks ago. I have looked today and there are two patches on each shoe where the straps are starting to come away from the footbed on each shoe. It’s not insignificant wear.

AIBU to contact their customer service and ask for a replacement pair?

There’s lots of good dupes out there (not fakes, just other shops doing their own version). I bought a pair for £45 and they’re very good (so far).

Just for everyone saying they’re old and I’m trying to scam Birkenstock - they’re literally in pretty much perfect condition bar the straps pulling away!

How would that work? Is part of the Birkenstock customer service protocol to check mumsnet? That makes no sense

Im guessing the refund without too much trouble, do coem back and update

This happened to my Mum but I will say she is very overweight and gets swollen feet but they refunded her no problem.

Sadly I the quality of birks have declined over the last few years. The first ones I bought lasted for years, but when I finally replaced them, the newer pair wore down really quickly. I love them, but it put me off buying them again as they aren't exactly cheap either. I also had a the dark line from my feet. Hopefully they do the right thing and agree to a refund or replacement pair.

My feet have definitely got a little puffier towards the end of the day but never bad enough to break shoes!

I have had ths new issue with New Balance, bought a pair a few years ago and after 3 wears, they had a hole in them! I had literally worn them to and from the school run, clearly a faulty item but NB refused to refund. Haven't bought anything from them since

They will refund you, don't worry.

Tbh, the soles look old too! Not that I don’t believe you, but Birkenstock may not.

No they don’t 😂😂😂😂😂

I just checked my 6 year old Birkies, and mine look younger than yours! Worn most days throughout the summer for 6 years.

Sure thing!

DH and I bought Merrell walking shoes for a holiday around Asia last year, wore them for another couple of trips then noticed some stitching had come away. As they were gore tex I was concerned they would no longer be waterproof. Emailed the website I bought them from and they refunded immediately and said to keep the shoes! I’m going to buy a new pair for another trip later this year as they were so comfortable and DH hasn’t had any trouble with his, the old ones will be fine for dry days.
YANBU to request a refund or replacements, mine couldn’t be replaced as they were OOS on that website.

Just a tip, crop out the stained part of the footbed on the photos when emailing them, to hopefully avoid them trying to falsely accuse you of swapping old for new. Just saves the headache.

I’ve already emailed them, the footbed gets stained and they can’t really deny a manufacturing fault on a pair of shoes that otherwise looks brand new!

Personally I don’t buy anything branded & expensive online anymore, as lately there’s been soooo many stories of dodgy warehouse workers claiming returns contained fakes and then taking the real returned item themselves. It’s rife. Especially with Next since they began stocking so many branded goods and also with expensive footwear retailers.

No they don't. You have consumers rights act on your side. I had this with a pair of linen trousers I bought end of May. Didn't wear them until end of June. Wore them literally two times and washed rhem as advised and they ended up tearing. Took them back 2 weeks after that and just explained what happened to them in store. They took them and gave me back my money 🤷‍♀️

"Under the UK Consumer Rights Act 2015, if a product develops a fault within the first 6 months, the law assumes the issue was present at the time of purchase. The retailer gets one opportunity to repair or replace it; if that fails, you are generally entitled to a full refund."

However, I am not calling you a liar, they do look very worn in as if you had them for years. Your receipt will obviously show otherwise. You may just be heavy footed ! (Nothing to do with weight. My daughter needs 4 pair of trainers a year for school cause she just ends up ruining them so quickly). So this brand may very well just not suit you 🤷‍♀️

The footbed doesn’t affect quality at all - it’s just sweat. My issue is that the straps are separating from the body.

I genuinely don’t believe they’re 2 weeks old. They’re way too dirty and worn. I work in retail and I would not refund these at all. It’s like you’ve ordered a new pair and these are an old pair you’ve replaced. I’ve 3 pairs and some 3 years old! The ones that are older look like this on the foot bed!

Look at the sole and the straps. They’re still in pristine condition! The fucking footbed is stained because I have sweaty feet.

I don't know why people are being so weird about that. Those kinds of souls get darker patches where your feet actually sit from the first day of wearing them. Doesn't in the least mean they are older than the two weeks you've said.

It’s actually starting to piss me off that people are ignoring the issue at hand because they have to be smart arses. It’s literally the design of Birkenstocks. They’re made to be like this!

Birkenstocks have become the latest trend with the teenagers and twenty somethings. DS and his mates did a bit of research and opted for the M&S version and love them.

They have had a lot of use out of them, they bought them for a trip to Spain, where they were camper-vanning across the Pyrenees with plenty of walking round the little medieval towns along with lakes and beach time. DS is pretty heavy on his shoes, the M&S dupes show very little wear and look much better than his trainers.

He’s a rugby playing student so, along with crocs, they are standard wear all year round. I was surprised when he expressed interest in them but he lives in them currently.

That’s a coincidence as tonight as I was showing my partner a fake pair that a friend had bought me from China. They are coming apart everywhere after less than a year, but my genuine Birkenstocks that I’ve probably had for 5 years are still in great condition (apart from where my sweaty feet have changed the colour of the footbed!)

Personally I prefer Strive sandals. My late DSis ( a podiatrist) recommended them when I was struggling with plantar fasciitis. They are probably the most comfortable slide ons I have owned. Definitely more comfortable than the Birkenstocks I’ve owned in the past.