help and advice needed about a three piece leather sofa from DFS

jan 2014 purchased a three piece sofa from DFS £3500

feb 2014 they were delivered

2 weeks ago called dfs to report leather peeling away on head rest

monday last week repair man come out. told he can not repair it and will send report to store

tuesday i visit the store. told by salesman they will get it repaired. and told its caused by natural oils in the hair and skin and not their problem but they will repair it as a gesture of good will. also told because we are pensioners and not working. sitting in it all day dont help.

told the salesman we dont think the suite has been treated properly and wish it to be taken back as repairing one area is no good because other areas will go. salesman said that there is no way we can return it and all he will do is repair the affected area.

tuesday last week. called barclays credit as we bought it on the interest free deal. informed them the suite was unfit for purpose. Barclay informed the will write to DFS to get the to resolved.

today manager from another store called to inspect the suite.

he says he stands by the report that it is a chemical reaction to oils in people hair and skin.

told us we should have bought the after care plan that was offered at time of purchase which would have included a treatment kit that would have stopped it happening.

told us we could not return it as it was not a manufacturing issue.

he inspect the rest of the suite and he picked up on the other chair that the leather was also starting to peel on that.

as a gesture of goodwill he would get the both headrests repaired and a free leather kit and gilders thrown in free because we are pensioners.

we told him we just wanted to return the suite because we felt it was not fit for purpose.

he said no because under the sale of goods act. there needed to be a manufacturer fault and there was no fault.

we rejected his offer and he said there is nothing else we could do because they had fulfilled there obligation.

we said we would go through the courts. and he said we wouldn't win because there was not fault in the suite

any help or advice on proceeding

i have a photo but because i,m new it wont let me post but hopefully it will let me soon

also when we told him we were rejecting his offer. he said "i should be charging you for this"

called barclays and they said they will but in it a claim handler to sort out. does anyone know what they will do

searching on CAG and i cant seem to find many cases going to court. is that because they resolve them

http://s15.postimg.org/k0075aa5n/photo.jpg

Looking at your pic real leather would flake off in bits but would still keep its color this looks like its been sprayed on and is wearing off.

Hi Ramsey

Welcome to CAG

Write a Formal Letter of Complaint, mark it as such. Explain what's happened , how they have let you down and what you want them to do.

Send it to:-

Mr Ian Filby

Chief Executive

DFS

[email protected]

Mobile phone, so very short response.

You are completely right. It is a SOGA matter and your sofa is not fit.

Take photos and document everything. Record calls. Write detailed formal complaint and come back here with their response.

Make a video, put it on YouTube with the title "Look at the fantastic quality of a DFS suite" (then they can't say you were defaming their good name) then post the link to the video to DFS to the Chief Executive as above. Worked a treat for me a few years ago.

It would help if you could get a few people to view the video so it shows as being popular.

Am I right in thinking this is fake. Ive seen real leather dry up and crack like a dry river bed. Ive never seen this before.

no this is not fake. apparently this leather is a top quality. it is leather but. now im guessing here. the pigment is sprayed on then a protective coat applied. this is what appears to have peeled off. the first guy who come out said it cant not be repaired

spent the evening researching it. from my findings it is a good quality leather hides used. however from what i can see about leather treatment. the makers have not prep the hide correctly before applying pigments. started drafting a letter to Ian Filby.

will keep you updated

spent the evening researching it. from my findings it is a good quality leather hides used. however from what i can see about leather treatment. the makers have not prep the hide correctly before applying pigments. started drafting a letter to Ian Filby.

 

will keep you updated

Yes you are right The type of leather you have is a pigment coated leather which is essentially a 'painted' leather with a clear coat finish and it is this coating that has begun to break down.

Hi ramsay2014

Could I ask exactly what proof do you actually have from DFS that this is REAL Leather?

If the answer is none then put DFS to proof and let them prove it is REAL leather.

Also consider in your letter about getting an Independent Inspection done agreed by both parties and both parties share costs for report?

Found this a complaint to DFS The suite was apparently sold as " leather " but it appears to me to be a vinyl with artificial graining attached to fabric. Similar to fake leather that was available in the 70's.

my land of leather sofa is also peeling, only had for 2 years

We have the exact same problem on our DFS sofa and armchair, they were under 12 months when this was first noted and we reported it to DFS who sent their surveyor around and he told us it needs to go via a insurance claim with the policy we took out with DFS and that we needed to do it ourselves as he could not get involved under the data protection act, he also said the cause should be explained to the insurance company as human bodily fluids.

I spoke with a girl in the DFS office who said that the peeling would be dealt with by the insurance company and the sofa repair would be rejected as a defect but not to worry as DFS will address that but in the meantime to add both to the insurance claim, obviously I am not happy with something that is clearly not up to standard, I purchased this model as it was sold as a thicker better quality leather (Supreme model) and was shown the difference on swatches in the store so did not mind paying the extra as my previous sofa lasted 16 years including shipping it to Turkey for our villa and having sweat etc from the heat and not a single problem with peeling or colour fading, so why after several months this is being put down to bodily fluid and not a manufacturing defect is a joke.

I have informed the insurance company I am not happy with the claim and they are sending their own assesor to double check. No doubt this will rumble on but interested to hear you are having the same issues and by the looks of photo exact same quality and colour issue! Will update when I know what is going on but will take it to court if need to as these are not cheap sofas and never heard of pigment colouring before nor was it mentioned of course when selling the item, purely about the superiour quality!

We have the exact same problem on our DFS sofa and armchair, they were under 12 months when this was first noted and we reported it to DFS who sent their surveyor around and he told us it needs to go via a insurance claim with the policy we took out with DFS and that we needed to do it ourselves as he could not get involved under the data protection act, he also said the cause should be explained to the insurance company as human bodily fluids. I spoke with a girl in the DFS office who said that the peeling would be dealt with by the insurance company and the sofa repair would be rejected as a defect but not to worry as DFS will address that but in the meantime to add both to the insurance claim, obviously I am not happy with something that is clearly not up to standard, I purchased this model as it was sold as a thicker better quality leather (Supreme model) and was shown the difference on swatches in the store so did not mind paying the extra as my previous sofa lasted 16 years including shipping it to Turkey for our villa and having sweat etc from the heat and not a single problem with peeling or colour fading, so why after several months this is being put down to bodily fluid and not a manufacturing defect is a joke. I have informed the insurance company I am not happy with the claim and they are sending their own assesor to double check. No doubt this will rumble on but interested to hear you are having the same issues and by the looks of photo exact same quality and colour issue! Will update when I know what is going on but will take it to court if need to as these are not cheap sofas and never heard of pigment colouring before nor was it mentioned of course when selling the item, purely about the superiour quality!

Please will you post the story in a new thread so that we can help you more effectively.

Your story is very interesting and raises some very serious issues.

Start a new thread and also read our customer services guide before having any more dealings with this company

update. been a long haul. but won. DFS tried to fight. even phoned from letter before court action warning us that they will win and ask for all their costs. saying there was no fault and it damage was caused by head grease. our claim was there does not need to be a fault for it not to be fit for purpose. claim issued phone call from DFS we will not fight it and collected the suite . full refund plus costs paid +++++won+++++

Well done.

More proof, if ever was needed that a firm and litigious aggressive attitude towards these companies gets results and often it is the only thing which does get results.

What a shame that the bullies need to be bullied back before giving good customer service.

How amazing that a company like DFS will put their reputation on the line simply to defeat one of their customers who quite clearly has got a legitimate basis for complaint.

I think this serves as a warning that anybody wants to buy a sofa should try and find some other company in preference to DFS.

in all honesty. our problem was a stubborn manager

12 weeks after delivery it peeled. so we visited the store and the manager said he would only offer to repair the affected leather. we asked if we could swap it as we felt it may go in other areas. he said thats all he was going to do and dont bother asking head office as this was his store and they had no control how he runs his store.

he visited the house to inspect the leather and again only offered to replace the affected area. we declined as we felt after 3 months we were covered by the SOGA act. is attitude was do what you want. so we told him we would use the courts to sort it out. he wrongly told us we could not use the courts because we had to use the furniture ombudsman first.

the furniture ombudsman was a waste of time. they ruled there was no fault and blamed head grease. they said they dont rule on "not fit for purpose" only if there was a fault. but their inspector recommended a free repair.

DFS declined to repair it and stated that because it went to the ombudsman they paid out £345 to them and the free repair was off the table.

contacted barclays to claim under the SOGA not fit for purpose. they phoned DFS and advised Barclays to close the case as the furniture ombudsman had ruled on it. they closed the case

letter before court action sent to head office

store manager called to say head office has got nothing to do with it. its his store and he will send a repairman out.

repairman sent. said he could not repair it as leather needs replacing. called the manager who said oh they went to the ombudsmans. dont do nothing. just leave a card for them to get it repaired themselves.

second letter sent to head office. before court action

store manager called sending a repairman.

repairman arrives with a spray to paint over affected area. informs it will only peel back off as there was no sealant. offer of repair declined told the manager was off but will get him to phone us

store manager phoned. said he dont have to offer anything and painting it was a goodwill offer. told him we would issue a court claim. told us we had no chance of winning but if we did he would hire lawyers and make us pay for them.

court claim issued at the store we bought it from. saying "there does not need to be a fault to make a product unfit for purpose"

store manager called saying he would win the case. but he spoke to the maker of the furniture who said they would replace every piece of leather on the suite

as it was in now in hands of the courts. we declined the offer and wanted it taken away and a full refund plus court costs was only acceptable offer.

he begrudging agreed but wanted the case closed after he did it

suite taken away Barclays refunded and payments paid to Barclays sent to me. cheque off DFS for court costs plus what i added for post etc. deposit refunded to card.

closed the money online claim. notes on case show DFS acknowledged the claim and also did a change of address to head office. which leads to to believe head office ordered this to be settled

hope this saga will help anyone grieved by DFS. but i firmly lay the blame on the store manager for being trying to be god almighty.

i think if DFS head office monitored cases like this. instead of leaving it in the hands of the manager till it goes pear shaped

hope this helps someone else

Thank you. That is very interesting and it is very kind of you to give such a detailed account of what happened.

Many people come to the forum and then when they solve the problems, they never come back and tell us anything about it.

It sounds a really ghastly adventure and so hats off to you for sticking by and sticking it to them.

Whether it is DFS or their manager, it is all the same thing really.

The manager is paid and he represents his employer and if his employers don't know what's going on then that's another strike against them because they should be monitoring what's happening in their shops.

Hi,

Seems that they are still up to their old tricks!

We bought a leather sofa from DFS last December and came with a defective electric reclining mechanism. This was sorted but took a few month for them to get the part.

Other problem we now have with this sofa is that it seems to be doing the same peeling as previously described on the thread.

Just had a DFS representative out today, Wednesday 17th October and he has stated sweat and hair products as the reason for this peeling.

Having noticed the post by Ramsay2014 in May 2014, I have the very same issue with what seems to be the same "quality product".

The rep has said he is going to advise that the affected backrest is replaced, but having further researched the issue, now going for a complete replacement or refund.

I feel sorry for previous posts and the hassle they have had but seems the only way to resolve issues.

Will keep you informed of any updates.

Hi!

I've just come accross your issue with DFS. I've just been to the store (Llandudno) i bought a leather suite from in 2015 as i have the same problem as everybody else in this thread!!! I've sent them pictures & explained everything. I am just waiting for a response!

Thread is sev years old

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