At times a machine that has been used may well need to be returned to us. We have a very low rate of return indeed as you'd expect from a company that invests time in producing quality warrantied goods.
The circumstances of a return are different every time and our dedicated After Sales Team are well informed and deal with returns on a case by case basis in order to resolve an issue as swiftly as possible.
In some circumstances you may be asked to return the item at your own cost. Why?
Certainty
The answer is simple. I'm sure it's no surprise to you to know that reputable national couriers consider both petrol and oil to be hazardous substances (which of course they are) and won't transport an item without them.
When we send a machine, naturally, they contain no oil and fuel and we have absolute certainty that is the case. When an item is being returned from a customer we can't promise the carrier in question that it has been fully drained of hazardous substances. This can have dramatic consequences for us with carriers as a company.
Here's an excellent example of a package that we received from a customer. We requested that it was fully drained of oil and the customer confirmed it was. We were even surprised it reached us - they are mostly never delivered and are destroyed as hazardous by the carrier. We don't want that to happen to your machine!
Packaging
Packaging is essential. We appreciate that you may not have the original box, and that's fine. We're not worried about aesthetics but we do request that as well as being totally drained of hazardous substances it is packaged and protected in a common sense manner. Let's look at some examples below.
Not packaged at all: With no packaging they are often held at the depot (if collected in the first place) and may take weeks to reach us or may simply be returned to you by the carrier in question.
Wrecked: This reached us in such a ruined state it just went straight to the recycling - despite assurances it had been packaged well for a return.
While these may be at the more extreme end, they are by no means rare. When we offer a returns label the legal contract is between ParkerBrand and the carrier. In the case of an item improperly drained of fuel and oil (or not at all) we are penalised. This is principally because leaking oil can damage an entire load of consignments on a vehicle. There need only be a very few instances of this and we can find ourselves barred from the services of the carrier in question. This includes deliveries as well as collections. The impact of such a situation on even a well established business such as ParkerBrand would be serious and potentially far reaching, reputational, financial or otherwise.
Help us to help you
When reporting an issue with you machine either by way of a call or email we'll ask to see what is happening. This is not because we don't believe you (we'd never be that rude), but simply to allow our tech team to assess. We have a very straight forward and streamlined system for you to do this by way of a photo or short film from your mobile phone. Again, the team deal with this on a case by case basis but they won't issue a label if we have been unable to assess.
Should you be asked to return the item to us at your cost within 6 months of your purchase it will be made clear you that we shall refund all reasonable cost. Naturally, we help you to find a very low cost way to return items to us. You can see that advice as well as our return address on this blog.
IMPORTANT: If we have asked you to return at your own cost subject to refund please do check with us if the return cost is over £10. If it is in excess of £10 please do let us know.
The After Sales Care team in combination with our Tech Team. are there to facilitate a swift resolution to any given issue and work hard to do so with the minimum of fuss. We thank you for your co-operation and understanding, truly.
