Cancelling Arnotts furniture order 1 month overdue

I ordered a couple of items of furniture from Arnotts in mid February with expected delivery by mid-March. Not hearing anything from them by mid to late March I called in and they said they would have the items ready for delivery at the end of the first week in April.

I haven't heard from them, and assuming I don't hear from them by the end of this week, the order will be a month overdue.

What are my chances of cancelling and getting my deposit back, given the delay?

T & C's make no direct reference to this, says that deposit is forfeited if an order cancelled after 5 days, but no reference to cancellations because of delays. Also says Arnotts not liable for losses caused by delays etc.

Has anyone experience of this situation with Arnotts? Am I expected to wait indefinitely, or do they in practice have a cut off, e.g. if overdue 3 months they will refund etc?

I know it will be pointed out to me that in the greater scheme of things one months delay is not much if it is furniture that I expect to last for a decade or more, but I'm not a patient person and want to finish furnishing asap.

rmelly said:

I haven't heard from them, and assuming I don't hear from them by the end of this week, the order will be a month overdue.

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Why don't you ring them and find out?

Arnotts are probably the most reputable furniture store in the country and I would assume a phonecall to them would sort it out. In addition I don't see how cancelling the order will improve your patience: you will be back at square one!!!

I work in a reputable DIY shop and we have a policy where we give refunds on the basis of excessive lead time. In other words if delivery is not within the original specified delivery expectation the customer is entitled to a refund if that is their request. A firm such as Arnotts should also give this level of customer service. Though it may not be a legal right, may not be stated in their T&Cs, I think they would like to keep their reputation to a high standard. As a retailer, sometimes circumstances beyond their control, ie. manufacturer or supply issues mean that they can not fulfill the contract within a specified time, but they should offer you a refund plus a gesture of goodwill, maybe a gift voucher, so you continue to shop with them.

I rang on Thursday morning, they said that one item was outstanding but they thought it had just been delivered that morning and they would ring me back. I haven't heard from them since, I'll try again at the end of the week.

My previous experiences with them have been good so I'm happy enough to give them a bit of leeway overall but I'm not willing to give much more.

Re: my patience (or lack thereof), if I cancel, I'll order something in stock from elsewhere if it comes to that.

Although having said all of above, I just remembered that I'm still waiting on them to get back to me to arrange measurements for venetian blinds for almost a month, so maybe their customer service isn't entirely up to scratch...

They're laying off 2/3 of their staff later this summer as they're closing for 3 years so I'd imagine a lot of the staff are possibly not as motivated as they might otherwise be!!

I got a call from them around 11:00 saying the order was now ready for delivery.

Follow up: I had another order with Arnotts that they allowed me to remove an item from just before delivery without penalty (despite their T & C's stating otherwise), so fair play to them.

They may have been slow to get back to you, but I'd be very surprised if you had any problems with Arnotts: they have a good reputation. Don't forget that the actual delay will have been caused almost certianly by their supplier, but they should behave reasonably in trying to sort it out (e.g. cancel order with no penalty, regardless of any written T&Cs).

I'm in a similar situation with Project Office - a commercial arm of HAUS in Templebar, Dublin.

I ordered goods in mid-December last (2007) and have not yet received them.

They have ignored all emails since February and all phone calls are taken by a receptionist but not returned by anyone who can tell me the situation.

I contacted the manufacturer directly in Switzerland and was told that the goods have been ready since February.

We are now in week 23, by my calculation, and no sign of anything.

Here are the T&Cs: Have I made a huge mistake? HAUS is closing in Templebar in mid-May and "reopening" in September in a new premises. Not a good sign when they're happy to close for 4 months and they don't tell you where the new shop will be.

[FONT=&quot]TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF [/FONT][FONT=&quot]SALE[/FONT][FONT=&quot]:[/FONT]









[FONT=&quot]All prices quoted are subject to Vat @ 21%[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]Quotation is valid for 28 days from date of issue[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]Prices quoted are based on single order for all items.[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]any change to quantity or specification will require a new quotation.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]All orders must be signed off by the client in order to proceed[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]Orders will only be accepted in writing. The delivery lead time commences[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]from the date of client order[/FONT]



[FONT=&quot]Changes to orders will be accepted for a period of 5 days from date[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]of order.[/FONT]



[FONT=&quot]As all goods are manufactured to order, cancellations will be charged in full[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]The standard delivery lead time from receipt of order is 8-10 weeks[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]We will do everything possible to ensure that the goods are delivered [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]within the stated lead-time. However, if a delay occurs, Project Office Ohagan[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Ltd cannot be held responsible for delays which are beyond its control.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Payment terms: 35% deposit to secure the order payable on receipt of signed order confirmation.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Final payment due prior to delivery[/FONT]



[FONT=&quot]Option for 30 day credit account available subject to credit approval. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Cost for credit check is €110.00 payable in advance.[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]All goods remain the property of Project Office Ohagan Ltd until[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot] all outstanding monies as stated by the company have been paid in full.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Prices quoted are exclusive of delivery and assembly.[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]Delivery & assembly takes place between 0830 - 1630 hours[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]Monday to Friday. Deliveries outside of these hours are subject to an overtime premium.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Delivery & Installation is charged at 5% of the gross invoice amount. For invoices with a pre VAT [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]figure less than €1,000.00 a minimal charge of €50.00 applies.[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]Prices quoted are Ex. Factory[/FONT]



[FONT=&quot]Goods will be stored free of charge for a period of ten working days if unable to deliver for date[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]specified. Storage charges per pallet are applicable after this period.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Part shipments of goods ordered under the same order confirmation are not possible.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]If part shipments of goods are required, please state this at time of ordering.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Interest will accrue at the prevailing bank rate on overdue accounts.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Please indicate the relevant person responsible for Account Payable and a contact number.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Any purchase to be invoiced to leasing companies should be notified at time of order, with [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]the relevent details of leasing company, address and contact person.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Order includes for manufacture, protection while delivering/ installing to the require locations[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Order includes for the removal and safe disposing of all packaging and waste generated from the [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]delivery & installation of the goods.[/FONT]




By the way, the order is for USM shelving. It is NOT manufactured, it is assembled to a specification. So, the pieces can be used in another specification quite easily. Think glorified Meccano! ;-) Therefore, the T&C about goods being made to order doesn't really apply.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

D.