DID Electrical online - A week and not shipped

cantdecide

I'm actually frantic about this...

In basic terms, my boss is a technophobe so I told him I'd organise an iPad for him to give to his 10yr old daughter as her Christmas present. I was promised I would be given a 'friends and family' discount by a close friend who is an Apple employee to sweeten the deal and having checked availability, I was set to be a hero.

My friend properly screwed me around for almost a week, until the iPads went sold out via Apple directly and in desperation I decide to get one through normal retail channels and eat the extra cost to save face. Last Tuesday, I ended up on the DID electrical website and found the closest iPad and bought it there and then before things went any more out of control. The order confirmation said I'd receive an email once it was processed.

I received no email Wednesday through Friday and on Saturday, I called and inquired; I was told the iPads were in stock and one was reserved for me and there was no issue, just to wait. This evening, after two more days with no email confirmation, I spent two hours on the phone trying to call their helpline but no answer.

IPads are sold out almost everywhere and I strongly believe DID must simply not have the stock. Frankly, if I have to go back to my boss and tell him all of the above, I'm going to look like a complete w*nker, especially as I work in supply chain. If DID don't have it, a refund is not going to make up for all of the embarrassment this will cause me at work.

In my opinion, if they've taken my order and money and weren't in a position to fulfill the order, this seems like some sort of fraud. I'd like to know how I can best prevent them from doing this again. In other words, if they fraudulently took an order, how can they be reported for it?

gipi

I had a similar problem with DID last year on a kitchen appliance ordered online. No word of delivery after a week, when I eventually got to speak to someone on the help desk, I was told that they were waiting for more stock (they were still selling it online). I cancelled the order and bought elsewhere. Even cancellation took two calls and a few days wait for a refund.

cantdecide

I have a knot in my stomach reading your reply and finding the exact same thing all over Trustpilot. A week ago, I had no laptop and placed that order on my phone just desperate to get things moving. I don't think this would fly outside of Ireland, having been buying all over the world for years.

DID have form for taking orders online for stock they can't ship. If I end up with egg on my face over this iPad, I'm going to try report them for fraudulently taking orders they can't fulfill.

miezekatze

I ordered something from them recently which went out of stock soon after I ordered (was a great price). Heard nothing for a week so I sent them a message. They said it will be dispatched soon and then it just showed up another few days later. Never got a dispatch email. Hopefully your ipad will arrive soon too, I think they are just not great at communicating updates.

silver2020

Fraudulently took an order - would you ever eff off with that type of crap. It is a really really really stupid comment.

I ordered from Amazon on Black Friday. They still have not dispatched. Should I call the fraud squad now cos it has taken a few days to fulfill an order at the busiest time of year.

Really STUPID post

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287339#Comment_118287339

Calm your posting style down

Darc19

DID are a large and very reputable business. I suspect that they have a lot of orders and trying to get them out.

Don't ring them as the person on the phone probably won't have full details.

Email them.

Put the order number in the subject line, keep the message very short and polite and simply ask if you can have an update as it's quite urgent.

Do not under any circumstances use words such as fraud. They will simply cancel your order and refund you. Or at least that's what I would do.

cantdecide

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287339#Comment_118287339

They have a pattern of advertising stock and taking orders they clearly can't stand over. It's all over Trustpilot and it appears to be their strategy. Did you spend E500 on Amazon and will it be dispatched from a warehouse an hour away?

Del2005

The whole world is in the middle of a massive supply chain crisis along with a massive chip shortage. Shops are taking orders based on old systems that see an order dispatched from the wholesaler and assume it'll be delivered in a few weeks, that's not happening anymore.

Paying extra yourself to keep a snotty nosed 10 year old happy! Go back and tell your boss that your friend let you down and the order you paid extra from you own pocket fell though, sorry nothing else I can do.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287686#Comment_118287686

They’re actually paying extra to keep their (I hope not snotty nosed) boss happy.

i think that’s more cringe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287642#Comment_118287642

I don’t trust trust pilot anyway. Can’t review trustpilot on trustpilot? How am I supposed to trust them?

cantdecide

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287706#Comment_118287706

Luckily, I don't care

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287726#Comment_118287726

I mean you definitely do

But luckily for you so do I. If a trip to Dublin isn’t too much hassle you can nab an iPad 9th gen for €399 in CompuB I’m also more than willing to grab one and post it to you.

ive got kids of my own and would hate to see one of them miss out on a gift they wanted.

Caranica

Yeah, I placed an order online earlier in the year that was cancelled after the delivery date passed. They never had the stock. Took ages for the refund to come through too

cantdecide

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287686#Comment_118287686

Stock control in global supply chains is basically part of my profession. There is no excuse for advertising product as being in stock when it isn't, chip shortage or no chip shortage but especially when there are known supply chain issues. These are simply entries on ERP systems.

New in the job and anxious not to look inept. I'll have to come clean if they let me down but I could have known about the stock issues a week ago when there were more choices.

Strumms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287339#Comment_118287339

If a company cannot provide a product and deliver as promised in an advertised timeline it deserves criticism ... but you are framing criticism of that as ‘stupid’ ?

stupid is advertising a service and commitment to it yet not providing it...that is unsat.. Christmas or not...

28064212

If you need something urgently, you either use:

• a bricks and mortar store
• an online store that has actual guaranteed delivery terms written into the contract of sale, with penalties clearly defined for failing to meet them

Every other option is a hit-and-hope. Not sure why you got involved to be honest OP. At best, you should have provided some advice about what your boss should order.

I realise this post is very much "Captain Hindsight", but there's not a lot you can do now that you've reached this pont. There's no way DID are going to be liable in any way, they are well covered by their T&Cs, and even if they weren't, you're talking about a long court fight to establish any wrong-doing - not going to help you in any way with your current predicament.

As I see it, you have two options: try and source one in a B&M shop and get your refund from DID, or come clean with your boss. Either way, learn from the experience

Jim2007

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118287779#Comment_118287779

The lesson to learn here is never ever get involved in the personal lives of you bosses you always have more to loose than gain.

Gru

in all seriousness or maybe i'm wrong but there are a lot of ipads in stock on apple.ie

https://www.apple.com/ie/ipad/

They've always delivered quick even before Christmas for me.

pleasant Co.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118292408#Comment_118292408

"delivers jan 31 - feb 4"

Gru

ah i saw "in stock" and assumed that meant "in stock shipped immediately or as soon as it can be boxed up"

how about argos?

https://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9506172/Trail/searchtext%3EIPAD.htm

for collection .....

Mon 13th - Wed 15th December

Similar dates for Soundstore so maybe DID will have a shipment around the same?!?

https://www.soundstore.ie/computers/laptops-and-tablets/apple-ipad.html?gclid=Cj0KCQiAzMGNBhCyARIsANpUkzP-NAeWHJ5UrG6xKCKclv9fXebwTZWZ8GDbKNGZHDbS9THhbqOtCY8aAmd2EALw_wcB

gramlab

Wouldn't necessarily panic just yet. Ordered a smart watch from DID a few weeks ago. No updates or dispatch mail but it just turned up about 2 weeks later. Hopefully will be the same for you OP

dreamers75

Ordered Ipad from Apple, took 8 weeks to arrive.

possible shortage of stock.......

Xterminator

i ordered a 2021 ipad from apple direct (in November) hoping to get it for Christmas, delivery expected January 19-25th.

you can be a annoyed as you like here, but DID are in the same boat as everyone else regarding stock. if you have a gripe with them it is not about stock and delivery, rather how they manage your expectations via their web ordering ERP system.

At least when i ordered from apple they straightaway set a delivery date in 2022. that way as a customer i knew what the story was. i also tried amazon - and got a long future dated estimate.

Your personal circumstances eg your boss etc, really are not relevant here. your expectations appear to have been assumptions on your part - i suspect at no time did DID give your a date of delivery and renege.

Your legal entitlement here would be to a refund and nothing more. i suspect they would refund you without issue.

I had a similar issue. Ordered a set of three items, only two arrived. No explanation for the missing item, no answer from the central customer telephone no. I tried ringing my local store, no answer. So, I chanced ringing Tullamore (as I felt maybe country people would be more accommodating), and the nice young fella on the line politely informed me it was an online issue, but went away and sorted it anyway when I told him how I couldn't get through. He also advised that worst case scenario, I could call directly to their warehouse in Clondalkin and collect from there.

Moral of story, ring your local store.

coylemj

There is no iPad showing as available instore or for mail order on DID, Argos or Power City.

OP, tell your boss the bad news, he/she needs to consider Plan B.

In general terms, DID get good reviews on boards. I never had a problem with an appliance I bought there, I ordered a small appliance for store pickup a couple of years back, it was delayed arriving so I looked around and found it slightly cheaper and (more important) in stock in my local Power City. Cancelled the order on the DID website and they promptly refunded me the money.