Vodafone begins reopening Phones 4u stores
130 Phones 4u stores to be rebranded and reopened by operator by mid-November
Retailers - Alex Yau
October 9, 2014
Retailer labels decision not to customers who pre-ordered iPhone 6 or 6 Plus through retailer as unfair
Carphone Warehouse says it will reimburse Phones 4u customers who paid any money upfront for an iPhone 6 or 6 PLus through the collapsed retailer.
Administrators, PricewaterhouseCoopers, announced last week that, contrary to previous statements, it would be refunding money paid to secure an iPhone on pre-order through Phones 4u.
Carphone Warehouse has now offered to reimburse customers who handed over cash if they purchase the handset through one of its stores. It is estimated that the number of people affected by the issue is in the low hundreds and that the amount paid to pre-order was £99.
“We understand Phones 4U customers have been told they won’t receive a refund on their iPhone 6 pre-orders,” a spokesperson for the company said. “We don’t think that’s fair, so we are offering to reimburse Phones 4U customers for any money paid upfront when they buy their new iPhone 6 or 6 Plus from us. All they have to do is come into our stores with printed evidence of their pre-order.”
Phones 4 u collapsed two weeks ago following the breakdown of negotiations with Vodafone and EE regarding extensions to the retailers airtime distribution contracts.
It has since been announced that Vodafone would be purchasing 140 Phones 4u outlets, with EE picking up a further 58. PwC also announced that it would be closing 362 stores with 1,700 people losing their jobs.
