£850 shoes fell apart after 2 wears

[Tonightsthenight91]

Hi all, looking for some advice.

bought a pair of heeled shoes for £850 from a well known designer department store back in November. They’ve been worn twice and the inside has completely dislodged, slipped down to the toe area, and essentially grafted to the metallic outer. Further more the sole of the shoe has worn away more than I would expect, and have developed crater-like dents in the bottom.

To add, the part where the lining has slipped down has came away so much as to reveal very obvious Chinese writing, it’s a french fashion house so that’s very confusing. This department store has been sued in the past for selling counterfeit goods.

I have emailed pictures and a complaint to the store but they’ve told me online and in store are two separate entities. I have called the store numerous times and no answer. Problem is I don’t have the receipt, only the date I bought them (to check cctv?) and a bank statement. I’ve still got the box but there’s nothing on it.

any advice? I’m so annoyed 😩

Trading Standards would be my first port of call.

Surely the obvious thing to do is take the shoes back to the shop in person. As they're faulty you have the usual rights under the sale of goods act, never mind whether or not you've got the receipt. [I'd take the evidence of purchase with you just in case of resistance.] The shoes are clearly not fit for purpose and at the very least you should be offered a replacement or repair of the shoes - which incidentally don't sound genuine.

Did you buy them in store or online?

Assuming in store then take then back to the store & complain as your first step.

I think you need to start making a fuss and naming and shaming. Twitter posts @ing the store and the brand with photographs and all the details, including the dates and screenshots of your bank statement and the unhelpful responses from the store. Retweet and tag in anyone you think has a large following that would be influential eg fashion type people (I don't know such people...I'm assuming you can't actually @ magazines such as Vogue). Eventually protest tweets do tend to get some kind of response.

Sorry should have said, the store is quite a way from me so I’ve tried calling first to discuss to save me getting all the way there and they refuse.

They have form for not being great with returns (you can only exchange after purchase and within 14 days, no refunds etc)

I bought in store. Just want to know my rights before I dig my heels in about it. Pun partially intended.

Martin Lewis' SADFART rules are your go to guide here.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/consumer-rights-refunds-exchange/

Your rights are under the Consumer Rights Act, not the Sale of Goods Act.

As you have had the shoes more than six months, the shop can argue that the problems are due to normal wear and tear or misuse. If they do, it will be up to you to prove that they were faulty when you bought them by getting an expert report to support your position.

You are entitled to a repair or replacement. The shop can decide which to offer. If the repair or replacement fails, you are entitled to reject the shoes and receive a refund. However, it may not be a full refund. The shop is entitled to make a reduction to reflect the use you have had of the shoes.

if you bought them on credit card you may have a case, I think any purchase over 100 is guaranteed for 6 years although it can be a bit hit or miss. maybe contact your credit card company if they refuse to budge their end (if you bought on credit)

If you purchased by credit card ring them up and ask them to recover the money/put it in dispute.

Are they Chanel espadrilles by any chance?

They’re not espadrilles no they’re balmain heeled sandals - never again!

thanks all, unfortunately didn’t buy on credit card but looks like I’ll have to go there and refuse to leave 😩

How much?

How long have you actually had them ..
I work in retail and they should have lasted a 'reasonable ' length of time for their purpose.

The problem is when people have them a long time but say they only wore them twice and it looks unlikely ..

I'm not saying you are lying but it's easier to return something that broke after 2 days than 2 years

They can do a receipt trail if you know exactly the time and date you bought them so don't let them blag you off .

For what it's worth I don't think designer stuff is any better made than high street especially high end designer . It's more costume .

Not that it's right but it's how it is

Are they Louboutins? If so I recognise the craters on the bottom. This is normal for Louboutins, they are actually advertised as 'carpet shoes' and shouldn't be worn outside. The red bottoms do wear away if you wear them outside once. You can get them repainted with a coating in them to help with this.

The insole though, that's not very good at all.

As far as I remember, if goods are faulty you don’t need a receipt - providing you can prove that you bought them in that particular shop, so a bank statement and time of purchase would be sufficient.

I once had to return a skirt that fell to bits without the receipt. The shop resisted but I was able to give them the exact time of purchase and insisted that they look through their transactions to find the record of it. They weren’t happy but I had the law on my side and they found it and refunded me.

Just seen they're balmain sanded. Ignore me!

Does the store begin with an F?

All of this. You need to be reasonable in your expectations, 9 months on and with no proof of purchase, otherwise you make it easy for the store to bat you away.

Email the brand's head office . Should be able to find on line

Contractually your claim is against the department store rather than the brand (the department store then claims against the brand) although in practice some brands will handle complaints directly.

You need to email/write to the department store with photos and reference the Consumer Rights Act. If you bought them less than 6 months ago, your case is stronger as the burden of proof is on them to prove the shoes weren't faulty (if after 6 months it's on you to prove they were).

If they don't resolve it you can bring a small claim on the courts (you can do this via Money Claims Online). They probably wouldn't defend it (unless they had a great case which based on what you've said they don't).

I'm a lawyer and deal with this kind of claim a lot.

I assumed it was flannels, which is owned by Mike Ashley. He also has sports direct and their returns are a pain too.

I thought Flannels too – their reputation for customer service is so bad, I won't buy from them.

Buying with a credit card gives you extra protection in that the credit card provider is jointly liable with the seller. However, it doesn't give you a 6-year guarantee. For any purchase, regardless of how you bought it or how much it is worth, you have 6 years to make a claim in the small claims court. That is not the same as a guarantee, however. You can only make a claim if you can show that the goods were faulty when purchased.

I bought a pair of similar priced shoes from Flannels and the strap snapped after wearing only twice. I did buy online via PayPal but they sent a courier to collect and inspect and I did get a refund.

I’m betting the soles are leather - I had a pair of kitten heeled sandals that I wore once to a wedding, the soles were in a terrible state afterwards, they were leather soled not designed to withstand cobbles apparently!