Humiliated in River Island

Bought white jeans in River Island and tried to return them. Was subjected to a barrage of accusations and totally unprofessional behaviour from "Phil" the Supervisor at the Leeds store(8 Lands Lane).

I copied and pasted my letter that I posted today... I am very upset indeed.

Dear River Island

On Sunday 15th October I purchased a pair of white jeans from your Edinburgh store on 111 Princes Street. It was the last pair of size 8 with a regular length, and although they were dirty in various places I bought them because I thought the marks would wash out, and it was the only pair in the store with that size. I got an assistant to help me and she assured me that’s all was left.

That evening I planned to wear them on a night out, so I cut any tags that were attached and put the jean on. I had a pair of gold heels from Jones on too, so the bottom of the jeans were not trailing on the floor. I placed all the tags including the receipt into the River Island bag.

I walked through to my friend’s bedroom and asked him how my new jeans looked. He said they didn’t suit me and didn’t fit either. Given his impeccable judgement with clothes in the past, I took the jeans off and placed them back in the River Island bag with the receipt and tags. I put on a brown pair of cords from Diesel instead and went out.
Since I was only visiting a friend in Edinburgh and I was returning to Harrogate the following day, I placed the River Island bag into my rucksack and travelled back to Harrogate.
This weekend, was the first opportunity I had to return them, so I took a train to Leeds and went to your store on 8 - 12 Lands Lane.

On Sunday 29th October at 1pm I attempted to return the white jeans. The Sales Assistant I spoke to on the ground floor went to get a Supervisor’s authorisation to give me a refund. On his return he informed me that I could not have my money back because the jeans were dirty. When I told him that the jeans were dirty when when I bought them in the Edinburgh store, he went to get the Supervisor.

The Supervisor informed me that I could not have my money back because the jeans had no tags attached to them, so I showed him the loose tags that I had brought with me. He then said the jeans were dirty and they looked like they had been worn. This idea seemed somewhat ridiculous to me -

I am 35 years of age and have a professional job - I am not a silly teenager who cannot afford an new outfit for the evening and feels the need to wear new shop clothes and then return them the following week. I informed the Supervisor that I had tried the jeans on in the flat and had them on for less than 5 minutes in total. I also told the Supervisor that the white jeans in the Edinburgh store were at the front of the shop and none of them appeared in a particularly clean condition. He was adamant that there was no way that a Sales Assistant in any River Island store would sell goods in that condition to a customer. He said that if they had, they would have marked the receipt to outline the condition of the jeans. However, this was not the case when I purchased the white jeans at the Edinburgh store. I find it hard to believe that a Supervisor at the Leeds store could vouch with such certainty how another Sales Assistant would conduct a sale. I am well aware that there is staff training and company policies regarding such matters, however,

I feel that I am the victim of a slip in these standards.

Additionally, the way the Supervisor handled the whole matter at the Leeds store was very unprofessional. He seemed very accusatory, and totally oblivious to his responsibilities towards appearing professional and listening to the customer. He did not listen to what I had to say and did not appear to know what to do about the situation, beyond accusing me of wearing the jeans and getting them dirty. This led to a lengthy queue, and a noisy scene at the back of the store. I cannot imagine this is the type of image you want to portray in your stores and wonder why this Supervisor was left with so much responsibility.

I felt humiliated and upset during and after the experience in your store and all because I purchased a pair of dirty jeans from one of your stores.

In my opinion, River Island was and still is at fault.

Firstly, I was sold a dirty pair of jeans and the Sales Assistant in Edinburgh did not follow the correct procedure regarding soiled goods.

Secondly, the Supervisor in Leeds did not behave professionally and subjected me to an upsetting and unnecessary barrage of accusations. First and foremost I am a customer and a human being, both of which involve being given a certain amount of respect. I object to being treated in this manner.

After 10 minutes I told the Supervisor that I was not going to continue being humiliated in this manner and that I was going to leave the jeans, tags, my receipt and my name, address and phone number with him, so that he could deal with the situation in his own time.

I then asked the Supervisor for his name and he wrote it down on a card. He wrote the words “Phil” and when I asked him his surname, he said it was company policy not to give it out surnames. I could not believe my ears; I have never heard such an odd company policy. Is this really true? I can’t help thinking that “Phil” simply did not want to take responsibility for his actions.

Anyway, “Phil” said he would call me, once he’d spoken to the Edinburgh store. He called me a few hours later and continued in the same vein, saying he’d spoken to the Edinburgh store and they said….I switched off at that stage.

So, to conclude, “Phil” still has my jeans, receipt, tags, name, address and phone number. I cannot bear to contact him, since he clearly does not have the responsibility, training or intelligence to deal with any situation that is beyond the norm.
I would like a refund for those jeans as soon as possible. I paid cash for them and they have never been worn.

I would appreciate a prompt and professional reply as soon as possible.
Anon