Returning something back...Questions..
 

Dear Sir,

Under the circumstances we are happy to accept the product back into stock subject to a re-stocking fee of 15%.


Please find attached label to use on your return. Print out and attach to your parcel. Please note the customer must back up all personal data, as ###### accepts no liability for any loss of software, as it may be necessary to re-install an operating system in order to repair.

We recommend that all parcels are sent †œsigned forââ‚Âà ‚¬Ãƒâ€šÃ‚ÂÂ� with enough compensation for lost or damaged packages.

================

Ok scenario is im returning something back because it doesnt work properly maybe because its a voltage issue and my computer isnt compatible with it. Anyway, i wanna know what a restock fee is and whether it comes out from the refund amount.

What does it mean by signed for?.

In the terms it mentioned when returning things return it in its original box with packaging and stuff, do they mean the box for the actual product or the box that the product was put in and sent off in (which is like 6 times as large as the good, and i threw away the weird white things that cushion things dunno what its name is, forgot lol, but i hope they arent too specific).

How do i send it off back to them?

Sorry for the dim questions, first time returning something back. And ive got 6 days to do it...

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

I don't know about 'restock fee', but I'd guess that the 'signed for' post would be either Recorded or Registered, which would mean that, if anything happened to the parcel / letter / whatever, you will be covered.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Because you have opened it, the company charge you a fee to restore it to new sale order, and repackage it, etc, or to sell it cheap as "open box". The fees are a rip off, but unavoidable these days.

Yes, you will get the original refund amount, minus the 15% fee. So you will only get back 85% of what you paid for it.

It means special Delivery. When the delivery man arrives, someone has to physically accept the parcel and sign to show they have. It is to stop packets getting lost in mail sorting offices, etc, with noone knowing where they are, or if they seen them.

Not the brown outside packaging, they only want the manufacturer's box. It wasn't good you threw away the styro-foam (the white fluffy things), but they are charging you 15% which should be more than enough for them to replace it.

Take the manufacturer's box, and either wrap it in packing paper or another box. Print out that label you was e-mailed, and affix it to your box. Then take it to a post office and say you want it sent "Special Delivery", and make sure that you ask for enough insurance to cover the price of the item new.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

A restock fee would IMO only be acceptable if the product is being returned because it was correctly supplied to you as you ordered it, but you have now decided you don't want it. That could include the fact that you inadvertently ordered the wrong thing. That it is being returned in original packaging, etc is because the vendor hopes to resell it again, but inevitably there is a cost to him of taking the item back, adding it into their stock list, etc. In some cases they may not be able to restock the item and sell it, as new, so they incur some costs for discounting the items when sold for the second time.

I would expect the cost of restocking to be deducted from and refund you get.

However any product supplied needs to be fit for purpose. Thus I would not expect any restocking fee if the product is faulty, or if it is incompatible because you ordered it based on what is displayed in the product's specifications.

Restocking fees are common, but should be covered by the readily available vendors terms and conditions.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

A restocking fee is taken of the refunded price so say you paid £100, you would get £85 returned to you with a 15% fee.

Some form of registered or recorded post where the compensation level is enough to cover the cost of the item if lost or damaged.

I would imagine that they mean in the orginal commercial product box with all included packaging - how you package that box up into a parcel is then up to you as long as it is sufficently padded to prevent damage.

Through the post to the address on the returns label.

Hope this helps.

It sounds like you may want to try and claim that the product is not fit for purpose if it is advertised to work with your computer and then you should not be subject to a restocking fee.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

what he said, and remember you won't get your postage back either, so you get back 85% of the product cost, e.g product £100 plus £10 shipping, you will get a refund of £85 (£100-£15 restocking fee).

It's to cover the administrative expenses of returns of unwanted goods as we all want our original purchases to be as low as possible, there is no spare profit padding in there to run the refunds as complimentary, you pay for use of the return service now.

1st Class Recorded is insured by default to £28, so depending on the value of the product that may be adequate insurance.

If it does not work properly and you have not had it long you may be able to reject it under the distance selling regulations.

http://www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si2000/20002334.htm

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Thanks for the replies.

They mentioned nothing about this restock fee in there returns section, cheeky sods. Maybe i should kick it in an make the restock price justifiable... (*evil thoughts*)

The good cost me about £200. How much is it gonna cost me to cover it through secure delivery??? :| since i threw the styrofoam away can i just mail it back in it's 6 times its size box and still get my money back. Or does it really need to be stuffed.

Will the post office have smaller boxes or styrofoam there?

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

I think Special Delievery or Registered Post has a £250.00 insured value at the base. Alternatively you can get increases at the post office. I'm sure some costs will be shown on www.royalmail.com

Any decent stationers and most good post offices, will be able to sell you packaging. It's not the vendor who is worried about what it is returned in, it's you. If the product gets damaged in the post, because you didn't provide protective packaging, you wont get a refund.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Could i just send it first class without special delivery?.
Only bad scenario i can think of is they say they dont get it but they do and refuse my refund... (of course it could get lost too or damaged but whats the chances of that happening really?? :D)

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

It's up to you how you return it, but can you afford to loose £200.00 ? It's probably going to cost a bit to post anyway, as it's heavier than a standard letter, so the added cost of Special Delivery is not a lot.

Can you afford the risk of not being able to proove the item has reached it's destination, so that you cannot proove the loss is with the vendor or post office.

If you have ever been anywhere near a royal mail sorting office you will understand the need to provide some protection to items. I don't think you need to be that over the Top though, a bit of bubble wrap could be sufficient.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Personally I wouldn't risk it - I know it's going to put you out of pocket but, IMO, it's a huge risk.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Well you could send it second class if you wanted but then if it gets lost or damaged you will get no refund and as it was not insured you will not be able to claim anything back from the post office.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

im not too clear yet on this insurance thing (apologies). Is this entirely optional but stilll possible to do a delivery where i can get a signature?

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

You will probably find you would then not get any refund as the goods probably have to be returned in an as sold condition.

How big is the product - you could just put it in a Jiffy Bag.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

lol, ok readying the replies i'll get some insurance on it.
So say 1st class special delivery, i bubblewrap it, stick it into a smaller box, label the address they sent me. And it weights no more than 2KG, how much do i need to pay to cover it?.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Recorded Delivery will be signature only (effectively uninsured as max value £28.00) . Special Delivery signed for and insured to £250.00 by default, value can be increased.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/c...mediaId=400150

2kg is quite heavy.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Could i bubblewrap it, tape it together so it doesnt come loose, and stick the label on it (is a sellotaped piece of paper with the address ok? or does it need to be waterproof ink so that it doesnt come off).

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/c...mediaId=400150

up to 2kg, next day special del. with insurance cover up to £250 is £6.55

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

AFAIK, all "signed for" deliveries (recorded, registered, special) have some level of insurance ranging from around £20 to £250 as standard.

You can optionally pay a top-up to insure a higher cost item against loss or damage.

Basically, if you sent your £200 item standard recorded delivery and it got damaged or lost in transit, you would not get any refind from the original retailer and you would only be able to claim about £20 from the post office as compensation.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

According to the Royal Mail website, Special Delivery will be a minimum of £3.75 and I think 2kg will be within the minimum amount.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

i could maybe get it down to 1.3Kilos if i remove the box and other unnecessary bits and bobs.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

You do need to make sure that any address label is firmly fixed. I don't know what the item is, but most PC component boxes aren't that big. Bubble wrap it, stick it in a giant oversized envelope (with a lable on the bubblewrap in case) and lable the envelope, and that's is, job done.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Will not make any difference as 1.3kg is over 1kg @ £5.20:
http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/c...mediaId=400150

You might as well make sure it is packaged well and use up some of the 2kg allowance @ £6.55.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

its bout 38cm * 25cm.

So just to clarify, excluding any packaging i need, it will cost me £7ish?

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Looks like it :)

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

and that £7 is the special delivery as well as insurance cover?
EDIT: its just that i figured the cover would be in the regions of hundreds because of the price of the good. But i guess theres no point sending it back and getting nothing in return lol. £7 just seems rather low.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

What exactly are you trying to return? 2Kg is very heavy. How muc did it cost? Do you have any kitchen scales at home? I just posted an iTrip for £1.98 "Signed For". It weighed 340g in the postage box.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

its a laptop battery, not a proper one but a large flat one that connects to the AC socket of laptop. I figured it would work but it doesnt... and i dont want to keep it if its not gonna work.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Edited post three posts back.

It cost me £194.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

The price of Special Delivery includes the insurance premiums. It may appear low, but then looks at how the costs of postage do ramp up from simple standard letter or parcel post, through recorded delivery to the Special Delevery. Each has its own merits, but overall the royal mail can keep costs effective due to the vast amounts of stuff they do shift, and realistically the proportionately limited number of claims that are made.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

ok so 7 bob it is. Cheers all :)

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Yes, the £6.55 is special delivery for a package up to 2kg insured up to the value of £250.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Cost me 18.50... just gotta wait and see if i get my money back now. Do they just put the money back into your account or do they send ya a check or summit?.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

That's a lot of money. Was that all postage? It must have been well heavy, and perhaps you went a bit overboard on the protective packaging?

Consumer rights - mail order
 

I bought some PC bits early Sept from OEM supplier.

When built the PC was unreliable.

Talked to returns department who asked me to return mobo, cpu, memory and cooler.

I asked about the cost of the return to me and was told to chase it with Customer service. Thought nothing of it because I had done this before with them. I only asked as I had not dealt with this person before.

Tried to claim back the money today and was told that the company does not refund returned items as they have a return to base (rtb) warrantee now. I explained that I had had this done before AND was told when I returned the goodds that I should take it up with Customer services.

They replied that they rarely refund postage nowadays and basically took the attitude of "tough luck....goodbye".

Looking at my rights on the Office of fair trading it says that I do not have to pay for faulty goods to be returned.

Now, I didn't know this at the time and what defines bulky? Also they could argue that the goods were not yet proven to be faulty, whereas I would say they were.....

Does anyone know where I stand?

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

lol bubblewrapped it and stuck label on it. The battery itself about 1kilo, and it had some other stuff like two power cables, one of which had no use at all with the battery. I was surprised it cost that much too.

Got sis to take it to the post office cos she passes it coming back home from school. Would it have been fine to use just bubblewrap to send it cos you could see what it was under it or does it need to be closed away.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

£18.50 is the 2-10kg special delivery rate.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Depends on how you paid originally, if you paid by credit or debit card it will be refunded to your account.

Re: Consumer rights - mail order
 

Not too sure where you would stand especially as the last bit of the Quote:

I assume you signed for the goods on delivery and therefore does this mean you accepted them? - I know that no one is going to wait around whilst you build the PC and burn test it etc. but depending on the supplier they could get picky?

I personally would try calling back and asking "nicely" to speak to someone in charge explain the situation and ask how you could come to a mutual agreement. I've generally only used SCAN when I've had a return and they send out a courier at their expense to return the goods back to them (albeit it was the courier that damaged them probably in the 1st place)

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Having originally posted the link to the Royal Mail site, you'd think I would have looked at the costs displayed on there oops:

Re: Consumer rights - mail order
 

It is always your job to read the terms and conditions of a sale. Assuming you did this and there was no mention of them arranging to collect faulty items then you would be within your rights to request a refund of the cost incurred in returning them to the company.

I would write a recorded delivery letter to the company secretary asking for a refund of the amount within the next 28 days.

In this letter point out that the items were faulty and you were asked to return them by their representative (name the person you spoke to if possible).

Also point out that at no point was a collection offered to, you were asked to return them.

Add to this a line saying that after taking advice, under distance selling regulations you are not responsible to costs incurred in returning faulty items.

Give them a month to send your money, if they don't then give Trading Standards a call (either your local one or the one local to the company you bought from).

Good luck!

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Spending £200-300 a month with the royal mail and using smartstamp to do it tends to make you start to remember postage rates.

It's actually cheaper to send something between 5-10k special delivery than first class - go figure.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Thanks but I think I'll decline just this once ;)

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Taking a tad :notopic: , ignore if you want lol...

"Returning something back"- where else would you be returning it? Doesn't make sense.

OK, feel free to give me the :upyours: treatment, but it's annoying me. Oh and I've just got 50/50 on the spelling test thing on tv.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

swat, you just had to brag didn't you :p:

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Was banely pathetic though, anyone not getting 50 is either dyskelsic (sic) or needs to go back to school.

Re: Returning something back...Questions..
 

Ok, first of all, don't get suckered by their BS! You have a *LOT* of rights in this situation, don't let them flim-flam you into giving them away (you might also want to have a word with your local Trading Standards, depending on the details).

Secondly, what *exactly* are the circumstances?

You say "Ok scenario is im returning something back because it doesnt work properly maybe because its a voltage issue and my computer isnt compatible with it."

Did you buy the item by mail order? (I presume so)

Did you get any information or advice from the seller regarding using this item with your computer? Did they say it would work with your system?

1) Under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 all items sold must be "As Advertised" (ie fit the description given), "Of satisfactory quality" and "Be fit for purpose".

Now if it was reasonable for you to assume that what you had bought was compatible with your computer (ie the information given with the product on their website or wherever you saw it) or, especially, if a member of their staff had said that it should be or was compatible, then you have a right to reject the item as "not as advertised" or "not as fit for purpose".

2) If the item didn't work and it was reasonable to expect that it would, you can reject it as not being "of satisfactory quality".

3) Under the Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Act 2002 you have the legal right to choose repair, replacement, partial or full refund or compensation if a fault appears within 6 years (5 years in Scotland) and it is reasonable for you to expect that it would last that long.

If this happens within 6 months of purchase the onus is on the retailer to prove that the fault was *not* present at time of purchase.

4) Under The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 you have a seven day cooling off period from the date of the initial purchase under which you can reject the goods without giving any reason, however if you do this, you probably will have to pay the postage charges to return the item.

5) HOWEVER: If the item was faulty you can reject it and you are *NOT* obliged to pay the cost of returning the item.


So depending on exactly what the details are, you may well be entitled to tell them to take that attached label, fold it until it's all sharp corners and then shove it...! :D

Even if you do have to return the item, your "duty" is only to take "reasonable care" of the item, the law says nothing about packaging! (It would, however, include instruction manuals etc)

If they're charging you a re-stock fee this is to cover their lost profits as they should *NOT* sell the item again as "new" since it's not (and if they do they're being very naughty!).

As mentioned above, if you've got reasonable grounds to reject it as not working when it should, you don't have to send it back unless *they* pay for it or agree to re-imburse your costs. You can tell them that it is available for collection from your place *at a time of your convenience!*

Where did this "6 days" figure come from? If they told you that, what reason did they give for it?

One other thing of note: If it cost over £100 and you paid by Credit Card (but not Debit Card) then under Section 75 the Consumer Credit Act the credit card company is jointly and severally liable for the completion of the contract, ie if you get no joy from the retailers, you can demand your money back from the Card Company!

So nil illegitimi carborundum! Take a good read of the above and you may well find that you're entirely in the right and they can take a running jump! :)

Re: Consumer rights - mail order
 

Ok, first of all read my post above.

Basically, though, if the goods were faulty or not fit for purpose, as you said, you're not required to pay to return them. You did, but this can probably be considered a gesture of goodwill on your part and not part of any contract.

They are obliged to supply you with working items under the Sale of Goods Act and you have the right to reject them under that, no matter what their warranty may say (a warranty is not part of the original contract).

Consequently IMO you have given them (implicit) notice that you were rejecting the items by returning them and should not have had to do this at your own cost as per the Distance Selling Regulations.

It sounds like they're just trying to brush you off in the hope that you'll give up, but don't!

You might also like to have a word with Trading Standards who will probably take a dim view of their attitude.

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

Thanks for the long reply graham lol.
I bought it from an online site, brother used his debit card to buy it and i gave my brother the money to do so.
I had posted asking about the product on their forum (which has now been taken off maybe for a while but they had one and its no longer there). They just said it had a set of attachments which you could connect to the socket into your AC socket and will work for many clone laptops. Figured id give it a go seeing as i doubt there was that many different variations of AC socket, my biggest worry wasnt if it didnt work but if it blew my computer up...(glad it didnt lol).

They said 7 work days after delivery to return it, the 6 days was because i already had it for a day (during the night i tested it and didnt work).

Anyhow its got posted off so not much i can do now :( i just want my money back lol.

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

Thanks to whoever merged these.

Can I make a suggestion that the two messages be combined and made into a "sticky" topic (no, not a melted chocolate and hazelnut bar! ;) ) because I've posted this sort of stuff a couple of times at least with people wanting to know what their rights are for returning duff goods bought by mail order etc and it would be useful to have it permanently available (and save me having to type it all out again ;) )

Thanks.

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

even better, how about creating an "article" out of it. Some of your stuff sure is useful to be able to refer to. :tu:

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

How long do you need to wait for the refund?.

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

How long is a peice of string?

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

in metrics or imperial? :P :)

seriously, do i need to wait a while (ie a week) or will they put it back into my brother's account as soon as they get it which they should of by now.

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

Err, how do you do that?

Re: [merged] Returning something back...Questions..
 

Well i cant remmeber how long it was since i sent it to this week, but I had nothing put into my brothers account from the place I ordered from. Thought i would end up losing the full 200. So on the recommendation from my brother I emailed them mentioning when i sent it off and asked whether it was accepted or not and if it wasnt why (i tore the box up a small bit cos the stuff inside was more than the box itself :C oddly enough. ). Anyhow sent me an email a few days ago, and a day after said they will look into it and report back ASAP. Well today my brother got a letter off them (since he used his card to buy it) and managed to get 160 back :) so im glad i didnt lose the full 200.

So thanks for everyone who helped me out sending it off. :D