Episode 2 Rip Off Britain

We asked you to tell us who has left you feeling ripped off. And

you contacted us in your thousands. By post, e-mail, even stopping us

on the streets. And the message couldn't be clearer. I think there

is a lot of hidden information about your bills that should be

made a lot more clear. I don't feel I get treated how I should be.

have told us with money tighter than ever, you need to be sure that

every pound you spend is worth it. How do I get my money back. I think

I'm entitled. Whether it is a deliberate rip-off, a simple

mistake, or a catch in the small print, we will find out why it is

you are out of pocket, and what you can do about it. Keep asking the

questions, go to the top if you have to. We do get results.

Your stories, your money. This is Rip Off Britain. Welcome to Rip Off

Britain, the programme that gets you answers, when you feel you have

lost out or had had a raw deal. the end, when things go wrong, it

is how companies put them right that can make all the difference.

But they don't always do that the way that you might have hoped.

Perhaps they take a bit longer to sort it out than you would have

expected. Or maybe they didn't actually explain things as clearly

as they could have done in the first place. But you know, either

way, good customer service shouldn't end when you have handed

over your good money. Or signed on the dotted line. When you have

given a company hundreds of pounds worth of business, wouldn't you

hope that service was all part of the deal. You would like to think

so. But some of the people we will hear from today would say that,

most definitely, was not the case. On today's programme, the big-name

store, whose service and sofas didn't leave this customer sitting

comfortably. I have had frames cracking, springs snapping, all the

cushion covers ripping, fraying. And a wedding dress disaster. And a

battle with the banks to get the money back. I felt quite scared, I

was terrified that nothing was going to be ready, that the dress,

we have paid this money, and the dress had disappeared, all of a

sudden. And more of your problems solved at

our Pop-Up Shop. Now, are you sitting comfortably, if so, lucky

you. But spare a thought for the people we are about to meet, they

have quite a few problems getting comfy on their sof as if. Despite

the -- sofas. Despite the fact that they were bought new from the store.

Months after buying them, they can't restiesy. More value at ScS.

Their adverts promise, more, more, more, some ScS customers told us

they have had more than enough of the store's customer service. Among

them is Ross, a fireman and kick boxer, he has had a catalogue of

faults with the two sofas he bought from them. I have had frames

cracking, springs snapping, cushion covers ripping and fraying.

price he paid for sofas, including insurance and finance, �1,726. And

in Norfolk, Donna and her husband Paddy, also feel they have had more

than they bargained for. We have been married 27 years, we have

never had a new suite, we thought, right, if we are going to get one,

we will get a really, really good one. That will last forever. That

is what we thought. Wrong. price they paid, including

insurance, �3,417. Ross, who lives in Sheffield, took

delivery of his two sofas in March last year. The first sign of

trouble was two months later, when the cushions began to fray.

don't really expect that from a new sofa, what you spend over �1,000 on.

They have been out, fixed it, stitched it up, and said on the

manufacturing report, said it is a clear manufacturing fault. Three

months after that, another problem sprang up. Literally. September

time, the springs were coming off, I ran ScS, they sent the up

holsterer out, same person, he took the back off, he said the spring is

out, and said it is a clear manufacturing fault. All you can

see is the spring has come off, and the force of it has ripped the

underneath of the carriage, it is showing clearly there. ScS fixed

the fault, but four months later had to come back for the same

reason. By now, like the fabric on his cushions, Ross's patience was

wearing thin. And it reached breaking point just one month later,

when there was yet another problem. After the springs coming off and

the cushion cover, one night we were sat watching tele, and all of

a sudden I heard the crack and a shaking in the sofa, I got back up

and you could see you can push your hand on it, you were going in a

good six inches. Back came the upholsterer to find another report,

which, again, blamed a manufacturing report. But the very

next month, Ross's other sofa began to creak. He now had big problems

with both his sofas, leading to another round of inspections and

reports, leaving him frustrated and confused. I got the manufacturing

reports back and there was an extra page, and an additional

upholsterers page, added by the upholsterer, saying we had been

clearly jumping on the sofa, there is excessive weight on the sofa,

but underneath said it was clearly a manufacturing fault. I don't know

why they are trying to contradict their selves, or trying to put

blame on me. But then it seemed his troubles were coming to an end.

Ross was told that the sofas would be what is called RTMed, returned

to manufacturer. I was told by the sales team that it was definitely

getting RTMed, and the aftercare team it would happen. Chuffed to

bits, thank God it's ended. I got a phone call on Saturday morning, it

said it was not. For Ross, that was below the belt. I had enough, I

wrote a final letter saying if you don't reply within 14 days I will

take you to court. And, as we will see, putting it like that did seem

to get things moving. Meanwhile, in Norfolk, Donna and

Paddy had a set of recliners from ScS delivered last June, but they

don't sitting pretty either. first sofa we had delivered, the

manual recliner was perfect, it was lovely, but on the power recliner,

when you relined, there was a great big gap down the middle and you

could actually see the floor. We complained, they said that was

absolutely fine, we said, no it is not. After a lot of arguments, they

did agree to replace both as a set. Which they did. But then the

replacement set broke. If they were right, they would be lovely. But

well, as you can see. If you try to line the back rests up, there, you

have got a huge big gap at the front. And obviously if you rush

that back, and try to line them up, then the gap appears at the back.

Whichever way you do it, it is wrong. The power recliner has a big

gap at the back of the two seats. Which doesn't look nice at all.

Donna and Paddy say they have had the same difficulties as Ross,

getting their problems resolved. Weeks of phone calls and letters,

and repeated visits from the upholsterer. He went in and says

there is nothing he can do, pulls it around for half an hour, pushes

it all in, and takes pictures and goes off again. I thought we were

waiting for a report to come through, or the case has been

closed, so we then have to say we are still not happy. They said they

would send an upholsterer out then, it goes around and around in

circles, nothing get done. ScS said the sofas were working within

"acceptable tolerances "so they wouldn't repair or replace them.

Donna and Paddy say that is completely out of order. They have

had our money, they are not interested now. Ross and the

Cullens aren't the only people to tell us they have had trouble

resolving their problems with ScS, that is right there's

# More, more, more We have had 19 year e-mail about

the store since January. We contacted ScS, they have apologised

for the service Ross and the Cullens have received. Saying they

are disappointed they haven't received the level of customer

service they would have wished. They have had the sofas inspected

again and concluded Donna and Paddy's problems were down to

incorrect assembly. They have offered a full refund. Although

they say further inspection of Ross's sofas, does suspect product

misuse and not a manufacturing report, they have delivered rements

for both. They say over the past -- replacements for both. They say

over the past two years they have delivered in excess of 250,000

customer orders, and air aim is to provide the best customer

performance. But after these cases a full review of the aftersales

care is under way. They say of the customers who have given them

feedback over the last nine months, 88% rated their experience as very

good or excellent. But they are working hard on the areas they can

improve. Ross is hoping that finally this is

the end of his sofa troubles. Because Rip Off Britain are

involved, it is sort. Just have to wait for the sofa, hopefully

fingers crossed, there will be no issues with the sofa. Otherwise I

will be contacting you again for more help and advice.

A subject that we have received a lot of complaints about again this

year is the cost of flying. Buying a seat with a budget airline can

turn out to be a surprisingly expensive business, what with all

the extras on top of the basic fare. But if you need to make any sort of

change to your tickets, for example, to the name, the cost can be a lot

more than you think. It is fair enough that you should pay some

kind of fee, but in many cases, the charges seem sky high. As devoted

rugby fan, the highlight of the year for Mike and his wife, eed dit,

was booking tickets to see Scotland play Wales in the Six Nations match.

My family are great rugby fan, my son plays since he was six years

old. We were looking forward to this year because we were going to

do all three-way watch, including the Scotland Wales match in Cardiff.

To get to the game from their home in West Lothian, they managed to

book tickets on Flybe. We were delighted to find to book direct

flights from Edinburgh to Cardiff from Flybe. But not so excited that

it was �560 pounds return. We understood the price would be

inflated because it was a sporting event. But we were rather surprised

it was as much as that. But Mike he is excitement was short lived, not

long after making the booking, he was diagnosed with an illness that

ruled out travelling to Cardiff. Despite the disappointment, he was

determined that someone else in his rugby-loving family should use the

tickets. I understood the tickets were non-refundable, but we did

have the option to transfer them to another person. So my son, who

loves rugby, I decided to transfer the tickets to him. And offer his

friend a chance to go with them. Mike knew there was a �160 charge

to change the names. When he called Flybe, he he was told he had to

stump up a further �200, to cover the price in the seat price since

he made his original booking. Unfortunately by then I was

committed, I told my son I was doing it for him and he had made

arrangements, I was committed, but very angry that we had been charged

that amount of money for a simple name change. So, adding those extra

charges to what he had initially paid, Mike's total spend on two,

supposedly budget flights, had now rocketed to �975. Stunned by the

price increase, he asked Flybe to explain exactly what he was being

charged for. I was staggered to find the total final bill for the

name change, included an upgrade from economy to economy plus, which

was something I never asked for. Although economy plus is useful for

some passengers, because it means you can change your flight times at

no additional cost, Mike says, in this instance, he had no need for

it at all. I never had bought economy class, because we knew

exactly when we wanted to fly, and when we didn't want to fly, it was

no benefit at all to us. I couldn't understand how I couldn't keep the

economy seats and was forced to an upgrade into an allocated economy

plus seat. So, were there any other benefits of economy plus that might

have been useful on this occasion? Well, the free on-line seat

reservations and free baggage allowance sounds good, except a

close explanation of Flybe's price breakdown revealed they had already

charged him separately for both of these, in fact, twice, on the

initial booking, and the later flight with the name changes. So,

rugby-mad Mike feels he has been left with a pretty big penalty,

just for changing the name on his tickets. The price he has paid

works out at �2.29 per mile for his flight. For the same price the

family could have travelled from Edinburgh to Cardiff and back again,

in a chauffeur-driven, luxury car, with a bottle of bubbly thrown in.

I was prepared to pay the �160 for changing the names, as stated on

the ticket, but to be forced into an upgrade is totally unacceptable.

I think I should be refunded that value. But, that's not going to

happen. When we contacted Flybe, they told us that there are non-

they are a non-refundable airline, that during the reservation process

makes it clear to passengers, before they confirm their booking,

that there are certain rules and conditions that afly. They say it

is clearly stated that you will pay a charge per person per sector,

plus any difference between the original fare, and the cost of the

new flight at the time of change. They point out that the lowest

fares are available early. But, as time passes, they vary, according

to supply and demand. And, as Mike made his change only nine days

before departure, the only available openings was an economy

plus fare. So they are satisfied the charges here were correct.

Of course, Flybe aren't the only airline whose charges for a name

Chiang Mai be higher than you would think. The UK's airline trade

association, BATA, has three other members who will allow name changes

on a domestic flight. And all of these, easyJet, jet 2, and BMI baby,

all charge a fee. Although BMI Baby, does it free within the first 24

hours. Travel writer, Simon Calder has heard complaints like this

before. If you need to change the name on a ticket for a flight, the

odds are stacked against you. Very often it is simply uneconomical to

do so. You are better off starting again and buying a completely new

flight, walking away from the old one. Mike is still unhappy at how

much he had to pay for his son to go to the match. On top of all that,

the game didn't go well either. With Scotland losing the match, and

the sky high prices from Flybe, it was a pretty disastrous weekend all

round. The Rip Off Britain team has come

to the north-east to open up our very own Pop-Up Shop. It is our

opportunity to meet many of you face-to-face, and more importantly,

actually solving your consumer problems on the spot. Inside the

shop our experts are ready, willing and able to give our consumers with

problems all the advice they need. And quite frankly, we can't wait to

get started. Teresa's hoping for some much-

needed advice about her faulty mobility tricycle, from tradings

standards expert with us. You have a lot of paperwork with you, tell

us about your problem? I only had it three months and it brokedown,

it stopped working and there was no power. It has gone from one thing

to another with the company not taking responsibility for it.

contract is with the retailer, it is retailer's responsibility to

sort the matter out. A lot of retailers will try to pass the

responsibility on to the manufacturer or a warranty company,

but your contract is with the retailer and the claim is against

the retailer. If they refuse to honour your claim, ultimately you

have to take them to the small claims cost. Does that cost? It is

around about �35. You can get all the forms on-line, and it will be

the direct that makes the decision, it will be the court that orders

them to pay you the money back. Just because a retailer size you

have no -- says you have no rights, doesn't mean you haven't. They

don't always know the law. Le Our advice clinic was open for one

weekend only, both days we had so many people popping in to see if

the experts can help. There are some consumer cases where two minds

are better than one. Solicitor Gary has called across money expert

James, to get to the bottom of Margaret's finance agreement.

seem to have got myself into the contract where the interest rate is

so staggering, I was promised 4%, and I have ended up with one that

is a lot more than that. I feel as though I have been cheated. What

did you sign up to? I signed up to 4% over ten years. It was variable.

And that is what I thought I was getting. This consumer credit

agreement says the interest rate will be 22.4%. I was a fool, my

fault, I shouldn't have signed it? What do you think, James? It is a

difficult one, it is obviously quite a way in the past since you

were sold this. You still might be able to make a formal complaint to

the company, and if you don't get a resolution from them, you could

take it on to the Financial Ombudsman Service, the second bit

is the issue of evidence. It is always going to help your case if

you have documentary evidence to back up what your arguing. I have.

Otherwise it is your word against their's, that is always very

difficult for an ombudsman or tribal to sort out. -- tribunal to

sort out? Thank you for coming. Thank you.

Still to come on Rip Off Britain, when you have got a fault that

keeps coming back, who should pay to put it right. It is another huge

chunk of money, I don't feel I should pay anything, but I don't

have a choice. Now, a story of wedding woes. A cautionary tale

about how even if you buy something on a credit card, you may not

necessarily always get the protection that you are expecting

when things starting to wrong. Take the case of Alex Huntley, a young

bride, who clearly wanted the perfect dress for her big day. But,

apparently, that was when things started to fall apart at the seams.

The 29th of April, 2011, a day for huge celebrations across the

country. But Kate and Wills weren't the only couple tying the knot that

day. In New Yorkshire, another wedding was taking place. And

mother of the bride, Judith Silva, was delighted her daughter, Alex,

had found her own Prince Charming. I was ecstatic, because finally she

had found somebody who was wonderful. I was excited and happy

to be getting married. And the dress was the most important thing

for me. Alex knew exactly what she wanted the dress to look like. In

fact, she had come up with the 1950s-inspired design herself. And

she was thrilled when ten month before her big day, she found a

wedding shop who agreed to make it for her, at a cost of �9 Hunniford.

The shop had told us that they were going to make it For us especially

and to our he can specktations. Judith, as mother of the bride,

paid for the dress with her credit card. Although they found

communication with the shop a bit hit and miss, at the first fitting

the dress appeared to take shape. But at the second fitting the shop

had changed its mind, and they heard it would shortly be closing

down. I felt quite scared, I was terrified that nothing was going to

be ready. That the dress we have paid this money, and that the dress

had disappeared all of a sudden, because the shop had closed down.

But, staff at the bridal shop reassured Alex that she need not

worry, whatever happened with the shop, they would make sure that the

dress would be ready for had her big day. So, bride-to-be Alex paid

the final installment of her �475, on her own credit card. But when

the finished dress arrived, it didn't looks a if this fairytale

would have a happy ending. When I tried the dress on, about six weeks

after the actual wedding date, I felt awful, I felt upset. I was

sick to the stomach, I was angry, because they hadn't finished the

dress. The two of us were in tears, because we just couldn't believe

that having paid the amount of money that we had paid we had this

dress delivered, there was so many things that were wrong with it.

Nothing like what it is supposed to be. It is not right. That is the

excess fabric in from there-to- there. It is more than two inches

of excess fabric. The stitches are there, I can see without my glasses

they are so visible. They are huge stitches. The hook on this side is

above the be a brick, it is almost off, it is atrociously stitched on.

There is supposed to be self- covered buttons all the way down

the zip at the back. There isn't a button anywhere in sight. Itn't the

standard they secretary -- it wasn't the standard they expected,

and the wedding dress isn't something to compromise. The shop

offered to pay for alterations, but with only six weeks to go before

the wedding, Alex was reluctant to take any chances, and she wanted

her money back. And her mum found a way she thought that would happen.

The financial ombudsman, when we contacted them, advised us to go

down the road and to contact the visa companies. They gave us a

website to look on for the section 75 Consumer Credit Act. If you buy

goods priced between �100-�30,000, under section 75 of the Consumer

Credit Act, a credit card company can be held jointly responsible

with the sell, if what you have bought is unsatisfactory. So, even

if the retailer goes out of business, you can still make a

claim to your credit company for a refund. Relieved that it seemed

that they could get their �900 back, Alex and Judith both contacted

their credit card companies. credit card company, NatWest

credited me with the �475 that I paid for the dress. A good result

for Alex. But they were still down the �425 that her mother had paid.

And Judith's credit card company, MBNA, said it wasn't up to them to

pay it. They told her, that as the order had been made in Alex's name,

it was therefore Alex's bank, NatWest, that was responsible for

refunding the full amount. I was told that they were not going to

pay out, that they didn't feel that I had a claim, that I should claim

on Alexandra's NatWest card. Judith contacted NatWest, but

confusingly, they insisted that MBNA were equally liable, and

should pay their side of the bill. Leaving Alex and Judith completely

baffled as to who should be refunding the remaining �425.

at this moment in time I am still not any wiser as to who is liable.

I find it very confusing as we have been through the situation, and one

company is batting against the other. Getting nowhere, Alex and

Judith came to us. And when we contacted the banks, we were able

to get the whole mess resolved. It turns out that it was NatWest who

were liable to pay the whole �900, due to the fact that the the order

had been placed by their customer, Alex. So they have apologised,

refunded the money, and say they hope this resolves any confusion.

But perhaps at the root of that confusion, is a little known

benefit you get while paying with a credit card. According to the

section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, even if you only pay a small

part of the purchase price on your credit card, as little as a pound,

if your goods don't arrive or aren't fit for purpose, the credit

card company is still liable to refund the full amount. So, your

plastic can give you more protection than you might realise.

Meanwhile, getting their money back, isn't the only good result for Alex.

Though she didn't have the dress that she had planned for her big

day, she did find a perfect replacement. I found the fairytale

wedding dress within six weeks, and it was hard work, it was very nerve

racking, it was stressful, but I was pleased when we finally got

something and I could walk down the aisle. To see the smile on

Alexandra's face was something else, it was really special. As Alex and

Judith have discovered getting your money back is not always as

straight forward as you might have hoped, so if you have ever been

unhappy with goods and services that were paid for by credit card,

and you are hoping to get a refund, well sillia -- Sylvia Rook from

Trading Standards has advice on how to make that happen. When you buy

goods on certain sorts of credit, such as a credit card, and the

price of a single item is between �100 and �30,000, you are covered

by section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. That means that

the credit card company is jointly liable with the supplier for any

problem you might have with the item. Not all credit agreements are

covered. For example, debit cards and pre-payment cards are not

covered by section 75. When you buy goods on certain debit cards, the

banks may offer something called "charge back", that means you may

be able to get a refund on the amount you paid on your debit card.

It is not governed by law, it is a voluntary scheme, and you need the

details from your bank. For section 75 to apply, there must be a direct

link between the credit card company and the supplier of the

goods. That means if you buy goods on the Internet, using certain

internet payment services you may not be covered. If you have a

problem with your credit card company, or other financial

institution, and can't reach an agreement, you should contact the

Financial Ombudsman Service for advice. We all make mistakes, and

big companies are no exception. It is what they do, or don't do, to

put those mistakes right, that can leave you feeling ripped off. So

you need to know what your rights are, and where to go when you don't

think you have been treated fairly. We have put together a new free

booklet of practical tips and advice. You can download it from

the website. To receive a copy in the post send an a self-address

stamped envelope to the address at the end of the programme. Here is

someone who feels she is being fobbed off. After buying a car that

has repeatedly broken down, each time with exactly the same for the,

Debbie bought it as a run around, now as far as she's concerned, it

is her getting the run around. Both from the manufacturer and the

garage that the car keeps on going back. To the question is, when the

same problem is happening time and time again, should it really be

Debbie who has to foot the bill. Nearly half of all households in

the UK currently own more than one car. And with both parents working

and two children to ferry around, Debbie says her family depends on

the use of two cars. (brakes screech) Recently they have spent a

lot of time managing with just the one. Because the Vauxhall Zaphira

that Debbie normally drives has spent a bit of time out of action.

Thanks to a problem that started 12009, two years after they bought

it -- 2009, two years after they bought it T I was going to collect

my daughter, the warning light came on and it broke down, and I phoned

the RAC, she was told to return it to the dealership because it was

under warranty. The problem with the valve that controls emissions

from the engine. As the car was under warantee, it was exchanged by

-- repaired by Vauxhall. I was annoyed but it was repaired, so

that was the end of the problem. For the next 11-and-a-half months

that is how it seemed, Debbie enjoyed care-free motoring

until...In 2010 the car broke down again, the warning light came on

again, I took it back to the dealership who diagnosed the same

fault with the EGR valve. Debbie could no longer rely on the three-

year warranty because it had expired, because the second EGR

valve failed so quickly, it should have been replaced free of charge.

Our Trading Standards expert Sylvia Rook, took time out from the Pop-Up

Shop to explain. When any part is fixed on a motor vehicle, it is

covered by the supply of goods and services act, it should be of

satisfactory quality, and remains so for a reasonable period of time.

The fact it may not be covered by the warantee, it is covered by

legislation. Unfortunately, in Debbie's case, that is not what

happened. When she called the garage, who had done the original

repair to ask about the next one, she was surprised to find out she

would have to pay �979. If I had paid for the previous service,

according to them, I would have been covered by the waranty, but

because it was under waranty, I didn't have a waranty on it. I

didn't agree with it at all, and I asked Vauxhall, they told me the

same information. I had to pay the �975 repair bill to get the car

back on the road. Sylvia Rook disagrees it is down to Debbie to

pay. If the part failed there is clearly a problem with the part or

vehicle, either way it is not her responsibility, the garage should

have paid to have that repair done. Although happy to be back on the

road again, Debbie was furious about having to fork out so much

cash. I thought that the �975 was a lot of money to pay, I was

concerned that the same fault had occurred within 12 months. I did

think it could be a recurrent problem with the car, and that did

concern me some what, I lost a little bit of confidence in the car

at this point. You can understand why. Because the next year this new

replacement valve failed as well. This time the dealership replaced

it free of charge, saying that because she had paid for the last

valve, it was covered by a parts waranty. Although relieved not to

have to shell out again, Debbie couldn't understand why the same

part kept failing. But Scott Illman, from the AA, says problems with it

can be surprisingly common, across all brands of car. It circulates

the gas from the exhaust into the combugs, that refuses the emotion.

He get called out for EGR valves more and more, we have doubled our

callouts to EGR faults in the last five years. They are blocking and

sooting up inside. Diesel is dirtier than petrol and gets dirty

inside. Despite that, Debbie's garage suggested she might be the

cause of the problem. They suggested that my driving style was,

that I drove too economically for the car, and it was sooting the

valve up, and I should take it on the motorway every few weeks,off

have the time and who is paying for the fuel. The AA aren't convinced

it is Debbie driving. It is not the style of driving, it is where they

drive their car. The EGR valve needs a fast flow of air over it,

motorway driving, and you won't get that urban. Driving a small EGR --

diesel car with an EGR valve will clock up. The car should be fit for

purpose, regardless of the journeys you are doing. If it is a car

better suited to motorway journeys, that should be advertised at the

point of sale. Fast forward to May, you can guess what is coming, for

the fourth time Debbie's car broke down in the same way, she had

reached the end of the road. I had enough by this point, I took it

straight back to the dealership, and I rang Vauxhall and insisted

they investigate it further. The car is obviously not fit for

purpose. Vauxhall examined the car thoroughly and finally decided that

the car needed a new engine. But they have asked Debbie to pay a

contribution towards the costs. The dealership of Vauxhall was willing

to pay 90%, but have asked Debbie to pay the remaining �391. I have

told Vauxhall to go ahead with the replacement engine, and I have said

that I will very reluctantly pay the �391. It is another huge chunk

of money. I don't feel I should be asked to pay anything really, I

don't have a choice. We asked Vauxhall about Debbie's case. They

told us the old evidence had no evidence of a manufacturing defect,

but outside influences, such as the grade of oil used during servicing,

can have a bearing on the reliability of any engine. But

there is good news as well. Thoulaul though they feel the

contribution -- although they feel the contribution towards the new

engine, they feel is fair, they say purely as a gesture of goodwill,

they will refund the �979 charge she had to pay for repairs back in

2010. We also spoke to the dealership, she has been whack

wards and forwards to, who pointed out it wasn't them who sold her the

car. They have simply done specific repair work, using the necessary

skill and care, and the correct and satisfactory parts. Meanwhile,

Debbie, while pleased she will be getting most of her money back,

remains very unhappy about the trouble all of this has caused.

After all the hassle and constant breakdowns the unreliability of the

car and the time it has taken me and the constant phone calls have

had, they have been really stressful. I feel I should not be

doing this as a customer, where is the element of customer care, then?

Often when you have a problem, the key to getting it sorted is knowing

your rights. That way you know instabgtly what you are entitled to,

and you can -- instantly what you are entitled to, and you can tell

when you are being fobbed off. Most of us don't know those rights as

well as we should, if we do we are not sure exactly how to use them.

That is especially important when the way we spend our money has

changed so dramatically. Every year nearly �280 billion spent on the

British high street. As a nation, we also spend about �57 billion on-

line. That's an average of more than �157 million day, an awful lot

of products we are buying without seeing them first. When we don't

end up with what we are expecting, many of us are unsure just what to

do about it. Do you think as a society we are

better informed about our consumer rights and better atam complaining

when we think things are not -- better at complaining when we think

things are not right? I think a certain section of society, yes,

but there are still people who don't know how to or want to.

line it is harder to send back. tempted more on-line, it varies

from shop-to-shop, the larger stores are good, but the smaller

oness more dubious. If you are going on the Internet you think it

is cheaper than buying on the store, I don't think I know my rights.

if you are buying any sort of product or service, there is one

key thing you need to know about. It is called the sale of goods act

1979. That gives you the right to a refund or repair, if something you

buy is not up to scratch, or breaks down sooner than expected. The

problems are with the retailer not the manufacturer, you have fewer

rights if it is with a private seller. If a product is faulty, the

law says you can reject it in a reasonable matter of time, usually

a matter of weeks. Don't worry if a major fault only develops later.

Under the Sale of Goods Act, you can make a claim for a serious

fault, up to six years later in England, Wales and Northern Ireland,

or five years in Scotland. If all else goes wrong, you need to know

how to use these rights to fight your corner. We have put together a

check list with everything you need to know, and not just on how to

complain, but how to do it effectively, you can find it on our

website. Here at Rip Off Britain, we are always ready to investigate

more of your stories. Confused over your bills? Trying to wade through

neverending small print? We should read it, but it is not in plain

English, it should be simple, Unsure what to do when you have

lost out, and that great deal has ended up costing you money.

come home and you get your bill and it is �57 when it is meant to be

�30, you get ripped off, don't you. You might have a cautionary tale of

your own, and want to share your mistakes with us, so others don't

do the same. We paid them good money to act in our best interests.

The team is ready and waiting to investigate your stories. As a

customer, getting the service you deserve doesn't seem too much to

ask, does it? As we have seen, there are some companies who can

certainly try a bit harder in that kept

Too true, not least because it makes -- in that department. Too

true, not least because it makes business sense, if you keep the

customer satisfied they will spend more money, leave them frustrated

next time they will take their money elsewhere, I know I would.

Who can blame them f you experience what you believe is poor customer

service, don't be afraid to say so. If that doesn't work, come to us.

We will see what we can do to help, we really do get result. That's all