Dabs Problems

StripedBoxers

Hi all,

I am having serious issues with Dabs and a faulty laptop.

Early last year I bought a laptop from them and all was well until just before Christmas when the laptop become faulty and the Dabs said that the company who makes the laptops look after it and gave me codes etc for them.

So I contacted the that company and they repaired my laptop twice and it is still faulty. The keyboard and mother board have been replaced twice and the laptop is still showing the faults it had previously.

The company who made the laptop have said that they have authorised a full refund for me and to contact Dabs and give them my returns code which means they will get a refund/credit from the company and that Dabs also need to refund my money to me. A full refund, however, they are not offering a full refund, only a partial refund, but won't say how much that partial refund is. They keep saying I will get a partial refund, but won't give any information on how much that is.

From the moment that the company authorised a full refund for me, Dabs have said no. And each time anything was mention about warranty etc Dabs have said "it doesn't matter that it became faulty within warranty, its out of warranty now, that's what counts". They are refusing to accept that the faults occurred within the warranty an that two attempted repairs have failed and that the laptop is still faulty.

They have refused to accept any responsibility and have said that it is up to the manufacturer to refund me, which isn't true. I then quoted the Sales of Good and Supply of Services act 1980 to Dabs and had to contact the other company about this issue with Dabs (as Dabs were saying they were responsible) and they (Dabs) are not budging.

They are supposed to be collecting my laptop this Friday for return but I am not happy or willing to return it until they either 1) offer a full refund or 2) tell me how much a partial refund is. They could offer me 20% or €250 - I don't know which, they haven't even said if it'll be a percentage refund or what.

I have emailed them to ask, no response as of yet. If I don't hear from them by Thursday morning, I am asking them to cancel the collection.

Has anyone any advice on how to deal with them and get a full refund from them?

They will get credit/refund either way from the manufacturer, so they will have that, my money, a laptop (that they could possibly refurbish and sell on) - so they most definitely won't be out of pocket.

They are like another version of Pixmania, a complete nightmare.

Sam Mac

Dabs are atrocious for customer care.

Get onto a manager next time you ring them.

I had to return a monitor to them before and their reps were impossible to deal with. Rude and just plain unhelpful.

Dabs are under obligation to repair the laptop. Deal with Dabs and not the manufacturer. As long as you did not damage the product yourself, you can expect a repair. Just because its outside of the 1 year warranty doesn't mean they can tell you to shove it. Stand your ground.

StripedBoxers

Sam Mac wrote: »

Dabs are atrocious for customer care.

Get onto a manager next time you ring them.

I had to return a monitor to them before and their reps were impossible to deal with. Rude and just plain unhelpful.

Dabs are under obligation to repair the laptop. Deal with Dabs and not the manufacturer. As long as you did not damage the product yourself, you can expect a repair. Just because its outside of the 1 year warranty doesn't mean they can tell you to shove it. Stand your ground.

I wish I had known about their customer care before I bought from them. I would have paid extra money and bought elsewhere for good customer service.

See, Dabs wouldn't repair the laptop and advised me that the manufacturer deals with repairs so that's why I contacted them and they repaired it twice but as I said, its still faulty. I emailed them last night and told them to cancel the collection as I was seeking further advice on the matter.

Dabs got back to me this morning and have said the partial refund amount is €318.30 and then in another email (in response to my email to cancel the collection) said "Please note that as the item is out of warranty, you are not entitled to a full refund and under the Sales of Goods Act, we can only issue you with a partial refund for the goods." Maybe my brain just isn't working this morning, but I cannot see anywhere under the sales of good act anything about a partial refund - can anyone point it out to me?

My boyfriend said to push for a full refund as it happened within warranty and is not resolved and if they refuse the refund then take them to the smalls claim court - I'd rather avoid that avenue, but if it means a full refund I'll go with it.

Sam Mac

StripedBoxers wrote: »

I wish I had known about their customer care before I bought from them. I would have paid extra money and bought elsewhere for good customer service.

See, Dabs wouldn't repair the laptop and advised me that the manufacturer deals with repairs so that's why I contacted them and they repaired it twice but as I said, its still faulty. I emailed them last night and told them to cancel the collection as I was seeking further advice on the matter.

Dabs got back to me this morning and have said the partial refund amount is €318.30 and then in another email (in response to my email to cancel the collection) said "Please note that as the item is out of warranty, you are not entitled to a full refund and under the Sales of Goods Act, we can only issue you with a partial refund for the goods." Maybe my brain just isn't working this morning, but I cannot see anywhere under the sales of good act anything about a partial refund - can anyone point it out to me?

My boyfriend said to push for a full refund as it happened within warranty and is not resolved and if they refuse the refund then take them to the smalls claim court - I'd rather avoid that avenue, but if it means a full refund I'll go with it.

Twice repaired and the same fault still occurs - you are fully entitled to either a brand new laptop or a full refund, no less.

StripedBoxers

Thank you. Looks like the smalls claims avenue for me.

dudara

Before you go the SCC route, make sure that you have observed good procedure with Dabs. Write them a registered letter asking them to resolve the issue, as per your Consumer Rights. By making every effort to engage with them, you strengthen your case.

StripedBoxers

dudara wrote: »

Before you go the SCC route, make sure that you have observed good procedure with Dabs. Write them a registered letter asking them to resolve the issue, as per your Consumer Rights. By making every effort to engage with them, you strengthen your case.

Thank you. I had planned on writing up a detailed letter, noting everything so far and giving them a month to refund me, and if by then they haven't refunded me, I will go to the SCC.

Is a month enough do you think?

slimjimmc

I'd give them no more than 10 business days to resolve the issue.

dudara

10 business days is plenty in my book.

StripedBoxers

Thanks everyone. I will send them a registered letter on Tuesday about this.

The customer care rep who emailed me and said I am only entitled to a partial refund under the Sales of Good and Supply of Services Act 1980, is this correct or is she wrong?

I looked at the information on www.citizensinformation.ie and cannot see anything about a partial refund.

If she is correct, can anyone point out that info to me please? As I cannot find it anywhere.

Thanks.

the_syco

StripedBoxers wrote: »

Dabs got back to me this morning and have said the partial refund amount is €318.30

How much was the full cost of the laptop? Just to put their offer into perspective.

=-=

The part I dislike is; the code that the manufacture gave you is for a full refund. I'd consider it immoral of Dabs if they only offer you a small percentage, if they themselves shall receive 100% of the cost of the laptop.

dudara

You have had the laptop for approx a year, so it's not unreasonable to expect some adjustment for the use of the laptop that you've had. But, to assess it fairly, we'd need to know the original value of the laptop.

StripedBoxers

The laptop was €450.

Dabs will receive a FULL credit/refund from the manufacturer for the laptop. The laptop became faulty 10/11 months after purchasing.

The guy I spoke to the manufacturer put it to me like this:

Dabs get full refund/credit from manufacturer, Dabs give me partial refund and Dabs get a laptop back that they can refurbish and sell on.

So they will not be out of pocket at all for it.

I should also add that some of the problems I have been experiencing with this laptop seem to be common issues with the particular make/model of laptop too.

slimjimmc

Ask the manufacturer if you can cut Dabs out of the loop and return the laptop directly to them and they send you a refund cheque.

StripedBoxers

slimjimmc wrote: »

Ask the manufacturer if you can cut Dabs out of the loop and return the laptop directly to them and they send you a refund cheque.

I did and they refused as it was Dabs I paid for it, so it is Dabs who have my money, not the manufacturer therefore they won't refund me.

No Pants

StripedBoxers wrote: »

The guy I spoke to the manufacturer put it to me like this:

Dabs get full refund/credit from manufacturer, Dabs give me partial refund and Dabs get a laptop back that they can refurbish and sell on.

That doesn't sound right at all. If Dabs receive a full refund from the manufacturer, the manufacturer will be wanting the laptop back.

StripedBoxers

No Pants wrote: »

That doesn't sound right at all. If Dabs receive a full refund from the manufacturer, the manufacturer will be wanting the laptop back.

That's what the manufacturer told me so I don't know to be honest, its just one big mess and no one seems to want to resolve it.

No Pants

StripedBoxers wrote: »

That's what the manufacturer told me so I don't know to be honest, its just one big mess and no one seems to want to resolve it.

Resolve it with the people that you gave your money to in the first place. No one else.