Shop Direct, a VERY dodgy outfit?

Maybe you've seen ads of tempting deals from "Very" (who also operate under the Littlewoods brand) who mainly appear to exist to take advantage of people who have to rely on credit to purchase goods.

(Arguably, offering ~50% APR credit terms on low value 'luxury' items is irresponsible, but here we are.)

I'd recommend you stay well clear of them based on my experience.

Firstly, I should add that I recognise I write this from a position of good fortune, and that I do not need to rely on credit, but when they offer a substantial discount on a high value item only if you take their credit (which in this case was 0% APR) then it's worth it (sort of) just to get the discount.

Or so I thought, as Very have damaged my previously perfect credit score, but that's not the point of this post.

At the time of writing they owe me £968.98. Most of which is for goods never sent.

DJI Offer

So, what tempted me into this mess? The DJI Pro 5 Mini "Fly More Combo" which retails at £979 (a pretty awesome drone I must admit, very impressed with it, but that's for another post)

Very were offering 20% off your first order but only if you took out their credit account. (I also wonder the legality of this with respect to the Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012, but that's one for Trading Standards to look into)

This represents an almost £200 saving in this case, so I thought it would be worth it (how wrong I was)

So on the 18th September I was instantly approved (providing almost no details compare to a typical credit application), placed the order, and it was accepted.

As an aside, there's a bit of a dark pattern here. Why does it take 15 minutes to show a recent order and update an available balance? The suspicious part of me might think - especially combined with a Return to Shop call to action - it's designed to mislead the consumer as to their current balance, and make them think they can afford to spend more than they can?

No Communication

With no communication at all (no eMail updating the order, or any attempt to contact me) I visited the website again to discover my order had been "Declined"

Let's try this again...

I was able to place the order again, this time paying in full using a card (but somehow still getting the discount) - and it went into a processing state.

Then, later the same day it also showed as 'Declined'. The difference this time? They had charged my card for a product they had no intention of delivering and, almost a month later, have not refunded.

Very frustrating call

I called them (I hate telephone support, but having eMailed three times I got not reply) and spoke to Jenny who was - prima facie - very helpful but I'm very glad I insisted on an eMail.

She apologised and said my account had 'failed additional security checks' and someone called me after I placed the first order (this call didn't get through to me) but instead of communicating this in any other way, they just blocked the account - but in a way that still let me spend money, even if they wouldn't send anything.

Jenny explained that my credit account was 'closed' (despite the CRAs showing it as an open account) and nothing could be done about it unless I wanted to submit a new application - and another search.

She did, however, agree to honour the original price (and offered free shipping) but only if I place ANOTHER full price order with a card and she'd refund the difference.

Naturally, I have a recording of this call, but I ask for confirmation by eMail;

Firstly, they've now opened the account they closed. And they confirm, on the 22nd of September, that two refunds are 'on their way to me' of £783.20 and £199.79

Here we are, a month from the initial order, and not a penny has been received from Very.

Additionally, my online account still invites me to apply for a credit account I already have.

I've sent SEVEN follow-up eMails to Very, with no response to any of them other than automated responses, and have now escalated this to PayPal and Curve who processed the transactions.

Very annoying.