Problems with a customer & order

[kathynewman]

Wondered what people thought about this situation - sorry bit long winded!.

We sell a product via Amazon that has a dog version costing £16.99 and a cat version selling at £9.99. We listed the dog version first some time ago and more recently when it became available the cat version.

Few days ago we received an order via amazon which was a little confusing. The order came through with our code for the 3 x dog version but the SKU for the cat version and the price for the cat version - so we assumed something had gone a little array on Amazon and sent the cat version. Later upon checking it seems that both the cat & dog version have the same bar code, which meant that it showed the dog version of product with cat price!We removed the product while we talk to the manufacturers.

Customer emails couple of days ago saying they had actually ordered according to their paperwork the dog version and had received cat version. I sent an email back apologising and explaining what had happened. I offered to send 2 x Dog (she had paid £29.97 (3 * £9.99 and 2 x dog would have been £33.98). Got email back saying no she was not happy at all as she was able to get the product elsewhere for under £15 and only ordered from us as it was only £9.99 and wanted to send the cat version back but wanted to know who would pay postage - of course I said we would and offered to either send stamps to cover cost, refund via cheque or paypal.

Yesterday got message to call her, tried but got no reply so emailed to that effect. This morning receive an email from customer saying:

"I am disappointed about how this has turned out, as far as I am concerned, having saught legal advice, you provided an invitation to treat with an intention to supply. Your goods were clearly marked as for dogs at £9.99. We actually have a contract when I placed that order.

I feel that you should complete that invitation to treat and supply the goods, as promised, at £9.99.

I hope that we can settle this once and for all."

Query is - is she correct - do we have to supply the product at £9.99, morally should we provide the product at £9.99 or do we as the supplier have a right to cancel the said contract?

I've got a gut feeling what we should do, but just wondered what others thought.

Kathy

[george]

Take the hit, move on.

End of thread.

hth etc

[Mike Hughes]

George is right. Legally and morally the answer is still the same.

Mike

[Sean Williams]

It'll hurt, but the fault is not with the customer - you did complete the contract by supplying the goods. The contract is incomplete until the goods are received by the customer and so you do have the option to change things, up until that point.
It's also important to appear to be almost delirious with happiness that you can satisfy your customer, no matter what
That way they feel victorious and will come back to you in the future.
Probably.

I absolutely detest refunds, exchanges etc - it makes me depressed
But customer service is king, so we just take the hit and line up an extra cider when I get home.
We just had 700 quids worth of goods come back. What irritates me is the customer didn't even open the packaging, so he's wasted our time as well as plenty of our money (shipping, card charges etc).
<sigh>

[pnagames]

Actually i will disagree

Amazon has done the same thing to us on three products. *the older version of the game was replaced with the new version but our listing that were for the old version transferred across.

i would give a call to amazon and explain the situation.

also you can reply to her explain the situation and tell her that is situtation is what is called Force Majeure (spelling?). (you cant control the stupidity of amazon).

if you want to keep a customer that will go to great lengths to get the product for that price (even though you have offered to refund the full costs including her return ostage) then just agree to the sale

we personally would never agree to this as it was not our fault that caused the error.

[Mike Hughes]

Force Majeure

Unless your contract with the customer has a Force Majeur clause in it then it won't apply.

Mike

[Edit] Of course it's a bit more complicated because who has the contract with who. i.e. Customer <=> Amazon <=> You.

[pnagames]

Mike

i think Amazon has that on all of their T&C's (if i remember well)

customer agrees to those T&C's as ours are not listed in amazon

[Sean Williams]

Actually i will disagree

if you want to keep a customer that will go to great lengths to get the product for that price (even though you have offered to refund the full costs including her return ostage) then just agree to the sale

we personally would never agree to this as it was not our fault that caused the error.

I agree with you Panagiotis and am with you all the way: I'm a crusty old so and so and won't let anybody get away with anything; but I've had a couple of salutory lessons recently.

I stood my ground with a very difficult (incorrect) customer last year and we were extensively bad-mouthed all over the relevant forums - most of it rubbish of course, but it had an effect.
Later we had another similar customer, but I just took the hit and looked happy.
Not only did he praise us on the forums, he came back later in the year and spent more money than he did originally (£100's). Plus, a couple of people came to us mentioning the good pr on the forum.

It hurts me to do it and I mutter a lot under my breath, but it seems to be better for my business, so I take it and move on.

I've begun to take hints from the way John Lewis do their business - they never flinch or bat an eye and I remain a loyal customer.

[pinbrook]

Few days ago we received an order via amazon which was a little confusing. The order came through with our code for the 3 x dog version but the SKU for the cat version and the price for the cat version - so we assumed something had gone a little array on Amazon and sent the cat version.

with hindsight it would have been better to check with the customer what they had ordered before dispatching.

I'll still take the hit - its only £20.

I'd agree with others you supplied the goods (and smelt a rat in the first instance but didn't act upon it) therefore in the interest of good PR send her the stuff - and in fact it is your fault (abeilt unwittingly) but IMO this kind of stuff is always likely to happen when you sell stuff through 3rd parties. So you should budget for this in the same way some people factor in a cost for lost/missing parcels to their shipping costs

[pnagames]

we would not do this on every customer. on majority of our customers we would agree a solution

the point however is that in this instance the customer is being a prat.

Kathy has offered her a full refund and also pay her postage for returning the item for something that is not her fault.


but at the end of the day the decision stands with Kathy

[george]

My reply was very brief but as I saw it the woman ordered 3 x dog thingys for 9.99 each.

Thats fact?

If the product code is wrong thats not the customers problem is it?

Don't want to upset you Kathy ( ), but if there was any doubt intitally, then surely you should have checked it out before sending anything out? At that point the order would have been cancellable due to the price being wrong, although, on the webby site, it would have shown as £9.99 like the customer saw when she placed the order...

I don't accept any kind of loss easily either but I cannot see how the customer is to `blame` here, certainly not once the order was sent out.

[fleetwood]

As far as I understand the law, the contract to supply is complete when you take payment (not as mentioned earlier, when the goods are supplied to the customer).

A listing on your website is an invitation to treat.
A customer order is a take up of that invitation, but you could still legally refuse the order, and withdraw your offer.
Once you take payment, you have accepted the offer, and a contract to supply has been made.

Whatever mistake has been made by you, the manufacturer or Amazon with the listings, on taking the payment of 3x£9.99, you are legally obliged to supply the ordered dog product, and the customer could take legal action to enforce such (or if you were unable to fill, buy elsewhere, and recover any difference in price between your agreed contract, and what they paid, from you).

[acompton]

I keep finding the odd problem with Amazon listings. Some items appear several times; some are confusing (wrong picture). I stay away from listings that are confusing (picture doesn't match the product). Its bad enough that everything appears as if it were a book. If any other online shop operated their store front the way A do, they wouldn't last long.

When I get an order for one of the oddballs, I always look the order up on Amazon and follow it through to the product page and find out what the customer thinks they ordered. It doesn't happen very often.

[kathynewman]

Thanks everyone for your comments. We had decided we had to send her the dog product, however I was just bit miffed that when I wrote so nicely explaining the problem that had occurred and she had emailed back rejecting my offer and saying she wished to return the goods (didnt have a problem at all with that - and to my mind she had at that point cancelled the contract as she was returning the goods and we were paying for the return postage) that she then comes back demanding we send her the dog product at the cheaper price.

Always interesting to get other peoples views

Anyway - am I within my rights to ask her to return the cat product and once returned we send out the dog or do I now have to send her the dog product and hope she returns the cat one!??

Kathy

[leehack]

Wait for the cat IMO or if you're prepared to accept possibly losing that also, then just send it out and move on crossing your fingers.

PS - stick your finger up your dogs ass and wipe it on the parcel. It's childish, it's crude but it'll make you chuckle for a few minutes.