I paid €2,850 for a leather three-piece suite and it's made of PVC
Q In March 2009 Dolores purchased a leather suite and a foot-rest.
She writes that recently: "The colour has gone from brown to rust on the arm of the three-seater couch and the stitching is coming apart to reveal black PVC!"
So Dolores went back to the shop where she had bought the suite only to find that it had closed down. She then discovered that other shops within the same chain had also shut.
"I paid €2,850 for this three-piece suite," she writes. "I still have all the receipts and am very disappointed."
A Firstly, when you buy anything, including a leather suite, it should be "as described". That means that if the suite you bought was described as leather, that's what you should get, and not PVC.
You may find that some suites are 'part leather', where sometimes certain sections, such as the back, are not leather, but this should be described to you at the time of purchase.
The colour of leather can change, and you should follow care instructions, but either the suite is real leather or not and it should be described accurately.
If not, you are entitled to a remedy.
The problem here is that the shop has closed down.
You could register as a creditor with the liquidators, but consumers will be at the bottom of the creditors list so it is unlikely you would get anything.
If you paid on credit card, then your bank will provide a 'chargeback' facility, so if that is the case you should contact them to check if they can help you out.
Irish Independent
