I help run a small charity in Derbyshire for children with special needs – the Tiny Tim Trust. We try to fill the gaps between health, education and social care.
In March we ordered an £80 roller wheel and a £300 climbing frame from a company called Cheap Disability Aids. It was for a four-year-old with significant disabilities.
Payment was made in May and since then we have been trying to get it to deliver these items. For the whole of the summer our account showed that we had not even made a payment, and it took numerous unanswered emails and calls before it agreed we had. I threatened court action and finally the roller wheel arrived at the end of September, but no climbing frame. This little girl has now been waiting for six months.
If I phone, the receptionist is not allowed to put calls through. I wrote to the chief executive but the letter was also ignored. Can you please offer us any help? I just want the climbing frame delivered so I never have to deal with this company again.
LB, Chesterfield
What a saga this was. First, the company refused to discuss your case with me unless it had a signed letter from you. Only this would allow it to comply with data protection regulations, it claimed. We too called up but staff would not talk to us. After many emails it eventually came back with lots of excuses as to why your order hadn’t been processed, none of which made sense to us.
Then it asked for an invoice to be sent. Then it wanted your bank details, but only on headed notepaper. When we suggested it should stop messing about and simply repay your £300, it claimed we were being rude and refused to talk to us. Happily, you have just told us that the £300 is back in your account. An internet search reveals a trail of unhappy customers of Cheap Disability Aids and its parent firm, Sensory Education. Based on our dealings with it, plus what I have read online, I would urge customers to avoid this firm.
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