Sainsbury's so called 'free' DVD trial

[oops a daisy]

I am not sure if I can post this and get advice on it here - as this is a on line problem with Sainsburys but just wondered if anybody can help in any way.

I have ended up getting my fingers well and truly burned by Sainsburys so called 'free' dvd trial. They will not cancel it and have taken my money.

I signed up for the free trial but to be honest we dont really watch dvds and never really get the time so after only watching 1 dvd I decided that it just was not for me and e mailed them to cancel. I sent them a lovely letter thanking them for the free trial however asking for them to cancel the membership. I actually e mailed the wrong department so they replied to my e mail and said that they would pass it onto the correct department.

I was still getting dvds from them a week later ( and was duly sending them straight back without even watching them ) so I put a letter in with one of the returned dvds to remind them that I had cancelled and to please stop sending the dvd's.

Again a week later we were still getting dvds so I sent another e mail to them but was then away for a few days so didnt see the reply untill I got back. In The reply they denied getting the first e mail ( even though they replied to it ) they said I had to phone a 0870 number to cancel or send them an e mail via their site ( havent I already done that ? ) So I replied to the e mail and copied the first e mail to prove that I did cancel it and in the meantime they charged me a months rental to my credit card I requested a refund of the money.

I got another reply basically ignoring my e mail and again telling me to phone a 0870 number or cancel it via their website. I replied and tried to point out again that I have e mailed for over a month now and they have not followed my wishes and cancelled. The final e mail came tonight asking me to confirm if I want to cancel ( AAAHHHHHHHH ) and telling me that they will not send me a refund - no explanation just basically we got your money so up yours.

I am so cross about this - If it was my fault I would pay it but it isnt and I have proof - can anybody give me any advice on this. I would really appreciate it - its times like this I wish I was married to a solicitor.

oh and thanks for reading my rant


EDIT: Please remember that you have a "carriage return" button

[Bookworm]

Poor you, how annoying!

I must say, I've had nothing but good service with them, fingers crossed... It just shows how things can go wrong...

Well, you can go the "bank charges" route, lol.

Take the LBA letter, (i think you can dispense with the prelim, you already have e-mailed them) adapt it to your circumstances, give them 7 or 14 days to refund, take them to court if they don't. (I'm getting very court-trigger happy these days, lol). They are in breach of contract by sending you dvds when you have cancelled. (Technically, you could have kept the dvds as unsolicited material, and nowt much they could have dome about that.)

[oops a daisy]

Hi Bookworm. Ive already been to the County Court once today LOL. I have actually contacted my bank and I really dont deserve the good service that they gave me considering what I was doing this morning but they have charged the amount back so effectively given me a refund. Yah Boo Sucks to Sainsburys from me and erm thanks First Direct.

[MrWeeble]

Your best bet is probably to speak to your credit card company, tell them that they have been charged you for a service you have cancelled and ask for the money back. A "Chargeback" is what it is called. Companies hate them cos the Credit card companies not only take the money back but charge the company a fee for doing it. (I am guessing companies aren't covered by the consumer credit act - so these charges may actually be legal :o)

This should spur Sainsbury's into actually doing what you originally requested them to do as it then becomes their problem, not yours.

Good Luck.

[pmhread]

I had exactly the same problem with Tesco DVD rental. They were a pain in the bum but I got my own way eventually! Just keep escalating to another level and they will give up. It's not worth their while to keep arguing the case.

*edit* sorry just re read your previous post and noticed you got your cash back anyway... congrats... don't spend it all at once.

[oops a daisy]

guess what arrived in the post today - 2 more bl@@dy DVD's AAAAHHHHHH.

What part of ' I do not want your service ' do they not understand.

Just checked my c/card balance and I have definately been refunded

[seylectric]

I would be tempted to keep the DVDs and assume they were a gift since you have cancelled.

Had the same problem with ScreenSelect last year, only signed up because a website I am a member of paid me a £3 bonus just for trialling the service. I never even used it but cancelled via email as per their instructions well before the free month trial was up, but my c.c. was still charged. They claimed never to have recieved it and I had no real proof they had, but I argued that it was a bit unfair since I had never actually rented anything but they didn't want to know.

It wasn't a fortune, £13.88 I think, but I was to busy to pursue it at the time. Annoying though.

For those of you regulars, no I don't think there is a company or bank I have never had problems with!

[less2303]

I would now contact them again, and advise that they have 7/14 days to collect, after which you will assume that they no longer have an interest in the items. Put the ball back in their court and make them work. Keep a copy of the letter obviously, then there is no come back on you at all.

[Bookworm]

Yep.

If you have cancelled, and have proof of it, the dvds are now unsolicited goods.

However: your card will be on a rolling authorisation, which allows for things to keep on going through even if you got a new card, for instance (AOL people, beware of that, btw!). There is the certain risk that this will happen every month until it gets solved properly.

[oops a daisy]

my bank said that they will put a block on this company putting anything else on it so Id like to see them try LOL I was going to cancel the card anyway as I have made sure I am not reliant on them just incase they get funny about me claiming my bank charges back. Im just waiting for another company to credit me for something that they shouldnt have put through and then it will be clear and cancelled so they will have no chance then

[comanche]

Are you sure about that? Usually Continuous Payment Authorities have to be cancelled by the originating companies. Banks normally argue that they can't do anything about it.

[oops a daisy]

yes he said that he would place a note regarding the company on my account so that they could not do it again.

[oops a daisy]

Sainsburys have finally, today backed down and cancelled the account. I was still receiving e mails from them and was still toing and froing with their customer services who would not accept that the account was cancelled. In the end I sent a letter yesterday basically saying that I had charged back the money they took from me and the dvds that they sent last week were now considered unsolicited mail and if they did not collect them in 14 days I would consider them a gift for the inconvenience that they have caused me. They have asked me to send the DVD's back before the next billing date or I will get charged again ( no I wont ) I will send them back but might just give them a bit of a run around for my own personal satisfaction

Be careful that they dont charge you if you have to get them back by a certain date.

Good Luck!

Lou x

[oops a daisy]

Id like to see them try - card will be cancelled in 2 days

[seylectric]

I've sent another letter to ScreenSelect on the strength of this asking for my money back.

My cae is slightely different, it was only one payment but it's the principle of the thing. The way I see it they could be doing this to thousands of people.

I will post here with their response, it might be relevant to somebody hopefully.

[oops a daisy]

go for it Seylectric - mine was only 1 payment too but as you say they could be doing this to loads of people and making a lot of money off it. In the past I would have just let it go, but I fight for every penny of my hard earned cash from those who try to take it from me. Think this site is going to my head