TK MAX and RLP- bottle of Suntan lotion

[cgeorge3012]

On Saturday I was in TK Max store in Glasgow and picked up a bottle of suntan lotion. The bottle didnt have a pricetag on it, however a similar suntan lotion bottle sitting adjacent on the shelf did have a tag loosely attached. Foolishly I removed the tag and attached to my bottle of suntan lotion. I then spent the next 15 minute looking through the shop - picking up 2 pairs of shorts, a bicycle lock and a gardening. I proceeded to the till, paid for the goods and on reaching the bottom of the escalators inside the store was stopped by security.

They took me to a room at the back of the store and told me they were proceeding with a civil action against me. They refused to let me leave until I signed a bit of paper from RLP. They told me that they wouldnt be involving the police in the matter, but told me I was now banned for life from their store. I was told that RLP would be in contact and an undisclosed sum would be requested to cover the loss that I had made the store incur.

Firstly I am totally embarrassed as an honest person. Secondly I feel that this is an absolute con. I am waiting for a letter in the post and reckon this is going to cost me the best part of 200pounds. We're talking about a bottle of suntan lotion here, which I paid 5 pounds for.

The whole incident was over in 20 minutes and I was just glad to get out of the shop due to threatening manner in which I was treated by the security guards. I was made to feel like a complete criminal and am now really quite angry about this whole incident.

Can RLP make me pay? Are my details now held on a database, flagging me as a "criminal"? Will this affect my credit rating?

Responses gratefully received.

[MARTIN3030]

Your story differs a lot from those we are used to hearing about.If as you say the whole incident took little more than 20 minutes to conclude,then it will be interesting to see what follows from RLP.Did you get a copy of the notice you signed ? and also did you read it before signing to see what it said ?

Also did they take any goods from you ?

 

Have a read through some of the other threads here.

Let us know when you get the letter from RLP too.

 

TK Maxx are of course within their rights to ban anyone from their stores-but what you endured was something that has to be questioned.

 

So you are saying that you were interviewed by 2 security staff-and then after this asked to sign the RLP paperwork ?

Edited March 10, 2009 by freakyleaky

[flyingdoc]

They took me to a room at the back of the store and told me they were proceeding with a civil action against me. They refused to let me leave until I signed a bit of paper from RLP.

 

This is unlawful imprisonment. They have no right to do this to you.

 

Either they are making a citizens arrest according the PACE (which they were clearly not doing as they said they were not involving the police) or they had NO right to hold you.

 

Holding you until you signed their paper both invalidates anything you signed (as it was signed under duress) and IMO leaves them open to a claim agains them for unlawful imprisonment

 

Also can you get someone to find out the actual price of the sun tan lotion that you placed the ticket on It would be interesting to know the price difference (esp if it was very close to, or even less than the amount you paid)

Edited March 10, 2009 by freakyleaky
Changing title

[cgeorge3012]

Thanks for your responses.

After signing the paperwork, the security team took me back upstairs and refunded the amount that I had paid of the suntan lotion. They also let me keep the rest of the items that I had paid for.

The whole incident was quite surreal, and to be honest, I was caught completely offguard. In hindsight I should have refused to sign anything, however as I admitted to transferring a price sticker from an adjacent bottle on the shelf they told me I had committed an offence. I was so embarassed by the whole event that I would probably signed anything.

I have a copy of the paperwork that I signed, and it has the same message on it that many of the other postings on this site outline. The paperwork was also signed by the security man who was undercovered, and was countersigned by a staff member of the store.

If they charge me a hundered pounds or so I guess Ill just have to take it as a hard lesson and will pay. Im more concerned about credit ratings and potential black marks being held against my name that may be used against me in future. Is this likely to be the case, and is there any action I can take to have my name removed from their database?

This all seems like a total [problem] to me and I cannot believe that a store such as TK Maxx would be involved in this.

[flyingdoc]

you are probably going to be looking at about £130-150 charge from rlp if they are true to form.

[Bookworm]

I have a copy of the paperwork that I signed,

Could you please scan a copy and post it here after removing personal indetifying markers?

 

If they charge me a hundered pounds or so I guess Ill just have to take it as a hard lesson and will pay.

That is the kind of attitude they rely on.

 

Im more concerned about credit ratings and potential black marks being held against my name that may be used against me in future. Is this likely to be the case, and is there any action I can take to have my name removed from their database?

Damn right. Make sure you write to them and tell them that you have NOT given permission for them to use or store your data in any form or shape, and that you want confirmation in writing from them that they will not be processing any data pertaining to you, and that failure to do so will result in you lodging a formal complaint to the ICO.

[MARTIN3030]

They are operating as some sort of Banana republic.

Steps need to be taken to stop this,its clearly not on at all.

 

Yes of course these stores should shoulder some responsibility,but they are relying on RLP to conduct their business within the boundaries of the law.

It seems to be the case that RLPs clients although being a party to all this,need to be told just what they are allowed to do.They can be forgiven for thinking that RLP are totally entitled to do what they do,since RLP give the impression that they have full endorsements and framework to do all this unchallenged.

[cgeorge3012]

Please let me know how to attach a scanned document to this forum and I will gladly do so.

[Bookworm]

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/show-post/post-1151870.html

 

Part 2, the Photobucket part.

[MARTIN3030]

If you are having problems email it to me and I will put it here.

[cgeorge3012]

Please see attached document that was presented to me in TK Max. I have not yet received anything through the post from RLP, but expect that it may take up to 10 days.

Out of interest, how have TK max got any way of monitoring whether banned people have entered any of their stores? Do they use face recognition technology?

I have had quite a stressful week thinking about this whole thing. I am so humiliated that they have managed to make me feel like a common criminal.

RLP Document.pdf

[MARTIN3030]

Ok thanks-I have approved the pdf-basically its a notice explaining what they say in their letters.

 

As far as we know theres no such face recognition in place-my guess is that it would not be cost effective to use this technology for a small number of people.

Whether they have a more traditional means-I havent heard.

[diskmandave]

Two points...

 

Why does it cost anything to "restore" the goods if not damaged?

If they're not damaged, they won't need restoring surely?!! If they

actually mean "re-store", they were storing them in the first place.

 

"The cost of the investigation in to the offence"

Judge and jury, seems they've already decided whatever has

occurred is an offence. Very badly worded for an "allegedly"

police backed company!

 

2p>

 

Good luck with it, I would certainly fight them.

[MARTIN3030]

In one of the cases I was helping the OP with,The case centered around a specific item of clothing.

The item was not taken from the OP and neither were any requests made to have it returned.

Best of all (and most confusing)

was the breakdown supplied by RLP in their demand.

Goods .......00.00

 

most of their demands were taken up by investigation hours (2 managers and 2 note takers @£19.00 per hour.)

 

postage and phone calls-£37.00

 

Transport and Travel -various amounts.

 

 

If as they claim,they are entitled to ask for a proportion of the security running costs (for which their security team are employed to do as their actual job)

 

Then likewise,its not unreasonable to present RLP with a demand for recovery of any costs incurred in defending actions against them.

 

1.Time taken to write letters/send recorded delivery

 

2.Research of the Civil Procedure rules

 

Its about time the tables were turned on them.

[Bookworm]

In accordance with the DPA? Yeah, we'll see...

 

I haven't had a chance to write to the ICO yet, I'm glad now, this will come in handy as part of the request for investigation.

[Out4Revenge]

This is unlawful imprisonment. They have no right to do this to you.

 

Either they are making a citizens arrest according the PACE (which they were clearly not doing as they said they were not involving the police) or they had NO right to hold you.

 

Holding you until you signed their paper both invalidates anything you signed (as it was signed under duress) and IMO leaves them open to a claim agains them for unlawful imprisonment

 

Also can you get someone to find out the actual price of the sun tan lotion that you placed the ticket on It would be interesting to know the price difference (esp if it was very close to, or even less than the amount you paid)

 

 

HI sorry i know this is not relevent but do you think this is the case here??http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/repossessions/188321-question-re-repossesed-car.html.

 

 

Back on topic, if it was me I'd be visiting my local police station to make a complaint about your kidnap and unlawful imprisionment, they didn't make a citizens arrest, they didn't contact the police and they have admitted as much, Thats what i would do!

I have a freind who is security manager for a wellknown store and he's told me in the past that if someone is detained, then found not to have done a provable wrong, then they complain to the store, the store automatically send 1k FF payment, rather than risk a claim through the courts!

[JonCris]

I'm posting this on ALL of the RLP threads as I'm attempting with I hope CAG's consent to mount a campaign against this firm in an effort to curtail it's appalling activities

 

I need members who have been a victim of RLP to PM Mod Martin with a view to coming forward prepared to put their situation before both the Information Commissioners Office and the media

 

Thanks in anticipation

[tank-fink]

Good point Martin...

 

Working from home- these RLP debates are proving to be a real distraction- I'm thinking of invoicing RLP myself for the time spent acting as a free-lance advisor to others who are being ripped off by them-

 

Does £45/hr seem a reasonable rate?

[MARTIN3030]

Ha Ha......you would be entitled to charge as you felt appropriate.

You could even pull some figures out of thin air-as they appear to have done so many times.

The calculator they must be using obviously needs new batteries.

[buzby]

Just in case nobody has spotted the connection - RLP appears to be another division of [deleted - no evidence to support]

Edited March 19, 2009 by barracad

[tank-fink]

[edited by mod as per previous post]

Edited March 19, 2009 by barracad

[buzby]

 

Alternatively - imagine the consternation at the bank when applying for a mortgage....

 

"Mr tank-fink, you've passed all our checks, you've no defaults but there's this note here that says you were caught nicking a bottle of Boots No 7 mascara, so we'll have to decline."

 

Talk of data 'misuse'....

 

[JonCris]

Can you explain what you think is the link other than they are both in Nottingham

[buzby]

First of all, it's an interesting location if you think of all the other places RLP could have based themselves. The fact that when their HQ was in Glasgow the reason for their move was to facilitate a major expansion for the retail trade (unspecified). Their website postcode is invalid, there is no physical address shown (although Lenton Boulevard is mentioned on CAG, this is not shown in their 'publicity'.

 

[deleted - no evidence to support]

Edited March 19, 2009 by barracad

[MARTIN3030]

This is very alarming Raymond-If it does turn out to be true,then it would demonstrate an unbelievable contempt.

For one,how has it been kept under wraps ?-it would have taken a seriously masked and orchastrated plan of action surely ?

Its in the public interest that this should be in the domain.I guess the easiest way to get confirmation of it would be to simply write to both and ask them.