Exchanging christmas gifts

Funkygreendogs

Hey all,

Just wondering wat your thoughts/experiences are on exchanging unwanted christmas gifts?

I recently got a cordless lazer mouse for christmas, but i have always found these mouses to be sub-par compared to traditional good ol' ball mouse (anyone else have that whole cursor-flying-around-screen problem?). So in my opinion everyone of these mouses ever manufactured is faulty. Anyways tried to bring this back to the shop and of course had no receipt (box was immaculate and unopened with barcodes ..etc) They gave me the whole receipt spiel and sent me on my way.

Then a family member who is not one to let stuff like this go off lightly went back with the mouse looking for an exchange (just to make this clear, i did not wish for a cash refund - only for store credit so i can exchange for another mouse or a different item) and they told her they need to know when it was purchased and who by. It was then pointed out that the product in question had a barcode they could easily trace the sale but aparantly this does not work and they actually told her to go away and "flogg it on the internet" (store manager)

Surely there is some policy in this country regarding items purchased during the christmas period? It seems like such a waste the mouse is in perfectly good condition, unopened, was purchased at this store and all i wish is for store credit?! Its not like they are losing money!! And in my honest opinion: YES IT IS faulty!! When is a mouse supposed to flick all around the screen like that!

...........................anyone wanna buy a cordless lazer mouse?

dudara

The mouse is not faulty, nor it is unfit for the purpose intended. You are simply returning it because you do not like it.

Goods need to be returned with proof of purchase.

I would suggest selling it privately.

Funkygreendogs

What exactly constitutes 'faulty' here? I mean surely the cursor randomly flying around the screen would qualify as faulty?

Its a Christmas gift! Im sure this happens all the time and i think there should be some policy in place regarding items that in all honesty no-one wants or will ever use, and will probably sit in the attic until the end of time!

Who is going to ask their Uncle/Aunt for the reciept so they can bring back the 'lovely' gift they bought them? no-one! it seems to me like the perfect plan for big retailers to get richer by being the unhelpful middle man in all this and cashing in on the fact that "yes this does happen" and "no we cant do anything about it"

I know i can sell it privatly but its really the principal of it, i mean we all know it happens and it seems so wasteful that every year we buy each other presents that are never used and cant be returned. They could at least offer an alternative such as a reduced store credit and then bundle them into a big bargan bin or something?? Hey they might even squeeze another few pound out of it into their greedy pockets!

Sam Vimes

barcodes aren't unique. All those mice would have the same barcode so all they'd be able to narrow it down to would be every time that mouse was sold. If it was bought with a credit card, the statement would do as proof of purchase.

of course, there's nothing wrong with it so they have no obligation to do anything

whippet

to the OP, calm down a bit and think of this rationally.

You have no proof of purchase and you want to exchange a product in a store where you personally were not a customer of?

How do you know that the mouse is faulty? Have you opened it? Used it? .. by all accounts no, you are just assuming that you might not like it.

By the way I have been using optical mice for years and never have had a problem like that (I even sold IT equipment for years and never heard that complaint)

Retailers don't force people to buy rubbish for their extended families at christmas, they facilitate the stupidity of impulse christmas shopping. It's not their fault that a relation of yours decided to buy you a perfectly good mouse and now you don't want it.

I come from a large family and year after year we all got a collection of useless presents and last year we decided on a kris kindle between the family which resulted in everyone getting a significant worthwhile gift.

If you don't want the mouse give it to charity, a local school, sell it on ebay (but make sure you write 'Faulty' in the description), give it to a sibling, gumtree.ie, swap it with a work collegue ... just accept the shops opinion and their right not to have to accept the exchange.

Funkygreendogs

Okay, okay im calm. But hypothetically speaking what if i were to open the mouse right now and discover it WAS actually faulty? Would i then be eligible for store credit? or a new mouse?

dudara

You'd still have to produce proof of purchase.

Kensington

Funkygreendogs wrote: »

I recently got a cordless lazer mouse for christmas, but i have always found these mouses to be sub-par compared to traditional good ol' ball mouse (anyone else have that whole cursor-flying-around-screen problem?).

What kind of surface are you running it on? If its black/grey or if the surface has an unusual shine or reflection on it then it's going to upset the laser tracking mechanism of the mouse. Just like if you try using a roller ball mouse without a decent mouse mat you're going to find it very hard not to have the thing meeting the wall at mach 10 within a few minutes

Funkygreendogs wrote: »

Anyways tried to bring this back to the shop and of course had no receipt (box was immaculate and unopened with barcodes ..etc) They gave me the whole receipt spiel and sent me on my way.

...

It was then pointed out that the product in question had a barcode they could easily trace but apparently this does not work...

The barcode serves no purpose other than to tell the shops computer system that there is now one less X in stock, and to quickly bring up details on that product at the till. Contrary to seemingly popular belief, it does NOT tie that particular product to a specific purchase besides the fact many different stores use the same barcode.

Funkygreendogs wrote: »

Surely there is some policy in this country regarding items purchased during the christmas period? It seems like such a waste the mouse is in perfectly good condition, unopened, was purchased at this store and all i wish is for store credit?! Its not like they are losing money!!

Unfortunately, no. The policy applies is the same as the policy that applied throughout the rest of the year. You have absolutely no rights whatsoever if you cannot prove you have purchased the product in that store in question - a receipt, Credit Card or Laser card statement will suffice - but the onus is on you to prove you purchased the product.

In the case of a non-faulty item anyway then you don't really have a legal standing at all - anything the store does for you for non-faulty items is purely discretionary and an act of goodwill.

Funkygreendogs

Thanks Kensington for your helpful post on the matter.

Ive decided to swap/sell this damn thing after all!!
And im sorry but it still......just a teenie tiny bit.......still seems unfair! There is lots of other items i actually need in the store and here i am stuck with this useless mouse that i cant exchange :rolleyes:

Pacifico

With no proof of purchase you really have no comeback, even if it was faulty

rubadub

Funkygreendogs wrote: »

And im sorry but it still......just a teenie tiny bit.......still seems unfair! There is lots of other items i actually need in the store and here i am stuck with this useless mouse that i cant exchange :rolleyes:

Think about it rationally though if you were the store owner and all the scams and loopholes it would open up.

I could get faulty stock from a guy working in a factory in a brand new package. Go in and return it for another item.

Its not like they are losing money!!

They could in that case. even if I brought in a brand new working item I got cheap on ebay, I could exchange it for a product with a lower margin in the shop. So I bring in a €50 mouse, that they pay €20 for, then change it for €50 of cds that they pay €30 for. They lose €10 potential profit AND have to pay the restocking costs and administration fees, accounting details etc.

If shops had to do this I would be snapping up memory cards on ebay and right down to argos with the lot, I could exchange €100 worth of cards for a couple of grands worth in argos!

The mouse will work best on nonreflective surfaces as mentioned, I have mine on paper. I think your experience is with optical mice, laser are good on most surfaces. If it is truely a laser then give it a go, might end up being a good present!

Sam Vimes

whippet wrote: »

By the way I have been using optical mice for years and never have had a problem like that (I even sold IT equipment for years and never heard that complaint)

the problem isn't optical mice, its cordless mice. i had one that was the same. it would lose the connection and keep doing whatever the last instruction was so if i was moving right it would keep moving right. if i was playing a first person game, i would spin around in circles

Funkygreendogs wrote: »

Okay, okay im calm. But hypothetically speaking what if i were to open the mouse right now and discover it WAS actually faulty? Would i then be eligible for store credit? or a new mouse?

absolutely nothing without some sort of proof of purchase

Funkygreendogs wrote: »

Thanks Kensington for your helpful post on the matter.

Ive decided to swap/sell this damn thing after all!!
And im sorry but it still......just a teenie tiny bit.......still seems unfair! There is lots of other items i actually need in the store and here i am stuck with this useless mouse that i cant exchange :rolleyes:

allow me to give you an example. a woman came to me in my old job with some bluetooth headphones. her story went like this:
"i bought these here last month for a friend who was in hospital who has now died. he never used them but i don't have a receipt. can i please return them?"

normally she'd be entitled to nothing but it wasn't very busy and i was feeling nice so i asked her roughly when she bought it and i'd search for a sale of that item around that time. i needed a receipt number to return it against you see.

i started to search and i couldn't find anything so i widened my search. it was taking a while so i said she should go and get a cup of tea and come back. as it turns out, the shop had never sold that product. we had the same ones since the store opened the previous year. then i noticed them hanging on a hook at the front of the shop. of course she never came back

basically, this perfectly respectable looking 40 something year old woman tried to use a sob story to scam me out of the money and if someone else had bought one around that time, it would have worked. that's why shops need proof of purchase

00112984

OP- two things.

Firstly, mice, mice, mice, mice, mice. You do not get two "mouses", furry or otherwise.

Secondly, the shop was 100% in the right for various reasons as already outlined. The failure of a friend of family member of yours to buy you a suitable gift does not constitute a "fault" on the shop's part.

You have no proof that it was purchased in that shop nor do you have a valid reason to return it.

Guy:Incognito

Commander Vimes wrote: »

the problem isn't optical mice, its cordless mice.

I'd go a step further and say it's cheap cordless mice. I've been useing the same MS Wireless intellimouse explorer 2 for the last 2 years or so without a single issue bar when the batteries are just empty and it jumps a bit.

Sam Vimes

Stekelly wrote: »

I'd go a step further and say it's cheap cordless mice. I've been useing the same MS Wireless intellimouse explorer 2 for the last 2 years or so without a single issue bar when the batteries are just empty and it jumps a bit.

i'd have to agree there

Oryx

Re the proof of purchase, Id never refuse to exchange faulty goods without a receipt if I could see our barcode on the item or there was some other way I could track the sale and be sure it came from us. Id usually go to a bit of effort for a customer on a larger item. But I know bigger organisations have to have more hard and fast rules.

Doctor DooM

Commander Vimes wrote: »

allow me to give you an example. a woman came to me in my old job with some bluetooth headphones. her story went like this:
"i bought these here last month for a friend who was in hospital who has now died. he never used them but i don't have a receipt. can i please return them?"

normally she'd be entitled to nothing but it wasn't very busy and i was feeling nice so i asked her roughly when she bought it and i'd search for a sale of that item around that time. i needed a receipt number to return it against you see.

i started to search and i couldn't find anything so i widened my search. it was taking a while so i said she should go and get a cup of tea and come back. as it turns out, the shop had never sold that product. we had the same ones since the store opened the previous year. then i noticed them hanging on a hook at the front of the shop. of course she never came back

basically, this perfectly respectable looking 40 something year old woman tried to use a sob story to scam me out of the money and if someone else had bought one around that time, it would have worked. that's why shops need proof of purchase

She is a very well known shoplifter in the dept stores in Dublin. You had a lucky escape! Apparently she usually smells like she's had a drink or two, to add to the image of misery.

Sam Vimes

KtK wrote: »

Re the proof of purchase, Id never refuse to exchange faulty goods without a receipt if I could see our barcode on the item or there was some other way I could track the sale and be sure it came from us. Id usually go to a bit of effort for a customer on a larger item. But I know bigger organisations have to have more hard and fast rules.

how do you mean bar code? just about every product on the market has a bar code but its a product code. every one of that item in the country would have the same code so it doesn't prove it was bought there. unless you mean a tag system that your shop uses?

Gillo

Kensington wrote: »

Unfortunately, no. The policy applies is the same as the policy that applied throughout the rest of the year. You have absolutely no rights whatsoever if you cannot prove you have purchased the product in that store in question - a receipt, Credit Card or Laser card statement will suffice - but the onus is on you to prove you purchased the product..

A credit or laser card statement won't always work as it'll only show how much money was spent, not what was actually purchased.

Oryx

Commander Vimes wrote: »

how do you mean bar code? just about every product on the market has a bar code but its a product code. every one of that item in the country would have the same code so it doesn't prove it was bought there. unless you mean a tag system that your shop uses?

We print our own barcodes because a lot of our products dont come with them. It shows our name,and only works on our system. Ive noticed other of shops doing similar.