Sainsbury - Can You Trust Them...?

Bought by a friend and supporter our Sainsbury own brand microwave has died on us. A tragic tale of one that died so young.

Purchased on the 30^th July 2016 – at 16:56.37 - if you want to be precise, our Microwaves covering on the turntable deck, started to peel off where the door shuts. More rust came though, cleaning it became impossible and eventually the electrics failed.  It was not a pretty sight in the end.

What is happening is that companies are creating products that are engineered to last till just after the warranty expires and then customers are obliged to buy a new one. Many people on low incomes cannot afford to do this. One in four people in the EU are economically inactive.  Our landfill sites cannot take the strain either. These rubbish products are destroying the environment and the very planet we live on.  

We went back Sainsbury, Tolgate and complained. We had not seen the purchaser who bought the Microwave for us for a couple of months and he had the receipts. 

In October, the Sainsburys Help Desk at Colchester 1 Stanway Western Bypass, Stanway, Colchester CO3 8AA offered to replace the product which was in a rotten state. You would think it was five years old not just over one year old with rust everywhere.

Sainsburys Help Desk agreed to replace it, but on coming in just a few days later with some cash to buy a new model - as this had been on an offer when purchased, Sainsburys Colchester, reneged on what had been agreed.

‘Let’s speak to the staff on the day I asked’ politely. ‘That’s all terribly difficult the Sainsbury manger argued ‘we have lots of people work here’ came the reply. ‘Nonsense’ we said, ‘surely you would know who was working on the Help Desk on a certain day’. We can go on….

Sainsburys are not part of an independent arbitration service. If you are making a purchase of capital items you want to last, best steer clears of buying from Sainsburys. 

The Company is losing business. Aldi and Lidl account for £1 in every £8 spent in UK supermarkets, with two-thirds of British shoppers visiting the discount food outlets over the past three months. The German chains are outpacing their bigger rivals as inflation and stagnating wages eat into families’ budgets prompting people to look for better deals.

Sainsburys may be proud of their posh art collection, paid for you and I, but today people want value for money. The want honest traders to deal with too, ones that will stand by faulty or defective products. 

One piece of good news that Sainsburys are introducing 'dementia-friendly' lavatories. Perhaps their staff ought to use them, especially their complaints staff who seem to forget forget that making agreements and keeping promises is a good idea.