Snappy Snaps Barnet- Appalling!!!

“Snappy Snaps Barnet- Appalling!!!”

Written on: 09/08/2012 by emmaburnett (1 review written)

I had my photos printed at Snappy Snaps in Barnet, I was told to leave my memory cards so they could upload the pictures and collect when I collected my photos. Surprise surprise the cards were lost! It took multiple phone calls, emails and attending the shop in person to get one of the memory cards replaced, the other they were unwilling to replace as it wasn't an SD card, but an XD card and they weren't ordering more in as the SD order had cost £300!!! Obviously this was my problem! I even offered to buy my own card and provide the receipt so they could reimburse me, this was initially agreed by the shop staff who couldn't contact the owner, and later I was phoned to state that the owner had not agreed to this! See below for email exchange with the manager! Also head office not interested as the shops are franchised!!

Dear Miss Burnett,
I have read through all of your points raised, and I think it is reasonable to say that as a retail outlet we have to take the viewpoint whereby any lost items, or discrepancies
etc need to be addressed before leaving the premises otherwise there is a question of doubt as to where the items were lost.
With regard to my colleague not asking you to wait whilst the images were loaded, he was, as previously pointed out under the impression you
had returned shortly afterwards to collect your cards.
My colleague and yourself had a discussion regarding the cards , and believed the cards to be SD media cards. If there was any question of doubt in your mind
regarding the cards , it should have been raised at that moment , before we got the replacement cards for you, unfortunately without having the cameras
In front of us , it is pure guesswork on our part, as to what media card they would use.
We have your order on our hard drive .One of the cards was full with 30 images on , which would suggest a very small memory capacity, 64 mb or less. My colleague
replaced this with a 64mb card, and the other card which had over 200 images was a 2GB card , which again was replaced by a 2GB card. So both cards were replaced
Like for like. Again at the time discussed you agreed with my colleague that one card was 2GB and one was 64mb.
My colleagues integrity is not in question, you both have a difference of opinion on the events . Both of your lost cards have been replaced for you, at our expense.
To summarize, there are a few grey areas , however , we have made sure that you are now in possession of the same media that you started with, and, backed up all of your images
onto CD .







Kind regards

Tracey Weare
Franchise Owner

Snappy Snaps Barnet
81 High Street
Barnet, Herts EN5 5UR
tel: 020 8449 5000
richard@snappysnaps-barnet.co.uk


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Sent: 08 August 2012 21:25
To: info@snappysnaps-barnet.co.uk
Subject: Re: re-complaint

Dear Miss Weare,

thank you for your reply, I would like to clarify a number of points:

1. The photos were not collected on 6.7.12, but 13.7.12. I was unable to check for the memory cards until the weekend then contacted the store in person on the Monday 16.7.12.
Therefore I do not think this is an undue length of time.
2. As it is your store policy to ask for clients to wait whilst the card data is uploaded I am surprised David asked me to leave and collect it with the photos, as I wasn't impatient in the shop or requesting for it to be sorted sooner.
3. I have no idea what kind of cards I had brought in, and David advised me he thought they were SD cards on my description. If I had been told that I had to be absolutely sure I would have googled the camera I have and double checked. David was sure I had SD cards so I agreed.
4. When I came into the shop to collect the cards and realised the cards were wrong, I agreed with David who at the time discussed with a man who he said was the manager. They agreed that I could buy my own card and you would reimburse me. What David has told you is a lie, and I am more than willing to come into the shop to meet with yourself and David to discuss this. If I wasn't told I could do this then why did the staff tell me to leave one of the SD cards they had given me as I was allowed to replace it myself? And why did David ring me later to apologise for telling me this and that he would replace the card himself and send it to me? He did- the card was 64 mb, nowhere near the size of the memory that was
lost in the store. Clearly the staff have no respect for your authority and think that they can tell you lies and over rule your policies.

I await your reply

Emma Burnett


From: Snappy Snaps Barnet

Sent: Monday, 30 July 2012, 17:49
Subject: re-complaint

Dear Miss Burnett, thank you for your comments regarding the service you received from us .
I am sorry you feel unhappy about the way your problem was dealt with. It is a great shame that when the photos were collected on the 6.7.2012 it wasn’t brought to our attention before you left the store that you felt items were missing, and waited until the 16.07.12 to inform us. Unfortunately by the time I spoke to you regarding this you had already spoken to one of my colleagues who apparently was awaiting Davids return to discuss the matter further.
However as soon as David returned , he was contacted and he expressed surprise because he was sure the cards had been collected the same day, after the data had been uploaded onto our system.
We have a store policy whereby we do not retain customers media cards due to the personal value attached to these cards ,and so it is customary for us to ask our customers to wait until the data is downloaded , and then take the media with them. . If a member of staff does not adhere to our policies and fails to make it clear that we cannot be responsible for items left here ,they , become accountable for those items.
David spoke to you , and said although he thought they had been collected , you believed they had not , so, as a gesture of goodwill
I told David we would replace your cards and to discuss with yourself exactly what cards they were. I was told there was an SD card which was 258MB and an SD card which was 2GB. I also explained that because we still had the order on our hardrive I would copy them onto a CD for you . We replaced your two cards with 2 2GB SD media cards (These cards can hold up to approx 2000 images ).
So I feel quite confident that I upheld my end to replace the items I had been told were missing.
Your comment regarding me not contacting you myself is unfounded since I called you several times regarding this matter prior to David returning , obviously once David was available he was dealing with you because he was the gentleman who served you.
On the 21.7.12 you say you were told by my manager to go and purchase a card and we would refund you. My manager was not working that day and all my other staff members do not have the authority to sanction something like that . David did say that you said you would do this and he explained that he would have to contact his manager to authorise it, but you left the store before he was able to do this. Your images would never be ‘given’ to a third party and at no time did you ask me this because obviously I would have made this very clear to save any unnecessary worry. I am sorry that you missed photographing your daughters Christening, however we did make sure the cards we were told were missing originally (2 SD cards) were here ready for collection before the date you required them.





Kind regards

Tracey Weare
Franchise Owner

Snappy Snaps Barnet
81 High Street
Barnet, Herts EN5 5UR
tel: 020 8449 5000
richard@snappysnaps-barnet.co.uk

Dear sir/madam,

I would like to make a complaint about your store in Barnet, EN5.

I visited the store on 6.7.12 to have some pictures developed from 2 memory cards, spending £48.97. I was asked to leave my memory cards so the store could download the prints and I would be able to collect them when I collected my photos. I was served by David.

I collected my pictures on 13.7.2012. The memory cards were not present.

I went to the store on 16.7.12, where I explained what had happened. The gentleman dealing with me could not find the cards, but told me he had seen a girl who was not working that day with the cards. He told me she would be in the following day and he would get her to call me. This didn't happen.

I rang the store on 18.7.12, and spoke to a lady called Tracy who told me she was the owner. She promised to search for the memory cards and call me back. A further call resulted in me being told that the cards couldn't be found, but she would speak to David when he returned from holiday. I explained my daughter's christening was 22.7.12 and I would require the cards by then. I also queried how I would get my images, Tracy told me she would download them to a disc. I wondered if my discs had been given to another customer, as there were some extremely personal images on the cards, such as breastfeeding my baby. There was no answer to this.

David contacted me on his return from holiday (20.7.12), he felt he had given me my cards back, but accepted that he hadn't. He asked what cards I had given him. I told him I had no idea of the card types as it wasn't something I had registered myself. I thought they were SD cards. David said they would order the cards in to replace the cards and I could collect them 21.7.12 in time for my daughter's christening. I explained the dimensions of the cards and David agreed they sounded like SD cards.

I went to the store on 21.7.12, and was given two SD cards, which although fit 1 camera did not fit my other. Describing the card the man I spoke to said it sounded like it was an XD card, not SD. I said I had described them the first time I discussed them and had said I wasn't entirely sure what my cards were. As there were no XD cards in stock, I agreed with the manager that I would go out and purchase my own card, and provide the receipt to which I would then be refunded the price, as it was now the day before my daughter's christening.

2 hours later, I got a phone call! I was told that the owner had said that she had had to order £300 of SD cards in to replace the cards the store had lost and she wasn't going to replace any other cards as she thought my cards were SD cards! David then told me he would order the card and pay for it himself, and send it on to me.. but I would not obviously receive it in time for my christening.

I have since received the card in the post.

However, I didn't take any pictures at my christening as I didn't have a memory card to save the images to, as the SD card holds only a small number of pictures and was for my sons very low pixel camera.

Altogether I was completely displeased with the service I have received. As a franchise I would assume there are certain levels of customer care that your franchisee is meant to uphold, and I don't think these have been met at all. The number of times I have had to contact the store, attend the store (paying for parking at £2.10 per hour) and fobbed off by various people is terrible. In fact, the only person who has seemed decent so far is the man that lost my cards David! Everyone else seems to not communicate or have any idea what their job role is, or (in the case of the manager) have the decency to ring me herself to explain why she does not feel it is her responsibility to replace all the media cards the store lost.

The thought that my memory cards could be with anyone is awful. And I have missed taking photographs of a massive event in my daughters life- the entire reasoning for taking the cards in to clear the images in the first place!

I look forward to hearing from you,