TJ Hughes illegal terms and conditions of sale

[Chutzpah]

Through facebook I heard that a friend had a faulty DVD player. She was bemoaning the fact that it was 'just outside' of its one year warranty.

After a few messages, I informed her that I believed that due to the amount she paid for it she should definitely go back to the store and quote the Sales of Goods Act and EU law to get it sorted.

Whilst trying to find her a phone number for head office in case she had issues whilst in store I read their help guide for buying from their site and couldn't believe the unfair terms they listed (Help Page) that contravene the Distance Selling Regulations. For example:

Charging a restocking fee
Deducting original delivery charges from your refund

The only thing they seem to get right is that the 7 day period begins once you have received your goods!

Further digging in their T&Cs:

In order for TJ Hughes to continue to offer great products at great prices, we will only cover the delivery cost to return an item if it is deemed to be faulty or unfit for the intended purpose. If the cost of returning your faulty item is in excess of £7.50 please contact us and we will arrange a free collection as we cannot offer a postage refund above this amount.

Am I reading this right? If your product is faulty and delivery costs more than £7.50 they won't refund this to you?

For our Customers safety we do not accept returned cosmetics, fragrance, mattresses, mattress toppers, duvets, pillows, earrings, piercing jewellery or swimwear/underwear unless faulty, not as described or unfit for intended purpose.

In the case of pillows, duvets etc. and these are unopened surely the Distance Selling Regulations would still apply?

The above terms and conditions are not intended to replace or compromise your statutory rights.

Hm... are you sure?

Because I'm a saddo, and this annoys me, I have sent them an email asking them to clarify. I have also stated that I will not buy from them until they reply to my satisfaction, and I recommend that no one on here does - it probably won't be worth the hassle if something does go wrong.

[Georginazn]

It is good to know you are taking the time and trouble to follow up on what you have found unacceptable or unclear. We have been too aquiescent for too long as a nation and as a result we have some of the highest prices and poorest service in Europe. Well Done Chutzpah - you are living up to your handle!

[Chutzpah]

Well, on rereading that this morning after some sleep I notice that their 'over £7.50' delivery stipulation isn't as bad as I thought - what they mean is that if it costs over £7.50 to RETURN a faulty product to them they will arrange collection.

But, just to balance things out with a bit more nitpicking:

"For our Customers safety"

should be:

"For our Customers' safety"

And thanks for not calling me a saddo Georginazn, I just got so annoyed when I read this! So many people will just assume they're correct (or find out they're not but put up with it anyway)

[Tony]

Your comments' about the Distance Selling Regulations' still applies' though. You could also write to your local Trading Standard Office, who might try to re-educate them.

Tony

[Chutzpah]

Well, they haven't even acknowledged my email, so I feel a gently prod coming on...

[Chutzpah]

Funnily enough, my late night prod about passing this on to trading standards saw a reply drop into my inbox before 9am this morning...

Supposedly it was forwarded to their online trading department on Monday, and they're now going to forward it on to their investigations department. We'll see what happens...

[Chutzpah]

The reply:

Thank You for bringing this matter to our attention.

We are sorry to hear that you are dissatisfied with our Terms and Conditions listed on our website. Please be advised that all terms have been confirmed and signed off by our company solicitor prior to publish, however due to the nature of your complaint, this matter has now been escalated for legal reassessment.

Our solicitor will look the legal aspects of Distance Selling Regulations before making any necessary changes to our Terms and Conditions. Once this matter has been resolved, we will be in touch with you again to advise accordingly.

[Chutzpah]

I went past a TJ Hughes store with my mum yesterday and it jigged my memory about this. I was about to send a nagging email but then thought that I should first check the site.

And lo and behold....

Returns policy
Once you have received your goods, you have 28 days in which to cancel your order and return the goods for a full refund of the purchase price. We will refund your original delivery charges only where an item is deemed to be faulty/damged, but not where an item is simply unwanted.

Goods must be in perfect condition and unused. The cost of returning the goods is the responsibility of the customer however if you would like us to arrange a collection, we can do so and deduct the cost from your refund. The standard charge for this service is currently £10.00 however this amount may increase if you are returning a particularly large/heavy item.

Further details and accurate price listings for this service are available upon request. Please contact us on the above details if you require any further information.

Click back on browser to return to your product.

The help page I linked to above has completely disappeared (hm... wonder if it's because it was being linked to from here.....) and now they've got rid of the restocking fee.

[Tony]

That's a great result, thanks for the update. However, it is not great that they couldn't be bothered to reply.

Tony