Returning faulty personalised goods

[2ofstedsin24weeksistakingthep]

Just over 3 weeks ago we bought DS a replica football kit and had his name put on the back. It has just been washed for the 2nd time and the stitching has gone on the side seam leaving the inch wide piping flapping open. It is clearly the inside stitching that has unravelled, with the top stitching still in perfect loops, so it hasn’t been caught and ripped the stitching.

DH phoned the club shop and we were told to return the shirt for an exchange and to ask for this particular staff member as we don’t have a receipt, (have the transaction clearly shown on our banking app and it was the release day of this particular kit so couldn’t be older than what we were claiming). We were told to go yesterday or today as he would be working all day.

DH has just been to the club store where staff refused to get the named staff member and told him the ladies on the til would sort it. They looked at the shirt said it wasn’t too bad but would exchange it anyway. They then saw it was personalised and said it voided all exchanges as they couldn’t resell the (faulty ) shirt. This was backed up by the manager.

Surely this goes against the consumer act, as the shirt was not fit for purpose having only been worn and washed twice? Their merchandise policy just states that refunds can’t be made on personalised items, which is fair enough, but we just want a shirt that isn’t falling apart.

Any advice would be welcome before I take to Twitter!

The shirt is faulty. You are therefore entitled to reject it and receive a full refund or get them to repair or replace it. The fact the shirt is personalised is irrelevant. If you go for the repair or replace option and they choose to replace, they must personalise the replacement. They can refuse to exchange a shirt if it is the wrong size or you have changed your mind. They cannot refuse if the shirt is faulty. Their policy cannot override the law.

If you want to go down the legal route, the next step is to write to them stating that the shirt is faulty, pointing out that, under the Consumer Rights Act, it is an implied term of contract that the goods are as described, of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose. State that they are in breach of contract and you are therefore entitled to have the shirt replaced. Give them a reasonable period (14 days, say) to confirm that they will do so.

If they stick to their position, the next step is to send them a letter giving them a deadline to comply and stating that you will take legal action if they do not do so. You can then take them to the small claims court.

Thank you. I thought this was the case but DH was happy to just accept it. I think I will send them an email. When DH told me what had happened I was livid and told him I would go to small claims on principle. We could have bought a cheap copy kit from China and saved ourselves over £100 but chose to do the right thing instead. Wish they would do this. I wonder if a Daily Fail sad face article would help? 😂

This happened to a shirt DH had. It was personalised with a player name but after one wash it became faulty with the sponsor logo peeling up quite significantly.
The club shop were apologetic and replaced it immediately with another shirt and put the badges and name back on.

You're being fobbed off.