Hi there - am new to this forum just want some advice whether to pursue my story further or just give up! Very brief history: 12 June - Comet delivered integrated fridge/freezer ordered online - could not install fully as cabinet doors of different fixing mechanism to the previous appliance and now needed hinges. So installed appliance in cabinet but without the cabinet doors 4 July - fridge door came away at top and fell on my left arm causing bad bruising 15 July - Comet came to inspect (had come before bot gone to wrong address!!) and agreed it was not fixed properly and I needed an exchange. Agreed to refund installation fee 5 August - still no word from Comet. Whole door fell off - luckily I caught it before it smashed on my feet Emailed Comet. Furious. 7 August - exchange hastily arrived. Installers very helpful - said top screw of appliance being removed had not been fixed on properly which was why the door had fallen off. Not able to install in cabinet (because no hinges) so left as free standing. Confirmed refund of installation fee. Assured me that appliance fine as stand alone and door would not fall off 8 August - email exchange with Comet to confirm exchange had taken place. However I asked them what happened next in terms of I now have an appliance that is not installed (cos they can't - fine - will get kitchen fitter) but no apology / concern / compensation for me being injured by their negligence. They offered me £30 for "inconvenience". I said not happy - they told me to write to Customer Services (Clevedon) 20 August - finally drummed up energy to write to Customer Services, got letter back 31 August "clarifying their position" - they will only offer me £30 as the door fell on me "due to the fact that the hinges were not in place when the item was delivered to your property" Just composing a letter back to them now to say that no, the door fell off because the screw was loosened on the top (their negligence) and that the second installation team had assured me the appliance is also fine as a stand alone appliance and that the door will NOT fall off simply because it is not attached to cabinet doors. I am saying in the letter that their information contradicts itself and their website clearly states (section 11.2 ) "There are certain things that We can't limit or exclude Our liability for (such as where We negligently cause personal injury . . ." BUT am just getting fed up with this now. I am back to work next week and haven't the time or energy to keep getting pushed from pillar to post. I'm not bothered about the money to be honest - but just feel angry at the shoddy treatment I've had and the way Comet really don't seem to like their customers! Advise me please - is this worth pursuing further (if so, how?) or should I just say yes to the £30 , be done with the whole sorry episode, and put it down to bad experience? Many thanks!!

In Jan 2011 I bought a Zanussi ZwI1125 washing machine from Comet for £463.50. In August 2011 clothes that we had washed started to come out of the washing machine with rusty brown stains and then the drum stopped spinning. We rang Zanussi and they sent out an engineer to fix the problem. This February the washing machine started to make the brown stains again. As the warranty from Comet and Zanussi had run out a month earlier I rang the Comet helpline and paid for an engineer to come out. When the engineer arrived I said I thought there might be a problem with the drum as it had been making a very loud noise and the same problem had occurred 6 months earlier. He turned it onto spin and as it was no longer making the same noise so said that I should probably check the filter for coins or hair grips and if that wasn’t the problem and it still continued to make the noise I should ring Comet back and they would send someone else round. I checked the filter and there was nothing there. In the following weeks the noise stopped but the brown marks would still occasionally appear and so we started to only wash darks in the machine and take whites elsewhere to be washed. In June the drum in the washing machine has completely stopped working and will not spin despite the fact the motor is still working. Water has also leaked out onto the floor in the kitchen and there are holes in a number of items of clothes that were in the machine at the time. I wrote to Comet regarding the SOGA and they replied saying "while goods must conform to contract at the time of sale the Act does not require that they should remain so throughout their working life as it recognises that goods cannot always be expected to work fault free. They can break down through normal use and the Act does not hold the seller responsible for that.Furthermore after six months from purchase it falls on the consumer to prove the lack of conformity existed at the time of sale" I contacted citizens advice and they said I should write back quoting Sales of Goods Act: section14, 2b, subsection (e). For the purposes of this Act, the quality of goods includes their state and condition and the following (among others) are in appropriate cases aspects of the quality of goods — (e) durability. Comet then replied saying that they refer me to their previous letter. Since then I have used Money Claims Online and have just received the acknowledgement of service with Comet wishing to defend the claim. I'm a little apprehensive about the next stage being court action. It seems to me from what I have read that they are in the wrong but I can't see how I would stand a chance against a solicitor from Comet if it does go to court as I don't really know what Im dealing with? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I recently purchased i JVC 42" tv from comet 06/07/12. 12 days later on 19/07/12 it packed up, took it back to the shop and they wanted nothing to do with it and infact the one member of staff (manageress) was qiute rude.Called the comet help line (10p a min) vented my anger at the man on the other end who booked an engineer to come out on the 24/07/12.I also asked to speak to a supervisor, put on hold for another 9 mins then cut off. On the 24th i waited and finally called the help desk again o get a time for the engineer only to find out that they had not booked one for that day. told that they would call me back to sort out the problem and as you can guess no call came. rebooked myself for today, called this morning to get a rough time, 17 mins and 33 secs later told anytime between 8am -6pm. feeling that i am being given the run around and comet do not care. i do not want it repaired as it is only a 12days old when it broke down,do not want a replacement as i want nothing to do with Comet anmore. any suggestions ?

Follows an investigation by the OFT http://www.oft.gov.uk/news-and-updates/press/2012/53-12

Hello everybodyI sent this email to Comet this morning - just wondered if people think I might be able to have some success with this. I am not asking for a lot, just to have a working TV that lasts longer than 20 months! I can't afford to pay for the independent engineers report but do people think I might have to?Thanks in advance WITHOUT PREJUDICEFor the attention of Bob DarkeDear SirI bought a JVC LT-40DG20J 40” on 18/08/2010 For £499.99 – receipt in hand. I have enclosed a copy of the receipt for you to check your records.On Thursday the 22nd of March 2012 it stopped working, we checked it wasn’t the fuse.My partner phoned the number on the back of the telly, which lead you to a Comet’s phone number, they told us that we’d have to pay for someone to look at it. Then we decided we’d call JVC themselves, when we got through, we were told that they only make that TV for Comet and don’t even have instructions for it, as Comet buy them in bulk with no guarantees on them.I have 2 small children and work during the week, so weekends are very precious to us. On Saturday the 24th March the last thing my Partner and I wanted to do was take the unfit for purpose TV to Comet in Slough. (This is where we bought it from) we spoke to the Store Manager called xxxxxxxxx, who was not cooperative at all, and wouldn’t even give me his Area Managers name. He said we had to pay £65 to check if it was a manufacturing fault or not. Whilst I understand that this fee applies to establish if the fault is that of the manufacturers - we’ve only had the TV 1 yr and 8 months and I believe that a Television should last longer than that. I was even told that day by a salesman that a TV should last for about 25 years! The TV has had ‘normal’ use, I would say no more than 5 hours per day maximum. It has been cared for without any risk to the internal workings at all.As a family, due to our expenditure exceeding our income, we cannot afford to pay for a fee when we don’t feel we should have to.I believe we should have been at the very least offered an out of warranty repair, or the cost of the TV as it stands, even if they could have given us a discount on a new one I’d have had some better feeling towards Comet’s reputation.I would now like to make a formal complaint and I expect an acknowledgement within 5 working days and a response within 4-8 weeks.Please can you forward me the details of your regulator. If I do not get an amicable response from you I will forward this complaint to the regulator and I will make a claim against Comet at the Small Claims Court for the full £499 – I understand this will cost an initial £25 which I will also claim as a further expense from Comet. I look forward to your response.

I have a Hotpoint washing machine that is insured for breakdown with Domestic & General. I have recently made a claim on my policy and contacted Dom&Gen on the 22nd March to reporting the fault. I was told to telephone Comet who deals with engineer callouts on behalf of Dom&Gen. When calling Comet I was told the first available appointment for an engineer to visit was the 4th April, almost two week wait. When the engineer finally called he informed me that he did not have the parts needed for the machine, and would not be able to complete the job until Friday 13th April. He told me that they normally carry parts that commonly need replacing, but did not on this occasion. He also said that Comet have laid off loads of engineers, and as such, they could not cope with the volume of work that they had. I was contacted by Comet again on the 11th April and informed that the parts were unavailable and they had no future delivery date. At this point I had been without a machine for 3 weeks. I made a complaint to Dom&Gen, who have been more than competent in dealing with this issue as far as they can. I was contacted by one of their complaints managers on the 12th April and offered a new replacement machine providing I pay the entire outstanding premium on the policy. They offered to waive the delivery charge of the new machine, and even pushed the order for the new machine through so it was dealt with that day. Due to the volume of washing we do on a daily basis I thought it would make financial common sense to pay extra to purchase a better machine with a larger capacity drum. The machine that met my requirements was one that Comet did not keep in stock, and therefore had to be ordered (Yes, unfortunately Comet also deal with replacement machines for Domestic & General). I was told delivery would take a couple of days. I was contacted by Comet on Monday 16th April, and told the machine would be delivered Friday 20th April. I arranged to take a day off work to wait for the delivery. However, I receive yet another call on the 18th April from Comet informing me that the machine had apparently become “damaged” and they cannot deliver another until the 26th April. When I protested and asked to speak to someone more senior I was told that there was, apparently, no one more senior in that department to complain to. And if I wanted a machine any quicker to pick one that was in stock, even though none of them met my needs. I contacted Comet customer services who were absolutely no help. then found an email address on this website for a Bob Dark, management team at Comet and sent an email of complaint, asking Comet to reimburse me for the five weeks cost of laundering my clothes and the loss of a day’s wages today, Friday 20th, when they were supposed to have delivered the machine. I was contacted today by one of Comets customer service representatives’ basically saying “sorry but there is nothing we can do and we will not pay you any compensation”. My partner is a nurse so need uniforms washed daily on a high temperature. I have no family near, so have been either using a laundrette at a cost of £7.50 a time, or travelling 15 miles to my parents for them to wash for me. If I do actually get the machine next week will mean we have been without one for 5 weeks. That’s 5 weeks of time, money petrol, and effort taking washing to the laundrette or family. I know the insurance for the machine is with Domestic and General, but as I see it they have done all they can to resolve the situation. Ultimately the problem is with Comet. What are my chances of getting any compensation from Comet for the cost of laundering, and days lost wages for the day they were supposed to have delivered the machine? Thank you for any advice you can offer.

Looking for a bit of advice... Our £430 dishwasher has developed a fault after 1 day less than 2 years old. I contacted Comet and agreed to have the machine inspected at a cost to us of £69 (£59 callout + £10 SoGA fee). The engineer called today and said the machine was faulty and requires a new pump at a cost of £115.22. Due to the age of the machine they have offered to discount the part to £34.58 (70%) which would bring the total cost of repair to £103.58 (call out + parts) The standard repair charge for items out of waranty is £125 which includes a parts allowance of up to £150. Am I being unreasoanble to to expect that I should not have to pay anything toward the cost of repair? I dont think I am as surely (IMO) a dishwasher should be reasonably expected to last longer than 2 years especially as theres only 2 of us in the house and its only been on, on average 3-4 times a week. What can I do from here? thanks for reading.

1. I have purchased a TV for £999 from Comet on the 17 Feb 2012. (Money paid to Comet Croydon store) 2. I was told at that time that the TV was not in stock for me to take away from the store but is available for delivery. 3. I picked the delivery date of 29 Feb and took a day off work to wait for the delivery. 4. The delivery has not turned up. 5. Then I made a phone call to the customer helpline 08712009009 and explained the situation. I was told that the stock was not available for delivery and it will have be rescheduled. 6. I then received a call from the Croydon store saying the stock was still not available and will be available on the 8 March. I then said instead of waiting for the delivery, I shall come in and pick it up from the store. And because of the journey to Croydon was caused by Comet, she checked with her manager and agreed to cover my patrol. She then said that the store shall have it around the 10 March, and promised she will give me a call when it approaches that date to confirm. 7. I waited until the 14 March (or could have been the 12 March) and have never received that call. 8. Then I called the direct store number this lady from Croydon offered me which had nobody picking up. I then rang the 0871 number again and explained the situation. 9. The customer service agent who answered the call then called the store and told me that the product is discontinued. I need to speak to the store to discuss options such as buying the display model, equivalent model or refund . 10. I then demanded: a compensation of my lost time and the trouble caused. This person said this was because the store should have not processed sale in such a way so I have to seek for compensation with them. 11. I also asked him to tell the store to call me to discuss what options do we have before I make a journey. He then said he did not think the store would speak to me because he has ‘told’ me what I should do. I said I would need to discuss with the store which option is possible first before physically attending to Croydon. He then said he’s told me what is the best to do and whatever action next would require my signature. 12. I then went back into the store on the 17 march, explained to the store staff about what has happened in the PAST 1 MONTH and what the customer services has told me. 13. The store staff checked the stock and said yes this model of TV was not in stock and you could not have it. The store then refused to issue any compensation saying that cannot come from them, it would have to be the head quarters meaning speaking to the customer service hotline. I said we could call them now and I do not liked to be kicked as a ball between you two parties within Comets. It should be resolved within Comet. The store staff said their landline cannot call the 0871 comet customer service number. 14. Then the options were discussed. (1).The display model has been there for more than 9 months and working 12+hours a day. And they are only willing to offer a 10% discount on that. The staff has suggested me not to take it. (2). None of the equivalent/ close by models were available in stock. 15. another store staff checked on the system again and told me that the system said there would be 180 new ones of this model come into stock on the 26 March, and available for delivery on the 28 March. My option would be either to wait for the delivery or get refund 16. Because I was not planning on a refund when I came and had the idea in mind that there would be other ‘options’ available, I did not bring the 3 D glasses (which were part of the offer on that TV) with me. To get a refund, I need to go back and fetch the glasses. I said that was exactly why I said I wanted to speak to you before I come because if I knew there was not really any other options, I would have brought it with me. the response was they themselves have roars with the customer service team as well, they are just trying to kick the ball back to us. 17. I then said I still like that TV and giving that is the only option I have, I can wait for the stock. They then scheduled another delivery date which is 31 March. I said as it happened twice before, the promised stock did not show up. I would like to be certain that the TV will be available in comet and confirm the delivery team would turn up on that day. The store staff then said ‘unless you physically stake a stock with you, there can never be a 100% guarantee that it will be delivered on time.’ I then said my money was taken for 100%. Then store staff said they can check on Monday, and explained because the buying department is not working on Saturday, they can only confirm with them on Monday about whether or not they have actually bought the 180 stock it said on the system. Then he offered to call me on Monday the 19 March to confirm. I have left my personal mobile number as well as day time work line number. 18. Then I waited until today, 21 March, which is a Wednesday, 2 days late for the promised confirmation date. I have not yet received any call. 19. I phoned the store directly instead and a lady who picked up the phone took my order number and checked on the system as well as contacted the deliver team. It again changed on the system saying that it would only be available on the 30 march and 31 delivery is tight. They would like to push the date back again. which means, no guarantee on how many more times this date could has been pushed in the future. Until this moment, the whole experience I received was unpleasant and horrible. I felt what I have paid my money for was nothing else but trouble and waste of my time. throughout the whole experience of talking to your Comet staff, a consistent and surprising attitude I received from almost every single one was that ‘it was not me personally dealt with that before’. I understand that dealing with an angry customer is not a pleasant job. But customers are not responsible for getting to know each and every individual who works for comet. Customer only recognise these bright colour-shirt dressed men and women as ‘comet’. What they do and say should not be representing themselves as in individual but the business. Instead of showing the interest in understanding why the customer is angry and reflect what Comet as a business has done wrong and go out to help the customer, they are more interested in making sure they would not be held responsible. During the conversations that I had with the staff, I was told that they have a lot of complaints about missing a delivery date due to out of stock and the delivery team does not contact the customer. And if they knew they had a flaw in the system, they should have taken some actions about it or at least make customers aware. Instead what Comet did was put the customers at risk and waste their time.

Hi Could anyone please advise me, we purchased a new hotpoint washing machine in december 2011 from comet, 9 weeks later on the 15th March it stopped working, so we phoned comet and they said they would send a engineer 7 days later, engineer turned up 7 days later took the top of the machine off and cleverly deduced that the pcb had failed and the part would be in within 10 days and they would phone when its in, 11 days later I phoned comet again to find out where the hell engineer was and they said it will be fixed on the 12th april, so we are with without a machine for a total of 4 weeks so this means taking a load of washing into town each day for a family of 4 (7 mile round trip) + £ 3.00 to wash clothes but most importantly my partner has a brain tumour and needs a lot of care, im not worried about the cost, its time that I cant afford. I was very angered by comets attiutude so I took the washing machine to Taunton (50 mile round trip) and asked them for my money back, they flattly refused, so I went to currys and bought a new machine, would I be within my rights to somehow claim my money back? I no longer need the machine, i found this to be very inconvenient, the machine is not fit for purpose and at 9 weeks old it obviously has an inherrant fault, looking forward to your responses, Many thanks Peter Fletcher.

I bought a LG 50PG4000 Plasma TV on the 5th November 2008 along with 5 years extended warranty (insurance) for well over £1000. At the beginning of January of this year 2012, the TV became faulty. I called Comet and asked for the TV to be repaired. An engineer came round to assess fault and advised Comet of the cost of the repair which was nearly the price of the TV at just under £1000, and advised Comet to pay out. After several weeks and no contact from Comet, I called to chase up and was told Comet had opted to repair the TV. This was the beginning of my nightmare experience with Comet. To cut a long story short, it has been over 2 months and there has been no progress. My TV is still in my front room faulty and considering the poor level of service I have received and the length of time this is taking, it is clearly evident that the parts in question cannot be obtained, although they claim they are still waiting for the parts. They are using these delay tactics to avoid paying out for the TV of which I have paid for in full including the extended warranty (insurance). Throughout this period they have failed to keep me informed of the progress of this case and I have been forced to chase which is unacceptable. I have also sent letters to the complaints department and emailed the Comet directors to no avail. I have requested a full credit note for the value of the TV so I can replace the faulty item and a refund on the 5 years extended warranty which is not being honoured. I am still awaiting an immediate resolution anything else I can do to force the issue, as this is unacceptable!

Sadly I’m learning online that mine is a typical story of very poor COMET service. Could any helpful readers remind me where the online feedback sites are that COMET monitor. I saw a link to them the other day but cannot now find the thread again. I purchased a gas cooker from the COMET auction site as I am currently unemployed which was delivered on the 28th November. Unfortunately the delivery people had smashed the glass grill door. Having two young children and having had my old cooker removed I was obliged to accept the delivery so at least I could cook. This is not a big deal, accidents happen of course, and I was happy to wait for a few days to get a replacement door under the warranty terms. Here’s where the fun starts though! It took a 30 minute call to finally get a repair arranged for the 2nd December (8am-1pm) via Arron in the ‘engineers’ section - ticket number 6528312. As I sat in waiting on the day I thought I should check if a more precise time slot was available having not received any confirmation calls. After a 45 minute call, most of which was on hold, I was; · Passed from the Auctions Dept (Becky) to the Kitchen Specialists (Lauren) to the Engineers (Gregg) and back again to the Kitchen Specialists (Ella) · Told no engineer was in fact coming that day · Told an engineer was booked in for 30th DECEMBER! · Put back in the loop system twice, once by the ‘engineer’ Gregg after I asked to speak to a supervisor. · Then told I couldn’t speak to a supervisor but could be booked to get one to call me back sometime over the next 8 hours (what!?) · Told that I have a revised repair date of the 7th December somewhere between 8am & 6pm. I emailed Bob Darke and Mike Rooney at COMET asking if either of them thought that after damaging my purchase whilst it was being delivered, that they should be making some effort to put the matter right? I also sought a reassurance that I would not be let down again on the 7th December. Rather naively I asked if either cared sufficiently to do anything about this. Later that day (2nd December) I received what looks like an auto-generated response stating that they “will endeavour to respond by no later than 3 working days. If we are unable to give a complete response within this time we will contact you direct with an update on the situation.” Meanwhile, on the repair front, an engineer did indeed telephone today but not to schedule the time to come and fit the part. It was to state that he would be coming out to examine the cooker to get the model/part number after which he would only then order the part which would take 5-10 working days to arrive. Then, and only after this, would a date be scheduled for fitting the part. I immediately bent down in front of the cooker and read off the necessary model/part numbers to the engineer. This is staggeringly incompetent and begs a number of questions; 1. Why, on 22nd Dec, did Aaron in the engineers dept not ask me to do this and get the model/part ordered? 2. Why has no one to date from COMET checked my purchase details to ascertain the model/part numbers and order the part? 3. They failed to fulfil the scheduled repair on the 2nd December, why did they not have the courtesy to call me to explain why they would not be coming? 4. Why, when I called on the 2nd December and spoke to Becky in the Auctions Dept, did they not ask me to give them the model/part numbers and then order the part? 5. Why, when I called on the 2nd December and spoke to Gregg in the Engineers Dept, did they not ask me to give them the model/part numbers and then order the part? 6. Why, when I called on the 2nd December and spoke to Ella in the Kitchen Specialists Dept, did they not ask me to give them the model/part numbers and then order the part? 7. Why, when I called on the 2nd December and spoke to Lauren in the Kitchen Specialists Dept, did they not ask me to give them the model/part numbers and then order the part? In regards to my complaint, this is the 4th working day since COMET promised to give a complete response within 3 days or contact me direct with an update on the situation. I've heard nothing and am just about to pick up the phone to them yet again (deep sigh!). The bottom line here is that since they smashed the glass door whilst delivering the cooker on the 28th November, they have only begun to order the new part 9 days later. This despite my repeated calls and emails involving no fewer than 10 COMET employees including the Managing Director.

I used the reserve and collect system for Comet when trying to purchase 2 x LACIE drives. The assistant told me on the phone there was one in the Trafford Park store, and also one ex display model. I purchased both. On getting the items home I was told by my place of work I had needed a FIREWIRE; thinking nothing of it I tried to return the items to Stanley Retail park to be told by manager he would absolutely not refund the ex display model. Unhelpful. So I called Customer Services who informed me ex display must be returned to the original store. As there was NO note on my receipt this was ex display, I was told by Trf Park they wouldn't be able to refund the very same item they had sold me 30.11.2011. And to add to this, they 'don't have ex display items!!" I tried to point out repeatedly that that is indeed impossible as I had not only been sold one from the strore not 2 weeks previous, but that when i called to Reserve and Collect had been informed that one of the items would be ex display. I am in effect being called a liar by Comet. I pointed out to the gentleman on the phone that one of his store members had failed to do their job properly by 1 - not offering me a reduction on an ex display and 2 - not making a note of ex display on the receipt (how was I to know this was going to make an item unreturnable to the very store I bought it from)? I asked the gentleman his name, to be told it was - the very same name on my receipt!! I suggested he should observe what he does in the future to avoid upsetting future honest customers. The item has the Comet barcode on - what on earth d they think I am trying to do - fiddle them out of 59.99? I will never use Comet again, after practically being accused of making it up the fact I bought an ex display model. I cannot believe what stress and upset they are happy to put future customers through.

Hi, I am posting this on behalf of my sister as she is having some issues with Comet and I have been very succesful in the past using the Sales of Goods Act against companies so she has tasked me with helping her out. She bought a laptop from Comet 8 months ago and recently the laptop failed, after some basic diagnostics I assumed it to be a (PSU) Power Supply Failure and the guy in the store when I went with her suggested this was quiet likely. Now 4 weeks after initially taking the laptop in she has received a call suggesting water damage is the cause and she can pay £180.00 to have the laptop repaired or £60.00 to get the laptop back. I have suggested to my sister she needs proof of the water damage and that ideally she needs to get the laptop independently assessed and then we would take it from there. However she doesn't want to pay the monies to get her laptop back, can they charge for this when we delivered it to a store ourselves and heard no word that it would cost to have the laptop returned to ourselves. Thanks very much in advance for your help and advice.

It looks like I'll be taking Comet to the small claims court. 1. cooker broke after 13 monts 2. comet refused to repair / replace 3. got an electrician's report stating the fault was 'with the appliance' 4. comet still refused 5. just about to send my final letter (attached) .... then to court! Any advice / reassurance gratefully received! Joe

Hi, I've just joined but have seen that there are lots of threads about Comet. I came across these by searching the internet for "problems with Prestige fridge freezer" I won't go into all of it here but what I want to do is write a letter of complaint and ask for a free repair and I wondered if there is a name I can write to? I've seen that Hugh Harvey is named as managing director, but I'm not sure if that's up to date information. My main concern is that I've left it too long - this freezer's had a problem for a while and we went into Comet when it was 2 and a half years old, to be told we'd have to pay for a callout etc etc. We decided not to go ahead, used our old freezer (20 years old and still working), and didn't get round to doing anything. It's now just over 3 years old but I still feel this is not good enough for a freezer that cost £400! I now have built up a lot of resentment at the situation and have decided to have a go at them, any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

I bought a Miele FF from Comet for £699 in April 2009. It stopped working two weeks ago, just outside the two year warranty. Phoned Comet Customer Service to arrange engineer's visit 4 days down the line, for a £69 call-out charge. Engineer diagnosed blocked fluid circuit and thinks it has to be drained and refilled. He arranges for system's engineer to come and fix it. Engineer 2 arrives the following week and diagnoses a broken diverter valve. Says Comet/OnCall cannot fix that, which renders appliance unusable. Engineer 2 says he will inform Customer Services to arrange a refund for the £69. He also says that they will contact me by Friday (today) to let me know what happens with regards to compensation/replacement etc. Of course, I hadn't received any call by lunchtime today, so called Customer Services again. They only have a refund of the £69 on file, and that the FF cannot be fixed. They know nothing about replacement etc, so need to contact the Service Centre internally and then get back to me. When they get back to me, all they say is that they won't do anything more than repay the £69 call-out charge. Citing the SOGA to them makes no difference, so I ask to speak to someone higher up the chain. They cannot do this immediately, so I am promised a call-back from head office on Monday. Now my question is: where exactly do I stand? What should I demand on Monday? For nearly two weeks I have been without a working fridge or freezer and I desperately need to have this resolved. Do I have to wait for Comet to offer me something on Monday (I doubt they will!), or can I already go out and buy a new FF and then a partial refund of the £699 later on? Do I have to give Comet a written ultimatum before I go out and buy a new FF? I would think that under SOGA, I should get about 80% of the £699 back if they cannot repair it or find a replacement. Reason is that FF should be expected to last 15-20 years, whereas mine packed up after just two. Thanks for any advice!

Hi, I just wanted to relate my experience today with Comets after care service. After speaking with several of their people & emailing comet (& a realistic comet email address seems to take an awful lot of finding) I'm left bewildered & amazed at their indifference. Below is the email I've remitted (I've omitted some reference numbers & my address from this copy & paste). Comet buyers beware. On 27th December we bought a variety of goods from your store. These included a gas hob which was installed & fitted by yourselves. Over the next few days we occasionally smelt gas around the hob & attempted to report it to Comet on Monday 10th January. However 'excessively high volume of telephone enquiries' at Comets end meant we didnt get through until this morning, Tuesday 11th. We advised the situation, Comet advised that we must ring Transco & not them. If Transco reported the hob/connection faulty then we should phone Comet back. Transco had an engineer to us within 35 minutes of speaking with them. He confirmed a gas leak to be emanating from the hob but couldn't clarify whether or not it was the hob itself or if it was the connection that had not been fitted correctly. He advised there was no accesible isolation switch on the hob & that he would therefore need to cap the meter outside - this he did. Capping the meter means we now have no gas - which means we have no hot water (for showers etc), no heating & no hob facilities. We rang Comet back to advise. I have spoken with several people now at Comet, the most recent being xxxxxx & later his manager xxxxxxxxxx. Both say that the very earliest they can get an engineer to either uninstall or reinstall the unit - and therefore allow us to have heating, hot water etc is in 10 days time, Thursday 20th January - somewhere between 8.00 in the morning & 6.00 pm at night. I have explained & reiterated that this means we will have no hot water for personal hygiene, no heating (temperatures during the day currentl circa 6C & on a night in the minuses) & limited cooking facilities. they remain adamant that the best they can do is get someone to us in 10 days time. They have said they can deliver a replacement hob to us on Thursday of this week - but that they have no one to install or uninstall it at that time. They have also suggested we could arrange our own engineer - but this seems very much like trying to wash their hands of responsibility. This is a hob provided by & installed by comet. The work done is described by Transco as being 'Immediately Dangerous'. Comet though say 'we are very busy at the moment. 10 days time is the best we can do. I appreciate it may be inconvenient not to be able to have a shower for 10 days or to have heat for 10 days but thats the way it is.' Just as an aside, the receipt from Comet was stapled by them to a leaflet which includes the following statement:- 'Extra Help If you're having trouble getting your new product set up or it isn't working properly, don't worry, Call us on 0844 800 95 95 for help. We're great at repairing things.....' Frankly this is a disgraceful example of customer service

I have a Sony Vaio laptop just coming up on three years old, purchased from my local Comet. A few months ago two keys became detatched that I've clipped back on, but now the pins have become worn and they'll only stay on a few mins before dropping off again, so today I've tried to reach Sony about a repair. What a nightmare! My local Sony centre say they're not a 'repair' centre, try this mob instead. This mob say they are a repair centre, but not for laptops, try Vaio UK instead. Vaio UK have automated answering that demands a serial number before speaking to you, and the sticker with that on it has gone from under the machine. No serial number? No speaky, go away. Trip to the shed and miraculously find original box, ring back local Sony centre to get help deciphering the various numbers on the box into a serial number, and ring back Vaio UK. Input serial number at request, and get told 'its out of warranty'. Out of warranty? No speaky, go away. Somewhat irritated that after an hour on the blower I've still not got someone to even give me a price on a repair, I decided to speak to the retailer. Miracle number two - I've still got the original till receipt showing I got it at Comet. Ring Comet and say that I've been trying to get someone to quote for a repair but keep getting stonewalled, and that since the E and S are pretty indespensible characters in the English language this is effectively making my otherwise serviceable machine a write-off. Suggest further that the Sony Vaio is definitely a premium priced product and that I've got every right to imagine it'd last longer than this before being a write-off. Nice helpful lady at Comet says she's happy to collect it for inspection for the somewhat outrageous price of sixty quid. Then once they've performed this very complex and detailed inspection (or alternatively once they've opened the lid and glanced at the keyboard), THEN they'll charge a further fee IF they can fix it. Ummmm, it doesn't NEED an inspection, dear, I can SEE perfectly well what's wrong with it - its got two keys missing. What I'm after is a price for a new keyboard fitted. Nope, says lady, no can do. You have to give us sixty quid first. Only then will we have a look to see if we can get a new keyboard, and give you a price for it. If we can't get a new keyboard, you're out another sixty quid and you've still got a knackered laptop. If we CAN get a new keyboard, but its another hundred and fifty quid to supply and fit it so you don't want to bother, then you're still out the extra sixty quid and you've still got a knackered laptop. So, am I being 'unreasonable' by saying that I'm not happy with that? I'm effectively being held to ransom here - I can't even discover whether its appropriate to shove a new keyboard on without having to pay a pretty hefty sum. I'm not even sure that I should be paying for a new keyboard anyway - the laptop only gets VERY modest use and its an expensive model, shouldn't it last longer than three years? And even if, for example, the keyboard should only last til now, doesn't the consumer have a right to know the likely cost of a repair without having to pay, in circumstances where no detailed inspection is necessary to ascertain the problem? I've only once used SOGA against a retailer and that was extremely straightforward - I told Blockbusters that my 2 year old Wii should last longer and they immediately agreed and gave me another one! Thanks for any and all advice

This is warning for everybody who may read this! I absolutely do not want anybody else suffering the treatment and unnecessary stress that has resulted in my dealings from Comet! My advice to everybody is under no circumstances should you buy from Comet! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - In September I purchased a laptop (Sony Vaio, for college) from Comet for £519.99 along with an extended warranty plan for £139.99 which I was nagged into buying by the salesguy. One month later the laptop suffered a mishap which resulted in a cracked screen. Submitted the laptop to Comet who assured me it would be repaired and returned within 1 month. They also assured that the Hard drive would remain untouched and unharmed as it contained all my college work. 1 month passed with no word from Comet so I called them up. They were waiting on parts that apparently just arrived the day previous - took a month for parts to arrive? They promised to call me back in a few days once it had been repaired. 1 week later, no call? I am informed laptop is damaged beyond repair and as they no longer stock the model of the original laptop that I would have to choose another laptop. I was also informed that because of Comets decision to replace my laptop rather then repair it that the warranty I purchased it was no longer valid; after two months of purchasing it. I had asked for my HD to be returned to me for which I was told it had been disposed of (I have proof in email form). The loss of my HD resulted in the failure of my college unit and a tonne of unnecessary stress. I have recently discovered that Comet do in fact have my HD and are withholding it from me unless I pay a fee of £10, this I have proof of following an exchange with a Comet rep on moneysavingexpert.com Before this information coming to light I mailed Comet for the 6th time asking why my laptop was disposed of without asking my permission first. They tell me that following inspection of my damaged laptop that the motherboard was found to have fault. The laptop was functioning perfectly before the mishap and an issue with the motherboard is surely something I would notice myself having built my own desktops previously. This was the first time I was informed of the faulty motherboard as they had neglecting to tell me on the phone following my call. So I've been told I'll have to choose a new laptop. I get online and look at their stock and there are NO laptops that match the spec of my original purchase that does not exceed the the £519.99. I inform them of this and ask them what I'm supposed to do but I am responded with a simple "not our problem". A few days later I went in to complain, thinking I could get things moving if I went in person. I was told again that I would just have to settle for an inferior laptop, that it wasn't their problem. The guy that sold me the extended warranty turned round and said to me "Yeah well that's the gamble you take when you decide to buy the extended warranty"!!! Unbelievable! So I stand instore and I say, "Okay, I'll choose a new one today" but no, no. They are adamant that I cannot choose a new laptop until I've recieved some letter of confirmation. Apparently one should have been sent out to me but nothing has arrived. I request them to send another out on the computer at the desk, which they do. Two weeks later, no letter. The first hasn't arrived, the second hasn't arrived. I call up Comet, the woman tells me that there is no record of any letters being sent out to me. I found out through email a month later that I didn't even need this magic letter, that it was only for kitchen appliances such as fridges, dishwashers etc. It has been 4 months down the line now, constantly emailing, constantly phoning, constantly arguing but receiving excuses and lies. They had failed to provide me with a replacement laptop that matches the spec of my original, all others exceed price. Have recently found out this is a breech of contract as in this incident they are supposed to provide me with the same model of laptop even if it means sourcing it at their expense. I was seriously stressed out, failing college so I backed down and decided to accept an inferior laptop. Went into Comet where they refused to hand over the laptop I had chosen despite it being feet away from me in their backroom, insisted I had to go home and order by phone instead. Requested that they make the order since I was having problems with my phone at home, of which they did. Was told to go home and wait for Comet to call. Comet never called so before the store closed I called to arrange delivery myself. Was PROMISED laptop would be delivered on Friday. Came home from college on Friday (yesterday) and they never showed up. It is Saturday today and I have filed report with Trading Standards. The probability of this reaching court is certain. I also want to stress to you that in the 4 months since I placed my laptop into Comets care have I not once received any phone call or email to update me on the situation. Literally not one phone call, even when they assure me. My mother had also been banned from entering our local store following her going in to negotiate on my behalf (I was attending college). So I have an appointment with Trading Standards on Monday. I've been told to bring in printed copies of all exchanges made with Comet so I'm currently typing out a full report and orgasnizing all this paperwork. I think this is probably going to reach court but I've been advised that Comet won't let it get that far, that the furthest they'll meet me is on the court steps and that they'll probably make an offer then. I've already threatened court before, reminded them of it 3 times and they obviously thought I was bluffing. If anybody is interested in how this ends up, let me know here and I'll update with any details when they happen.