Very disappointing experience with…
Very disappointing experience with FWIP. We purchased a machine for our Costcutter store, but from the outset it repeatedly broke down between uses. In my experience, the support provided did not resolve the recurring problems, and we could not rely on the machine.
There is now a dispute about the freezer supplied with the package. I understood it was included in our purchase, but FWIP says it was loan equipment and is requesting £800 after it was disposed of because it was not working properly. We still have the TV and have offered to make it available for collection.
When I said I would share my experience with other retailers, their response included warnings about legal action over false or misleading statements. I found the tone intimidating.
Based on the equipment’s reliability, the support I received and the handling of this dispute, I would not recommend FWIP.
Reply from fwip.com
Hi Nikesh,
Imagine someone lends you a bicycle under a written agreement and you decide to throw it away without their permission. Would you then accuse the owner of intimidation when they ask to be compensated for their property?
That is essentially what has happened here.
The freezer was FWIP's property, not yours, and this is clearly set out in the five-page agreement you signed. You had no authority to dispose of it. The £800 was proposed as a commercial settlement for that loss, not some form of punishment. For context, a comparable new freezer costs approximately £1,200.
As for your complaints about our service, here's where things get rather interesting.
Unlike some businesses, we keep records of reported service issues. And we actually checked yours. There has never been a report of anything wrong with the freezer. As it relates to the machine, to give you one example, your issue of "no power" was resolved over the phone. Why? Because it wasn't plugged in!
That's a bit like complaining your phone is broken because you haven't turned it on.
We appreciate that running a convenience store is busy and not always easy. But our team is there to help, and that's exactly what they did. We also have no record of you ever reporting a fault with the freezer itself, let alone receiving permission to dispose of it.
And then, after disposing of equipment belonging to another business, you tell us you'll be warning the wider Costcutter network about FWIP's supposed failings. All because we asked for compensation for property that wasn't yours to throw away.
Well, that's not particularly fair or nice, now is it?
Your review paints a picture of a supplier intimidating a customer. What it conveniently leaves out is that one business has disposed of another business's property and is now refusing to compensate its owner.
You also asked for another copy of your signed agreement. Five pages, hardly War and Peace.
We have no desire to conduct a contractual dispute through Trustpilot. That's precisely why contracts and the law exist: to protect businesses when their property is disposed of without permission. We reserve our rights to recover our losses through the appropriate channels.
Nevertheless, we genuinely wish you and your business all the best.
We just wish we still had our freezer.
FWIP Team