Deborah's Complaint Page

Is this just typical of South African business or are these people just crooks.  I think that hey are crooks but I do not know why they are still in business.  You can be the judge.

Introduction

I am a recent arrival to South Africa having come here on a temporary assignment from the U.S. My helper, Deborah Mokhutshoane, has been having lots of difficulties with a swop shop named Pick & Swop located on the corner of Esslen and Bourkes in Pretoria.

I am writing this record of events, which have been transpired, to help Deborah bring her complaint to various government, legal, and consumer advocate agencies. I am also a witness to several of the events that have transpired.

Summary

Deborah bought a wall unit for R1400 from Pick & Swop and paid for the unit in advance of receipt. The last payment was on 27 September. The swap shop has been giving her problems ever since claiming all sorts of difficulties for not having the goods to deliver to her. The were continuing delays in delivery of the unit. The sop shop then said that they broke the furniture while moving it and were looking to replace it with a new model. Then they gave Deborah various dates when it would be available, and at each instance, she was given another excuse. Deborah has even paid out of pocket expenses to hire delivery persons who came at a pre-appointed time only to find that the swop shop could not again deliver.

Deborah went to the police station. The police told her that there were already several complaints about bait and switch tactics (that is what we call this illegal activity in the states) against the same shop.

Deborah came to Bessy Lee and Chris Whiting for help. They have been to the shop several times always hearing excuse after excuse.

Finally, on 11 October, after going to the swop shop twice that day, the store representative agreed to give Deborah her money back. The swop shop gave Deborah a cheque for R1400. On 12 October, Deborah, Chris, and Bessy discovered that the swop shop had put a stop on the cheque. The swap shop claimed that, miraculously, the goods arrived just ten minutes after Deborah and Chris had left with the cheque and had stopped payment for that reason.

Deborah really wants her money back. The swop shop traded the receipts that she had for the (bad) cheque. They should now honor the cheque. Deborah is totally dissatisfied with the swop shop. She does not want to agree to taking the recently arrived furniture because it does not match the original one purchased, it is not a new unit as promised, she is afraid of more excuses to delivering the goods, further delays, and she does not want to purchase an item that will forever remind her of this terrible experience.

R1400 is a great deal of money to Deborah. Deborah is asking for your help and guidance.

History of Events

23 September: Deborah indicates her desire to purchase Wall Unit from Pick & Swop and provides a down payment of R800.

27 September: Deborah completes the payment of R1400 total by paying an additional R600 to Pick & Swop. At that time, Deborah notes that the wall unit is no longer in the store. Pick & Swop indicates to Deborah that the wall unit has been moved because the store is being expanded. Pick & Swop offer to deliver the unit to Deborah’s home in Brits but Deborah refuses the offer indicating that there would be no one at home to collect the unit. Deborah arranges for delivery of the wall unit with Pick & Swop to 839 Merton St. in Pretoria. Pick & Swop promises delivery on 27 September or on the 28 September. Deborah also makes alternate arrangements to pick-up the wall unit from the store on Friday, 01 October if Pick & Swop cannot deliver the unit on 27 or 28 September.

01 October: Deborah arrives at Pick & Swop with a transport service at 3 PM. Pick & Swop store representative indicates that the wall unit has not arrived and that Deborah must come back at 6:00. He also indicates that the unit has been broken and that they are attempting to repair it. Deborah and the transport service arrive back at the store at 6 PM. They wait until 8pm and the wall unit had still not arrived. Deborah pays the transport service R120.

02 October: Deborah arrives at the store, again, with her transport service. The store representative indicates that the wall unit is not ready. Deborah asks for her money back and the store indicates that they cannot pay her because the bank was closed. Deborah is charged R100 by the transport service.

05 October: Deborah asks Chris Whiting and Bessy Lee for help in solving the problem. Bessy and Chris accompany Deborah to the Pick & Swop store around noon. They are told that the original unit was damaged and that they were ordering a new unit from a factory without the consent from Deborah. They were told that the unit would definitely arrive in two days. They were also told that Deborah would be allowed to examine the unit to make sure that it was the same as what she had ordered. Deborah asks for her money back again, and the store refuses indicating that they have already ordered and paid for the new unit. Deborah, Chris, and Bessy agree to come back two days later to examine the new unit.

08 October: Chris, Deon Coetzee, and Deborah arrive at the swop shop. The store representative indicates that the new unit has not arrived. He indicates that the unit would arrive later that afternoon. Chris, Deon, and Deborah state that they would not be able to come back to the shop that afternoon but would come back on Monday. The store representative at the shop indicates that one way or another the matter would be settled on Monday, 11 October, that is, that Deborah would have the unit or would get her money back. He indicates that if Deborah is dissatisfied for whatever reason, that she would receive her money back.

11 October: Chris and Deborah arrived at the shop at noon. The store representative tells them that a unit had arrived from the factory that morning but was damaged. The store representative indicates that they demanded to the factory that a new unit be sent immediately and promised that it would arrive by 2 PM that afternoon. The store representative said that if the new wall unit did not arrive by that time that Deborah would receive her money back. Around 3:30 PM Deborah and Chris arrive at the shop. The unit has not arrived. The store representative fills out a pre-signed cheque payable to Deborah in the amount of R1400. In lieu of the cheque Deborah returns her receipts for the wall unit.

12 October: Bessy has Deborah endorse the cheque. At noon, Bessy goes to the ABSA bank with Chris and Deon where they attempt to cash the cheque. They are told that a stop payment was issue on the cheque. Deon and Chris go to the Pick & Swop store. The store representative tells them that the unit had arrived on October 11, 10 minutes after Deborah and Chris had departed from the shop and a store representative had stopped the cheque for that reason. They indicate that Deborah should see the wall unit again, and state again that if Deborah is dissatisfied for whatever reason that she would receive her money back. The store representative offers to deliver the unit to Deborah at her residence in Brits free of charge. Chris and Deon tell the store representative that Deborah is dissatisfied but he refuses to write a new cheque.

13 October: Deborah and Chris go back to the store and notify the store representative that Deborah is dissatisfied. The unit on display is not the same model as the one that Deborah purchased nor is the unit new. The unit has cracks and laminate tears that have obviously been shabbily repaired. The store representative indicates that he cannot give a new cheque to Deborah because he is not the one who made the "dissatisfaction" statement. When asked to call his father, the representative who did make the statement, he refuses indicating that he does not have a telephone in the store. When asked for his name and the name of his father, the store representative refuses to provide them. After another brief argument, another store representative (another son) comes out and indicates that he heard the promises made by his father. He then picks up a phone and attempts to call his father, obtaining no answer from him. He indicates that he will have his father call Chris before the end of the day and will arrange for the transfer of cash to Deborah.

Later that day the son calls Chris and indicates that the father is out of town and will not be back until the following Monday. He indicates that his father will be back to the store at that time and will have cash to provide to Deborah.

The following Monday Chris and Deborah arrive.  The first son indicates that his brother is not present and  both he and his father who is also present at the store refuses to give Deborah her money back.  Chris and Deborah depart and go to a local police station.  A sergeant at the station agrees to go to the store to try to help Deborah.  The son this time indicates to the policeman that the manager (his brother) is in the hospital and cannot pay the cash.  He tells the policeman that he will be able to obtain the money the next day and provides Deborah with the phone number to call the next day.  The policeman indicates that if Deborah is not paid the next day that she should file fraud charges against the store.

After three calls the next day, with no money, Deborah goes to the police station and file charges.  She is also given instructs to file with the local small claims court.

Several months later Deborah appears in court but the defendant does not appear and has closed town his store moving next door.  The police can and won't do anything.

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