Posted 3 days ago

Another problem with DFS, £950 usage fee for an item i never received

To keep this post short, all the details are in my previous dfs discussion but i paid the extra option of £399 for a full leather sofa including back and sides ( non touch areas )
I was delivered a half leather sofa mistakenly which has been confirmed now by multiple dfs so called engineer employees attending, the sofa also has a faulty bracket that clips the back seat onto the sofa, this has been repaired twice but still broken.
Dfs still refuse to accept its not all real leather and said their engineers dont know what they're talking about.
I went through the furniture ombudsman who are absolutely useless and just side with the shop no matter what evidence you have.
Both of them have ignored the issue with the leather and said due to the faulty bracket i can have a refund minus a £950 usage fee which could increase after assessment of sofa.
Ombudsman closed case and stopped replying saying this is a fair offer by dfs as ive had long use of the sofa and bracket is faulty.
I tried to explain as i have never received the sofai paid for and been trying to give it back since delivery due to leather i shouldn't be charged a usage fee, ive been forced to store the incorrect item.
If i go to small claims court will i be able to claim my court fees back which will be over £500 ?
I now have a report stating it is artificial leather, i have video evidence of their engineer stating its vinyl with a matched pattern.
So stressed by this, its been going on and on for months with the ombudsman not replying then they say they're waiting on dfs, then they kept claiming they couldn't see my evidence even though i could log in and see it on multiple devices, now they closed the case.
I did dome research and found the ombudsman is fundedby the businesses so wont go against them and this is a common occurrence.
Any advice from someone whos used small claims would be appreciated
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  1. TristanDeCoonha's avatar
    Some solicitors offer a free half hour consultation, might be worth it. They might offer you a no win no fee scenario. Bear in mind you have to buy an insurance policy if that is the case
  2. adam.mt's avatar
    How did you pay? If credit card or finance, then they share joint responsibility.

    Why would your court fees be >£500?
    (I've not read the other thread, should it be mentioned there)
    Mark_Hickman's avatar
    Author
    Sorry court fees are £205 dont know where i got 500 from, looked at them months ago before finding the ombudsman.
    Paid by finance but i assumed as ots now nearly 2 years since purchase section 75 cant be used
    52555148_1.jpg (edited)
  3. Willy_Wonka's avatar
    If you go to court you will be able to claim back all reasonable expenses but the must be reasonable & I believe you must also indicate any expenses you might incur after the filing of your claim.

    But you have to win and may be responsible for their costs if you lose depending on what route you want to go down.
    Mark_Hickman's avatar
    Author
    Thanks i dont see any possible way i could lose so not worried about that just didn't want to pay court fees and then the court still add a usage fee and im £1155 down instead of 950
  4. student.223's avatar
    I too had an absolutely terrible experience with DFS. 5 years on I am living with their incompetence and disgraceful customer service.

    My sister had a dreadful experience with Harveys (pre-covid).

    So I do wonder if good customer service is a thing in this sofa industry.
    Mark_Hickman's avatar
    Author
    I also came to the conclusion theres not a good company to order from looking at trust pilot they are all diabolical.
    I guess you just have to order and hope for the best, ive now started a section 75 claim (edited)
  5. cliosport65's avatar
    As a tip I find the only way to get DFS to do anything or listen is to leave them a bad trust pilot review, then everyone seems to get involved

    The other thing is they are just ordering these sofas from China as well, not even making them in the UK.
    Mark_Hickman's avatar
    Author
    I did the whole trust pilot thing over a year ago, all that happened after that was the local store manager called and sent out a service engineer to inspect the leather,the service engineer said it was faux leather but then the manager came out herself took the batch number and said our supplier told us its real leather, ive even left a review on Google maps with a video of the faux leather peeling and me setting fire to the peeled piece and it melting into a plastic ball but they still insisted its real leather
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