Disappointing Refund Policy and Frustrating Customer Service Experience
My online order total was £285, paid as one combined purchase using a £100 gift card and £185 on my credit card. I returned one item worth £98 within 2 days because it was not what I expected. My issue is not that I was trying to cash out a gift card — it’s that despite this being a larger combined purchase, the refund was pushed back to the gift card instead of reducing my credit card balance. The outcome is that I am effectively being forced into what feels like buying another gift card for future spending I did not intend to make. Customer service was extremely frustrating. Responses felt mechanical, scripted, and dismissive, repeatedly insisting everything was processed correctly while ignoring the actual concern. As a loyal customer who has spent around £1,000 with FARM Rio over the last year, this felt especially disrespectful. This experience has completely changed my view of the brand, and it will be my last purchase. To any frustrated customer facing situations like this, do not give up when something feels unfair. Seek support through Citizens Advice and continue escalating where appropriate. In my case, I will also be raising this with my MP because situations like this feel abusive toward consumers, and when customer protections fail to properly address these practices, those concerns deserve to be challenged. Update: thank you for the reply. The situation was sorted after a lot of back and forth, but the communication with the team was very frustrating and it was repetitive and dismissive, not clear at all. Thanks