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Recently I bought a new baby furniture set. I walked into a local heimshe Shop. I wanted a good piece that would last me for years to come. They offered me a set and told me the quality is great and they never had a complaint and the company just put it on sale since they are stopping to manufacture them. my sister and i both ordered this since it sounded so promising. They delivered my sisters set 6 weeks later but mine hadnt come yet. I figured i wont bother them since my baby was still in my room and i was happy i dont have the extra piece laying around. A few weeks later they called me and said that there was a mistake and they ordered 4 sets with the dresser but the company only has 3 left so they will send me a diff type of dresser. I told them I didnt like the other one. At that point I had heard of people that didnt have nice experience with the store and i was nervous… especially since my sisters set came scratched and they hadnt sent her a repair. so truthfully i was relieved that they dont have the set so i can shop somewhere else. I told him that if they cant give me what i ordered they should send the money back. The owner said he’d rather I come into the shop and chose something else. i was open with him and told him I’m nervous about the experience and I want my money back. He got offended and wouldnt hear of it. I figured He’s a heimish yid I’ll go and chose something else. but again i wasnt in a rush so i kept pushing it off and a few weeks later they called me that they found the set i ordered. A few days later the set came. I saw it was scratched and wanteed to withhold money before its fixed. but they told me they are sending me a repair guy the next day assured me I shouldnt worry i wont have to run after them. The repair guy called the next day to set up an appointment for the following day. so i stayed home but he never showed up. at 10:00 PM he called that he ran very late hell be by me tomorrow… the same thing happened the next day. finally the 3rd day he came sprayed an off color paint and told me he doent have the right color hell be back 2 days later. at this point i had his number and i called him but i never got through to him since. i called the store and they told me that the guy took money from them and dissapeared theyll call me when they have someone else. so i didnt bother them for 2 months. after 2 months i left 4 messages with the secretary to have the owner call me but he never did so i called the company… after putting down my story they asked for pictures which i sent. They then advised me that they cant do anything since they sold it as a blow-out sale and its the stores responsibilty to give service. so i called the store again and when i finally got through to the owner i vented all my frustration from the past 6 months… he threatened to put the phone down on me and told me i cant come back 6 months later for service… I told him that for 6 months i was running after him. I told him that u fooled me into buying this set.. the quality is not to compare to other sets ive seen at this point its even more scratched… there is a crack in the dresser and and the paint is peeling. (i paid 1,300 for the set and my son is in it for only 4 months.) he said there is no way for him to take it back. he sold 40 sets and noone else is having a prob. ( I find it intersting because me and my sister are both upset and P.S. she never got hers repaired either.) he said he can give me a list of 40 happy customers with the set. when i told him i would take one and see if im the one thats crazy he said he doesnt have to give it to me. I asked him if has so many happy customers it shouldnt be so hard to make one custome happy… after all its customer service that brings business. When my sister once walked into the shop he told her that there is no excuse for my behavior. He also said he has the set standing as a floor sample in his store and it still looks nice. Am I right for pursuing this? or was it my decision to buy this set so I have to live with it?
What do you hope to regain by pursuing it further? Do you think you have a reasonable chance of getting it fixed or getting monetarily recompensed?
If you don’t think that is likely (it seems pretty unlikely to me from your story), then what DO you hope to gain? sweet revenge? aggravation? an ulcer, C’V?
I’m not saying whether or not you are “right” in pursuing it, but asking what do YOU think is the best thing for you and your family? Being right is not always a good reason to pursue a nasty machlokes.
Of course you are right to pursue it. You were CHEATED, and if you let him get away with it (he is not so heimische in my book, btw), then you are actually encouraging him to keep cheating others. Take him to a Din Torah. It is YOUR $1,300. These thieves count on people like you not making a fuss, or giving up after time, so they can continue in their dishonest business practices. Shame on them, but shame on ALL of us, when we encounter someone and allow him to get away with an aveira that shows him to be just as treif as if he was eating mamesh tarfus.
I understand you just had a baby and you find this unpleasant. It is not merely unpleasant, it is dishonest, disgraceful, and despicable behavior, but especially so when it comes from someone others look at as frum.
I agree with the moderator.
You are in the right here, however you won’t get anywhere with such a storeowner so unless you go to small claims court where you might not even win and it’s an expense as well, you will not get anywhere with him.
This is naturally a frustrating experience for you, but I’d also suggest you let it go.
When I was single, I bought a twin bed. Two years later, I called the same store to get a bed for my husband. I told them I was coming back so that the beds would match.
Lo and behold, the box springs didn’t match. So I called. I was constantly put on hold, told they would call me back etc. This went on for almost 2 years. Yes, I was a new kallah living with two different height beds.
Finally, my mother called up someone influential (a local mayor) who was connected to the store and they replaced the box spring.
Moral of the story? Always pay by credit card.
Oh and I would keep bothering them. If they wont’ refund your money (they won’t) badger them for a big discount. Its worth your time and effort to hound them. At the very least they should fix the problem.
find a furniture repair guy, have him fix it.
go back to the store tell him you spent xyz to fix it and you would like the money from him, if he pays you’re a real winner, if not let it go you have your furniture and it’s all fixed up!
Unfortunately, there are people like this. They call themselves frum. They dress like Jews, but it’s all chazer fissel – they show their external signs of kashrus, while internally, they’re completely treif.
EDITED
If you are having a problem with the paint, after it is repainted you should add a clear coat finish. You can either use clear paint or polyurethane – either one will protect the paint underneath. You can do this yourself or ask the repairman to do it. Use flat rather than glossy for the clear.
Take the guy to a beit din.
did this happen i israel?
For all who said to let it go – would you feel the same way if the money you spent ended up being the only money you had (i.e. you lost your job a few weeks later)? If you really needed that money now, would you want this guy to get away with his dishonesty? What if he hurt someone else you know? Forgetting about all that, should anybody be allowed to get away with cheating you? Anyone who has an ounce of self-esteem would NEVER want someone like that to feel he got away with it. HE COMMITTED A CRIME AGAINST YOU! And probably, he did so knowingly and deliberately.
My husband worked for a Yeshivah that knowingly wrote him three worthless paychecks after months of not paying him at all. Meanwhile all the people who ran the Yeshivah were going to their summer homes in the mountains, while we almost lost our house due to non-payment of the mortgage! THAT was something we should have ignored???????? Yes it was aggravating, but we took them to a DT after a year of trying to speak with the people in charge to rectify this avla. They refused to accept delivery of our certified letters. If my husband had owned a business and things were tight, he would still make sure his staff was paid before he took a penny for himself. The halacha is very clear on the obligations of an employer towards an employee. BTW, although we prevailed in the DT, the Yeshivah cried poor and wanted us to settle for a fifth of what was owed, even though it was l’chatchilah illegal for them to write a check against an account that has no funds. Had we gone to civil court we could have “owned” that Yeshivah. But this also would have been a terrible chillul. At least that Yeshivah saw that they didn’t just get to walk all over my husband without a reaction. In the end we decided to drop the situation for personal reasons, but we had made our point and won the DT. I would not want to be any of those baalei batim after 120 years when Hashem asks them if they dealt honestly with their employees. All of them were heimische, too.
ASF:
You should have paid with a credit card.
Reason #1: You can cancel payment and leave him the onus of finding a quality product you ordered.
Reason #2: The businessman knows that you won’t pursue him in court. Because the first question his lawyer will ask is what are you doing with $1,300 CASH in your hand? Implying that you aren’t all that kosher yourself.
The business owner is a jerk but your ability to recover anything is nil.
IMHO, call the Better Business Bureau and file a complaint against him. They will contact him with your complaint and ask him how he plans on rectifying the situation. They will give him 30 days or so to fix the problem and then contact you to see if it is fixed. If it isn’t they will post him on their website with the complaint against him. Anyone who does their due diligence and research will know the truth and will stay clear of him. Try checking the BBB and see if there are currently any complaints about him.
ASF
if you didn’t like my previous advice.
i would recommend you speak to a rav before you do anything, maybe you’re not as right as you think.
ASF, what makes you think he deserves to be in business if he treats people this way and he does not follow ethical business practices according to the torah?
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