Need some guidance on my sofa order with a local dealer

Hello,

I am looking for some guidance with a problem I am facing with a local furniture store. I bought a 2 piece leather sofa set a few months back from them. One leather sofa had a cut on the side and scratch on the back which I identified while the delivery guys were unpacking the sofa at my house. So, the store took the damaged sofa back but has not been able to replace it yet. Whenever I call they move the delivery date forward and say we cannot provide a guaranteed delivery date nor can we give you a credit card refund. We can only give a store credit if you want and we cannot offer any other option at this point. Their customer service rep also suggested me to mix and match the 2 sofas to fix the problem sooner. Unless I call they don’t even have the courtesy to call and let me know the delivery date has been moved forward to the next month.

I do not have much experience dealing with issues like this and don’t know what options I have to get the problem fixed before my daughter’s birthday in December.

Thanks in advance!

Duane can obviously give you more information on what you can do to work with them. Once you reach the point that you don't think working with them further is an option, I would contact your credit card company. They can provide you with a credit on your card if you have not received the merchandise or received damaged or defective merchandise. I believe this is called a "charge back". I have only needed to use the option once or twice. Twice I believe it was, although one was so long ago I cannot at the moment remember what the item was. The 2nd was more recent and involved recieving a damaged item I ordered online. Both times the credit card company investigated and found in my favor and credited my card for the charge. I had photos of the item, and details about phone calls and emails sent. If they took the damaged sofa back you won't need pictures but you will likely need something in writing indicating that you do not have the sofa yet. Something noted on the paperwork when the sofa was delivered, emails about it, etc.

The manufacturer may be experiencing a lot of orders like Duane has mentioned in regards to Hancock & Moore. The store should have inspected the sofa for quality and damage before delivering it to you. Mistakes happen, but they should have been upfront instead of hoping you wouldn't notice. I agree with Sue about contacting your credit card card company and be able to provide them the dates and times of when the sofa was returned and your phone conversations.

Cuts in leather are caused by whomever is unpacking the sofa. Got to watch those blades! In 35 years, I have nicked two of thousands of pieces unpacked. Cut leather is not really repairable as a patch and that segment has to be re-leathered which means going back to the factory and it takes time to do so.

If this is an import, then everything is sold out from all makers so its not a matter of simply getting a new one, you will probably have to wait. No one is doing guarantees in a Covid world and its unreasonable to expect that. Just be patient, I'm sure they will get you fixed up eventually. Everything is taking longer.

Chargebacks are no longer easy. Used to be every customer could do one for the most trite reasons. Not anymore, Merchants are far better protected. Store policies spell out the refund/return procedures, its not uncommon to get only a store credit. Read your sales contract before you commit to an order. Good luck.

I would still notify your credit card company so you they have the information on file. There is a time limit to filing claims with them and you do want to protect yourself. They can give you the detailed information. If takes a year or more for things to straighten out with COVID, are you really going to go that long waiting for a sofa? If you do, by then you will have no other recourse. The credit card company can go over their policies with you, time limits, etc. In my case they tried to contact the company themselves and were so put off I could tell from the voice of the person who called me back, they understood I wasn't going to get anywhere with them. I don't know, but I have not seen any sales contract that says you have to keep damaged items or settle for what ever mis matched items they offered you. Only you know the reputation of the store you are dealing with. The fact that they don't even bother to update you or tell you when dates have changed does not make me think they are customer service oriented. I have had issues with furniture items I have purchased but only used people with very good reputations and they have always gone out of their way to make it right and make me happy. But Duane is right, fixing it sooner with a new sofa is probably out of their control. Have you asked if you could return the other sofa as well and pick out a whole new set?

Thank you Sue, Casey and Duane for taking the time to reply to my post. The information you have shared and your support has been very helpful.

I went in to the store today and they said that the sofa would be in sometime next month but I told them it is not feasible for me to wait any longer. They didn’t let me return the second sofa so I took the store credit and ordered a bedroom set with that amount.

The manager said we can sell you another sofa set that we have in stock but I refused and said that I don’t have much faith in your delivery people as they were aggressive in unpacking the leather sofa in my house and when I told them that the cut most likely happened because of the unpacking the delivery people replied and said the sofa gets a lot of miles on it to travel from the factory to your house. Once I saw Duane’s reply I knew my assumption was right.

Ideally I would have chosen Sue’s approach since it would have prevented me from booking a loss due to the store’s mishandling of my order, but it has been around 5 months and quite stressful for me. At this point I want to be done with this store and don’t have much patience and energy to deal with them with my limited resources. I am still concerned about the proper delivery of the bedroom set which will happen on 11/07. I will keep you posted.

Also, with regards to the sofa in house, I will either unfortunately have to mix and match or move it to my basement. I will also share pictures once I pick one of these options. Hoping, I might be able to make it work without it looking too bad.

Thanks and have a happy Halloween!

I went with the mix and match option and got four chairs and have set them up in my living room. I am sharing the pictures as promised. Hopefully, the setup looks decent to your expert eyes. Thanks to all who replied and offered advice on my problem.

Attachment 13505

Not to be critical, but it looks a bit like the waiting room in my dentist's office, its only missing a stack of magazines on the coffee table.

Thanks for the constructive feedback. I guess I will find out for myself when Dentist visits become a regular feature for me to take note of their furniture setup. Until then, I will keep the magazines off the coffee table, so it only looks a bit like the dentist’s waiting room.