Those wonderful Thai retailers

[heybruce]

I know this is standard practice in Thailand; if an item is returned as defective, the retailer will carefully repackage the item and re-sale it, hoping it isn't returned again. I was careless and let it happen to me. I bought a floor lamp at H___ P__ (I won't give the full name), had it delivered, spent 45 minutes assembling it, and then noticed that the smaller of the two lampshades was missing. Now I have to return it to H___ P__, either paying a taxi or asking a favor of a friend to get it there (its too big to carry on my bike) and get a refund. I might take a replacement, but only if they assemble the entire thing in the store and prove to me I'm getting the complete item and that it works.

As stated, I knew this is common practice in Thailand, and I saw that the packing was slightly damaged, but at first glance it looked like I had everything, and I expected better from H___ P__. TIT, buyer beware.

[Chiengmaijoe]

Telling Tits to beware is usually a waste of time.

[daoyai]

This sounds more like the case of a part not placed in the box at the factory (china?) and not as you describe a defective product resold. There should be a parts list included if there is assembly required. Just inventory the parts on your replacement before leaving the store if you suspect a part may be missing again, really not the fault of the seller, these things happen.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

No, no.. must.. blame.. those Thais..

[kurnell]

Does the store name rhyme with "gnome throw"?

[Thailand]

If it is the store that I think most people know it is they will replace it without any hassle.

But I am sure you can actually mention the full name of the store as it is not exactly defamation or name and shame?

[pgthompson]

No, no.. must.. blame.. those Thais..

Another one in denial!

[eyecatcher]

if anyone bought a stiebel eltron multipoint water heater last year and noticed a part missing....that was me.

I thought my old heater had packed up as it regularly tripped the breaker,so went buy a new one.

It was only after unpacking everything and reading the instructions that i realised it could be a faulty breaker.

Indeed it was, so packed it all back up and returned it.

A day or so later I found a pipe fitting integral to its operation.

I did the honest thing and returned it but you just know it would never have gone back in the box.

And yes the box was back on the shelf intact with my guarantee certificate already filled in by the staff!

Have to say I often open boxes just to get access to instructions as they are often in english.....as always don't waste your time asking the drongos something.

That's why its called a DIY store.

[Chicog]

I can't believe that Hewlett Packard would treat customers this way.

[worgeordie]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

[heybruce]

This sounds more like the case of a part not placed in the box at the factory (china?) and not as you describe a defective product resold. There should be a parts list included if there is assembly required. Just inventory the parts on your replacement before leaving the store if you suspect a part may be missing again, really not the fault of the seller, these things happen.

As I mentioned, the package was slightly damaged, meaning possibly opened, and some of the styrofoam packing broken. Since all the parts were intact I proceeded with the assembly. There was no parts list, only a one page diagram that barely qualified as assembly instructions.

It's possible this is a packing mistake at the factory, but in my experience that rarely happens with modern assembly line operations. I think a more likely explanation is that the small lampshade on a floor model lamp was broken so a replacement was taken from a boxed lamp in stock. The box was then resealed and sold to me. Of course it's also possible that this is a lamp that has already been sold and returned at least once.

[trainman34014]

I've had this tried on me, be it bad factory packing or repacking by the store but i always take everything out of the box before i buy, sometimes much to the annoyance of the staff. If it's something electrical i wanted it tested in front of me and i would rather spend another ten minutes in the store making sure all is well before taking it home.

[AhFarangJa]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

Surprised you were not charged for the extra meat

[Chiengmaijoe]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

Thailand is like Europe in the 60s in many respects. I wouldn't think of taking an opened bottle of sprite back to a local moobaan shop and probably an unopened one for that matter, just as no one would have done in Europe in the 60s.

Refunds are a recent phenomena here, started mostly by the international companies, and small local stores still haven't adopted the policy, possibly because mark ups are so low and they probably have to bear the loss. It wouldn't be enough for me to blacklist a store for such a small amount , life's to short to be falling out with everyone. I wouldn't say I've become Thai by any means, but certainly I have adopted some of their 'mai penlai' views. It makes life a lot less stressful and more harmonious.

[worgeordie]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

Thailand is like Europe in the 60s in many respects. I wouldn't think of taking an opened bottle of sprite back to a local moobaan shop and probably an unopened one for that matter, just as no one would have done in Europe in the 60s.

Refunds are a recent phenomena here, started mostly by the international companies, and small local stores still haven't adopted the policy, possibly because mark ups are so low and they probably have to bear the loss. It wouldn't be enough for me to blacklist a store for such a small amount , life's to short to be falling out with everyone. I wouldn't say I've become Thai by any means, but certainly I have adopted some of their 'mai penlai' views. It makes life a lot less stressful and more harmonious.

Hi Joe, you been very well off,I could see how you would not bother returning a faulty item,I don't know what

what part of Europe you lived in where people would not bother to return anything that was faulty or not right ,

it must have been the stupid part.sometimes your theories do not hold water and you seem to make them up as

you go along.

You seem to be so far up the ladder you don't seem to know whats happening in the real world,if you don't stick

up for your rights,people are just going to S@#t all over you,IT starts with the little stuff,but those are just your views

and as long as you can afford and are not bothered about it,OK,

regards Worgeordie

[JesseFrank]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

Thailand is like Europe in the 60s in many respects. I wouldn't think of taking an opened bottle of sprite back to a local moobaan shop and probably an unopened one for that matter, just as no one would have done in Europe in the 60s.

Refunds are a recent phenomena here, started mostly by the international companies, and small local stores still haven't adopted the policy, possibly because mark ups are so low and they probably have to bear the loss. It wouldn't be enough for me to blacklist a store for such a small amount , life's to short to be falling out with everyone. I wouldn't say I've become Thai by any means, but certainly I have adopted some of their 'mai penlai' views. It makes life a lot less stressful and more harmonious.

Hi Joe, you been very well off,I could see how you would not bother returning a faulty item,I don't know what

what part of Europe you lived in where people would not bother to return anything that was faulty or not right ,

it must have been the stupid part.sometimes your theories do not hold water and you seem to make them up as

you go along.

You seem to be so far up the ladder you don't seem to know whats happening in the real world,if you don't stick

up for your rights,people are just going to S@#t all over you,IT starts with the little stuff,but those are just your views

and as long as you can afford and are not bothered about it,OK,

regards Worgeordie

I don't know what

what part of Europe you lived in where people would not bother to return anything that was faulty or not right ,

it must have been the stupid part.

I assume it was the part where the costs involved to return an item would be higher than the price of a bottle of Sprite, which actually would mean every part of the world.

[Thai at Heart]

This sounds more like the case of a part not placed in the box at the factory (china?) and not as you describe a defective product resold. There should be a parts list included if there is assembly required. Just inventory the parts on your replacement before leaving the store if you suspect a part may be missing again, really not the fault of the seller, these things happen.

As I mentioned, the package was slightly damaged, meaning possibly opened, and some of the styrofoam packing broken. Since all the parts were intact I proceeded with the assembly. There was no parts list, only a one page diagram that barely qualified as assembly instructions.

It's possible this is a packing mistake at the factory, but in my experience that rarely happens with modern assembly line operations. I think a more likely explanation is that the small lampshade on a floor model lamp was broken so a replacement was taken from a boxed lamp in stock. The box was then resealed and sold to me. Of course it's also possible that this is a lamp that has already been sold and returned at least once.

They don't sell.replacement shades do they...someone has bought it, removed the shade and returned it. I should know...someone broke the shade on my lamp.here. didn't think of this solution though.

[Chiengmaijoe]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

Thailand is like Europe in the 60s in many respects. I wouldn't think of taking an opened bottle of sprite back to a local moobaan shop and probably an unopened one for that matter, just as no one would have done in Europe in the 60s.

Refunds are a recent phenomena here, started mostly by the international companies, and small local stores still haven't adopted the policy, possibly because mark ups are so low and they probably have to bear the loss. It wouldn't be enough for me to blacklist a store for such a small amount , life's to short to be falling out with everyone. I wouldn't say I've become Thai by any means, but certainly I have adopted some of their 'mai penlai' views. It makes life a lot less stressful and more harmonious.

Hi Joe, you been very well off,I could see how you would not bother returning a faulty item,I don't know what

what part of Europe you lived in where people would not bother to return anything that was faulty or not right ,

it must have been the stupid part.sometimes your theories do not hold water and you seem to make them up as

you go along.

You seem to be so far up the ladder you don't seem to know whats happening in the real world,if you don't stick

up for your rights,people are just going to S@#t all over you,IT starts with the little stuff,but those are just your views

and as long as you can afford and are not bothered about it,OK,

regards Worgeordie

I'm very likely less well off than you, but I have lived in Thailand long enough to know that returning a bottle of sprite to a local store is a waste of time. My point is that it isn't the norm here, just as it wasn't the norm in the rest of the world in the 60s. I'm referring to your example of a bottle of sprite and not the likes of electronics or expensive items.

I've returned plenty of faulty items here and by coincidence will be returning a faulty DVD player tomorrow to Big C, as I know that it has a 1 year warranty.

Since you were unsuccessful with your trip to the local store my theory seems to be supported by you! I don't regard being sold a flat bottle of sprite as being shit on, just a trifling inconvenience. It more than likely wasn't the fault of the local store owner so I don't see the point of falling out with her for the sake of 16 baht, she's probably a nice person!?

I spent the first few years of living in Thailand getting angry, and particularly during this time of year, hot and bothered, over 'the principle' of plenty of trivial things. I couldn't be arsed with it now.

[worgeordie]

In the first few months when I arrived here i bought a tin of Quaker Oats

at Tantraphan,opening next morning to make some porridge,it was full

of weevils,so returned it ,NO i did not want another one,refunded money,

I had marked the tin and sure enough next week it was back on the shelf.

Same with a packet of Risotto rice from Tesco a few months again,weevils,

got a refund,dont know if it went back on the shelf.

Heres some Thai logic,I bought a bottle of Sprite at local shop in the Moobahn,

poured a glass back home,seemed flat, took a taste and it was just like water,

maybe the factory was cleaning the pipes out, so poured back in bottle and

took it back to shop,No cannot change it or give you refund,as you have opened

it !, YES i had to open to find it was no good, fallen on deaf ears, so for the sake

of 16 bht,1.25 ltr price then, she lost my business.In Thailand the customer is never right.

regards Worgeordie.

Thailand is like Europe in the 60s in many respects. I wouldn't think of taking an opened bottle of sprite back to a local moobaan shop and probably an unopened one for that matter, just as no one would have done in Europe in the 60s.

Refunds are a recent phenomena here, started mostly by the international companies, and small local stores still haven't adopted the policy, possibly because mark ups are so low and they probably have to bear the loss. It wouldn't be enough for me to blacklist a store for such a small amount , life's to short to be falling out with everyone. I wouldn't say I've become Thai by any means, but certainly I have adopted some of their 'mai penlai' views. It makes life a lot less stressful and more harmonious.

Hi Joe, you been very well off,I could see how you would not bother returning a faulty item,I don't know what

what part of Europe you lived in where people would not bother to return anything that was faulty or not right ,

it must have been the stupid part.sometimes your theories do not hold water and you seem to make them up as

you go along.

You seem to be so far up the ladder you don't seem to know whats happening in the real world,if you don't stick

up for your rights,people are just going to S@#t all over you,IT starts with the little stuff,but those are just your views

and as long as you can afford and are not bothered about it,OK,

regards Worgeordie

I don't know what

what part of Europe you lived in where people would not bother to return anything that was faulty or not right ,

it must have been the stupid part.

I assume it was the part where the costs involved to return an item would be higher than the price of a bottle of Sprite, which actually would mean every part of the world.

But not if the shop was about 3 mins walk from my house, regards Worgeordie

[heybruce]

I've had this tried on me, be it bad factory packing or repacking by the store but i always take everything out of the box before i buy, sometimes much to the annoyance of the staff. If it's something electrical i wanted it tested in front of me and i would rather spend another ten minutes in the store making sure all is well before taking it home.

That's what I should have done. At a minimum when I saw the box looked like it might have been opened I should have insisted on a box that was clearly factory sealed. I'll know better next time.

[curtklay]

I won't accept a boxed item that looks like it may have been opened, or has visible damage to the box. I also ask about the store's return policy before buying. Even then, H_P doesn't seem to have a problem with opening the box, checking the contents, or even assembling it for me. I've never had a problem returning defective or incomplete products at any of the big chain stores.

[sharktooth]

I've had this tried on me, be it bad factory packing or repacking by the store but i always take everything out of the box before i buy, sometimes much to the annoyance of the staff. If it's something electrical i wanted it tested in front of me and i would rather spend another ten minutes in the store making sure all is well before taking it home.

Do you bring a bucket of water and manky knickers when you buy a washing machine?

[Gimbo]

Now I understand why every time we buy something, my wife insist on opening up everything, and check that it works before we even pay...

[impulse]

Does the store name rhyme with "gnome throw"?

Gnome throwing is a despicable sport.

Or was that dwarf bowling?

Never mind.

[Mapguy]

Always enjoy tales from the retail trenches of Chiang Mai! Threads on ThaiVisa Chiang Mai, however, are non-refundable !

[thailandbeachisland]

You are totally wrong. These big shops do not care to send back the products to the distributor / wholesaler and they have no reason to just try to sell it again. Ridiculous.

[umbanda]

Just 6 months ago I bought a 3G tablet at the Smart Computer Store in Lampang...Was not working properly. I come back in 3 days to complaint about and asking for a new one. The store employee, a nice guy speaking enough English was very "good" to me. He told me that was a new model, better than the one I got and he did the change. Was also no working OK. Not connecting with wi-fi at all. I back again, the guy was not working there anymore, and even under warranty, was not willingness by the new employees to change or repair. Just last week, I found out that my tablet that never works right connecting with wi-fi, is a 2G model.

Because I changed defective appliances in Big C before, even after weeks of use, and without any problem, next buy will be there or on any big chain well known store.

Somebody will like to buy very cheap a slightly used 7" 2G phone-tablet???

Let me know..still in the original case, looks good, and under warranty!!!!

Edited March 17, 2014 by umbanda

[eyecatcher]

I think the testing of bulbs and tools is a plus here.....no one does that in the UK.

I decided to buy a grass cutter at global a few month back.

The boy brought the box, unpacked it and spent a good 20min assembling it. Maybe 30 components and finally he fuelled it up.

Then he have me a lesson in how to start it and between us we had the blade spinning at 2000rpms in the store!

I smiled, said ok a few times and he wanted to carry it to the check out.

You should have seen his face when I motioned to him that I want it all taking apart and putting back in the box because I was on a motorbike.

I suggested to him that he had actually done something worthwhile today instead of sitting in a corner out of sight. He was actually very helpful...surprisingly.

[chickenslegs]

I won't accept a boxed item that looks like it may have been opened, or has visible damage to the box. I also ask about the store's return policy before buying. Even then, H_P doesn't seem to have a problem with opening the box, checking the contents, or even assembling it for me. I've never had a problem returning defective or incomplete products at any of the big chain stores.

+1

At H_P_ and most of the other similar stores you can even test a 15 Baht light bulb before you buy it.

[Mapguy]

Why do so many people insist on b*tching and moaning so much about retail salesmanship? It certainly doesn't apply to all who post, but the roiling consumer discontent reflective in these threads over the years, especially more recent years, does make one wonder!

One pattern, among others, seems to be valid from several years of painful reading of TV Chiang Mai "retail" threads. That is that comparatively few traditional small shops are spoken about. It is increasingly as though so many farang (That's who post here, after all!) are afraid to become part of the local community and enter anything that doesn't look like a mall or a "box store" from the "old country" --- as if those places never had any customer service problems!

How much conversation is there here on this site about the relative worth (several dimensions to consider) of the several traditional large and small food and general retail markets in Chiang Mai which have served the community well for generations ?! Those are by their absence, of course, very obvious examples of the narrow cultural focus of so many comments over the years that one reads here.

After a while too much of the criticism becomes some expression of "TIT," the ever-popular cultural slam. Is Thailand the problem? Or is this indicative of people migrating with their personal habits "back home" complicated by budgetary nervousness and personal discomfort in a new place?

So many people seem to insist on remaking the cultural landscape in their own comfortable (perhaps sometimes imaginary) image of "back home." Why are they here !

Edited March 17, 2014 by Mapguy