THE Sun’s Squeeze team win money back for readers who have had a refund or billing problem with a company and are struggling to resolve it.
This week, we helped a woman who couldn’t get her tooth impressions to work on a new set of veneers get her money back after the company refused to reimburse her.
Now she will use the money to find a more permanent solution to the dental problems that are affecting her life.
Q) I am self conscious about my teeth so I paid £637 to have veneers fitted to hide them.
Fab Smile Veneers asked me to take impressions of my teeth at home and send them in, but twice the kits have not worked properly.
I just want my money back so I can try something else but I’m getting nowhere – can you help?
Tamara Smith, London [name changed]
You’ve had a filled front tooth for 25 years – almost half your life.
So you were devastated when he was knocked out during an accident on your 46th birthday in 2018.
This left you with a gap in your front row of teeth.
At the time, you couldn’t afford to fix it through regular dental treatment, so in May 2019 you turned to Fab Smile Veneers, which makes false clip-on teeth.
You were happy with this solution for a while, but unfortunately those veneers broke unexpectedly last year and you couldn’t afford to replace them.
Since then, you feel increasingly embarrassed and depressed about your appearance.
Your parents don’t have much money, but they can’t bear to see you so unhappy, so in March they loaned you £637 to get your teeth fixed by Fab Smile Veneers.
The company sent you a dental impression kit.
But the first set of impressions you sent back didn’t work, and neither did the second.
This back and forth has been going on for months, during which your life has come to a standstill.
You can’t remember the last time you went into work, let alone went out to socialize with friends or even family.
You have decided that you do not want to try another set of impressions and would rather try a more permanent solution to solve your dental problems.
But when you asked for a refund, there was radio silence.
Despite sending countless emails to the company, you have never had a response and the phone line is ringing off the hook.
I was so sorry to hear about your situation and can really sympathize with how self conscious you must be feeling.
Your mom told me that their once happy daughter is now deflated and heartbroken and they are worried about how isolated you have become.
This stagnation of Fab Smile Veneers has made things worse as you cannot move forward.
When I explained your situation to the company they apologized for the delay and eventually offered to refund £517.
I have seen the refund policy which states that it will not refund customers after the impressions have been issued.
In exceptional cases, it may refund customers before this stage, but an admin fee of £120 is required.
The company has agreed to refund all of your costs minus this £120 charge.
You are excited to get most of the money back and will use it to try to get more permanent work done on your teeth.
I really hope you can now get your life back on track.
Squeeze Team Total: £118,814.50
What are your rights if the same thing happens to you?
It’s always a good idea to ask a company about their refund policy before handing over a large sum of money.
It is often the case that you can get a refund within a certain period of time.
For example, many stores allow you to return products within 14 days of purchase, as long as they are unused and you have the receipt.
But this is not always the case, particularly with items such as underwear or jewelry or items for sale.
However, you have certain rights as a customer when purchasing items that companies must adhere to.
For example, if the item you purchased is broken or damaged, unusable, not as advertised, or does not match the seller’s description, you are legally entitled to a replacement or refund.
This is true even if the item was purchased second-hand.
It is up to the companies to decide what solution they will offer you and then it is up to you if you decide to accept their offer.
If you have a complaint about a company, you can take it to a third party, such as the Retail Alternative Dispute Resolution service.
These services can help communicate with the company on your behalf.
Got a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
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