The Furniture Ombudsman17 Jul 2025 18:27
About 15 years ago I purchased some expensive furniture, 3 piece suite with recliners etc, from a well known brand.
I have to wait three months for it to arrive, as it had to be ‘hand manufactured’ in the far east and delivered. I took it on an interest free finance agreement.
What arrived was nowhere near the same quality of what was on display in the shop, it was a disgrace and was falling to pieces on arrival. The delivery man even put a big scratch in my pvc porch door trying to push it in, rather than being bothered to wait for the other guy to help him!
After a few months it was ready for scrapping but I still had a few grand to pay on finance. I contacted the retailer who told me to lump it they did not see a problem.
So I contacted my bank told them the situation and cancelled the dd. The finance company called me and I told them the goods were not fit for purpose and used the sales of goods act etc so they suspended the situation. The next day the retail store manager phoned me shouting at me and getting very angry and trying to intimidate me and how dare I do what I’m doing and I was a disgrace and so on!
I then came across the furniture ombudsman, I think it was in the finance company literature.
I contacted them and the retailer was voluntarily in their scheme, so I think they had to pay them a fee for my case to be heard.
They advised me the very same store manager should come to my house and inspect the furniture, I said after he has shouted at me not a chance. They said their role was to resolve and my denying him access would not help me, so I relented. So the store manager, one of the most obnoxious people I have ever encountered came to my house. Sat in the chairs, said Id used it and it was fair wear and tear. I just wanted the rather large oily lump out of my house and did not rise to his provocations, he was most likely recording the event to use as evidence but I did not take the bait. He then started huffing and sighing when I said it was not of acceptable quality and after a few hours he decided to leave! I even went and sat in the kitchen to eat my dinner and he just waited in the living room, talk about not taking a hint to leave!
Anyway the furniture ombudsman sent in one of their representatives and he asked me what outcome I wanted, I thought I was well within my rights to get my money back and compensation and a new front door. I was not going to budge.
Anyway after a few weeks the outcome was the supplier had to change the furniture for the same value, I was fuming. The finance company were on the back burner so I had no choice accept the offer. So I returned and picked some beautiful hand crafted furniture from Belgium which 15 years later has stood the test of time. I returned to the supplier saw some better looking furniture and left to do some research on the furniture I was interested in. It was manufactured in Belgium and were a quality brand. TBC
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