Is this normal?

ne0 · 29 Sep 2020 at 11:58

So I am really clumsy. Like really accident prone and always damaging or breaking stuff I own. I was always under the impression that if you break or damage something yourself then you have no chance of getting a replacement from the company you bought it from as it's not their problem, right?

I bought a desk nearly a full year ago from Wayfair and stupidly damaged the surface of it smacking my keyboard on it trying to get all the crap out from between the keys. Yeah I'm a muppet I know but basically I rang them up today to see if I could get a replacement part for the desk and just replace the bit that's damaged.

I told the lady clearly that I had damaged it myself. She checked when I bought it and then proceeded to tell me she'll send me a whole new desk for free. I was in shock. Is this normal or was she just feeling nice / hates her CEO, or whatever?

I'm now wondering whether I should try and get replacements for other things when I break them or damage them in future if it's 'a thing'?

tom_e · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:00

Very unusual, you must have caught their CS on a good day.

chroniclard · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:02

Wayfair are strange! We bought a light from them, arrived damaged (very small bracket piece broken off), I notified them and got an immediate refund and they said to keep the light. 5 minutes and some gorilla glue later, its fine. £150 light!

GravyMonster · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:02

That's not normal, especially for something bought that long ago. You either got lucky with the customer service person you got through to, or the item you bought has an exceptional warranty.

ne0 · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:03

Their CEO is a billionaire. Maybe they are just all just rich, mental philanthropists and don't care!

ne0 · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:04

GravyMonster said:
That's not normal, especially for something bought that long ago. You either got lucky with the customer service person you got through to, or the item you bought has an exceptional warranty.

She mentioned something about being susceptible to damage (or not) and being less than 2 years since I bought it but I didn't quite catch the gist of what she was saying as I was too busy biting her hand off.

GravyMonster · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:05

If they knew that the item is commonly damaged then perhaps there was a recall on it you missed.

Dis86 · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:13

Um...That doesn't sound clumsy, that sounds thick.

ne0 · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:14

Dis86 said:
Um...That doesn't sound clumsy, that sounds thick.

lol.... fair point, can't argue with that.

MookJong · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:24

Probably the woman's last day at work before retiring or something...

glenimp617 · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:33

John Lewis have been known to do this

touch · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:36

IKEA is pretty good for this too. You can order replacement parts for free from their website - even if you select the option that you lost/damaged the part yourself. Free postage too.

Chris Wilson · 29 Sep 2020 at 12:46

I'd be buying 5 lottery tickets whilst I was on a roll to be frank

Great customer service, (or they have a stack of unsold ones about to go to landfill...)

Now use an air puffer to clean it next time, you have had your share of luck with these desks.

esoteric · 29 Sep 2020 at 13:14

I bought one of those fancy vacuum packed mattresses. I unpacked it and let it expand for a few hours. I picked it up by the handles to move it to the bed and a handle ripped and took the top seem with it so I could see the layers in the matress. I emailed to company with a photo and got a full refund and got to keep the mattress.

Nitefly · 29 Sep 2020 at 13:24

I have quite a fun story....

My nan had a new mattress arrive one day. I asked her where she bought it from and she said it was a replacement under the ‘lifetime’ guarantee she had when she bought it.

She bought it over 30 years ago!

I’m not sure who is more awesome... my nan, or the company. Both are winners :cool:

Surveyor · 29 Sep 2020 at 13:37

Good on you for being honest. Many would have tried to scam a replacement having caused the damage themselves.

Akagi · 29 Sep 2020 at 13:42

Dis86 said:
Um...That doesn't sound clumsy, that sounds thick.

I regularly do the same thing (OK OK fine, maybe no surprises there then...

) but a keyboard is made of plastic, I'd expect to be able to give it a good bash on a desk-top without damaging the surface. And indeed, my Ikea desk is unscathed by the process.

Dirk Diggler · 29 Sep 2020 at 16:57

Acme said:
I regularly do the same thing (OK OK fine, maybe no surprises there then... ) but a keyboard is made of plastic, I'd expect to be able to give it a good bash on a desk-top without damaging the surface. And indeed, my Ikea desk is unscathed by the process.

You obviously don't own a Ducky mechanical keyboard.

Rotty · 29 Sep 2020 at 16:59

Good to hear as I am about to spend quite a bit of money with them

Akagi · 29 Sep 2020 at 17:13

Dirk Diggler said:
You obviously don't own a Ducky mechanical keyboard.

Yes I do.