Allotments 4 All
General => The Shed => Topic started by: Tora on February 08, 2008, 12:24:02
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I've never been a big Tesco fan but this one really got to me. I need to vent!
I sent my OH to buy a tub of double cream yesterday and he came back with wrong one (the smallest tub and I needed bigger one). So he went back to Tesco for me today to return it (I went with him but I was shopping while he was at the customer service).
Then what happened was they refused to give him a refund saying "Chilled items must be returned within 20 minutes of purchase"! Nowhere in the shop does it say "Chilled items must be returned within 20 minutes of purchase". And the cream was in the fridge and never left in a warm place before he took it to Tesco (and our place is only several minutes from Tesco) but they said "We cannnot trust you". OH says "Feel the tub then, it's cold". They say "It doesn't mean anything". They went on arguing apparently for ages and the staff said "You should have phoned us yesterday when you got home" - how were we supposed to know that??? In the end, they said "OK, we'll make an exeption and give you the refund but the cream will be chucked away. You know now what happens if you do this!" ::). Obviously OH didn't want to waste the cream so he brought it back. The staff (several women) at Tesco was laughing at him too. >:(
I just cannot believe how they treat customers these days. They used to be brilliant several years ago but have gone down hill recently. ASDA has no problem taking things back and give me a refund...
I'm not shopping at TESCO anymore! I think they are disgusting...
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Looks like they went to wrong customer service training course - "How not to keep customers happy"!
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I was kept waiting at the enquiry desk at Sainsburys the other week, and spent an interesting 10 minutes snooping at their paper work. They have an observation sheet for the checkouts - it's a page of A4, with a list of things like did they set the roller going immediately, did they offer to pack, did they greet in a friendly way, etc etc.
My problem is, the checkout staff tend to be over friendly - A good morning, would you like help with packing is OK, it's polite and all that's necessary. But to be asked how my day has been so far by someone who I have never met before is OTT familiar, especially if the day has been going really badly, or, as has happened it has been one of the worse days of my life. If I ask why they want to know, they say madam, I'm only trying to be polite. I then say you shouldn't have to try to be polite, it should come naturally.
Grrrrrrr I hate them all. >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(
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Shop online...its easier...can be cheaper
quicker, less hassle and I don't have to drive her their or pack the bags
;) ;) :-X
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I am sorry Tora but I am with Tesco on this one. I wouldn't want to have cream that had been out of the fridge for any length of time. They only have your word for it that it was for a short time. Some people exaggerate and it could be much longer than they say. Bacteria in cream multiplies rapidly. They couldn't put it back on the shelf nor use it for staff. However, they should not have said "We cannot trust you".
It was your OH who picked up the wrong size so I would have thought the best plan would have been to keep the one he bought then go and buy another one to make up the size that you needed.
I have always found Tesco extremely helpful with complaints. I have often have a home delivery and find fruit and veg not up to standard. One phone call to their internet office and my credit card is refunded immediately for the faulty goods. They are very generous because if there are one or two fruits in a punnet or package that are bruised, soft or brown, they make a refund for those items so effectively I am getting the rest of the punnet/package free. Over the past year I have had to get refunds on grapes, bananas, apples, strawberries and peppers.
Mind you, the fruit and veg shouldn't be on the shelves in that condition but unfortunately, it often is. That is my only complaint with them but I have always found their customer services helpful.
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I would never ever try to return chilled food.
Just think?
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I would never ever try to return chilled food.
Just think?
No I wouldn't.
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Tora
I am sorry I am in agreement with Tesco's. I would not be happy purchasing something that had left the store and come back the next day. There are so many freaks out there that potentially the cream could have been poisoned/tainted/or just gone off for not being refrigerated........They certainly should not have said that they didn't believe you though! (By the way I am not saying you are freaks!)
Whilst I have no choice as such as to whether or not I use Tesco I do find the staff always helpful and always mostly polite. They do a job that I would probably hate and so many customers are just plain rude to them - so there is another side!
Old Bird
:o
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I do not like any of the supermarkets but I agree with Tesco on this one. Any shop only has a legal duty to change if goods are unfit in anyway. I.e. the cream was off when it was bought, or if it was trousers, the seam was split. If somebody buys the wrong cream or the wrong sized/coloured trousers, then that is their fault and the supplier has no duty to change it - the fact that they usually do, is down to customer relations, not law. And I for one, would certainly not want a returned dairy product - they are right to say they cannot be sure where it has been between times - how are they to tell the difference between you and a potential poisoner for one. And, just how much did this pot of cream cost?
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ooo fraid I,m with tesco,s too and I think you would find all supermarkets would do the same. when you calm down about not being trusted I,m sure you will see that you wouldn,t like to eat something that had been somewhere unknown for so long
marg
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The way the complaint was dealt with was wrong by the staff, but they're right in refusing to exchange, for all the above written reasons, I'd say.
BTW I was in Lidl once & the person in front of me remarked in passing to the checkout girl that some fruit she'd bought the previous week was "off". The girl, and without recourse to a manager, promptly refunded the putchase price.
And nope! She'd not returned the fruit, and yep! I thought....
what a fabulous scam ::) ;D
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Last saturday, my friend was asked leaving ASDA if she paid for all her goods. She said yes, and showed the man she just spent nearly 200.00 on shopping.
She walked around the store with a woolworths bag in the trolley with other shopping she did previously.
Again the security man said, are you sure you paid for all your shopping.. and again my friend said of course I have .. here are the receipts.
Well... he then said, please come this way... he then started to check all her bags... and pulled a 74p body spray out of the Woolworths bag.. and again said are you sure you have paid for all your shopping. My friend was dumbfounded and explained it must of got in there by mistake.. she had not taken it. She apologised and offered to pay the 74p.
Security was having none of it, and called the police. She was arrested, and was made to sit in a police car outside ASDA for 2 hours while the police got details and go through CCTV tapes on how this 74p body spray ended up in her Woolworths bag.
Well to cut a long story short, even the police were astounded that they were called .. as ASDA kept insisting she was charged. Police gave her an £80.00 fine and let her go.
I have walked out of ASDA with loo rolls on the trolley, but not intentionally.....SO BEWARE OF ASDA!!!... last week a chap was arrested for a Mars Bar.
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I must have been in the wrong if everyone thinks that way, but I still cannot forgive the tesco staff to treat OH (or anybody) like that. The staff were actually having a good laugh at OH. He complained and said there's no need to laugh but did they apologise for being rude? No. IMO the manager should educate the staff not to insult customers unnecessarily at least.
I'm not that bothered about the cream. After all, my OH took it. I was just appalled by the way they dealt with it. They could have explained it to OH in a more pleasant way.
I've lived in this country for only several years and I kind of expect the high standard of service offered in my country, which is obviously a bit naive.
springbokgirlie, I'm so sorry to hear what happened to your friend. That must have been awful. :-\
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Tora, complain, either in person or to head office by letter, nobody should be treated like that, courtesy costs nothing :(
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Thank you :) I may write a letter - it might help me calm down. ;D
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Tora
I think you and your OH are right to feel offended at Tesco's approach. Probably to return a chilled item was a bit unrealistic, but I think they were making up the 20 min rule. Your OH is right, this should be clearly displayed in the store.
They clearly need some training.........
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but I think they were making up the 20 min rule.
No, it's very real. It's the same instore too. I used to work in a supermarket and if any chilled goods were left by the tills that couldn't be put back in the chiller within 20 mins, they were thrown. Quite right too.
Tora, agree with the Tesco rule but no need for rudeness on their part. Go past the store manager and straight to head office (but be sure to put a cc to the local store manager so he knows what's coming ....hehe)
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Tesco had absolutely no right to speak to you like that, the customer service is very poor and yes I would complain that you were humiliated.
I am sure you are very careful with your food but regarding the return I am surprised that they even take anything like this back, 20 minutes or not. I can see a tin, but not something in a carton that could so easily have been tampered with or kept in an insanitary condition. I find it very scary that they would accept this kind of return, I would be scared to death to think I had bought something that had been out of the store.
Maybe I am old fashioned but it gives me the creeps to think about what could happen if someone wanted to be nasty. I remember vividly the over the counter tablets that were tampered with and caused several deaths.
However I would certainly complain about their rudeness.
XX Jeannine
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Whilst I agree with Tim, et al I would never have taken a chilled product back to exchange.
The bit that I cannot understand is the nasty way that your husband was treated. All right, he had made a mistake. What would it have cost Tesco to have taken the carton back, and chucked it in the bin. That's where an enormous amount of their food ends up!!! Just good PR.
My personal grouse was with Morrisons. They had charged me £9.99 for an item that was only priced 99p. When I went back and queried this, I was told by some undermanager that they were not prepared to believe me and, basically I was trying to rob the store of £9.00.
I have never been in one of their stores since.
I object being called a liar for £9.00
valmarg
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Try reading the book Tescopoly by Andrew Simms or go to www.tescopoly.org - both deal with the destructive powers of supermarkets in general, but do focus on the biggest success of them all, Tesco.
No need to tell you where I'm standing, but I have successfully boycotted all supermarket chains for 18 months now, and don't feel I'm missing out.
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Try reading the book Tescopoly by Andrew Simms or go to www.tescopoly.org - both deal with the destructive powers of supermarkets in general, but do focus on the biggest success of them all, Tesco.
No need to tell you where I'm standing, but I have successfully boycotted all supermarket chains for 18 months now, and don't feel I'm missing out.
And the book "Shopped" by Joanna Blythman. Opens your eyes. I haven't bought any "fresh" meat or veg from the supermarkets for a couple of years now, and never buy any "own brands" of anything.
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Tora, please write to the manager & head office my daughter has been a customer service manager , & this scene would not be tolerated by any management. So do write. No i would not have returned chilled goods , but no reason to be rude , do something about it & let us all know.
PS you may even get a shopping voucher as an apology ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
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trouble is, you'd have to go to tesco to use it ;D
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When I had a holiday job in a supermarket, that shall remain nameless it was scandalous how much stuff was "thrown" away... often by the staff who reclaimed it for themselves later on.... :-X
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Last year I ordered flowers on line for MIL birthday. It arrived two day's after her birthday. I was furious, and told them so by phone. The person whom I voice my grievances to was ever so cocky, when I told him I will never shop with them again.
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Tora, please write to the manager & head office
PS you may even get a shopping voucher as an apology ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Totally agree. Phone up the local store (the number is usually on the till receipt or try Yellow Pages) and ask to speak to the manager. I did this myself when a home delivery bod was very rude and made some racist comments. Apologies and refunds etc were provided.
I can understand their policy about not accepting chilled food for refund and resell (it could have been sitting in the back of a warm car for hours!) but surely for the case of good customer feeling an exchange should have been made even if it does cost them 49p as they will throw the original goods away.
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TORA - get on to Tesco headoffice and send them an email of complaint - make sure to put your name and postal address and I bet you they will send some good will gift vouchers.
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Valmarg - unfortunately had Tesco paid back the money for the returned cream and binned the cream the precedent had been set and the world and his wife will all expect the same treatment!
There has to be some rules that are not "bendable" for the sake of the rest of us all!
I am afraid that Tesco's treated you badly - but sometimes I find there is a gentle polite way of complaint which, although not always successful, which even if the outcome is not going your way can end without insulting either party!
To be perfectly honest - is it worth any extra aggro for you to take your complaint further .... surely it is better to drop the subject ... save yourself any further hassle and either not shop there anymore - or just put it down to experience and move on.
The outcome will not get you anywhere financially. You will get worked up again about the way you were treated for what? Chill - Life's too short
Old Bird
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I cannot agree with this last comment although I appreciate it was written from a caring point of view.
Customer service in the Uk is pitifully poor and only by not accepting the rudeness will it change. I was appalled when I returned here to here some of the treatment customers have received, and what is more appalling is that folks are afraid to " make a fuss". The stores that have poor service and attitude have to understand that customers are not happy.
In return Customers do have to complain in a decent manner.
Respect is a two way street, it works everywhere else I have been so why does it not work very often in the UK.
Something is very wrong somewhere
XX Jeannine
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Well I was expecting some problems myself from Tesco this morning, when I discovered that their self service checkout had processed a card payment twice, technically they can wait for the payment to decline in a few days time rather than refund which would have left me with bank charges to pay, however I'm pleased to report, they couldn't be more helpful or polite and refunded it straight away with no quibbling or rudeness and they even did it in cash!
No excuse for poor service and in this country we are far too reticent and accepting of it. However, I have witnessed some appalling behaviour from customers as well, so I guess it cuts both ways.
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Valmarg - unfortunately had Tesco paid back the money for the returned cream and binned the cream the precedent had been set and the world and his wife will all expect the same treatment!
Old Bird
Well it would have been good PR.
How many people take a carton of cream back to Tesco because they've picked up the wrong variety. The odd £ out of their billions of profit is not exactly going to break the bank!!
We live in the West Midlands and listen to the Ed Doolan radio show on Radio WM. It is a consumer programme, and a lot of the time he complains on the listeners' behalf.
He usually gets results for the listeners who have turned to him in desperation because they have hit a brick wall in their attempts to get something sorted.
Thanks to him I have learned a lot about consumer law.
valmarg
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sorry, old bird, I can't agree, the only way the big stores know how their staff treat customers is if they are told, I've complained, not about specific people but just that their staff need customer training, I worked in a large store for years and we had training for an hour every week, it worked :)
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Thanks everyone for your comments! I'm sorry I couldn't come back sooner, I have been super busy with my job. :-\
There is one thing for certain - I will not return any chilled item ever again. :-[
I knew the tub was carried in a cooler bag and kept in the fridge immediately etc. but they couldn't have know if it really was not left in a hot place, so I totally understand that now.
Please note that the whole point of this thread was about Tesco's attitude. I don't think anybody can defend that kind of behaviour for anybody.
I am afraid that Tesco's treated you badly - but sometimes I find there is a gentle polite way of complaint which, although not always successful, which even if the outcome is not going your way can end without insulting either party!
The thing is, they insulted my OH big time from the start and OH is not the kind of person who causes an aggro. He just made a mistake of trying to return the tub and got punished immediately... Why couldn't Tesco politely explain their policy to him before making nasty comments or laughing at him?
And I totally agree with Jeannine - customers shouldn't be scared of complaining if staff treated you badly and of course both party should be polite to each other.
What's the point in insulting and upsetting people?
I'd like to believe that if I'm polite to somebody, the person will be polite to me too but sadly often that's not the case(as confirmed by Tesco staff :D). However I still want to be polite to people because it feels better that way. So many people are so miserable and angry these days! If look around when you walk down the high street you know what I mean. :-\
Tora
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I agree totally with complaining, going to the top if neccessary!
I am one of the original "angry old women" I am outspoken, I will stand up for my rights, I will stand up for other people and their rights if I feel they are unable to protect themselves!
But my point is that the original complaint about the cream was a bit thoughtless and the staff pointed out that the company policy was that they didn't refund after 20minutes or whatever. That should have been that. It was a simple complaint where they told you their position - company policy - should have been end of subject.
Sometimes the staff have to take grief from people that don't agree with "company policy" and hey! they are human! There is absolutely No EXCUSE for rudeness - I 100% agree with you on that. But a complaint to the manager the area manager will achieve what? One member of staff being told off for applying company policy? No they will probably get a gold star for keeping to company rules. It will be your word against theirs that they were rude and they will probably say that you were rude to them (I am not in any way saying that you were).
I agree that training is essential to staff to remedy bad manners - but unfortunately - good manners learnt from parents are a rare commodity these days. But I think that good manners should not be left to an employer to teach its employees they should start from infancy through school and into the workplace. I am definitely not having a pop - good luck with following up your complaint!
Old Bird
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It might get the price of goods down a bit if every shop had an F!... off dept. It might discourage people from wasting the stores time and making the rest of us pay for their mistakes. The returns dept. has to be paid for and the money to pay for it is included in our purchases.
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The returns dept. has to be paid for and the money to pay for it is included in our purchases.
Hence their ginormous profits!!!
valmarg
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mm, so why is customer service so poor and prices so high in the UK ..just a smiley thought XX Jeannine
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Valmarg - unfortunately had Tesco paid back the money for the returned cream and binned the cream the precedent had been set and the world and his wife will all expect the same treatment!
There has to be some rules that are not "bendable" for the sake of the rest of us all!
I am afraid that Tesco's treated you badly - but sometimes I find there is a gentle polite way of complaint which, although not always successful, which even if the outcome is not going your way can end without insulting either party!
To be perfectly honest - is it worth any extra aggro for you to take your complaint further .... surely it is better to drop the subject ... save yourself any further hassle and either not shop there anymore - or just put it down to experience and move on.
The outcome will not get you anywhere financially. You will get worked up again about the way you were treated for what? Chill - Life's too short
Old Bird
Well Bollo***cks to that Old Bird!
Yes, life's too short but SOME people like to live their lives doing something about things that other people can't even IMAGINE can't change & some people can't imagine living without doing something that can change a life.
Do I make myself clear?
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Very Sucint,sukint? Oh heck yes very clear, trust you Trix. ::) ::)
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I think it would be best venting your anger digging on the veg plot ;)
I agree with old bird, life is too short...... I do agree with everything you've said but is it really worth the strive .... but which ever way good luck
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i used to work for woolworths and we once had a man return a tube of super glue because it had set in the tube he did admit to having bought it over a year before the manager offered him half the money he kicked off and for the good name of the store he was given the full money. another lady came in whos dad had died and she tried to get a refund on a pair of laces that she had found in his drawer sadly though it was one from a twin pack otherwise it would have been refunded.
tesco is large enough to have absorbed the cost of a pot of cream for goodness sake they could have said look we cant do anything with it you keep it get a larger one and pay the difference its no skin off their nose for goodness sake
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I think you are missing the point Debster and a few others! Certainly complain all you like but the point is not the cost of the cream but the fact that had they refunded in the first place, the very strict rules that are in force and obviously are adhered to would be breached. What is to stop me, you and everyone else doing the same? I know cream doesn't cost much - but then why try to return it in the first place?
I think just because Tesco's makes a ginormous amount of profit is not a justification for them to have to pay for their customers' ignorance just to keep everyone happy. In the end the customer pays whatever!
I don't have a problem with Tesco making a huge amount of money - I don't have shares in it! They employ thousands of people - if they were so awful as to not to re-imburse everyone over a pot of mis purchased cream they wouldn't have the customers or the staff for us to complain about and they wouldn't exist!
I still say Life is too short to worry about insignificant things worry about the bigger picture, there is a whole world out there beyond a small pot of cream.
Jeanine you obviously hadn't read my letter properly I do say that I definitely support complaining and goint to the top about issues slightly less trivial than a small pot of cream. So no need for the swearing - it isn't worth you getting so upset over something so trivial.
Old Bird
:o
Old Bird
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APOLOGIES to Jeanine it wasn't you that cursed at me it was Trixiebelle! I was on the wrong line!
Old Bird ::)
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(Jeannine's swear-words? They're a hoot ;D....there's a thread somewhere abt what she can/can't force herself to say ::)).....
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(Jeannine's swear-words? They're a hoot ;D....there's a thread somewhere abt what she can/can't force herself to say ::)).....
I believe you are referring to this thread.
http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php/topic,29525.0.html
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Brilliant - made me chuckle!
;D
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I've found this thread brilliant to read - people with different perspectives and opinions exchanging views pretty robustly and defending them without descending into personal abuse and point-scoring.
If only this could be replicated in bigger areas of public policy!
Much of the work I do outside my allotment is in the opinion shaping/sharing world and I would welcome folks' observations about why it is we can have a spirited and serious discussion about supermarkets' returns policies but would probably fail to do so were we to discuss the nationalisation of Northern Rock (and NO, I don't want to hear your take on this!)
For what it's worth my take is:
Nobody makes you shop anywhere
If you choose to shop somewhere, you do so on the shop's terms.
Rational retailers want to keep you contibuting to their profits forever rather than scoring quick wins
Company policies have to balance doing the right thing for good customers against being abused by customer scammers (M&S used to have a ridiculously relaxed returns policy).
Junior staff get things wrong - and sometimes managers or supervisors need to stand with their staff's decisions when things get confrontational even when they really don't give a toss. Lines get drawn.
Time to move on perhaps?