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gnasher729

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Nov 25, 2005
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Try googling Consumer Rights in the Uk. In Canada, your old colony, for all purchases, there is what is called a "10 day cooling off period." Initially really intended to protect consumers of high pressure sales, especially door-to-door sales, it is widely useful.

In the UK, if you go to a physical store and buy a product, that's it. With online purchases and door-to-door sales you have about a week time to cancel the purchase, but not if you go to a store.

Now many stores in the UK will voluntarily offer to take back a product when you change your mind, with whatever conditions they want to attach. Obviously a store trying to rip off their customers will not do that, and you can't force them.


Try and make it faulty and take it back for a full refund. Under 28 days old and your entitled to a full refund. Also they are lumbered with a did iPad then. Sounds wrong to do this but they didn't care about ripping you off.

Apart from this being fraud, if the seller can prove that you caused the damage then they don't have to do anything and you are stuck with a broken iPad. And since we are talking about rip-off artists anyway, what will happen is like this: "My moms iPad is broken, fix it". "Looks very much to me like you caused the damage. So we don't do anything". "You have to, the law says so". "Take us to court then. ".

And to be honest, if you bought an iPad, felt (rightfully) ripped off, and shortly afterwards the iPad is damaged, that would looks suspicious to any judge.
 

Macs4u

Suspended
Apr 19, 2008
387
352
Stoke on Trent
Or go into the store and tell them if they don't refund you, you will take a week off work and deter ANY customer from buying there and tell all your friends and their friends to steer clear
 

charlituna

macrumors G3
Jun 11, 2008
9,636
816
Los Angeles, CA
They told me that £389 is a great price for an ipad 2, 16gb wifi and that i know "nothing about retail".

I asked them to do the decent thing and either exchange my mother's ipad for a new one for which i'd be willing to pay the retail reccommended price of £399 or give my mother a refund. They refused on both counts.

Get the law into it. I'm sure that there's something in the UK that mandates that all retail shops have to take back any undamaged product within a set period of time unless it is clearly marked as final sale, no returns. So find a local councilman etc type and verify this. Then go back to the store and demand a return per said law and when they say no, which they will because they are jerk, call said officials office on your mobile right in front of them to file a complaint. See how fast they jump to make good. But make sure they get you a full refund. Don't take an exchange because stores like that are also classic for selling second hand stuff as new and might not be authorized to sell ipads in the first place so you would have no warranty with Apple.

I did this once with a shop here in the US that pulled a similar stunt. Called the state attorney's consumer protection office right in the store. Thought the owner might piss himself. Course after he 'gave in to help me out' and gave me the refund I left the store, called back and filed the complaint. As you should also. Otherwise these type of folks will just do it to someone else. And if there's a Yelp or similar for retail shops in your area, post the whole story there too so folks know what they are up to

Oh and on the off chance they are an Apple Authorized Shop, contact your local Apple store and see if they can put you in contact with someone from Corporate to call and complain about what this store did. I'm sure that such stunts would be frowned upon by Apple and they could find their status pulled. Actually Apple no matter what, I'm sure they would also be interested in an unauthorized shop pulling games since that means that they probably "ordered" the ipad by going into a local Apple Store and bought an iPad 2 etc. And at least in the US Apple firmly states they sell to end users, not resellers in their stores so I bet it's the same in the UK (since authorized resellers can order for their own fulfillment division)

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There is nothing wrong with selling two year old technology at the right price.

I think that's part of the key. Apple still sells the iPad 2 so saying its 'old' tech is a bit off since Apple still thinks it's worthy of being officially sold.

but it sounds like she was led to believe she was getting an iPad 4 at a discount rather than an iPad 2 at a markup.So it wasn't really the 'right' price.

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Europe has more consumer protection laws than we have here in the US. Surely a visit to the store mgr is in order to see if the matter can come to a proper solution.

this sounds like it is a Mom and Pop shop so she was probably being helped by the 'store manager' already.

I wonder if one could use the whole "consumer protection law demands that the seller repair or replace any item delivered with a defect within one year and for the first six months the assumption is that the defect was there at time of delivery". I mean if the paper work doesn't say she was specifically ordering an iPad 2 then one could argue that it's defective because she was ordering an iPad with Retina Display (whatever processor, camera etc) and that's not what she got. I suppose they could try to 'repair' it 'illegally' (illegal since Apple doesn't let anyone 'legally' open iPads) but one could argue that a replacement is mandated since said repair is not authorized by the manufacturers. And if they say they don't have it in stock then raise a fuss for a refund.

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Since you bought it inside of the EU, you are allowed to return the product for a full refund.

That can get a bit iffy since the EU laws generally allow stores to set return periods for 'i didn't like it' returns. Of course if the law said, as similar ones in the US do, that said period has to be posted or listed on all paperwork and it's not then that would be another argument to use.

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iPad 2 - 16GB WiFi + 3G.

http://shop.sevenoakscomputers.co.u...68_XGA_Display_Bluetooth_iOS_4_9_Hour_Battery

£409.10 BEFORE VAT ... £490.92 after.

they have to go buy it at all and that's like £429.

do they have a contact email on there. we could spam them with terse letters about their practices.

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Not a blame the OP post, but if you knew she had no idea what she was doing, why did you let her go alone?

Something tells me that the nice son that was leaving away from her told her what to get and to get it from Apple and she didn't listen to the last bit cause she's a sweet granny that likes to support local shops over big corporations and believes in the inate goodness of people and doesn't assume everyone is out to rip her off.

That's not a crime and not a reason to blame her for what happened. Or her son

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That could be libel. You could hold up a sign "These guys sold my mum an iPad 2 for £369 which is sold everywhere else for £319". That's not libel, it just demonstrates that they are excellent businessmen :mad:

Only if they did sell her an ipad 2. If the paperwork indicates or is suggestive that she was being sold an ipad 3 or 4 and they gave her a 2 then they are crooks not businessmen. And if the UK laws say they have to give her a refund because it isn't what they described it to be that just adds to the fire. Especially if that indication is in writing.
 

G-Mo

macrumors 6502
Nov 6, 2010
466
2
Auckland, NZ
This is a terrible abuse.

Contact the store again, and calmly request they replace/refund whatever you are happy with, and see what happens. Failing that, contact the credit card company and Apple UK. Write to the store, detailing everything that has happened so far, cc Apple UK, local ombudsman, better business bureau, BIA, MP, and all local and national newspapers and television stations (especially those with a consumer reports or consumer help segment, ala Silverman Helps!).
 

charlituna

macrumors G3
Jun 11, 2008
9,636
816
Los Angeles, CA
If they still won't budge then explain how you will be approaching Trading standards and see if that helps to change there mind.

Even better. If Trading Standards has some kind of paperwork that has to be filed, write it up and take it into the store. Ask to speak to the owner and very calmly inform him that you are, as a courtesy, bringing him a copy of the complaint you are on your way to file. I bet he'll jump to do that return if he thinks he can stop it. Double if you also give him copies of the letters you are sending to Apple, local consumer protection etc.

Then send them anyway.
 

matttye

macrumors 601
Mar 25, 2009
4,957
32
Lincoln, England
Or go into the store and tell them if they don't refund you, you will take a week off work and deter ANY customer from buying there and tell all your friends and their friends to steer clear

Acting like a petulant child won't get you anywhere.

I would try and find a solicitor who will write a letter to them pro bono (or for a small fee if no one is willing to do that). Even the slightest hint of legal action is enough to sort out some of the smaller retailers.
 

Macs4u

Suspended
Apr 19, 2008
387
352
Stoke on Trent
Acting like a petulant child won't get you anywhere.

I would try and find a solicitor who will write a letter to them pro bono (or for a small fee if no one is willing to do that). Even the slightest hint of legal action is enough to sort out some of the smaller retailers.

Only just seen this reply lol. Petulant child?? Its worked for me twice in the past. Both times i was hitting a brick wall, both times got my money back.
 

ourmountain

macrumors regular
Jun 26, 2012
132
0
Only just seen this reply lol. Petulant child?? Its worked for me twice in the past. Both times i was hitting a brick wall, both times got my money back.

You bumped a year and a half old thread just to counter someone calling you a child?

You realize that you just entirely proved his point, don't you? :rolleyes:
 

HarryWarden

macrumors 6502a
Oct 27, 2012
608
121
Since this thread has already been bumped, I too would like to know what happened. How did the story end?
 

gnasher729

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Nov 25, 2005
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maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,438
43,346
[MOD NOTE]
I think this topic has been beaten to death at this stage - closing.
 
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