Iona Napier
A PAIR of expats have blown a fuse after one of Spain’s biggest electrical chains refused to refund or replace faulty items.
Both men slammed the ‘non-existent’ customer services at Worten’s Marbella and Fuengirola stores after the ‘useless’ appliances arrived broken or quickly breaking down.
Mike Hodge, 49, of Benahavis, was left dumbfounded when his €1,200 fridge arrived with a broken door.
“When I was told I’d have to pay to fix a fridge I have not even used I almost exploded then and there in the shop,” he said.
“We have spent thousands with Worten and yet we have been made to feel like criminals – it has been very upsetting.”
Meanwhile, Marbella-based Jeff Lewis, 43, bought a 65” Samsung television for €2,200 to find the sound did not work within a month.
“I have been batted between Samsung and Worten, neither of whom will take responsibility..
“The staff were extremely rude in the store – they shouted and even swore at me – and now they seem to run away whenever I come in to raise it with them.”
Both have now filed official complaints with the Portuguese company and have been joined by numerous other unhappy customers on Facebook group Expats Warning & Information.
Two years ago, the Olive Press reported how expat John Benchley was so furious at Worten’s customer service he smashed his new printer on the ground in the shop.
He said: “I am not proud of the fact that I lost my temper but at least it provided some amusement to the other customers.”
I had a run in with them too a few years ago. A faulty electric boiler from day 1. It was only after spending a lot of time reporting them to the consumer association that it was replaced. They were very rude to me too. I would never shop there again. El Corte Ingles has the best customer service.
Never, ever, use Worten. It may be Portugese, but they apply Spanish methodologies.
Horrendous customer service, I have been left with a faulty not so smart phone. It was sent for repair but came back with the same fault. Outcome not good so had to leave with no working phone. Wouldn’t go anywhere near a Worten store again !!!!!!! The Worten store is situated near Plaza Mayor. The store manager was an ill mannered untrained monkey. Not impressed at all.
Well I must admit, all things that I have purchased from Worten so far have been okay except on one occasion when I purchased a 2tb external hard-drive that did not function. I immediately returned and it was replaced , no fuss.
As for Xeno Batt, they should have at least offered you a replacement or out of curtsy returned your money if this was not to your satisfaction.
iv just came back from gran canaria and went to wortens electrical store in a shopping centre just outside the airport.after spending 1200 euros in there when i got my tv home and took it out of the box the lcd screen had broken,you couldnt see any thing untill you plugged it in the electric.so i phoned wortens from the reciept and the people on there were so rude and no help what so ever.. anyway i then took it back to the shop which was an hour away just to be told by the manager christian that he thought id broken it and that he cant and wont exchange it.. ithen filled in a customer complains form in and sent that in,2 days later they call and said just the same and that they cant do anything for me and basically through your money down the drain..does anybody know what i could possibly do to get a exchange? not my money back just an exchange?
we purchased an L.G cyclone vacuum cleaner, and cannot get new filters for it, Wortens say the model number does not exist !!! i have the model number on their receipt !! and is does not apear on the website !! we have had emails from the Malaga office promising replacements for 3 weeks and still nothing.
will keep this page informed of outcome.
Neville, just go online and find them, then once found, buy a couple of hundred. Problem solved.
I just bought a Samsung TV today for 829.00 euro. Got home plugged it in and the screen was messed up (obviously packaging was dropped at some point) they straight refused a refund or replacement even though I had only just returned 2 hours later.
I have registered domains in their name in an attempt to keep people away and warn them about the customer service
just posted my story about them look it up!!
08/15/14 at 10:10 AM
I posted this a while back on the internet,,,,,
Let me tell you a story, are you sitting comfortable? Good, then I shall begin.I purchased from Worten at Velez Malaga a brand new MP3 player to listen to my learn Spanish cds. It started to break down a couple of days ago, so off I went back to Worten. Stood in line waiting for what seemed to be a life time watching the poor souls in front of me getting more and more animated, more and more frustrated and more and more vocal. You could just tell off their body language, raising of hands and shrugging of shoulders that not one of them left a ‘happy customer’ of Wortens. Then it become my turn, to cut a long story short it appears that Worten only take back/exchange goods before 15 days are up after the purchase date. As I had had my player for 2 DAYS past this deadline they would not under any circumstances refund my money or offer me an exchange, and that I would have to at my own time and expense send the player off to somewhere in Madrid (does anybody really believe I would ever see it again). It was at this point that that I knew I was on a total loser here and that Wortens attitude was ”we have your money and now you are on your own”.I then placed the useless MP3 on the floor and to many ohhhs and ahhhs off the other ‘happy customers’ inline smashed it flat using my motorbike boots kicked it into the corner picked up my helmet and gloves and left the store to the sound of security being beckoned. As look would have it iam 6ft tall and weigh 200 pounds all dressed in armour reinforced leathers (so no problem there walking out). As far as I was concerned it was no loss so what the hell go out with a bang.As far as the 15 day guarantee goes Worten don’t inform you until after you have payed, got your change and finally got you receipt (its in the small print at the bottom) so be very careful about trying to return faulty goods back to Worten as it will end in tears ( more than likely yours) , this all happened in front of your CCTV AT APPROX 12:30 so don’t try to deny this happened Worten.
Right on, Bro’! Bad publicity seems to be the only way.
Just to reiterate, never, ever, use Worten. See: “https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=worten+complaints”
In a country where customer services is usually nothing more than a shrug of the shoulders, Worten manages to outdo everyone. I too have had a run in with them and was shocked at the attitude of the staff. I only use them as they are handy and can park easily. Should really make more effort to go to El Corte Ingles.
spain does have consumer laws, trouble is many brits dont talk spanish so find it difficult to persue them. I have used the laws a few times it wasnt that difficult and I got my money back.
do they still have the complaints books in shops
In reply to Ladymuck…..
New Consumer Legislation 2014
March 2014 saw the introduction of amendments to the Spanish Consumer Law, specifically regarding some aspects of online sales such as increasing from 7 to 14 days the period for returns if you’ve changed your mind.
However, the new legislation still does nothing regarding imposing important economic sanctions on companies that continue to ignore consumer rights. Even when a company is sanctioned, a consumer still needs to go to court if they want to receive compensation for damages – thus leaving companies in a position of power.
You can get the Consumer Affairs office from the ayuntamiento or post office. After the previous iteration of Vodafone fraudulently took hundreds of Euros from my bank account, the Consumer Office got it back. Its a bit of work in that a formal letter must be presented to the Consumer clerk in Spanish, but I had a bright 18 year old student translate it for me after I had written it in very clear terms complete with dates and ‘factura’ numbers. Three months later Vodafone gave back the money.
Sadly, it seems you only find out how good customer service is when something goes wrong. I always use Media Markt now – the customer service in Los Barrios at least, is unsurpassed anywhere I’ve been to in Spain.
Tim, Media Markt – a German company bought from them in Aachen.
Wortens, this company is a classic example of the impotency (deliberate) of the EU. If the EU can’t/won’t enforce EU law then please tell me the reason for it’s existence.
Just bought a tv 40″ for 450€ and t had a broken screen, when I complained after 3 hours ( the time between the journey between the store- home-store ) the seller got very agressive and almost went physical against me … Lawyer is already in the case.
Wortens at Velez-Malaga seems to have just halved in size, and as a result has much less stock. Looks like they are not doing too well, which is not surprising given their atrocious customer service. The store in Velez is literally being built whilst it is open, so all the products on display are covered in brick dust.
I was just about to buy a new fridge from Worten but did a quick about turn after reading of other customers experience . A few years ago I bought a Samsung TV which failed after 1 year. I took it back for repair and was told spare parts were no longer available . I took it on the chin as I didn’t realise that this company has a dedicated policy of abusing its customers. Thanks for the warning,it’s off to El Corte Ingles from now on.