Scan not accepting my RMA! :@

[SCOTTBALL]

Ok I joined Hexus just now and realised you have a dedicated Scan forum, which is useful because I am having a major problem right now. Not really how i would like to start off my posting at this forum but might as well get it out of the way. Posted this at bit-tech too

Firstly i noticed "SCAN is arguably the UK's most customer focussed retailer of PC technology"..

Ok, heres what happened, i bought over £600 of goods from Scan, including an 3XS Isotope case

When the case arrived, there were a few things, firstly it wasn't fitted togerther right and one of the clip in parts had the plastic slightly bent back- not a BIG deal but still not that nice for a £200+ case. regardless i left everythign how it arrived (apart from taking it out the box to look at it)

the colour scheme of it was not what i expected, and so I rang them and said about it and asked to exchange it for a different colour. They said they don't do exchanges, but they issued an RMA (this was 11th Jan) and assured me i can order a new one now seperately.

Now i was under the impression that they were coming to collect the item, and because i live away from home at university i let my parents know and they were waiting for a pickup.

However, now when i got back and found out it was still here I rang up and they said I had to sent it back- BUT now they said they WON'T accept the item at all because the RAM had run out, AND they won't issue me a new RMA!

The case is worth £200+ and it has just been sitting brand new at home in my living room in its original box, and they wont accept it! And what angers me is that if i had said about the fault they will probably have sorted it out.

I don't see why they can't accept it and issue me a new RMA! I read the email again and it said it "will expire if the items are not received by 25 January 2008. Items failing to reach Scan by the deadline cannot be processed and will require you to obtain a new RMA number."
But they won't give me a new RMA Number!

Everyone was saying how Scans customer service isn't great and I thought that due to my previous experiences i should be fine. Now i see what people mean and i am extremely unhappy. Is there anything i can do about this? I still can't believe they wont accept the item back

[wesleyaldred]

As per your Bit Tech post, here is my same reply:

Scottball,

The email you are referring to is automated and yes, it does advise you to contact us to obtain a new RMA number if yours has expired. If we can issue a new one we will, if we cant then we wont.

Unfortunately in this case we can't.

Wesley Aldred
Returns Manager

[slypie]

I'm noting meaning to be nasty but shouldn't you of checked with your folks if it had been picked up. Also I wouldn't of thought Scan would of picked the item up if it was bought in error as it would of been your responsibility to send it back at your expense.

Scan may take the item back but you would probably get charged a restocking fee and given a credit note.

[wesleyaldred]

The main issue here is you rejected an item with the statutory 7 days period, we then give you 14 days to return an item, 1 week after the 14 day grace period expired you requested again to return the item, your 7 day rejection period has now expired.

Wesley

[Steve A]

Everyone was saying how Scans customer service isn't great and I thought that due to my previous experiences i should be fine. Now i see what people mean and i am extremely unhappy. Is there anything i can do about this? I still can't believe they wont accept the item back

I beg to differ ....

[jimbouk]

The main issue here is you rejected an item with the statutory 7 days period, we then give you 14 days to return an item, 1 week after the 14 day grace period expired you requested again to return the item, your 7 day rejection period has now expired.

Sounds like he didn't know he was returning it in the statutory period which is a shame. Still the item was not as described so should be returnable under a different clause to this.

[Saracen]

The main issue here is you rejected an item with the statutory 7 days period, we then give you 14 days to return an item, 1 week after the 14 day grace period expired you requested again to return the item, your 7 day rejection period has now expired.

Wesley

I'm a bit confused. What 7-day statutory period? If you mean the Distance Selling Regs, then once the consumer has cancelled, there is no time limit on returning the goods. There is a time limit on issuing the refund, though - 30 days, and that's is a maximum regardless of whether the goods have been returned or not.

But .... for a Distance Selling Regs cancellation to be valid, it must be in a permanent form (i.e. not by phone) unless agreed otherwise, and your T&C's stipulate the acceptable forms, and it doesn't include the phone. So a telephone cancellation wouldn't be valid under the DSR anyway.

But your own Code in the T&Cs includes

In any case where we agree that the problem has arisen because of a defect in the goods at the point of delivery to you:

we will refund the cost of the goods to you if returned within 28 days of the date of delivery;
in any other case we will replace the goods or provide you with a credit for the cost of the goods.

The way I read that, providing the goods were damaged on delivery, as claimed, then you should at least be issuing a credit ... as that's what your own code promises. And, as SCOTTBALL wanted another case anyway, that would seem to do the trick. But in that case, the 7-day period is irrelevant and wouldn't be "statutory" anyway.

And if the goods are being rejected as not of "satisfactory quality", then there is no statutory period defined by the Sale of Goods Act or any of the amendments to it. But for the first 6 months, it would be for Scan to PROVE that any defects were present at the time of delivery, not for the customer to prove they were.

[SCOTTBALL]

thanks for the posts everyone

I was also thinking this, the case has warped plastic on the clips which can easily be seen as manufacturing defects (i.e no way i could do it myself) and after readign the T&C today it seems i should be able to return it under the 28 day rule

Should I just ring up and explain to them again?

[Saracen]

.....

Should I just ring up and explain to them again?

Well, I wouldn't have thought it could do any harm.

[wesleyaldred]

Scotball

You never informed us of any damage originally, you cannot now claim the item was received damaged 3 weeks later, the only information you provided us with originally was you did not like the colour.

Saracen, please refer to our terms & conditions all damage must be reported within 48 hours, so 3 weeks is outside of those 48 hours now.

Distance selling regulations need to be reported to us, we then issue a written email stamement to the customer advising that the goods need to be back with us by a certain date or the RMA will expire and be no longer valid, after which time the customer would no longer be entitled to remake the cancellation.

[SCOTTBALL]

The case is in the exact condition and packaging as it was rcieved, AND i also bought a new case from you guys too because i thought the return would be ok, and now i'm stuck with 2 £200+ cases which is a huge dent in my wallet. Is it that far out of your grasp to just let me have a new RMA number? =(

i dont know what else to do

[Saracen]

Saracen, please refer to our terms & conditions all damage must be reported within 48 hours, so 3 weeks is outside of those 48 hours now.

Your conditions do indeed say that, but appear to relate to delivery damage.

But they say it in Part I, which refers to both consumers AND business. In part II, you offer an additional code only for consumers, which says

The Code

We recognise that goods supplied by us to you may not meet your expectations. In our experience there are many reasons why that may happen. Examples of those reasons include a defect in the goods at the point of delivery to you, incompatibility with existing components within your system, poor installation or simply slower performance than you require.

We are not able to establish why the goods have failed to meet your expectations without an opportunity of inspecting and testing the goods.

In any case where the goods fail to meet your expectations we invite you to return them to us with an explanation of the problem.


In any case where we agree that the problem has arisen because of a defect in the goods at the point of delivery to you:

we will refund the cost of the goods to you if returned within 28 days of the date of delivery;
in any other case we will replace the goods or provide you with a credit for the cost of the goods.

In every case where you return goods upon the basis that there was a defect in the goods at the point of delivery to you we will inspect and test the goods.

Insofar as it may be established that there was no defect in the goods at the point of delivery to you, we reserve the right to charge you £10 as a contribution towards the cost of inspecting and testing the goods.

In any case where it is established that there was no defect in the goods at the point of delivery to you:

we will nonetheless try to assist you in resolving the problem

depending upon the age and condition of the goods, we may be prepared to accept the return of the goods subject to a restocking charge and refund or credit the balance of the costs of the goods.

insofar as the age or condition of the goods is such that we are unable to accept their return, we will redeliver the goods to you. You agree to pay to us the reasonable cost of re-delivering the goods to you.

Are you saying that that Code simply doesn't apply if faults aren't notified within 48 hours? Because it specifies what happens if a fault was notified (and it's claimed it was) but the goods aren't returned within 28 days (which it seems they weren't).

I'm not trying to be awkward. I'm trying to understand exactly how you interpret that code and when it does and doesn't apply.

Distance selling regulations need to be reported to us, we then issue a written email stamement to the customer advising that the goods need to be back with us by a certain date or the RMA will expire and be no longer valid, after which time the customer would no longer be entitled to remake the cancellation.

The cancellation under the distance selling regulations is a statutory right not subject to limitation by your conditions.

The regulations stipulate, very specifically, that once notification (in a required form) has been given, a refund will be issued "as soon as possible and in any case within a period not exceeding 30 days beginning with the day notification was given". Note that that said "in any case", and not only if the consumer returns goods within a period you stipulate in conditions. It's s.14(3) if you want to look.

The consumer has the rights given to him by statute, and that does not include the ability of retailers to impose conditions on the exercise of those rights, whether in relation to RMA procedures or not. However, as the buyer didn't meet the notification obligations imposed on him by the DSR, it's not applicable in this situation anyway.

That's why I said I was confused by your use of a "statutory" 7 day period. If it's as per your conditions, it is effective (as, arguably) is the 48 hours though there's the possibility that Sale of Goods Act would ignore that too) but it isn't statutory. If you were referring to the 7 days in the DSR, then it's not relevant in this case as the notification wasn't in a "permanent" form.

[nickp8]

Contact Consumer Direct and they will advise you of your rights and tell you what to do.

Consumer Direct

[SCOTTBALL]

thanks i will,
i checked out the case again now and the side wont even clip in properly! that means im stuck with an expensive case that doesn't even work!!!!!!!!!!!!

since its been within 28 days hopefully i can do something about it?

[Cornholio]

tbh im suprised at scan in this instance, usually they are ok...now it seems that they are unwilling to help at all !

[Saracen]

tbh im suprised at scan in this instance, usually they are ok...now it seems that they are unwilling to help at all !

So am I, but modd, one thing to bear in mind is that we really only have one side of the story and even then (and please don't take offence at this, SCOTTBALL) SCOTTBALL's word for it. Scan may have a different point of view on what happened .... and there may well be good reason for them not wanting to discuss it all on a public forum. And if so, that puts them in an awkward spot.

Support forums like this can help sort a lot of issues, but they aren't ideal for all situations. And they can present a misleading impression.