SaveMyLight are again seeing a dramatic increase in Returns Fraud.
We are hearing a whole range of unbelievable excuses in an attempt to obtain a refund.
Some customers are DIY test fitting products and unintentionally damaging the product. Of course when the product is retested upon its return we have to refuse it.
A growing number of customers are not having their product installed by a qualified electrician and instead trying to DIY fit the product. This in turn causes repeat phone calls claiming ‘the product does not work’. All items must be fitted by a qualified electrician. Using a voltage tester pen does not qualify a customer as an electrician.
Some customers are also deliberately returning products that they know full well have been damaged upon installation and claiming they ‘received it in that condition’. The manufacturer will not accept these products back under the guarantee and the return will be refused.
And it gets worse! Some customers are even swapping the PCB (printed circuit board) with an older PCB claiming the product is faulty (when infact they are actually returning their own faulty product). This is theft as well as fraud!!
Some customers are also waiting 3,4,5 and even 6 months then making contact claiming an item has only ‘just been fitted and is faulty’.
SaveMyLight are clearly able to check from looking at the product which has been returned to us and then compared against the same stocked model.
Security measures in place:-
- All units have warranty void stickers in place
- All products are security marked – this will be a combination of items including ‘Smartwater’ marking for high value items.
- All products are photographed before despatch and stored under the customer’s sales log
- All units are tested before despatch and noted under the customer’s sales log
- The packaging department now has CCTV which can be reviewed to see the exact moment a customer’s order was processed and packaged. Very handy for claims of an item not as described or a different item received
- All returned units are retained should they be needed in the future for reference
However some customers are going one step further and filing chargebacks with their banks in an attempt to obtain their money back, knowing full well they are not entitled to a refund.
SaveMyLight report all matters of fraud to ActionFraud UK as well as issuing civil proceedings against customers who successfully file a false chargeback to obtain a refund.
Fraud is a crime and as a retailer we will do everything we can to stamp this practice out.
Fraud costs our company money, which increases the cost of products for other customers.
We would rather do away with the above security measures but unfortunately in this day and age it is simply not possible.
