Update on Ideal World nightmare!!!

[Shop till I drop]

Looks Like Sports Direct were involved in selling Linea Garden 7 piece set via Ideal World TV. Kroll are as pushing to take further payments on item that was cancelled before it left the original depo in Worcester. Still it was sent out! Why? The courier was instructed to pick up item. Went to Enfield where it was put back on the return trailer and retuned on the 12th July. No way to communicate this important update to anyone!.

So as many in same nightmare right now know No response to e-mails. In real time communication. Only told to give them time! Looks like delay tactics, so as to take further money from customers waiting for a refund! So now it gets nasty for the consumers caught in a not so Ideal World nightmare!!!
Any one got helpful intel would be gratefully received.

 

[Deleted member 21838]

When you hear examples like this of items which were expensive to buy but never ultimately reached the buyer - items purchased presumably within the last two or three days of broadcasting - you remain very cynical that there was any genuine intent to provide them at all. That leads to further questions of the legality, let alone the morality of selling in such a cavalier manner at best. Of course, until proven otherwise, you have to go with the belief that the presenters had been told that the items they were presenting WOULD be sent out to the buyers. Otherwise, how could somebody find it within themselves to be presenting, apparently as normal, goods for sale when they wouldn’t reach the customer? So assuming that the presenters had a genuine belief that items will be sent out, you then ask the question was that same belief in place behind the scenes of the company? Who knows? And who does will never let us know anyway.

Also, from what I saw of the endless presentation of that £599.99 furniture set, there was no indication given that the purchase was a third party one. All the presenter information given at the time that I saw gave the impression that buyers were purchasing the item from Ideal World and not a different company. Whereas at other times previous (Emma Mattresses, for example) they have made it semi-clear that you are actually buying from another company and they (IW) are essentially agents for the purchase. Then at least the buyer has been provided with a relatively informed choice whether to proceed or not. I think if it was me, and I was that amount of money down, I would seek some legal advice (maybe on an initial free half an hour of advice) from a solicitor specialising in consumer/contract law, Whether on the basis of how the purchase was presented to the buyer not being fully transparent perhaps? Would that in turn make the original contract to purchase invalid and therefore not enforceable in law? And if this was a Sports Direct/House of Fraser buy, then could a person not pursue them for monies taken for goods not received?

 

[Deleted member 21838]

Perhaps a solicitors letter based along the lines that I have mentioned in the previous post, sent to the administrators, would maybe be enough to end the pursuance of the amount of money continued to be sought for goods not received, and not sold in a transparent way to the customer originally? If I was being chased for £450 in that manner for items I never received, I would definitely take the option, as I said earlier, of getting some skilled legal advice. Personally, I wouldn’t bother with either trading standards or Citizens Advice. So many local authorities now have downgraded their trading standards services they are virtually unusable. That certainly is the case here in Nottinghamshire. And the CAB? Extremely difficult to get an appointment, limited opening hours, and often staffed by volunteers. Something smells very wrong in a person being pursued for further payments on a staggered basis for a product they never received. I would fight it and certainly resist making any further payments to them. Ultimately if they do pursue it via a debt collection agency, I would challenge the matter if it ever reached the small claims court, which I doubt it ever would. It sounds to me like they are trying it on to bring in further money. I would also ensure that they don’t place any negative indicators on your credit file regarding this matter, which again on that basis, if they do, I am sure you could be compensated for if then pursued.

 

[Hammy60]

When you hear examples like this of items which were expensive to buy but never ultimately reached the buyer - items purchased presumably within the last two or three days of broadcasting - you remain very cynical that there was any genuine intent to provide them at all. That leads to further questions of the legality, let alone the morality of selling in such a cavalier manner at best. Of course, until proven otherwise, you have to go with the belief that the presenters had been told that the items they were presenting WOULD be sent out to the buyers. Otherwise, how could somebody find it within themselves to be presenting, apparently as normal, goods for sale when they wouldn’t reach the customer? So assuming that the presenters had a genuine belief that items will be sent out, you then ask the question was that same belief in place behind the scenes of the company? Who knows? And who does will never let us know anyway.

Also, from what I saw of the endless presentation of that £599.99 furniture set, there was no indication given that the purchase was a third party one. All the presenter information given at the time that I saw gave the impression that buyers were purchasing the item from Ideal World and not a different company. Whereas at other times previous (Emma Mattresses, for example) they have made it semi-clear that you are actually buying from another company and they (IW) are essentially agents for the purchase. Then at least the buyer has been provided with a relatively informed choice whether to proceed or not. I think if it was me, and I was that amount of money down, I would seek some legal advice (maybe on an initial free half an hour of advice) from a solicitor specialising in consumer/contract law, Whether on the basis of how the purchase was presented to the buyer not being fully transparent perhaps? Would that in turn make the original contract to purchase invalid and therefore not enforceable in law? And if this was a Sports Direct/House of Fraser buy, then could a person not pursue them for monies taken for goods not received?

If the sale was though the IW web site, then unless stated, it was with IW the sale is with, wherever the good were being dispatched from. Now, when they were trying to copy Amazon, there were some sales on IW through their web site (stuff didn't appear on shows) which were classed as marketplace sales and it was stated (paraphrasing) that although IW was providing the facilities for the purchases, ie taking payment/admin, the order is with the marketplace trader and IW accepts NO responsibility for any after sales problems.
This could be like Reynolds and his watches, although you're buying from IW, they never stocked the item and the items were dispatched direct from Reynold's company, watchbase Ltd. I would imagine big items like the furniture would be dispatched direct from the supplier, in this case, House of Fraser.
Don't think chasing House of Fraser will get anywhere, think this is the work of the Administrator. Probably a lot of folks with outstanding payments to make, probably 99% of outstanding payments (flexi pays etc) are for goods already received, probably too much work for Kroll to investigate every outstanding payment plan and Kroll are just chasing everyone, and the folks who didn't receive stuff will have to inform Kroll individual to explain their situation which Kroll will then investigate and as hard as it is, I expect this will take a while to sort through. But as you say cancel any future payments and wait to see what happens next.

 

[User 23988]

At least our Sal is okay tears on holiday.
You couldn’t make it up threaten Kroll with legal proceedings including the named protagonist’s.
In fact ask them for compensation for all the hassle and distress,
You’re legally entitled to not pay any money to them.
No goods no payment they IW went bust but were still selling goods until transmitting ended.someone would be in a whole heep of trouble if it goes to court.

 

[Deleted member 21838]

What a mess that company was in the last few years they traded. Those last few weeks and certainly days of trading certainly present a lot of interesting questions about their capabilities to sell and deliver on many fronts. In fact, my front has been with courier for several weeks now.

 

[Sazza]

When you hear examples like this of items which were expensive to buy but never ultimately reached the buyer - items purchased presumably within the last two or three days of broadcasting - you remain very cynical that there was any genuine intent to provide them at all. That leads to further questions of the legality, let alone the morality of selling in such a cavalier manner at best. Of course, until proven otherwise, you have to go with the belief that the presenters had been told that the items they were presenting WOULD be sent out to the buyers. Otherwise, how could somebody find it within themselves to be presenting, apparently as normal, goods for sale when they wouldn’t reach the customer? So assuming that the presenters had a genuine belief that items will be sent out, you then ask the question was that same belief in place behind the scenes of the company? Who knows? And who does will never let us know anyway.

Also, from what I saw of the endless presentation of that £599.99 furniture set, there was no indication given that the purchase was a third party one. All the presenter information given at the time that I saw gave the impression that buyers were purchasing the item from Ideal World and not a different company. Whereas at other times previous (Emma Mattresses, for example) they have made it semi-clear that you are actually buying from another company and they (IW) are essentially agents for the purchase. Then at least the buyer has been provided with a relatively informed choice whether to proceed or not. I think if it was me, and I was that amount of money down, I would seek some legal advice (maybe on an initial free half an hour of advice) from a solicitor specialising in consumer/contract law, Whether on the basis of how the purchase was presented to the buyer not being fully transparent perhaps? Would that in turn make the original contract to purchase invalid and therefore not enforceable in law? And if this was a Sports Direct/House of Fraser buy, then could a person not pursue them for monies taken for goods not received?

No, it was purchased from IW so contract was with them.

 

[Shop till I drop]

Hi thank you all for such great help and support & advice ideas. I am so grateful. We will defo not let these con artist take any more. The company who returned the Garden Set have given us detailed timeline, tracking return number, the pallet number & time it was received back! So we have been getting all our ammo in line if it is needed.

When you read the examples of others here and on Trust Pilot they are a big eye opener. I feel sorry for those who have no idea how to get the help they need. It is all very exhausting and stressful. They are evil! I will never buy anything online from TV shopping ever again! I just do not trust the process any longer. On Trust pilot today I discovered a connected scam that originated from IW?! about "Lifestyle Plus" if you engaged with this they got access to peoples bank details which they sold on and people were having hundreds taken. This is a huge fraud & extortion nightmare that is being exposed. More like an Ideal Nightmare!

I am not impressed one bit by fake sad heart posts from one presenter I once had respect for or those who founded IW. They have self interest reasons to stay quiet after the event. Nor do I think they had no idea this was being done to us. Especially in the leadup to being taken of air. All they are covering is their own backs. I'm alright Jack set! The ones on social media. If I ever see any of their faces presenting anything that will be sufficient reminder not to buy!

The ones I feel sad about are the ordinary workers in the grunt departments & the financially abused customers.

 

[Shop till I drop]

What a mess that company was in the last few years they traded. Those last few weeks and certainly days of trading certainly present a lot of interesting questions about their capabilities to sell and deliver on many fronts. In fact, my front has been with courier for several weeks now.

If the sale was though the IW web site, then unless stated, it was with IW the sale is with, wherever the good were being dispatched from. Now, when they were trying to copy Amazon, there were some sales on IW through their web site (stuff didn't appear on shows) which were classed as marketplace sales and it was stated (paraphrasing) that although IW was providing the facilities for the purchases, ie taking payment/admin, the order is with the marketplace trader and IW accepts NO responsibility for any after sales problems.
This could be like Reynolds and his watches, although you're buying from IW, they never stocked the item and the items were dispatched direct from Reynold's company, watchbase Ltd. I would imagine big items like the furniture would be dispatched direct from the supplier, in this case, House of Fraser.
Don't think chasing House of Fraser will get anywhere, think this is the work of the Administrator. Probably a lot of folks with outstanding payments to make, probably 99% of outstanding payments (flexi pays etc) are for goods already received, probably too much work for Kroll to investigate every outstanding payment plan and Kroll are just chasing everyone, and the folks who didn't receive stuff will have to inform Kroll individual to explain their situation which Kroll will then investigate and as hard as it is, I expect this will take a while to sort through. But as you say cancel any future payments and wait to see what happens next.

That seems to be the case!

 

[Shop till I drop]

No, it was purchased from IW so contract was with them.

Thanks Sazza, I have taken onboard you post. During the last week we have discovered several useful loose ends that tie up for future ammo.

One strange fact is we have it on good advice the 7 piece Garden Set was sent out from Sports Direct!

We are livid and I'm not the type to be taken down without a fight. I just wish we could all do one huge collective strike for the ordinary customer!

If I had known about the connection with Sports Direct I would never have done placed this order.

At least our Sal is okay tears on holiday.
You couldn’t make it up threaten Kroll with legal proceedings including the named protagonist’s.
In fact ask them for compensation for all the hassle and distress,
You’re legally entitled to not pay any money to them.
No goods no payment they IW went bust but were still selling goods until transmitting ended.someone would be in a whole heep of trouble if it goes to court.

We have been trying to communicate, all we get is their reply e-mail saying delay delay delay tactic if you get my meaning. Mind you they sent one quick enough when we stopped our second payment. Our reply was to the point. Check your facts, item cancelled before leaving Ideal World chain of responsibility and never left their chain of responsibility.
Item never received. Item has returns tracking& return delivery time dated the 12th July. IW/ Sports Direct, owe us a refund! We owe you nothing. Happy to discuss this please phone!

 

[Sazza]

Thanks Sazza, I have taken onboard you post. During the last week we have discovered several useful loose ends that tie up for future ammo.

One strange fact is we have it on good advice the 7 piece Garden Set was sent out from Sports Direct!

We are livid and I'm not the type to be taken down without a fight. I just wish we could all do one huge collective strike for the ordinary customer!

Unfortunately it is irrelevant who sent it out, your contract is with IW.

 

[Deleted member 21838]

I think their lack of transparency over who was supplying the goods is important. The goods were presented and then sold on the basis Ideal World was the supplier and being dispatched by them direct. You could argue the goods were missold by them and therefore any contract you had with them as a result is null and void. Again, if the IW administrators are pursuing you for instalments, I would write to them on the above basis, ask them to desist from further demands, stating you will instruct solicitors to act for you formerly if they pursue matters against you any further. Worth a try, surely?

 

[Shop till I drop]

I think their lack of transparency over who was supplying the goods is important. The goods were presented and then sold on the basis Ideal World was the supplier and being dispatched by them direct. You could argue the goods were missold by them and therefore any contract you had with them as a result is null and void. Again, if the IW administrators are pursuing you for instalments, I would write to them on the above basis, ask them to desist from further demands, stating you will instruct solicitors to act for you formerly if they pursue matters against you any further. Worth a try, surely?

Hi, Duke, thank you for your valued suggestion. We have been waiting for them to reply since Friday, to a reply e-mail from us to their e-mail saying they will be in touch to discuss payment! also to a phone call they said would happen! Obviously due to them chasing why they cannot access taking more funds. We have replied please check your the facts regarding this order. as you appear not to be aware of the full facts regarding this case. We stated we are happy to discuss and appraise them on the facts on this unfounded claim, on a cancelled order & to desist in any further threats to accelerate debt recovery as in this case it is totally unfounded. Thank you once again for your much valued reply.

 

[Deleted member 21838]

Good luck. I watched those final shows and at no point at any time was it suggested directly, or any implication given that it was anyone other than themselves supplying the goods. Had you and others known that it was a third-party sending out the product and not Ideal World, would you have still gone ahead? Also, if the presenters had told potential buyers, this company is about to fold in a day or two, again, would people have risked hard earned monies to buy? That’s the key for me.

 

[Shop till I drop]

Unfortunately it is irrelevant who sent it out, your contract is with IW.

Whoever it was trading under the IW TV logo. It is hard to communicate with any when there is no reply to queries from concerned consumers. They have done a Houdini. I & undoubtedly many others would just like transparency instead of smoke & mirrors.

Good luck. I watched those final shows and at no point at any time was it suggested directly, or any implication given that it was anyone other than themselves supplying the goods. Had you and others known that it was a third-party sending out the product and not Ideal World, would you have still gone ahead? Also, if the presenters had told potential buyers, this company is about to fold in a day or two, again, would people have risked hard earned monies to buy? That’s the key for me.

Thank you, I could not agree with you more. It is a disgusting & questionable way to trade.

 

[Shop till I drop]

At least our Sal is okay tears on holiday.
You couldn’t make it up threaten Kroll with legal proceedings including the named protagonist’s.
In fact ask them for compensation for all the hassle and distress,
You’re legally entitled to not pay any money to them.
No goods no payment they IW went bust but were still selling goods until transmitting ended.someone would be in a whole heep of trouble if it goes to court.

Hi, I would just like them to communicate and answer customers e-mails. If this is modern consumer business tactics then they can keep them.

They defiantly broke the 14 day right to cancel distance selling law, & as yet ignored the long awaited refund on items cancelled but still sent out! Order was stopped at the couriers depo & returned back to sender. Therefore undelivered. Never did it leave the retailers chain of responsibility.

Whilst causing unessasary distress to their long term loyal customers. There will be many in the same intolerable situation undoubtably.

 

[Deleted member 21838]

I feel they misrepresented their current trading perilous trading position over those last few days in particular. They didn’t have to do this, and nor did they, by saying things were absolutely marvellous.. They did it by not making any mention there was anything wrong. For me, anybody who made purchases during those last days of broadcasting were making them without the full facts being given to them in terms of a) how difficult the company’s position was, and b) that the goods in some cases were not being provided by the company themselves. An informed choice to buy or not to buy was therefore denied, which in my view makes any contract claimed by the administrators unenforceable. Would you buy an expensive car, say, from a dealer who told you as part of their sales talk that they wouldn’t be there in three days time? Of course you wouldn’t? Sales talk on shopping channels is no different from sales on the high street. You don’t get a special dispensation to sell inaccurately just because it is on television. You take the consequences as a high street retailer would do doing the same. I would write to them as I said before, making it clear what’s been said and pay them absolutely nothing more. I think if they pursued it, they would be laughed out of court.

 

[Sazza]

Whoever it was trading under the IW TV logo. It is hard to communicate with any when there is no reply to queries from concerned consumers. They have done a Houdini. I & undoubtedly many others would just like transparency instead of smoke & mirrors.

Have you spoken to your bank or credit card company?

 

[Shop till I drop]

I feel they misrepresented their current trading perilous trading position over those last few days in particular. They didn’t have to do this, and nor did they, by saying things were absolutely marvellous.. They did it by not making any mention there was anything wrong. For me, anybody who made purchases during those last days of broadcasting were making them without the full facts being given to them in terms of a) how difficult the company’s position was, and b) that the goods in some cases were not being provided by the company themselves. An informed choice to buy or not to buy was therefore denied, which in my view makes any contract claimed by the administrators unenforceable. Would you buy an expensive car, say, from a dealer who told you as part of their sales talk that they wouldn’t be there in three days time? Of course you wouldn’t? Sales talk on shopping channels is no different from sales on the high street. You don’t get a special dispensation to sell inaccurately just because it is on television. You take the consequences as a high street retailer would do doing the same. I would write to them as I said before, making it clear what’s been said and pay them absolutely nothing more. I think if they pursued it, they would be laughed out of court.

Exelent point! We are getting our ready to do exactly as you advised. Funny they said they phone this would have been by Monday or Tuesday, still no call to interact with a customer. They had their dodgy plan fully thought out well before they hit their marks - last shoppers in the final Month!

 

[Shop till I drop]

Have you spoken to your bank or credit card company?

We were left with no other option than to contact the credit card company. They also said the only way to protect further money being taken was to cancel the card & they supplied another. When charge back requested more information their response e-mail stated they were experiencing a increased volumes of claims at present? I wonder just how many are angry unhappy IW shoppers there are.They said that they would reimburse the £150 first payment but as yet it has not shown up on our account. Never having had to do this before it is all distressing not to mention exhausting. It has truly put me of doing any form of distance buying in the future. It must affect other TV companies, the knock on effect. Trust is a two way thing with this form of trading. I just lost trust completely.