Retailer PerfectHome fined for taking customers' keys

[Michael Browne]

High Street retailer PerfectHome has been fined for making some customers hand over their house keys before it delivered their purchases.

 

PerfectHome is a rent-to-own business and has 67 stores across the UK.

 

Hull magistrates court convicted the company of aggressive and misleading trading practices after more than 50 sets of house keys were found at the firm's store in the city.

 

PerfectHome said it disagreed with the verdict and planned to appeal.

 

It blamed a previous store manager for a "rogue practice" that was not company policy.

 

Misled customers

Under the rent-to-own model, customers take out an agreement to buy a product, and then pay weekly instalments until they own it - similar to hire purchase agreements.

 

Hull city council's trading standards team launched an investigation into PerfectHome after a customer complained that she had been pressured into giving her house key to them before they delivered her television.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-31440752

[BankFodder]

Yes, I hear about this on BBC radio.

I thought that it was a joke. The people who run this company must be crass.

[dx100uk]

what that is truly outrageous

kept that one well hidden Perfect Homes Didn't you.

 

 

don't believe for one minute that its a 'rogue manager'!!!

 

 

you said that about the country wide policy of threatening to get the police around to break-in....

 

 

dx

[fkofilee]

Wow... Thats just disgraceful!!!

 

Why have someone batter the door down, When you can just let yourself in when they are not there and take goods! :/

[Sparks_]

http://www.hulldailymail.co.uk/Retailer-PerfectHome-fined-8216-aggressive/story-26004293-detail/story.html?001

[citizenB]

On what basis do they hope to appeal the decision !

[ericsbrother]

that they are not responsible, their rogue manager did it and he was bigger than them and he had a stick!

[citizenB]

that they are not responsible, their rogue manager did it and he was bigger than them and he had a stick!

 

In which case, I hope it ends up in the High court so a precedent can be set when they lose and these dreadful companies are reined in.

[Nao]

While it is disgusting what PerfectHome has done, lets not forget the real issue.

 

Rampant poverty, benefits cuts and unfurnished council housing (you don't even get white goods) leaves very large numbers of people without any alternatives to the legal loan sharks with no lending standards (and no morals if it comes to debt collection).

[dx100uk]

plenty of other ways than using these companies.

 

 

dx

[rtbcomp]

I always thought that if you rent something repairs are included. This was certainly true in olden days when we rented our telly.

[dx100uk]

correct and FREE under SOGA

yet they tell their customers they MUST have their coverplus insurance.

 

 

get reclaiming it back to day one.

 

 

dx

[Nao]

Also for the first two years the lovely EU directive 1999/44/EC.

[dx100uk]

SOGA trumps that its in addition to your statutory rights under SOGA.

 

 

dx

[Nao]

Problem with SOGA is that the burden of proof is only on the shop for the first 6 months, after that burden of proof moves to the buyer, so for the first 6 month SOGA is better yes, but then for months 7 - 24 1999/44/EC comes out tops (and then it goes back to soga due to 1999/44/EC only being 2 years).

[dx100uk]

not on HP

they own it not YOU

 

 

dx

[sewingkit]

i am lost for words, just read this in your very handy regular emails

[alan5044]

Whilst agreeing with the gist of your input

 

 

I am afraid that I cannot see why the taxpayer should ever be lumbered with the cost of "white goods or furniture" .

 

 

Who decides who is entitled and what if it becomes faulty.

 

 

This month white goods next month well I really need a car to get around.

 

Alan.

[oleg]

If the Hull situation is replicated across the country it means this business got its grubby paws on the keys to nearly 3,500 homes.

 

Whilst the appalling nature of that is self-evident, what I find equally disturbing is that 3,500 people should be so gullible and/or desperate as to hand the keys over.

 

All this for a grossly overpriced bed or kettle?

 

A recent survey concluded that the average British adult has a reading age of 11. I suspect that their financial and rights literacy may be no higher.

[rtbcomp]

........... I suspect that their financial and rights literacy may be no higher.

 

Trouble is you only know what you've been told - perhaps there's a role in schools for teaching these facts of life.