HOUSE of Fraser shoppers have been hit by delivery chaos with hundreds waiting weeks for parcels that remain undelivered.
Frustrated shoppers have struggled to reach customer service to request refunds, leaving those affected out of pocket.
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The issues have plagued those who placed online orders on the retailer’s website since late August.
Angry customers have taken to social media to vent their fury, branding the company’s response as “appalling.”
One shopper, still awaiting delivery of an order placed last month, said on Facebook: “I can’t speak to anyone. I tried the social media pages, but customer service was appalling, and no emails or telephone numbers can be found.”
Another customer said: “I placed an order on August 23 and still haven’t received it, but they’ve kept my money.”
A third said: “Don’t bother wasting your time ordering anything. My order from August 26 still hasn’t arrived, and customer service now says they haven’t got it in stock.”
“What are you doing about the non-delivery of my item and keeping £80 of my money? ” another customer asked.
There are hundreds more complaints across social media sites from furious customers.
The issues appears to have started around the same time a new website was revealed, rebranding House of Fraser as simply Frasers.
Frasers Group, which owns the House of Fraser brand, also started selling other brands it owns on the new site, including Sports Direct, Game and Sofa.com
GAME AND SPORTS DIRECT ALSO AFFECTED
However, the issue doesn’t seem to be isolated to orders placed on the new Frasers website.
Shoppers buying directly from Game and Sports Direct have also reported undelivered orders, with dozens of complaints online.
One Sports Direct customer raged on X (formerly Twitter): “I ordered a package five weeks ago and still haven’t received it.”
A Game customer also said on X: “Game is happy to take people’s money, but not actually provide them with the product or any helpful information.”
Both websites were “upgraded” around the same time as House of Fraser’s online rebrand, according to the owners.
In response to the Game complaint, a customer service agent acknowledged the delivery chaos.
They wrote: “Due to recent Game migration, we are currently facing issues with orders being delayed.
“We are doing our absolute best to get these processed as soon as possible.”
Frasers Group has been contacted for comment.
Standard delivery times for items ordered online from Frasers Group brands should be no longer than seven days, or 14 days for “oversized orders.”
If you’ve been waiting longer, contact the chain’s customer service online and request a refund by visiting help.houseoffraser.co.uk/support/home#contact.
If Frasers don’t play ball, there are other ways to request a refund.
CLAW BACK YOUR CASH
By James Flanders, chief consumer reporter.
YOU may not know that you can claim your money back if a product or service remains undelivered or faulty or if a firm goes bust.
This clever protection is provided under Section 75 of the Consumer Rights Act.
So if you splashed out on a haul from Frasers that’s gone undelivered, and the retailer’s customer service agents aren’t budging on issuing a refund, there’s still a useful way to claw your cash back.
Section 75 protection helps those paying by credit card get a refund as long as the purchase costs more than £100 and less than £30,000.
To make a claim, contact your credit card provider – your first port of call should be its customer services phone number – and tell them you want to make a claim under Section 75.
It should then send you a claim form, which you can fill out, and your provider will use it to process your application.
Your card firm might ask you to provide evidence, such as a receipt or a report verifying that the item is faulty or hasn’t arrived.
Unfortunately, you cannot make a Section 75 claim if you have paid with a debit card.
However, these customers have another means to request a refund.
Chargeback is a consumer protection mechanism that allows individuals to request a refund from their bank or card issuer if they encounter issues with a purchase made on either a credit or debit card.
While chargeback is not a legal right in the UK, it is part of the voluntary schemes run by card networks like Visa, Mastercard, and American Express.
It is widely supported by banks and financial institutions.
Here, your bank will try to get your money back from the retailer or service provider.
You typically have 120 days from the date of the transaction to submit a claim.
Usually, it’s just a phone call where you tell the card firm what happened and ask it to do a chargeback.
HOUSE OF FRASER IN DECLINE
House of Fraser was rescued from collapse by billionaire businessman Mike Ashley in 2018.
While the acquisition saved the chain’s 59 stores, dozens of its once-iconic department stores have closed in the past few years.
Most recently, House of Fraser shuttered its store in Cabot Circus in August, leaving the retailer with just 15 outlets.
This means the brand now operates only a quarter of the 59 stores it had when it was acquired by Mike Ashley in 2018.
Last autumn, Frasers Group chief executive Michael Murray described House of Fraser as a “broken business” and suggested it is likely to “diminish.”
Mr Murray explained that the group’s strategy involves moving away from the traditional department store model.
He stated at the time: “We’ve completely changed the operating model.
“It was mostly concession-based, the stores were far too large, and they suffered from a lack of investment.
“Our future vision is that House of Fraser will diminish, and Frasers will grow.”
Instead, Frasers Group has been revamping brick-and-mortar stores, by bringing multiple brands under one roof.
There are now eight Frasers stores, which have Game and Sports Direct concessions.
Other Frasers Group brands have been decreasing their store numbers.
A Sports Direct branch in Stroud, Gloucestershire, pulled the shutters down for good at the end of March.
Sports Direct also shuttered its branch in the Central Six Retail Park, Coventry, at the end of January.
The Flannels site in Market Place Shopping Centre, Bolton, pulled down its shutters for the final time in the new year.
It also shut its site in Bradford in January despite only opening back up in October.
What does Frasers Group own?
MIKE Ashley’s Frasers Group owns dozens of high street and online brands, here is the full list.
- House of Fraser
- Sports Direct
- Flannels
- Evans Cycles
- Everlast Gyms
- Everlast
- Game
- Frasers
- I saw it first
- Gieves and Hawkes
- Jack Wills
- Slazenger
- Studio
- Sofa.com
- USA Pro
- USC
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