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Woolworths has closed its last store, and over the coming months other retailers looks set to follow suit. We find out what rights you have if you buy items from a store that falls into administration.
Can I still shop in a store that has called in the administrators?
Usually, yes. Even when stores announce they are going into administration their shops will often stay open as they sell off as much existing stock as they can - often at big discounts. You should also be able to speak to staff about what to do if you need a refund or are expecting a delivery. Customer service lines will also usually stay open until every last shop has shut down, so you should be able to ask them directly about the status of an order.
I ordered a sofa two months ago from a retailer that has now collapsed. What can I do?
Made-to-order furniture can take weeks to arrive so it is possible that many people could find themselves in this situation. The first thing you should do is contact the company you ordered the furniture from to find out what production stage it is at (when home furnishing store The Pier and Danish furniture specialist Ilva went under last year their customer service lines remained open until the full closure of their shops in order to help customers worried about furniture orders and delivery).
If your furniture is ready and due to be delivered before the company closes its stores you should receive it as normal, although you may find you have to keep calling to confirm a delivery date. It is worth reconfirming your delivery slot as often as you can to make sure they really are coming.
If your order is ready but the company cannot deliver it you may be able to collect it from a warehouse or distribution centre, providing you can identify the goods as yours - so keep any paperwork or confirmation emails you may have been sent.
In a worse-case scenario you may be unable to get in touch with the company you placed your order with, or it will contact you to tell you it cannot honour your order. In either case, if you have already paid for the product in full, or partially with a deposit, then you will have to contact the company's administrator to arrange a refund. Check the retailer's website to find out which firm is acting as administrator - contact details should be clearly available.
I ordered goods online and paid with my credit card. Can I claim for a refund from my card provider?
It depends how much you spent. Under the Consumer Credit Act a credit card company is "jointly and severally liable" along with the retailer for the quality of the goods or service you purchased, providing you spent between £100 and £30,000. If you did and the company goes bust you will be able to claim your money back from your credit card provider. If you spent less than £100 you will have to contact the administrator for a refund.
I used my Maestro debit card to spend £100 with an online retailer. Can I claim my refund from my bank?
No, unless you used a Visa debit card. Debit cards are not covered under the Consumer Credit Act, so your bank won't step in and help. However, if your bank has given you a Visa debit card you will be covered under the chargeback scheme, and should be compensated for any sum of money lost when a company goes under.
If you didn't use a Visa debit card you should contact the administrator directly with full details of your order (the order number, details of the product and when you ordered it). The administrator should be able to tell you whether or not your order will be fulfilled, or whether it will arrange for a refund to be paid.
I have been given a voucher. Can I still use it in the remaining shops?
Yes, you should be able to. When Woolworths went into administration it was effectively business as normal until the very last stores shut down. But you should use the vouchers as soon as you can otherwise there will simply be nothing left to buy - when The Pier went into administration in December the only items left after its closing down sale were plain cushion pads, according to customer services staff. If you do not spend your voucher and a shop closes for good, you become a creditor of the company and need to hope there is enough money for the administrators to meet your claim for a refund.
I recently bought an item but when I took it home it didn't work. Can I still return it and get my money back?
Possibly not, says Michelle Shambrook, deputy operations manager at the Office of Fair Trading. "You will still have rights as a customer, but if the company is in administration and you go into a store to try and return something, the store staff will not be able to help you," she says.
"The shop will only be open to sell off existing stock, so if you want your money back you will have to register your claim and the faulty item with the administrator - their role is to ensure that as many consumers as possible get their money back, but in a worse-case scenario sometimes there is simply no money to settle any claims and you may not get any money back."
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