After the Sale: What to Do if You Have a Problem

A reputable home furnishings store will work with you to resolve any issues you may have after you purchase your new furniture.

by Trisha Kemerly

You’ve finally purchased the furniture of your dreams after long hours of shopping, comparing styles, fabrics, colors and prices. After waiting several weeks for your custom-ordered sofa, the store delivers the furniture and places it perfectly in your home. You’re thrilled—until you realize one of the cushions has a small tear.

Don’t panic! Because furniture is constructed of many parts, every so often things go wrong. Sometimes during shipping furniture can be chipped, scratched, frayed, scuffed, or worse—you’re paying a lot of money for it, so of course you want your new furniture in pristine condition. What if the item is later than promised? Or what if a problem arises with one piece in the collection, and the retailer informs you that that collection has since been discontinued?

What should you do?

First, take a deep breath. The vast majority of home furnishings retailers out there are not trying to scam you or sell you damaged goods. They want to help make it right, so give them the opportunity to make you happy with your purchase.

Take a Few Precautions

Before you buy, it’s a good idea to ask about the store’s policy for damaged items. A good retailer will be upfront about the process and will make sure you feel comfortable that they will not desert you after the sale. A dishonest retailer will be evasive about answering these questions, and you should probably walk out the door.

One of the benefits of dealing with a HomeFurnishings.com Certified Retailer is that they all have written consumer “rights” and guarantee policies, a clear dispute resolution vehicle, and membership in your local Better Business Bureau or local retail merchant association. 

Let the Store Try to Fix It

Many retailers have a system in place where they inspect the furniture at the store once it is shipped from the manufacturer. If the furniture looks good upon inspection, then the store will call you to set up delivery.

“We always prep and inspect every piece of furniture before it leaves our warehouse,” says Donny Hinton, owner of Brown Home Furnishings in Gaffney, S.C. “If there’s a problem, we will either fix it ourselves at the store, or we have to tell the manufacturer to send us a new one. Yes, that means the customer is waiting longer, but we want her to be happy with it once the furniture’s in her home.”

Maybe the furniture is damaged in route to your home, or you didn’t notice a problem until days or weeks after the deliverymen have left. Pick up the phone and call the store’s customer service number. Usually a repairman from the store will come out to assess the damage—sometimes the fix is as easy as ordering a part, so there’s no need to send the entire piece away. If the problem is more serious and can’t be repaired satisfactorily, the retailer should replace the item.

“The most frequent problems I see are with wood and leather, and there are very few good warranties for those types of pieces,” explains Hinton. “A lot of that furniture is imported, so we can’t just get spare parts from those manufacturers. When we have to replace the item, it takes time. That’s why we encourage customers to buy the extended warranty for those items, or at least buy domestically made products.”

Why Can’t I Just Get a New One?

Just because your new furniture may have had a problem, there’s no guarantee that a replacement won’t have the same or a different problem. Shipping furniture across states (or across the world) can be risky because there are a lot of people handling that furniture before it gets to your doorstep. Your best option is to let your furniture store attempt to fix the problem first.

“If you buy a new car and it breaks down the next day, does the dealership give you a new one or do they fix it?” Hinton asks. “Of course they fix it. It’s not reasonable to expect that the retailer should replace an item when it has a fixable solution.”

Above all, what can you do to work get the most from your retail experience?

“Be nice!” Hinton says. “We really do want to help and will do our best to make the customer happy with us and with their new furniture.”