A pensioner returning her wonky reading glasses to Silverdale Specsavers was told she was 10 days past her warranty. She asked Gill Higgins of Fair Go to follow up.
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With her reading glasses in hand, 83-year-old Margaretha Western walked back into Silverdale Specsavers in Auckland to make a complaint. She’d invested in two pairs of glasses – one for reading and one for watching television – but only one pair was doing the job.
She’d needed light-adapting lenses for both pairs of glasses, so they’d set her back $674 – no small amount for a pensioner who works as a carer.
The distance specs were good, but it was the reading glasses that were causing her problems. They were wonky when sitting on her nose. “You can even see they’re not straight,” she said, modelling them for me. And even if she held them in place, her sight was still blurry. “I cannot read properly. And I can’t do my code crackers. I find trying to see the little numbers in the squares almost impossible.”
Specsavers’ two warranties
Specsavers glasses come with two types of warranty. One allows for dealing with product or manufacturing faults that occur within two years of purchase. The other warranty is broader and shorter. It covers any problem and the store’s promotional leaflet says it will fix the issue “no worries, no fuss”. This particular warranty lasts three months.
Western took her glasses back to the store 10 days beyond this time frame. I asked her why it took her so long to complain. She explained that her job as a carer takes up six days a week so she gets very tired. On top of that, she was advised by friends to “give her eyes time to adjust”.
But having put up with the wonky, blurry glasses for months, she’d finally decided she’d had enough. It was time to put things right. She walked into the store and explained her situation. But rather than offer any help, she said, the Specsavers employee told her, “sorry, you are 10 days out of warranty”. And that was that. Western was stunned. “I mean, I’ve had companies myself, and even if it’s out of warranty or whatever you try to please your client.”
New Zealand consumer law
In Aotearoa, it’s not a matter of discretion to please a client if a product isn’t fit for purpose. As long as the product is returned within a reasonable time frame, the company is legally required under the Consumer Guarantees Act to provide a repair, replacement, or refund to put the problem right.
Western was unimpressed by Specsavers’ attitude.
“They made me feel old and stupid, and that really upset me.”
With 60 stores around the country, Specsavers is New Zealand’s biggest player in the eyecare and vision correction market. It’s known for its deals and its clever ads but, on this occasion, it didn’t meet expectations when it came to customer care. Western asked Fair Go to take up her cause.
All credit to the store, the manager of Silverdale Specsavers was sympathetic, apologetic, and quick to respond. We were put in touch with the head office, who pointed out the company maintains high professional standards.
“We’re very sorry Margaretha felt let down and that we didn’t meet her expectations on this occasion. We have already commenced working closely with Margaretha to ensure she receives the appropriate eye care and vision correction to suit her needs,” a spokesperson told Fair Go.
Within a couple of days, Western was back in store and was pleasantly surprised to get more than she was expecting.
To find out what was on offer, head to TVNZ+ to view the Fair Go story in full.
Watch this story on our home for all news, in-depth and consumer stories, TVNZ+.
