Don’t buy from Comet
SUMMARY:
1. Comet thinks it’s cheaper to screw their customers and keep their money;
2. Consumer rights are civil rights, and can be costly to enforce;
3. Flatscreen TV’s have inherent faults the electronics and retail industry refuse to accept responsibility for.
Comet Electrical Store: abuse of consumer protections
You’d think that a big high street chain store like Comet would respect consumer rights – but, from experience they appear to have a policy that says that once a purchase has been made, they will do everything they can to keep that money, even if they may be breaking the law in doing so.
In April this year I made the big mistake of spending over £1900 on a home entertainment system from Comet, which comprised a flatscreen LG PX11 42″ plasma TV and Pioneer DVD/CD player and speaker system.
The system was very much recommended by the salesman, but:
-
1. The TV and DVD unit weren’t even compatible
2. The flatscreen TV was inherently faulty
3. The salesman used higher range models to infer the quality of the purchase
The issue of compatibility should never have arisen – after making a specific recommendation on two products, it later turned out that the DVD player was missing a component connection, which is neceassary for proper compability with plasma TV’s.
This was a basic mis-selling error on Comet’s part.
Although Comet’s managing director, Simon Fox, clearly stated in writing that it “was not their intention to sell you items that were not fully compatible†the fact of the matter is intention or not, they did.
However, as the store manager of the Stirling, Spingkerse Park branch, Martin Higgins made clear, they would not accept responsibility on this issue because it would “cost him money”.
Flatscreen TV’s: problems, errors, and faults
Additionally, the LG plasma TV had serious faults that Comet were well aware of, but will not inform customers about. This includes:
1. Poor quality picture due to solarisation
2. Sound and vision not even in sync on DVD and satellite TV playback
Apparently, these issues are common in the entire flatscreen TV market, and both plasma TV’s and LCD TV’s, and especially reported on the LG model.
In fact, the technical support at Comet refused to regard this as a problem, but the Comet engineer provided a fact sheet about the known problems inherent with many Plasma and LCD TV’s.
However, Comet’s position is that so long as the product is to manufacturer’s specifications, they can sell them without informing the customer that they are buying a second-rate and effectively faulty product. That’s a good customer care policy, isn’t it?
I certainly didn’t spend £1900 on a piece of junk that can’t even play a film picture in sync with its soundtrack, due to internal processor errors in the TV.
As for the sales process itself – the salesman made every effort to show how the plasma TV would function and perform, by using higher range models where these problems are not so much an issue. I was specifically lead to believe that the model I bought would perform as well as the other models. I was shown a range of Porches and then sold a Robin Reliant.
As Comet have their head office in Hull - my original home town - I actually know people who work there. One told me that Comet use the fact that a single TV aerial is shared across all the display TV’s, as an excuse in sales to claim that TV’s with actual picture quality problems is entirely due to the aerial, not the TV itself.
Comet’s abuse of consumer rights
Even though issues of compatability, faults, and mis-selling are against consumer rights, Comet’s position was that it would be in their interests for them to keep the money until such time as made untenable to do so.
In fact, the store manager of the Stirling, Spingkerse Park branch, Martin Higgins, told me outright that they would not issue a refund on the grounds that I would simply “spend the money elsewhere”.
This is a pretty astonishing statement to make, and was made in a generally aggressive phone call, in which it was insisted that Comet had my £1900, therefore it was up to me alone to try and get that back - Comet were happy holding on to my cash because they thought it would cost them less to do so.
It’s also worth pointing out that the only way to get it back was via a complex, protracted, and very expensive process of filing a legal claim for that size amount.
This is because consumer rights are NOT protected under criminal law but civil law – to uphold rights under civil law, a complainant has to expect to spend thousands of pounds to engage in legal proceedings that can last years.
Comet seem to feel that this process should be intimidating enough to most consumers. And it absolutely is, especially when you know it would be you alone against a million-pound corporate giant.
Comet - end of story
I approached Trading Standards, who informed me that most of the battle was even getting a company to offer any kind of concession.
Comet wouldn’t offer a refund without a fight, but finally agreed to an exchange of goods.
It was recommended that so long as Comet had been clever and offered at least a basic concession, then Trading Standards would be unlikely to take matters further.
Additionally, the specifics of this case covered entered grey areas.
For example, compatibility issues were clearly a matter of consumer rights, but specifically as part of a “package”. Would being recommended to buy the TV and DVD player constitute a “package” in legal terms? Trading Standards were uncertain.
Also, if I were to argue that the TV was faulty, I could find myself going up against LG as well - in fact, the entire flatscreen TV industry itself - in order to argue the point that the problems of flatscreen TV’s were unacceptable faults under consumer law.
On top of all that, I would not be able to prove that the salesman mis-led me in the sales process, because it would be effectively my word against his, with no witnesses.
All things accounted for, if I wanted a refund as I felt entitled to, I would almost certainly face a very long-term and very expensive legal challenge that could pit myself as an individual agaisnt the giants of the electronics manufacturing and retail industries.
Having a relatively new and vulnerable business, and having just moved, I didn’t feel particularly attracted to that prospect. Besides, my girlfriend begged me not to.
After more than 8 weeks of the initial purchase, I finally decided to accept Comet’s offer of an exchange.
As a result, Comet have lost a customer for life.
Additionally, as promised to Simon Fox, the managing director of Comet, I am holding the company up for public scrutiny.
NOTE: It was unfortunate that I paid by debit card, not Credit Card - if I had paid with a Credit Card I would have enjoyed much better protections, provided for by the Credit Card company itself. I now pay for all major purchases by Credit Card, simply for the extra layer of consumer protections.
REFERENCES:
According to the Sales of Goods Act (1979):
- Wherever goods are bought they must “conform to contract”. This means they must be as described, fit for purpose and of satisfactory quality (i.e. not inherently faulty at the time of sale).
- Goods are of satisfactory quality if they reach the standard that a reasonable person would regard as satisfactory, taking into account the price and any description.
- Aspects of quality include fitness for purpose, freedom from minor defects, appearance and finish, durability and safety.
- It is the seller, not the manufacturer, who is responsible if goods do not conform to contract.
- If goods do not conform to contract at the time of sale, purchasers can request their money back “within a reasonable time”. (This is not defined and will depend on circumstances)
Trading Standards clearly identify that a breach of these circumstances should result in the offer of a full refund for the consumer.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you buy goods on a credit card, the credit card company will fight the issue for you if you pursue a refund.
2. Problems with flatscreen TV’s: lip-synch and solarisation
Flatscreen TV’s can have serious problems with serious loss of picture quality - and also with the TV picture and sound being out of sync, a process referred to as lip-synch problems.
Comet are aware of this problem - in fact, their engineer provided me with a photocopy of a short piece used to justify why customers who paid a couple of thousand for a home entertainment system should expect worse quality than from cheaper CRT TV systems.
An exact copy of the text on problems with flatscreen TV’s, as provided by the Comet engineer:
What does it all mean?
With the new digital televisions and improved video processing it is becoming more frequent to have fixed delays in video that make the audio appear to be ahead of the picture by as much as 4 frames (133.3ms).
This is not to be confused with inherent delay problems coming from the cable or satellite company’s transmissions (which can only compound the problem).
In additional to this, some digital technlogies, like direct view LCD televisions already have inherent delays of as much as 15-20 milliseconds, prior to any video processing.
Some plamas screens even need to put data into internal memory before displaying picture, which can result in 20-60 milliseconds of delay.
Compounding this problem even further is the potential for varying delay times associated with what scaling or deinterlacing function of video processing are enaged at any particular time (switching from 480p to 1080i inputs for example).
Mid-priced and higher-end displays already come with audio delay circuitry built in to match the audio and video signals and prevent lip sync.
Unfortunately, many lower-end models do not, and even the higher end units do not account for the problems that occur when you route audio through a home theatre processor or receiver.
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My sympathies Brian
I had a similar experience last year, which involved moving house and my wife decided to purchase a new dual fuel oven + splashbacks + hood…, a washing machine, dishwasher… Ok got the picture – several thousand spent with one high street vendor Comet!
We lost the receipt for telephone system and washing machine, after a phone call (waste of space) and a conversation with a very nice salesperson inside I managed to get a like-for-like exchange. However, I was unable to get anywhere with the washing machine.
A friend of mine however, has the solution, well it’s kind of a solution, in the same situation he buys the same model, waits a week and then gets them to pickup and refund the old item! Ok so it’s not perfect but he always has new appliances he’s not crooked (well) but he’s just lost it with large corps as most of us have!
Comment by richardb — September 4, 2005 @ 9:24 am
[…] Comet, of course, are famous for poor customer care, and worse still, mis-selling to customers and refusing to offer refunds on defective items - because it would “cost them money”. […]
Pingback by Platinax News » Dixons loses name to poor Comet — April 5, 2006 @ 5:29 pm
[…] It’s simply unfortunate that too many of the bigger corporations aren’t doing this - I’d love to have representatives from companies such as British Telecom and Comet address my own severely poor customer experiences. […]
Pingback by Brian’s Business Blog » When companies listen to the internet — October 18, 2006 @ 9:40 pm
[…] Re: Money and Misleading Advetising Also worth bearing in mind consumer rights - I got burned by Comet a while back, and had to really look into this: Brian’s Business Blog » Don’t buy from Comet I don’t plan to get burned like this again. […]
Pingback by Money and Misleading Advetising - Finance Market messageboards — November 8, 2006 @ 3:37 pm
With regards to your specific problem, i guess the argument is that you should have researched your product before you buy. I have to say though, you’re spot on about customer service. it’s beyond a joke. it’s a case of we’ve got your money, and we’re keeping it. I’ve got a 3 year old cinema kit that just started to play up in June. No worries i thought, i’ve bought a 5 year warranty. Been 5 months and 3 attempts at repair. no joy. Finally made a bit of a scene in store, and the manager jumped and acted. As soon as it was out of his hands, the same slow, and resistant methods have been used, includeing failure to return calls, call when promised, and fulfil the verbal agreement we made. Totally p*****d off. Still waiting.
Comment by Justin Allsop — November 10, 2006 @ 6:36 pm
Genuinely sorry to hear about your experiences, Justin - I can only hope that you get the issues sorted out.
Did you buy with Credit Card by any chance? May be some protections built into that.
Comment by Brian Turner — November 10, 2006 @ 6:46 pm
I used to work for Comet for a couple of years. I agree the company are not great at customer service. Neither are they good at the way they treat their staff. Their policy is that staff get to work 20 minutes before their shift and leave 20 minutes after (without extra pay - that’s 40 minutes each day extra). How they became the second largest electrical retail chain around is anyone’s guess. Their policy on selling insurance on their products also beggars belief. They want you to force sale of insurance on the customer. If you don’t get enough sales of insurance, then you loose your job. This includes selling a fifty quid insurance policy on a 8 quid toaster or kettle. Insane. I would never insure a 8 quid item with a 50 quid policy. How could I expect my customers to do the same? Seriously, you are better off shopping for these items at Argos, Tescos or Currys. And like this article states always use your credit card (not debit card or cash) when buying for ANY retailer.
Comment by Robert — December 22, 2006 @ 9:09 pm
Sorry to hear about your experiences, Robert - I noticed on Wikipedia there were actually a number of complaints from staff (or ex-staff) which were subsequently removed from the entry.
I can certainly say I’ll never buy from Comet again, and only hope that anyone who does so, takes great care in how they do so - paying by credit card, as you mentioned.
Comment by Brian Turner — December 22, 2006 @ 9:17 pm
I am an employee of comet and I am quite surprised about the number of complaints from people. A component connection is NOT required for full compatability with a flatscreen television. Secondly, the fact a CRT gives a ‘better’ picture than an LCD or Plasma does not make flatscreens faulty. It’s like saying that a 1ltr Skoda is ‘faulty’ because it won’t do 200mph like an Aston Martin. Thirdly, it’s true that a single aerial split into sixty-plus co-axs results in picture loss. Sorry, but it is true. Fourth, I cannot understand why Mr Higgins (the manager you mentioned) would say or act on such a thing, but if this is indeed true, I hoped you acted on it in an appropiate way. It is in NO WAY reflective of Comet’s high standards.
Thank you for your time in reading such a long response (if you have got this far.) I hope this makes you realise that Comet have not acted inappropiately (apart from the alleged comments made by Mr Higgins.)
Yours,
Jim
Comment by Jim — December 28, 2006 @ 11:29 pm
Hi Jim -
Thanks for the response:
1. I can’t remember the exact socket type used on the Plasma TV, but it was recommended by LG that for proper picture quality this was required.
However, the Comet salesman had recommended a DVD/music centre to go with it that had no output to connect with this.
Therefore both products were not properly compatible. But these had been implicitly recommended by the salesperson.
2. Comparison with CRT is simply that flatscreen TV’s have known issues with lypsync and solarisation issues. Both significantly reduce the viewing experience with the Plasma TV model in question.
The Comet branch manager, Martin Higgins, denied any such issues existed. The customer support line and Comet’s repairman both were very aware of the issues and had documentation on it.
Calling lypsync and solarisation acceptable I don’t believe is at all acceptable. Manufacturer specifications or not, they give all the consumer experience of faults.
4. On point 4, this is indeed how the Comet store manager behaved, even after I had contacted the head office in writing. Therefore I have little option but to perceive this as both a typical and low standard of customer care from Comet.
Overall, I think I’ve made in plain in all of the above that my perception is that Comet certainly did act inappropriately.
If it wasn’t for the fact that I had just moved house and needed to focus on maintaining a young internet business, I should certainly have considered taking the matter further.
I went through Comet’s customer care and management channels, and the bottom line - so eloquently put by Martin Higgins, is that he had my cash and that was that.
Comment by Brian Turner — December 29, 2006 @ 9:38 am
Just before Christmas I bought a Toshiba 20in LCD TV from John Lewis for £450, unaware of the lip sync problem. After a few days I found this really annoying and returned the TV to the store, where they tested it in front of me and concluded that it was faulty.
They offered me either a replacement or refund with no problems. I said a replacement was preferable, but I wanted to see it working before taking it away. They agreed to this again with no problem.
On testing this second one, they told me that it also was not acceptable, but that although they had 38 more in stock, they could not say if any other of them would be better. In the circumstances I accepted the offered refund.
Obviously it is possible that on occasion you -may- pay a little more at JLewis, but the comparison with the experiences at Comet is stark.
They had many other similar sized LCD TVs on the shelf outside, but as is usual the sound is always turned down, (otherwise the racket would be unbearable). I turned up the sound on each of these in turn, but in -every- case even those costing £600, there was evidence of the lip sync problem. Although some were better than others, once you have noticed the problem you get to look for it and cannot enjoy the viewing experience.
I have decided to do without a TV in that room until the manufacturers realise that customers will not put up with an expensive sub-standard product!
Comment by David Ludbrook — December 30, 2006 @ 3:15 pm
What a load of tripe!!!
you sir are a complete idiot!
Comment by Adam — January 30, 2007 @ 4:53 pm
[…] Re: How many credit cards do I need? UK consumer protections via credit cards are actually pretty good - buy with a debit card, and you’re screwed if there’s a problem. However, if you pay for goods on a credit card and something goes wrong - product/services aren’t delivered, are broken, or not what was ordered - then the credit card company will chase it up for you, because at the end of the day it’s their money. I had real problems with Comet about two years ago - a big UK electrical goods supplier: Brian’s Business Blog Don’t buy from Comet Since then, I only buy groceries with a debit card - everything else on the credit card. Now that my girlfriend has started using the internet and shopping online, I’m pushing her to get a credit card for the same reason - any internet sale goes wrong, the credit card company will ensure she doesn’t lose out. 2c. […]
Pingback by How many credit cards do I need? - The Finance Forums — February 16, 2007 @ 9:39 am
I worked at Comet for 2 years until jan ‘06, and I’ve got to agree with pretty much everything said in the original post.
We sold products based on their commission code. If it wasn’t the best thing for the job, tough. Unless it breaks down, you ain’t getting a refund. Money rules supreme.
I was actually quite lucky in that my managers hated the system as much as me. We were given actual training, and most of us tried to sell the right products for the customer. After all, it made our £4.56ph a little more worthwhile.
Eventually head office replaced the managers and things went tits up. I ended up having a nervous breakdown after a customer started stalking me and walked out one sunny afternoon, never to return.
It was the Kidderminster store by the way. Andy Burns is a tit.
Comment by D. Highmore — March 5, 2007 @ 9:49 pm
Dont you think its up to yourselves to actually know what you’re buying??? If you’re stupid enough to let a salesperson tell you what to buy then you deserve all you get. All im hearing here are the whingings of idiots
Comment by Steve — March 23, 2007 @ 10:12 am
If salesperson recommends a customer buy products to work together, that are:
1. Incompatible
2. Inherently flawed
then I figure that’s a potential case of miselling.
If you think that companies such as Comet are allowed to misell products then that is an opinion I’m simply not going to share.
Comment by Brian Turner — March 23, 2007 @ 10:33 am
we bought a hoover from comet in yeovil i had to take it bk after 4 months as the bottom bar broke off was given another in replace after a while in the shop but hence on the 13th of july i had to return to the shop with the same thing the bottom had droped off got to the shop met by a sales mad who was at the counter doing five things at once to be told sorry ill have to carry on with thsese as we talk ok we thought told him wot had gone wrong AGAIN he tried to phone customer services but it was closed for the weekend so i hvae to wait till monday for a ref nim so they can exchange it well that was he said we may be able to borrow a hover for the weekend so he called his manager but in the mean time i was confronted bty a dim wit of a sales man to tell me if i want to get it replaced it is my job to call up and get a ref num my reply to him was i dont think so when he began to argue with me infront of his manager to my reply to the manager is do you let your staff talk to customers like this he said i have not a clue wot is going on wot a joke the dum wit was made to go to the other side of the shop ha ha to deal with other poor customers on his way past he told me if i was seen in the street he was going to do me i could not belive the reaction of his boss he did nothing only went out the bk to return with a hoove i was suppose to borrow for a few days the state was terribel it was full up with crap and dirty i was discusted so left walking out with my broked hoover and i intend to take this matter to the top papers even i have worked as a shop ass for many years i was trained never ever upset a customer they are alweays right while in the shop i th9ink commet should go on a full course of how to deal with customers when things go wrond not just be all nice and sweet when they want momey i sware i have not finished with this matter in along way
Comment by mrs coles — July 14, 2007 @ 9:49 am
serves you right, it is a totally unecessary load of energy guzzling rubbish, that just strokes your ego. A CRT does everything better, from colour definition, ‘lip synch’ and energy conservation.
It is a devine lesson, I hope that big screen TVs never work, they just hasten the end of the world so you can show off to your friends.
Comment by fred — August 19, 2007 @ 7:48 pm
Fred, you are quite mistaken. Although a lot of older LCDs did have a problem with lip synching, but the truth is that 99% of the major brands (Sony, Samsung, LG, Toshiba) have eliminated these problems, especially when it comes to Plasma. LCDs are still a little slow in the refresh rate department (5 miliseconds) whereas many plasmas now have this down to 0.8 miliseconds - much better than a CRT, and the colour definition is much much better.
Brian, don’t listen to that idiot that worked at Comet. Yes you are correct in saying Component cables would give you much better connectivity, as along with DVI and HDMI cables all transmit at a high definition quality, giving you a big difference in picture quality.
I’ve worked at currys for 6 months part time, (now left for university) and with no bias, would reccommend it over Comet stores - as long as you get a salesperson that knows what they are talking about. I’m not sure about comet, but currys abolished commission quite a while ago (before i started with the company) and are now starting a new bonus scheme based on how hard an employee works, including initiative, customer service and the upkeep of store standards which should see the quality of these stores improve.
What does this mean? The people who don’t know what they are talking about about will end up leaving and currys will end up with good staff on good wages that actually work hard. I don’t even get my 10% discount anymore but I will still shop in currys over comet in the future!
Comment by John — September 13, 2007 @ 4:06 pm
I have also had a really bad experience purchasing goods from comet. They are so happy to take your money (For faulty goods they’ve sold) but when it comes to customer care they are USELSS!!!
I bought a camera from them about 2 years ago didn’t use it for a long time. When i did use it it did not punction like it should have done. did not hold it’s charge, lines on screen…I took it back, they sent it for repairs, and when it came back it was not any better. I took it back again, they sent it off and i didn’t hear anything back from them for about 2 months. I chased them up loads of times and often eventually got to a person who would conveniently cut the line it seemed. Then despite speaking to several people on the shop floor (over the phone) who said they’d handle my querie, each time I called no-one knew what I was talking about. This was extremely annoying as you can imagine!! And as if all that weren’t bad, I needed my camera for a holiday i was going on. When i mentioned this to one of the guys he said, ‘Well, there isn’t anything we can do about that unfortunately. If it was something important like a washing machine we could have perhaps given you a replacement so long.’ yip. that’s what i was told!!
Eventually, after a helluva lot of fuss and wasted time, they swopped my camera for a different make and model. and…about 1 month after having that one…it’s been taken back in because it isn’t charging. I took it in 3 weeks ago and have not so much as had a phone call back from them yet!
If you’re thinking of buying from comet; THINK AGAIN!!
Comment by Charlene Abdul — October 1, 2007 @ 4:04 pm
Just like to point out Currys are just as bad
Brought a hotpoint washing machine from them with 5 year cover, wouldn’t wash clothes properly from day one phoned there customer services on many occasions to ask for a replacement or even an upgrade which we were quite happy to pay extra for even sent letter to head office, same reply every time will send out engineer who plugged in laptop and said computer says its ok. the last one advised me to sell the machine on and buy a bosch.
Comment by Daron — November 8, 2007 @ 9:38 pm
[…] Re: Out of Sink Both LCD and Plasma TV’s can suffer lip synch issues as a natural construction of their design. It’s unfortunate, it’s annoying, and it’s disgraceful that retailers expressly avoid mentioning such issues before a sale - but it’s something that can often happen because of the TV itself. It’s possible that maybe there is a Freeview issue, but it’s worth being aware that it could be the TV itself: Don’t buy from Comet […]
Pingback by Out of Sink - Techwatch: Satellite TV forums, FTA, Cable, Hardware, & Tech forums — November 9, 2007 @ 1:51 pm
Can’t believe I was stooopid enough to buy from Comet, it’s a mistake I’ll never make again. Bought a vacuum cleaner which when i took it home and read in the manual that it didn’t work on wooden floors, which i have throughout my home, i tried to return it for a refund. no such luck. They charged me another £80 for a suitable vacuum cleaner and a restocking fee on the original product. So it was a double shaft (without grease). No where on the display models had it said not suitable for wooden floors, and the manager at kilner way, took great delight in ensuring telling me it was my fault and making sure I knew that I’d been screwed. I can accept I’d made a mistake but for someone to take pleasure in rubbing my nose in it makes me wonder exactly where we are in the evolutionary process. I hope Comet use my £229 wisely as it’s the last money they’ll ever get from me.
Comment by Sara WG — November 12, 2007 @ 9:58 pm
Whilst I agree with some of what you have said, It is complete nonsense to suggest that you were sold incompatible products because you were sold a DVD player without component output. Your LG set will doubtless have a scart socket and so too will your DVD player. It is highly likely that you, like myself and most others, would be unable to see the difference in picture quality were a scart cable of sufficient quality to be used.
Surely then if both DVD player and television have scart sockets, then by definition they must BE compatible. I have recently qualified with an LLB in Scots law and in Scotland we are subject to the same Sale of Goods Act statutory provisions as England. There is very little chance had you taken this to litigation any judge would have found favour with this argument.
Component output is not even present on a large number of DVD players and is by no means a requirement when connecting to a LCD or plasma set. Whilst it may provide better picture quality - clearly it will only do so in cases were the DVD player has the appropriate sockets. The decision then rests on the buyer as to which he or she will buy. Both are compatible though.
I am not surprised the manager lost patience with you, if this is the line of argument you used with him. It is this kind of pedantic nonsense I sadly had to grow used to when working in a Comet store in Edinburgh as a student.
Comment by John Stevens — November 19, 2007 @ 10:04 pm
Certainly true to a point, but the manufacturer specifically recommending a connection type missing from the package, which means they were not properly compatible according to manufacturer specifications.
Then if Comet ever sold you a TV in the full knowledge that the picture and sound would be completely out of sync on normal playback, I’m sure you would become just another of those “pedantic nonsense” customers bleating about your mis-sold £2k that Comet seem used to brushing off.
Comment by Brian Turner — November 22, 2007 @ 7:02 pm
[…] once had an issue with a HD TV bought from a Comet store - ironically, I would have been far better protected if I had purchased online […]
Pingback by How to complain — December 12, 2007 @ 2:51 pm
Obviously you had a bad experience at Comet. I work at a Comet store and we uphold high standards and good customer services - it is disappointing that some don’t.
Someone above spoke about commission on certain products, Comet has totally abolished commission (although overall targets etc are still in place). Unlike Currys, Comet staff don’t get money for selling warrenties.
Before I worked at Comet I had bad experiences at Currys, and loads of my friends have. However, our Comet store is one of the best in the country, and I guess the Currys stores in the area are not so good.
All shops have their bad branches and bad people.
Comment by Rachael — December 19, 2007 @ 7:43 pm
I think it’s fair to say that Comet have reviewed their customer sales policy over the past couple of years - but even still, they’ve lost a customer here for life.
What’s really sad for Comet is that when faced with short-term gain over long-term losses, they chose the short-term route.
2c.
Comment by Brian Turner — December 22, 2007 @ 6:05 pm
hi i bought a lg tv from comet the teletext always used to get stuck and you could not moveit therefor you could not change the channels,it keeps turning itself on and off when it feels like it,they fixed it apparently!!! sent it back after 2 months cause they were waiting for parts refused to et me have a replacement A week later tv turned itself off again comet have had it since 19th nov 2007 &were going to fix it as a priority needless to say that did not happen got back 23rd dec did not accept it because it was scratched and dented so they launched an investigation thats taken 2 weeks and guess what they are denying liability surprise hey! still has not been sorted out the worst company i have ever dealt with because they all pass the buck i will not give in though any ideas anyone i am ready for a fight with this so called company?
Comment by gail — January 10, 2008 @ 1:41 pm
COMET LETS US DOWN AGAIN!!!!!!!!
I had the most wonderful experience today with Comet. I say wonderful because I staged a one man sit in directly in front of their cash desk until they got fed up of me, sitting there, very quietly, waiting for a cash refund of £254.14. Let me now give you the history.
I visited Comet’s in Eastcote and purchased a washing machine which I paid for in cash. The payment included installation and removal of the old machine.
When the delivey men turned up and disconnected my old machine, they decided that they could not install the new machine because it was an extended connection. In case you dont know, an extended connection is an additional hose connected to the machine and to the waste pipe. This is very common in most households. Bear in mind that they had to take the extended hose off the old machine. It simply screws off.
I told them that as i had paid for installation, if it could not be installed, it should be taken back. After all, when I paid the installation price in the store, I was neither asked nor told anything about extended hoses. I asked about a refund and was told to contact the store.
I then went to the customer service desk at the Eastcote store where I had made my purchase. A very obnoxious female person took my receipt after listening to my problem and proceeded to call someone who I think was the manager on the phone. During her conversation, she kept referring to me as ‘She’ untilk eventually i told her that my name was printed quite clearly on the ticket…..
After finishing her conversation, she then told me that i would be entitled to a refund but i would have to take a cheque because there was not enough money in the till to pay me! or, I could come back at closing time, it was about 4:20 by this time. I told her that the problem could be resolved simply, the delivery men worked until 6:00pm and I know they had just left my area so could not be far off, she could call them and tell them to deliver the machine and connect it as that was what I had paid for, or she could give me my money right now, in cash as i had given them. Again she told me there was insufficient money in the till.
I then told her, ok, no problem, i will wait by the cash desk until I see £250+ going in and she can then pay me, she did not respond.
I made my way over to the cash desk and sat down on the floor in a convenient space allowing me to see the cash desk.
For about 21 mins, I was totally ignored and this suited me fine, as I had gone pass talking……eventually, I heard the manager asking how much was in the till, the cashier replied £13……. he then said….OH!!!!!I forgot, we have money in the safe, let me get the money from the safe. All this time, I sat on the floor not saying one word…..I was not even looking in their direction.
Once he had been thhrough the great show of calling over the tannoy for someone to come to the front desk… iheard him saying it is safety precaution that no one goes to the safe alone… as if i was bothered. I think the show was all for me, but all i was interested in was getting my hard earned cash back.
He then called me to the cash desk, asked me ffor my receipt, counted out the correct money … all £254.14 of it, I thanked him and left the store. GUYS, SOMETIMES THE SILENT TREATMENT WORKS!!!!Can you imagine telling someone that a highstreet store does not have over £250 in the till or in a safe somewhere…..COMET……..we were not all born yesterday….and yes you have lost another customer for life.
Comment by Mrs Klein — January 30, 2008 @ 9:34 pm
i never NOW buy from comet ,there the most upleasant high street chain ,they used to be extremly good at customer care but that was years ago!!!
i bought a lcd tv a while back and took it back due to the ridiculous speaker sound , took it back hours after buying , they wouldnt take it back as it was opened , i thought nice cutomer care
maybe that why ythere now closing stores ,
had too hook up tv to sound system as sound was way too bad !!
Comment by vmr edinburgh — February 13, 2008 @ 5:34 pm
Re buying protection when buying with a Credit Card rather that a Debit Card or cash; would this apply if buying a Comet product with a Comet Credit card?!!
Comment by Paula P. — February 15, 2008 @ 1:48 pm
hi there i have purchased an LG steam washing machine from the company that has no customer service or otherwise known as Comets.
We have only had this for six months and have been told that as we have moved to Ireland we no longer have any type of warranty and if we want any work doing we must bring it back to mainland UK, at our expense, what an absolute joke wish i had bought it from J Lewis after all £900.00 on a washing machine, i was expecting this to last longer, we are now in the process of looking at throwing this one away and having to get a Miele or something similar.
Perhaps we all need to look very closely at where our next white goods are purchased from and march out of comets with our wallets intact
Comment by monkeyandminx — February 18, 2008 @ 12:55 pm
Comet is the worst, they recently told me when I asked them what they where going to do about about the HD-DVD abandonment by Toshiba. Will they get free upgrades or refunds or even continue to support it.
“No..” they said “its not our problem why should we…. I really dont care anyway”
Comment by Ben Rattigan — February 20, 2008 @ 8:20 pm
I am a shareholder in Kesa and suspect that low divivends are due to careless employees.
Some months ago I bought two hp computers a laptop and a decktop. I have been trying since purchase to use these machines, The laptop started off Ok but recently it has become subject to problems which seem to be widespread. My decktop has been with the Comet Branch in Cogan St Glasgow most of the time. I am told that a disk is needed to restore the machine,
I am now having to use an old machine because I am unbable to get on the Internet with either of the machinbes I purchased.
Would you please note that I asked the branch superviser to replace or refund my money around the time of purchase but this was refused on the grounds that I had opened the box. The only way to find out iof something is faulty is to open the box and try iot out????
Would youp;lease arrange for a refund on the deckptop and a replacement for the ;laptop.
Yours ssincerely
a disappointed shareholder
Alexander Black
4 Rockburn Drive
Clarkston
Glasgow G76 7PE
Comment by Alex Black — March 22, 2008 @ 11:55 am
i will never buy from comet again.
i bought a playstation 3 on the last bank holiday, they gave me 2 extra games with it, which were crap. the advisor told me to trade them in if u dont like them because its like your getting them free anyways.
now my purchase has a fault and they will not refund/exchange unless i have the extra games that come with it that one of thier staff told me to trade in.
the the clanger in the pipe was when i said if i get hold of them 2 games will you give me full refund then, they said ” well if the games have been opened we will have to deduct 10% of each of them because thier seal is broken.
i will never go there again.
Comment by Asif — April 15, 2008 @ 1:44 pm
Asif:
Since the games are free, if they deduct 10% it shouldn’t make a difference. If they weren’t really free but you were charged for them, complain to the manager.
Comment by Rachael — April 23, 2008 @ 11:56 pm
I remember when I bought my first flat, I bought pretty expensive iron, and god knows how, but it over heated - yeah hahaha, but seriously, it really did over heat, first I just smelt a burning plastic and looked down and all the plastic has started to mealt, I tried to get the thing out of the flat, but it dropped plastic burning various holes in my new carpet. Comet wouldnt even refund my iron let alone anything else as I had no receipt, despite showing them the payment on my credit card statement. “that could have been for anything” even though it was the exact amount. How crap is that? (end of rant) !
Comment by home girl - cash property sales — May 9, 2008 @ 10:04 am