Raw Deal: Broken washing machine causes a spin

Michelle McIntosh (Ross Johnston/Newsline Media)

For Michelle McIntosh her problems revolved around the purchase of a new Beko washing machine from catalogue company Very.

Her new machine was delivered to her home in Aberdeen on Tuesday, February 2.

The couriers left without opening the packaging, so it was only while Michelle was unpacking it that she noticed it had some damage in the form of a dent.

She contacted the catalogue straight away and they offered her a discount or a replacement. As it wasn’t a bad dent, Michelle accepted the discount.

The following day she had a plumber there to plumb in the machine and he pointed out that the damage was more serious than it at first appeared.

The whole front of the machine was caved in down one side and along the bottom. Also the rubber inside the drum was out of shape and not fitted properly.

Michelle contacted Very once more, only to be told that, because she took the discount, she couldn’t get a replacement.

She pointed out that as the machine is black she hadn’t noticed how badly damaged it was. To no avail.

Very unhappy at the condition the machine, which cost £200, was delivered to her Michelle emailed Raw Deal asking us to take up her case for her.

We contacted Very and, true to their name, they had this sorted very quickly.

A spokesperson told us: “The customer reported damage to the washing machine when it was delivered.

“As a consequence, we offered to collect and exchange the product or give the customer a 10% discount on the price of the machine. The customer accepted the 10% discount.

“The customer contacted us again on February 4 to advise that while the washing machine was being installed, a plumber had identified that the damage was more severe than originally thought.

“Our customer advisor stated that as the customer had accepted the original discount, we could not now exchange the washing machine.

“We always endeavour to ensure all items reach our customer in perfect condition. Unfortunately, on this occasion, we fell short of our own high standards.

“Having reviewed the case, we also recognise that the 10% discount originally provided to the customer did not take into account the further damage that was later discovered, for which our advisor should have provided the option to exchange the product.

“We contacted the customer to apologise and arranged to collect the damaged washing machine and replace it with a new one. We also added a £30 credit to the customer’s account to reflect the inconvenience caused.”

A delighted Michelle said: “I received a new machine along with a credit of £30 on my account.

“I’d like to thank you for your help and I’m very relieved that this has been resolved.”

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