Faulty goods but store requiring purchase proof!

Madame Razz

Hoping somebody can shed some light on this.

I bought a pair of shoes last winter that are more suitable for extreme weather conditions. They've not been worn since the winter really. In fact in total they've been worn less than ten times and have been in a cupboard since. I was rearranging my wardrobe at the weekend and noticed that they have discoloured very badly and now look terrible.

I was in the shop where I bought them yesterday and happened to ask if they could do anything. First of all they told me I needed to contact the company directly. I am aware that this is not correct practice so I stated this and that the issue should be addressed by the shop themselves. They then asked me if I had proof of purchase. Being almost 8months ago since I bought them I stated that this was unlikely but that I could look and see(i'm not sure whether I paid cash or card). They then said even the box would do as their code would be on the box(but I don't think I have the box still:()

I then asked if there was anything that they could do without proof of purchase as quite obviously there was a problem with the boots, and they said no, as other places sell the same product and that they have no way of knowing that I purchased them there, and that they get people trying to 'scam' them all the time with stuff like this, so without proof of purchase they wouldn't do anything.

Can they actually do this given that the item is faulty?? I may well have proof of purchase but if I don't what can I do??

lods

Madame Razz wrote: »

Hoping somebody can shed some light on this.

I bought a pair of shoes last winter that are more suitable for extreme weather conditions. They've not been worn since the winter really. In fact in total they've been worn less than ten times and have been in a cupboard since. I was rearranging my wardrobe at the weekend and noticed that they have discoloured very badly and now look terrible.

I was in the shop where I bought them yesterday and happened to ask if they could do anything. First of all they told me I needed to contact the company directly. I am aware that this is not correct practice so I stated this and that the issue should be addressed by the shop themselves. They then asked me if I had proof of purchase. Being almost 8months ago since I bought them I stated that this was unlikely but that I could look and see(i'm not sure whether I paid cash or card). They then said even the box would do as their code would be on the box(but I don't think I have the box still:()

I then asked if there was anything that they could do without proof of purchase as quite obviously there was a problem with the boots, and they said no, as other places sell the same product and that they have no way of knowing that I purchased them there, and that they get people trying to 'scam' them all the time with stuff like this, so without proof of purchase they wouldn't do anything.

Can they actually do this given that the item is faulty?? I may well have proof of purchase but if I don't what can I do??

Yes They can. its 8 months later & you have no proof when or where you bought them. Even if you had proof , after 8 months i don't think they would be obliged to do anything. Having said that, for good customer care they can do whatever they want .

borderlinemeath

Of course they can insist on proof of purchase.

You say they're 8 months old - but can you prove it? And can you prove they they were purchased there?

Receipts are issued to the customer for a reason - if something goes wrong then you have back up.

It's the consumers responsibility to keep their receipt - not up to the seller to extend goodwill based on your version of events.

Madame Razz

lods wrote: »

Yes They can. its 8 months later & you have no proof when or where you bought them. Even if you had proof , after 8 months i don't think they would be obliged to do anything. Having said that, for good customer care they can do whatever they want .

I'm aware that it's 8 months later. I know goon back to a shop after 8 months is a bit much. However these are not the type of boots that you wear in anything other than extreme weather conditions tho, and they have been in storage since early this year, hence I only noticed the fault now. Obviously if I paid electronically for them I will have proof of purchase that way, I'm just not sure whether I did or not. In fairness they're a pretty premium brand product aswell; which is why I'm even more annoyed this has happened to them.

P. Breathnach

OP's feeling annoyed is understandable. The retailer wanting proof of purchase is understandable. Without proof of purchase, OP doesn't seem to have a leg to stand on (and therefore, no need for shoes!).

Usually people here emphasise that the right line for pursuing a complaint is with the immediate seller. This might be a situation where it is most effective to depart from that line, and take things up with the manufacturer, especially if it is a premium brand.

lods

P. Breathnach wrote: »

OP's feeling annoyed is understandable. The retailer wanting proof of purchase is understandable. Without proof of purchase, OP doesn't seem to have a leg to stand on (and therefore, no need for shoes!).

Usually people here emphasise that the right line for pursuing a complaint is with the immediate seller. This might be a situation where it is most effective to depart from that line, and take things up with the manufacturer, especially if it is a premium brand.

Only hope is the manufacturer . With or without a receipt.

P. Breathnach

lods wrote: »

Only hope is the manufacturer . With or without a receipt.

Nonono! With proof of purchase, the best way to go is to tackle the retailer. The retailer might have an issue with the manufacturer, but that is not the customer's concern.

Madame Razz

Thanks for your replies guys, much appreciated. The shoes are only 8 month old, they were a new style launched at that time. The store in question was the only store in the city selling this style also, so they genuinely were bought there and are only 8months old. They are also quite clearly barely worn, apart from the discolouration they are like new. It is a genuine fault and I'm not chancing my arm at all. I might drop an email to the manufacturer and see what happens. In the meantime I'll have a look for my receipt, tho I'm doubtful that I still have it as the house has been renovated since and there was a mass clear out when that happened:)

dudara

Your contract is with the seller, but you need the proof of purchase. Otherwise, there is no way of proving that you purchased the goods at that retailer. Have a look through your bank statements or credit card statements to see if you can dig up anything.

Failing all that, I would try contacting the manufacturer as a last resort. Who knows, they may help.

lods

P. Breathnach wrote: »

Nonono! With proof of purchase, the best way to go is to tackle the retailer. The retailer might have an issue with the manufacturer, but that is not the customer's concern.

I would agree if it was a reasonable time . After 8 months , no matter what condition their in , no shop will entertain you.

Shelflife

Hi OP , even if they were the only shop in the city selling them , you could easily have bought them else where, (in the eyes of the shop).
even if you could show where you spent money in the shop on a credit card statement that still may not be sufficient proof that you bought those shoes with that purchase.

your best bet is with the manufacturers.

Too many people pulling scams or chaning their arms in shops nowadays, demanding their nonexistant rights when clearly in the wrong, it ruins any chance of shops showing goodwill towards genuine customers.

P. Breathnach

lods wrote: »

I would agree if it was a reasonable time . After 8 months , no matter what condition their in , no shop will entertain you.

The legal relationships are very clear. If a shopkeeper refuses to deal with a reasonable complaint, the shopkeeper is wrong. There are many circumstances where a problem that becomes evident after eight months can give rise to a reasonable complaint.

astrofool

Did you follow the care instructions you got with them? e.g. leather may need a protection coat (usually sold as an extra), and could discolour if not applied.

lods

P. Breathnach wrote: »

The legal relationships are very clear. If a shopkeeper refuses to deal with a reasonable complaint, the shopkeeper is wrong. There are many circumstances where a problem that becomes evident after eight months can give rise to a reasonable complaint.

I bought a pair of shoes last winter that are more suitable for extreme weather conditions. They've not been worn since the winter really. In fact in total they've been worn less than ten times and have been in a cupboard since. I was rearranging my wardrobe at the weekend and noticed that they have discoloured very badly and now look terrible.

So she bought a pair of shoes she doesn't want. Possibly stored them somewhere damp or they were wet when she put them away and noW wants to return them after 8 months

borderlinemeath

P. Breathnach wrote: »

The legal relationships are very clear. If a shopkeeper refuses to deal with a reasonable complaint, the shopkeeper is wrong. There are many circumstances where a problem that becomes evident after eight months can give rise to a reasonable complaint.

But the obligation is on the consumer to prove purchase.
Also it may be hard to prove discolouration is a manufacturing fault after a long period of time - consumer connect advocates that the consumer should act quickly in the cases of a fault as if a reasonable amount of time goes by it suggests that the consumer has accepted the product as it is.

P. Breathnach

borderlinemeath wrote: »

But the obligation is on the consumer to prove purchase.

Of course. Nobody in this discussion has suggested otherwise.

Also it may be hard to prove discolouration is a manufacturing fault after a long period of time - consumer connect advocates that the consumer should act quickly in the cases of a fault as if a reasonable amount of time goes by it suggests that the consumer has accepted the product as it is.

Yes, the passage of time can make some complaints more difficult to establish. Some faults, however, might not be manifest until time has passed. Very often the essence of a fault is that the product is not reasonably durable.

But it still does not change the legal relationships: if there is a valid complaint, then it is the responsibility of the seller to deal with it -- not the manufacturer; not the distributor; not anybody else. That is the point I am trying to emphasise.

lods wrote: »

So she bought a pair of shoes she doesn't want. Possibly stored them somewhere damp or they were wet when she put them away and noW wants to return them after 8 months

It really does not help us discuss things in a calm and constructive way if, without any basis, you suggest that the original poster is behaving dishonestly.

Madame Razz

lods wrote: »

So she bought a pair of shoes she doesn't want. Possibly stored them somewhere damp or they were wet when she put them away and noW wants to return them after 8 months

The footwear in question is only suitable to b worn in temperatures below freezing; they are just too warm otherwise. Since January the weather has not been cold enough to wear this footwear. They were not put into storage either damp, wet, or dirty, and the appropriate care products were used as advised with them. I don't actually want to return them, I like these shoes, I took them out of storage in preparation for winter, with the intention of wearing them again. I don't like the fact that, having cost a considerable amount, they are now virtually unwearable as a result of the discolouration that has taken place, which should not happen in the normal course of events. I bought this footwear to last for a long time, to wear during the cold spells each winter, but with them as they are it won't be possible to do that. I understand that 8months has passed, I understand that people pull fast ones in shops as regards exchanges etc, but this is actually a genuine fault which I'm trying to fond some sort of resolution to, that will result in me having snowboots that can actually be worn as opposed to dumped in the bin as neither shop nor manufacturer would do anything about it.

I'm going to contact the manufacturer tomorrow. Hopefully because of the brand that it is they will be able to do something for me. Thanks again for the advice:)

Jev/N

Madame Razz wrote: »

I don't like the fact that, having cost a considerable amount, they are now virtually unwearable as a result of the discolouration that has taken place, which should not happen in the normal course of events.

Unwearable due to discolouration?

davo10

OP, you bought shoes that are suitable for extreme whether conditions (last winter was pretty bad) and stored them for 8 months, of course they discoloured. I have a pair of black shoes which i bought for a wedding last year, i haven't worn them since but they do not look like they did the day I bought them because they have been lying in a dusty wardrobe for a year. I do a lot of hiking and I buy kit for their durability not for their aesthetics, hard wearing shoes/clothes/tents etc often don't look good to the eye but they will stand up to extreme whether conditions and that is what they are supposed to do.

Yawns

Without a reciept your best course of action is with the manufacturer. They may be aware of the fault and will prob issue a new pair to you when you send them the old pair or w/e. Seeign as you are settling for a replacement pair and are not looking for money they should be able to help you.

But what if they no longer produce those shoes? Have you tried to google the problem you are having. Just search the brand and the problem and see what comes up.

Yawns

Also how did you store the shoes? Did you have them in a bag of any kind? A clear bag even?

davo10

Am I missing something here? if you buy a pair of football boots, wear them for 10 matches and store them for 8 months, do you think you can bring them back to a sports (specialist shop) and say the have discoloured?, No.

lods

davo10 wrote: »

Am I missing something here? if you buy a pair of football boots, wear them for 10 matches and store them for 8 months, do you think you can bring them back to a sports (specialist shop) and say the have discoloured?, No.

Only if they self distruct after being stored perfectly and worn carefully only 10 times during the worst winter for decades. :rolleyes:

Madame Razz

Jev/N wrote: »

Unwearable due to discolouration?

Really, they look terrible; and I've tried cleaning them with the proper cleaner I have for them, and they still look terrible. Discolouration is probably the wrong word for it, certainly they have discoloured but the material just looks really strange now aswell.

davo10 wrote: »

OP, you bought shoes that are suitable for extreme whether conditions (last winter was pretty bad) and stored them for 8 months, of course they discoloured. I have a pair of black shoes which i bought for a wedding last year, i haven't worn them since but they do not look like they did the day I bought them because they have been lying in a dusty wardrobe for a year. I do a lot of hiking and I buy kit for their durability not for their aesthetics, hard wearing shoes/clothes/tents etc often don't look good to the eye but they will stand up to extreme whether conditions and that is what they are supposed to do.

I have non aesthetic hiking boots also, and I'll agree that they do their job. But these boots are different, yes they are designed for extreme weather conditions but in a more fashionable stylish way. They are designed to be worn with regular clothes and to look well, but they just look bizarre now.

Yawns wrote: »

Also how did you store the shoes? Did you have them in a bag of any kind? A clear bag even?

Because they are fur lined I stored them in a bag designed for storing fur items; which I was told would be perfect to keep them in.

I've emailed the manufacturer so fingers crossed the response back will be positive. This is a genuine issue, I've even showed them to friends of mine and they have been shocked at how the shoes look, and it really can't be put down to anything other than an issue with the actual product itself.

Yawns

Well if all else fails, just start a new trend this winter

After all if women go about daily lives such as shopping in their pjs & lads walk about with tracksuits tucked in to socks along with hands on balls, it can't be too hard to start a trend that at least a few idiots will follow

Best of luck with the manufacturer.

91011

The bad news is the discolourisation is probably caused by salt - a gigantic amount of salt was placed on roads & footpaths last winter and this could very well have caused the problem.

If so then the manufacturer / retailer wouldn't be able to do anything for you.

lods

91011 wrote: »

The bad news is the discolourisation is probably caused by salt - a gigantic amount of salt was placed on roads & footpaths last winter and this could very well have caused the problem.

If so then the manufacturer / retailer wouldn't be able to do anything for you.

Sounds like it alright, forgot about the salt.

magentas

Shelflife wrote: »

Hi OP , even if they were the only shop in the city selling them , you could easily have bought them else where

don't mean to sound negative but not only is your receipt to prove that you purchased the shoes at that particular store it also includes date etc. very few places will accept any returns after 28days and proof of how much you paid ie. were they on sale or did you pay full price and even if they did come from that store receipt prooves that you actually PAID for them.

Not incinuating anything about OP you sound genuine but there's all types of scams going and they could have been swiped!

But given the circumstances here that's irrelevant as it's so long ago

From suppliers I have dealt with in retail any goods returned by a shop to manufacturer must be with-in a certain time-frame or they won't entertain you...hence shops 28day return policies.
Did you get in touch with manufacturers after?

Domscard

magentas wrote: »

But given the circumstances here that's irrelevant as it's so long ago

From suppliers I have dealt with in retail any goods returned by a shop to manufacturer must be with-in a certain time-frame or they won't entertain you...hence shops 28day return policies.

Not the case - please see the Sale of Goods Act and the responsibilities that retailers have for the products they sell. This has already been quoted in the relevant posts made in this and other similar threads. It's very important that the information given in reply to problems posted here is informed and based on fact.

MrsA

lods wrote: »

Sounds like it alright, forgot about the salt.

I was going to say this, are they Ugg boots or sheepskin of any kind? Salt is terrible for them. That in itself would not be a manufacturing issue, but, it sucks because when you pay good money you expect to get a few years from boots.

kbell

Who are the manufacturer?
Could you post a pic of the discolouration?