Evetech being a bit dodgy here....

[Mojoman]

Evetech has been accused of contravening the Consumer Protection Act by not refunding customers to the full value of products which break or do not function as expected.

Many customers complained they were offered Evetech store credit instead of cash as refunds when their product broke.

They also said the value of the Evetech store credit was much less than what they paid for the product.

One customer said Evetech cited “depreciation and use of the product” as the reason for the store credit being of a significantly lower value than the price paid.

This is against the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) which imposes an automatic warranty which all goods must comply with.

Section 56 of the CPA states:

Within six months after the delivery of any goods to a consumer, the consumer may return the goods to the supplier, without penalty and at the supplier’s risk and expense, if the goods fail to satisfy the requirements and standards contemplated in section 55, and the supplier must, at the direction of the consumer, either

(a) repair or replace the failed, unsafe or defective goods; or

(b) refund to the consumer the price paid by the consumer, for the goods.

According to many complaints by Evetech customers, the company is not adhering to the CPA.

The situation became so problematic that technology classifieds forum Carbonite banned Evetech from having any dealings on its website.

Carbonite said its decision was due to Evetech’s “blatant disregard for decency with regards to their warranties”.

Evetech insider reveals what is really happening

MyBroadband spoke to a source with in-depth knowledge of Evetech’s operations and support channels, who provided details on how the retailer handles refunds.

The person provided this information with the agreement that they would remain anonymous because of their dealings with Evetech.

He told MyBroadband the employees who work in the support department cannot be blamed for the poor refunds.

“They can only work with what they are given. They always have to jump through hoops before they can help a customer,” he said.

MyBroadband asked him for details about the support and refund process. Here is what he said.

If a customer was unhappy with a product, what was Evetech’s usual response?

The support staff’s instruction was to try to get them to keep the product. If they insist on returning it, customers were informed they can return it at their cost and that there will be a 20% restocking fee.

If a customer wanted their money back because they were unhappy with a product, what was Evetech’s usual response?

The same as the above. Support staff had to find out why the customer was unhappy and try to get them to keep the product.

If they wanted to return it because they were just unhappy, the same conditions as above would apply.

Many unhappy customers would cause a scene or write a bad review and then the rules would be bent for them.

If a product broke under warranty, what was Evetech’s usual response?

It depended on the situation. If it was within the first 7 days – 10 days if it was delivered – the item had to be exchanged, although the support staff had to constantly remind the managers of this and the CPA regulations.

Within the first 6 months the same as above would apply – just a bit slower. Sometimes they would first send an item to the local supplier instead of just crediting, replacing, or refunding.

After 6 months they couldn’t care less. The item was to be sent to Evetech – at the customers own expense – and they would take the warranty further with the suppliers. The customer would have to wait.

If a customer asked for a refund because of a broken product, what were support staff encouraged to tell them?

Customers were told Evetech does not do refunds – unless they knew the CPA – and that the company could give them store credit or swap the item out for an item of similar value.

Do you think Evetech is treating its customers fairly?

No, they don’t. The support staff have to follow rules to resolve a customer’s problems or complaints.

Support staff would receive the item and test it. If it is faulty there will be a swap-out if it was within the 7 to 10-day window. It would sometimes also be done within the 6-month window, but then the stock manager, accounts, and the general manager would have to agree it is necessary.

The other option is to send the item to the supplier, and they would either swap out the item or credit it. If a supplier credits the item, Evetech will try to replace the item from its own stock, or something of the same value.

After six months you would only get supplier credit. The credit note is for the wholesale cost of the item, which means the customer gets the credit ex-VAT and ex-mark-up, and they are told that it is because of depreciation of value.

https://mybroadband.co.za/news/hardware/362312-evetech-insider-reveals-what-is-really-happening-at-the-company.html?utm_source=newsletter

[Rocket-Boy]

Yup, they were banned from the Carbonite forums because of super dodgy warranty practices.

I expect they are going to battle a bit going forward with all of negative publicity they have had recently.

[Cois]

They are very dodgy.

I have had dealings with them and it was a pain.

 

Had a water cooler fail within 7 days of buying it from them. Took a month to replace it. The unit they wanted to give me looked a bit like it fell from a truck. Took a refund and bought a bigger cooler for my AMD system.

 

Another case was where I purchased a Logitech Keyboard. It was DOA. They said they would collect it, but took it to them a week later and got a Corsair set. They wanted to give me the same keyboard, but if a product fails once, I can’t trust it again.

 

And the specials (like my AMD) will not be warrantied because the products are older than 3 years. I do not know if it was the lack of shipping material when they shipped my CPU, RAM and Mainboard, but the box of the mainboard have seen better days. I do know now that Evetech will not warranty the products if they fail.

[Mojoman]

They are very dodgy.

I have had dealings with them and it was a pain.

 

Had a water cooler fail within 7 days of buying it from them. Took a month to replace it. The unit they wanted to give me looked a bit like it fell from a truck. Took a refund and bought a bigger cooler for my AMD system.

 

Another case was where I purchased a Logitech Keyboard. It was DOA. They said they would collect it, but took it to them a week later and got a Corsair set. They wanted to give me the same keyboard, but if a product fails once, I can’t trust it again.

 

And the specials (like my AMD) will not be warrantied because the products are older than 3 years. I do not know if it was the lack of shipping material when they shipped my CPU, RAM and Mainboard, but the box of the mainboard have seen better days. I do know now that Evetech will not warranty the products if they fail.

Almost bought my Corsair keyboard from them earlier this year....pretty glad I didnt now...!

 

Edited August 4, 2020 by Mojoman

[Eugene]

I wonder how many cycling companies honour the 6 month warranty imposed under the CPA