House of Fraser in another PR disaster as it refuses refunds

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Sep 14, 2018

Sports Direct, the new owner of embattled department store chain House of Fraser, has said it will not refund customers for undelivered goods or gift cards, and that they should take their claim to administrator EY instead.

Thousands of customers found themselves in limbo after the retailer cancelled all online orders and closed its website in August after collapsing into administration due to a dispute with its warehouse operator.

The company apologised on social media, saying:  “Due to delays with delivering online orders, we have taken the decision to cancel and refund all orders that have not already been sent to customers. All customers affected will receive an email in the next couple of days. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused.”

However, this week its new owner backtracked on its decision and said customers will have to apply to the administrator for payment.

“We cannot comment on individual cases, however the correct course of action for customers who have issues regarding goods purchased prior to 10 August is to contact the administrators at EY,” a spokesperson for House of Fraser said.

According to The Guardian, the process could take more than 12 months, and customers are likely to receive just a few pence for each pound spent. Sports Direct, which bought House of Fraser for £90 million in August, has no legal obligation to refund orders made before the chain’s collapse.

House of Fraser’s website was expected to reopen this week after the company settled its dispute with XPO, the company running its distribution centres, but it was still closed on Friday morning.