Boohoo-hoo! My ‘brand new’ handbag smells of ciggies . . . and there’s a hip f lask inside
SHE wanted to get her sister a handbag for Christmas. But when it arrived with some clothes from fashion website Boohoo, Leanne Oliver was left disgusted.
She claims the whole order stank of stale cigarette smoke and alcohol, while some items had clearly been used – inside the handbag was a hip flask containing dregs of Malibu.
The rum drink had leaked out on to the two tops, belt and pair of boots she had also bought, making everything sticky.
When she complained to Boohoo, Mrs Oliver, 33, was merely told to put the items in the washing machine.
The mother of three, from Farnworth, Bolton, had spent £78 on the online order, including £12 on the black clutch bag, which was delivered on December 12.
‘When the parcel arrived I could smell that it stunk of cigarettes, I don’t smoke so remember thinking it smelled disgusting,’ she said.
‘At first I thought it was the courier and that she must have been smoking in the car but when I opened it I realised it was the stuff inside.
‘The packaging was sticky and when I opened the clutch bag, which still had the tag on it, there was a hip flask inside that smelled like Malibu.
‘Everything smelled so bad, it had obviously leaked. Whoever it belonged to had obviously used it on a night out and then just sent the scratched bag back.’
Mrs Oliver had bought the bag and one top for her sister Melissa Aldred, 27. She believes a previous customer had used the handbag on a night out and stashed a hip flask in there. It was accidentally returned to the online retailer along with the bag.
She complained to Boohoo via the company’s Facebook page – and was ‘stunned’ to be told to wash the items.
‘Two of the items were meant to be gifts for my sister,’ Mrs Oliver said: ‘When he suggested washing them I started laughing and thought “This is beyond a joke”. It was one of those things that was so bad it makes you laugh.’
In her message to Boohoo, Mrs Oliver wrote: ‘My order’s just come smelling highly of cigs, there’s even a used stinking hip flask in the clutch bag.
‘I don’t drink or smoke so I’m really not pleased. Everything is smelly and disgusting, I needed this stuff for Xmas.’ A customer service representative, identifying himself as Zahid, replied: ‘Hey Leanne, I’m really sorry to hear that, I’m quite unsure as to how that flask got in your order.’
He added: ‘Have you tried washing your items to see if the smell will come out?’
Mrs Oliver replied: ‘Washing the used items? Really? What about the spilled alcohol in the clutch bag? I’m not happy to do that, I’ve packed up to return, just thought you should [know].’
Mrs Oliver is still waiting for a refund and has vowed to boycott Boohoo. She said: ‘It was more the customer service that was the issue, I know mistakes sometimes happen. It’s disgusting to use something and then send it back to sell on to someone else when it’s not in a fit state.
‘But Boohoo should also be checking that things are in a resellable condition – to then tell me to wash the item is pretty disgusting, I don’t think I’ll be shopping there again after this.’
Returned items are not usually resold by online retailers as new.
They are instead offered in bulk to third parties and discounters for resale. Boohoo were contacted for comment.
‘Everything was disgusting’