PC World Rentsmart conned me!!!

A question about : PC World Rentsmart conned me!!!

Hi there,

A couple of years ago I brought a dell laptop i'd just been paid my student loan and they somehow sweet talked me into this rentsmart agreement where I pay Ј36 odd a month and Ј11.99 for PC performance for the value of a comp not more (at the time) than Ј700 approx and at the end I don't even own if but have to pay for it to keep it. They said it should only work out as about a months payment. The salesman told me this was over two years and then I could upgrade and keep the agreement on or I could buy it and own it. However when I was checking all my paperwork for it it said it was over 3 years I didn't notice this til quite a while into it. I had a couple of problems with the laptop and they told me I had to go to dell to get it sorted so I don't understand what i'm even paying for. I feel so conned and stupid when I could've brought it outright as I was going to. They even said they would say I had a business for some reason. I was just confused to be honest as Ј36 for 2 years didn't sound too bad a deal but now it's over three i've realised how much of a fool they've taken me for. Also I've been reading up a bit on this and someone on another forum said at the end of theirs they tried to make them pay loads for the laptop not at all what it was worth. That they also tried to make them pay for months of insurance as they hadn't sent proof of theirs or something. For one thing they've never asked me to do this in fact i've had nothing from them since I first got it with the dates etc and also what's PC performance for then.

Any help on this and my rights etc would be very much appreciated as not only do I have to pay this for another year (which I can't really afford who can and it's not worth it at all) and i'm so worried about this charge they might try to put on me at the end the other person said it was like Ј2400 they're having a laugh aren't they then they were chasing them with debt recovery people as they wouldn't pay it. I've never been in that situation and nor do I intend to I try to be very careful.

Thanks in advance everyone and hope you've not been duped also!

Cheers
Maz

Best answers:

• Hi,
  I used to work in asset finance and I am concerned about your story...
  First and formost, RentSmart provide rental contracts to BUSINESS OWNERS ONLY...not students.
  Do you own your own business? If you do, then you will be bound by RentSmart's rental contract.
  If you do not own your own business - then it is a different story entirely. If the PC World representative informed RentSmart that you are a business owner and you did not confirm the same to RentSmart; then, the PC World representative has clearly lied to RentSmart and in the process invalidated the rental contract between RentSmart and yourself.
  My advice to you is to send a letter to RentSmart and advise them that you would like to terminate the rental contract on this basis. If RentSmart's letter of reply threaten action, fees etc. simply reply that it is the PC World representative who has provided misinformation to RentSmart - not you. Further, if Rentsmart do not agree to cancel their invalid rental contract; then, you will take the matter to the ombudsman for their review of this matter.
  In another words, don't take any crap. It really annoys me that RentSmart appear not to have carried out any cross-checks with you and confirmed that the information provided to them by the PC World representative is entirely accurate, prior to the sign-off of any rental contracts between you and them.
  Be ready for a fight though, as neither RentSmart nor PC World will want to deal with this issue. Remember that RentSmart have already paid PC World's invoice (which you would have had you paid cash!) and they will want their money back, plus interest and fees of course!
  PC World have sold the PC and will not want to deal with this issue at all, as the disagreement is between you and RentSmart's contract. By the way, which PC World store was involved?
  You MUST always read the T&Cs of ANY contract before you sign it. Take it away and think very hard (maybe over two-three nights) before you sign ANYTHING! If it sounds too nice to be true...it usually is.
  Take my advice...always pay cash for a laptop. Don't be sold finance...except the purchase of a house!
  Good luck, James
• Hi there James,
  Thank you so much for your reply I was starting to feel very alone out there. In answer to your question I never declared to Rentsmart that I was a business in fact i've had nothing from them apart from the inital contract that I signed in PC world they since have sent me nothing and i've been paying the monthly fee for over 2 years now. I feel so conned as in PC World in Speke near to Liverpool (to answer another question) I went into there and I had just been paid my student loan so could afford to buy it straight out which I was planning on doing or if they had the scheme where you pay each month but had to have it paid in fully within so many months before interest was added.
  I trusted them (foolishly now I know) and they completely played me. He specifically said it would be for 2 years and then I would pay about a month or less than a month worth of payments to own it but nothing more than Ј50 so I did a quick calculation and thought that sounds about right not too much interest on top but there's a bit, I certainly wouldn't have agreed if I known it would be for 3 years. Thanks for your advice James I have learnt my lesson and I never intend of buying anything (apart from a house as I won't be rich any day soon!! ha ha)
  I'm going to do what you suggested and send them this letter as it was PC World who not only lied to me but also to rentsmart and I am prepared for a fight with both of them if need be I just didn't know where to start and what my rights were on this. But I feel so angry for everyone out there they've duped this way especially when we've gone in with the intention to buy and own outright!
  I can't wait to see their reply but they can have this laptop back in a second if that's what they want and i'm sure as hell not paying a penny of their insurance they will have to take me to court to get anything I don't feel I owe them.
  Thanks again so much James you've really been very helpful and i'm sorry if I vented a bit on there.
  Maz
• Hi Maz,
  Glad I could assist.
  I would be able to provide better advice, except that I am unable to view the contract and any other correspondence between you and RentSmart.
  It is important that you know that like it or not, PC World have zero to do with the current arrangement...the current arrangement is a rental agreement between RentSmart and you period. However, RentSmart must carry out due diligence and determine that you are in fact a business owner, PRIOR to any contract prepared between RentSmart and you.
  You advised that you do not own a business - therefore, in my opinion the contract between you and RentSmart is entirely invalid. You have two choices now:
  1. Send a letter to The General Manager, RentSmart and send a copy of the same letter to The General Manager, PC World Speke.
  2. Seek out a lawyer (make sure your obtain a quote upfront!) who can look at your case and read the contract and provide you with advice and can (if you prefer) send a letter to RentSmart and PC World. Be aware that with Option 2, the lawyer (and you) may find yourselves in a correspondence 'war', which can become very expenside for you! However, based on the initial consultation with a lawyer, you should be able to acertain your legal position.
  No doubt the PC World representative also mentioned to you that RentSmart payments can be 100% tax deductible...except that only applies to businesses, not consumers (like you)! So the main feature (rental payments are 100% tax deductible) is of absolute ZERO benefit to you!!!
  Another point you made was that the PC World representative advised you that you would own the PC for a month's payment. This is misrepresentation, as the contract is between you and RentSmart and only RentSmart will provide you with a 'Payout amount' for you to own the PC...and it will be far more than one month's payment!
  I have two views on the outcome:
  1. You can achieve a full refund of all payments made by you to RentSmart, as the contract between RentSmart and you is entirely invalid, for many reasons inclusive of (but not limited to), misrepresentation from PC World to RentSmart (i.e. that you own a business when clearly you do not!) and RentSmart's lack of due diligence to confirm the same (it should be the first question RentSmart asks of you i.e. are you a business owner!).
  2. You hand back the PC to RentSmart and make no further payments. This would be based upon the fact (from RentSmart's view) that you have paid for the use of the PC for the last two years. This is probably the win-win outcome - and you should use it if both parties (Rentsmart and you) become entrenched in their respective positions. The plus for RentSmart is that you will not take them to the ombudsman for investigation into this matter (your mere lodgement of your case to the ombudsman will cost RentSmart money!!!)...and the plus for you is that you will make no further payments to RentSmart.
  It's in your best interest to push for it all first (Option 1); and then make concession/s (i.e. Option 2) as RentSmart make concession/s. For example, your letter could state: "If you agree to X, then I will agree to Y".
  In the meantime, keep up your payments, otherwise RentSmart could adversely affect your credit worthiness on files accessable by all lenders...which could affect your ability to borrow in years to come!
  I also think it's important to include in you letter that it appears that PC World Speke have a staff trainin' issue that needs to be rectified ASAP so that other PC World customers are not misrepresented by PC World staff to RentSmart. The fact is that RentSmart will have it's own checks in place to ensure that any claims made by PCW representatives is in fact true.
  Keep your letter factual and relevant. DON'T make it personal under any circumstances, it will only make RentSmart play hard ball, which will cost you time and money and frustration...remember you simply want a favourable outcome!
  Let RentSmart know that you expect a response to your letter by X date (two weeks should be about right). If you do not receive a response by this time, you will take the matter up with the Ombudsman directly. the reason for this is that RentSmart will try to stttrrreeetttccchhh out the correspondence and times until you cave in.
  Remember that PC World need to hot certain sales targets each week and RentSmart sales will be included in those targets. Unfortunately, in PC World Speke's case, it appears that in an effort to hit those targets - that you were entirely misrepresented and introduced to RentSmart as a business customer, when it is clear that you were a consumer customer who is eligible for a consumer loan only...which incidently would have meant that you would have owned the PC at the end of the contract! Sorry to add to the pain, but it's true!
  Anyway, let me know how you do. Try to keep positive and remember it wasn't all PC World and RentSmart's fault...you did sign the contract...and the fact that you did not take the time to fully read and understand the contract is not an excuse. So there are errors on all three sides. Look for a win-win (for you and RentSmart) outcome and move on with you life. It could have been worse, you could have spent three times the amount on PC World equipment under a RentSmart rental plan...some people do and later REGRET it!
  Good luck!
  James.
• Hi there James,
  Thanks again for all your advice. I can dig out a copy of the agreement and upload it apart from that that's the only correspondence i've had with them. I'm going to do what you suggested and will get my mum to help me word a letter ( she's good at not making it personal) whereas i'm not so fantastic at that. I agree with you 100% that i'm lucky in the sense that I didn't take out this for 3 computers etc as some people have been lumbered with. I don't mind so much paying the rest of the premium as it ends in April and I think although it's costing me way over the odds of the laptop it has taught me to read any agreements I now get into so i've managed to avoid anything like this happening again. I tend to not get swayed into taking things on finance unless it's very necessary. Again the annoying thing was I had the money in my bank account to pay upfront for the laptop. The one thing i'm more worried about at the end of this is if they hit me with this insurance as the more people's experiences I've read they've added this on I got told again by the advisor that I didn't have to take their insurance as long as I had my own and i've always had my own insurance for it so didn't need the added insurance. They did however yet again misell me their own product of PC performance and when I went to use this apparently they weren't allowed to do anything to the computer even though in the literature it said they were meant to do regular checks etc. I was also sent straight to Dell when the charger and battery went even. Again the advisor had lied seems like PC World here just wanted to lie to me that day.
  Thanks yet again for taking the time to help me. I really do appreciate it as I was really confused as I'm sure so many people out there are.
  Maz
• I am in exactly the same situation as you Maz. I asked to buy a PC under what was advertised as a payment scheme offer for none business owners and where you would own the PC at the end once the repayments were completed after around 18 months.
  Turns out they signed me up for the Rent Smart agreement. I really have no idea how to get out of this. Let me know if you get anywhere...
• Hi Rachie,
  I'm sorry to hear they duped you also. I dug out all my things today and realised they hadn't even sent me a credit agreement the only thing they sent me was that insurance thing. Which i'm sure as hell not paying it's been insured under my parents insurance for years so they can go and swivel.
  My mums helping me to write a letter to them to say that we think they should cancel the agreement using the advice from James as we're not business customers so when we do it I can try and put a copy on or something like that.
  How long have you been paying for now then. I've paid for 2 and a bit years now not happy it was a year more than they said and now this insurance thing is freaking me out a bit but it's the principle now also.
  Did you take out the insurance with rentsmart or did you get your own as you're entitled to do? can't believe they try to force decisions like that onto people. Well they're not going to win i'm ready for a fight bigtime and WHEN he he I win i'll let you know exactly how.
  Hope you're ok!!
  Maz
• my son last week was conned by a pcw salesperson into taking a business rentplan for a imac and software worth Ј1701.
  he thought he had agreed to a 36 month hp deal.
  turns out its 48 months at Ј66 which comes to Ј3200 and he still doesnt own it.
  after venting steam i read the contract which he apparantly read and signed. you cant read the whole thing and understand it in the shop you need at least a morning.
  the rentsmart sales person has to establish that they are selling to a business which my some isnt and he said he wasnt but they are denying this, conveniantly they havent got a vecording of the conversation. also you must have a landline on you business premisis. being as he hasnt a business premisis or a land line at his home premisis they said he needs to give and address with a landline, so he gave his mothers address. just so they could get the sale.
  yesterday i went into pcw to go through the same process just to see how he got suckered. it is very easy unless you are aware of there tricks. i went and asked for an imac for personal use on hp. they then pushed me to the smartplan. i said its a business plan, to which they responded by saying, "will you be doing any spreadsheets or other things for work, we all have one here at pcw and use it for work"
  so i came clean and told him why i was there, "to get my sons smartplan contract terminated" after 10 mins squirming he introduced me to the regional manager from smartplan who just happened to be in the building.
  he told me that it is impossible to get a contract if you are not a business and you dont have a land line. he then went on to say my son read and signed the contract so if it isnt true we should prosicute him for fraud. go on then said i, if it will get him out of the contract. he then back peddled and said there may be another way.
  i recorded this conversation 'for my traning purposes of course'
  the next step is to put it all in writing and he will pass it to the ops manager but he doesnt think anything will happen because my son read and signed the contract.
  watch this space for updates.
  dont let them bully you with threats of fraud. they miss sell this product every day and customers are duped into thinking they have no legal way out. its wrong
• Hi Lee,
  I know that as a parent, you would like to defend your son - however, your son did mislead RentSmart as he declared that he owns a business and a landline. Whist, this is entirely inappropriate, I can see that your son has be 'encouraged' by PC World to take out the incorrect finance product for his requirements.
  PC World should have questioned your son and simply asked, "Will you use your PC for predominately home or business purposes?". Your son would have answered "Home purposes". In which case, PC World would have suggested four possible in-house payment methods. 1, Cash. 2, Debit card. 3, Credit card or 4, CONSUMER finance. No, I repeat, no SmartPlan which is a business finance product only.
  It is clear that PC World have attempted to 'muddy the water' as to the true purpose of use for your son's PC i.e. not home use, but rather business use via the statement "Well, if you use your PC for the off spreedsheet or two for work purposes then you should take out a business finance product.". All this means is that your son is another 'tick in the box' for that PC World store's sales for SmartPlan for the week.
  Your son derives absolutely NO benefit from SmartPlan's rental product. No tax benefits, no ownership...nothin'!
  Your beef should not be with RentSmart, but with the PC World store who mis-sold your son on SmartPlan over their in-house consumer finance product. If PC World could not obtain in-house consumer finance for your son; then, they should have suggested one of the other three forms of payment or asked your son to visit his bank to take out a small bank loan, overdraft or credit card.
  However, RentSmart too have a role to play. The Regional Manager for RentSmart (and copy his Sale Manager/General Manager) should be made fully aware by you that his trainin' of PC World staff is totally inadequate for the PC World staff, as the PC World staff have recommended an inapproriate finance product to a consumer - who is unable to benefit from any part of RentSmart's rental product...other than the initial finance of the PC.
  Out of interest, which PC World store was involved? There may be a common thread here i.e. it could be the same store/s that make the same mistakes...in other words the Regional Manager (read as the sales representative/trainer) for RentSmart may have trained all of his/her stores to mis-sell SmartPlan. Remember, RentSmart's MAJOR competitor is cash and they will pay BIG incentives to PC World in order for the PC World staff to recommend and sell SmartPlan.
  If you have any doubts about the best finance for your needs - see your accountant!!! Or visit your Bank Manager...never take out in-store finance!!!
  Anyway, Lee write a letter to PC World and RentSmart. Make as much fuss about this trainin' issue as possible and seek to exit the contract with minimal i.e. no further cost to you.
  Tell your son not to mislead ANY bank or finance company - it is illegal and fraudulent. Tell your son never to sign anything until he has taken the document away from the relevant high pressure sales environment, read it and if required obtain a second and even a third opinion...then and only then make a decision to sign or not to sign!
  Best of luck,
  James
• Thrid paragraph should read as: "Well, if you use your PC for the odd spreedsheet or two for work purposes, then you should take out SmartPlan to finance your PC."
• Hi guys,
  First sorry for my english I'm foreigner so I will try my best. I'm at the moment in exactly same situation. I bought pc with monitor from PC World in Coventry 2 years ago. All equipment cost Ј1050 that day, I couldn't afford it so I asked their advisor about finance options for me. For my badluck guy who worked there offered me RentSmart option. Off course like in previous cases he didn't mention about insurance which I have to pay on top of my repayments and it cost Ј10 monthly. He didn't mention also that I'm renting this equipment instead of buying it. I have never run any business, I'm a private person who is employed in company and I have been working on full time. Did I mention that he said it's 2 years contract, not 3? At the moment I'm repaying Ј55 monthly, at the end of the contract it will cost me together Ј1980 and I'm still not the owner of my pc!!!!! I can't believe what's happend, I have no idea what to do. I went to Pc World today and explained everything to their store manager however they said I should read all agreements before signing it. I called RentSmart and asked them how could they sign aggrements with me if I'm not owning any business and they said that they have been informed I'm a sole trader (I don't know even what does it mean). I will be pleased if anyone can answer how their battle with RentSmart ended beacuse I'm not going to give up and I will fight with them. Cheers.
• I too am having the same trouble as described in this thread.
  I have been paying Ј130 a month for 3 yrs, and was originally told this was a 36month agreement by PC world.
  I am not a business, nor have I ever owned one. I have now been told that I will not own the laptop at the end of the agreement, and that the agreement is actually for 4 yrs.
  I also received the strange "insurance" letter, which I ignored because I have got home insurance... and am not a business customer.
  The laptop itself originally cost Ј1700 and the total cost of the agreement is now at Ј6240 after the 4 yrs. I told them that my agreement was for 3 yrs, and they offered me a settlement figure of Ј1000, which is still not acceptable. I still do not own the laptop.
  I am under a debt management company, and now rentsmart will not accept payments from them unless I return the equipment or settle the account in full. I have already paid them Ј4680 for a 3 yr old laptop.
  I have been conned in exactly the same way.. I was misinformed by the PC world store and I was also told that I would own the laptop at the end.
  Has anyone had any success with this company?
• I am in the same boat - bad times!!
  I was completely mis-sold this product. I was a full time student about to leave uni 2 years ago. I decided i needed a new lap top, i had the cash but the sales advisor said the rent smart business type plan would be the best option for me. I told the sales advisor that I wasn't sure what i would be doing after uni and had thought about working freelance. The sales advisor said I would save lots of money with rent smart that it was a 2 year contract where after the 2 years i would make a minimal payment at the end say 10 - 30 pounds (at most one months rental) to own the computer outright. I made it 100% clear that i didn't have a business yet, i even told the rent smart person on the phone the day of sale that i was only thinking about working freelance after uni (which never transpired as i was lucky enough to find a full time job).
  I was advised rentsmart was the best plan for me, unfortunately i didn't really check the contact enough, as the friendly sales person made it seem like they were doing me a favour and completely downplayed the business part.
  I only realised this was a problem today... when 22 months into my contract i made contact with rentsmart - thinking my minimum payment term was nearly over (sold as 2 years!!) so i asked the man how long i have left thinking it was one or 2 months.... the answer - 14 MONTHS. If i wanted to cancel that was okay as long as i payed the remaining due rents at a cost of 400+ pounds, a joke as ive been paying for 22 months.... and the computer was only worth Ј600 originally. So i googled rentsmart/pc world and it came up with this website (and many more with lots of people all having similar issues).
  I was lied to on the day of sale and sold "rental" as a good option the irony is that it isn't even rental its a loan. I feel that rentsmart should not accept people without proof of a business bank account at the very least - but i do feel PC world are to mostly to blame. Its disgusting that their sales staff deliberatively mislead people when they should be there to advise impartially. Personally I would really just like what i was promised on sale, a 2 year contract and the option to buy then - I know it is a lesson to read the contract thoughly.
  I am prepared to continue paying for the 14 months remaining as i feel stupid that i didn't read the small print but i'm not going to take it lightly I have made a complaint today to their customer services email address and included an email to pc world. I've also contacted watchdog and i suggest you do the same.
• I was about to buy an HP laptop in PC World for Ј425, then for some reason, which I am still struggling with, I took out a rentsmart plan that means that that laptop will now cost me Ј1,400 and, yes, even then I will still have to buy it!
  I can't believe how stupid I was, as I am in business, but obviously wasn't concentrating. They have also attached insurance to the payment, which, even though I am already insured, I couldn't get out of.
  Anyway, this needs to be reported, possibly to Trading Standards or the Financial Ombudsman, or the Consumer Action Group (CAG), who I think were instrumental in getting the PPI insurance scam stopped. I think everyone should report this, because otherwise it will be allowed to continue and just out of principal alone, this should be stopped.
  I'm pretty sure there would be an arguable case for those who are not in business, so don't be intimidated by rentsmart, the law protects consumers from misselling. Will see what I can find out.
• I have reported this to Trading Standards and they are looking into it.
• Just to let people know .. PCWolrd will now let you cancel and now hav a 14 day cool down period - and it seems to be retrospective. After my father in law signed up to Infinity we went back in and spoke to everyone we could who I have to say were very rude but thats another matter. My father in law went back in today about a month and a half after he originally signed and they were as nice as pie and cancelled it
  Oh and the Ininifty product isn't the same as rent smart. It's done for people to get the same benefits but you don't have to be a Business to sign up.
• hello, i was missold my laptop (nov) by same thing thro pcworld/currys
  i didnt realise until this feb when i was changin address as i moved, but when i went to pc world to complain there attitude was rubbish, they said were sorry and would make sure the assistant who sold it was aware and this mistake didnt happen again, but i cudnt cancel as had signed for it.
  well, i did email infinity several times and had a very helpful chap, unfortunatly tho he told me it was upto pcworld to cancel the contract if neccessary.
  i was now wondering if anyone who feels they were missold this product, can now actually insist there contract is cancelled, even if it been 6 months?
• My elderly mum was also mis-sold a 3-year business lease and business insurance for a computer she tried to buy for my teenage nephew's birthday.
  The PC World salesman bamboozled her with talk of saving money by paying monthly and getting cashback and a free upgrade after 2 years. The salesman tricked her into to naming the company she used to work in before she retired - they then put the lease in that company's name, but with my mum's address. She didn't notice this when she signed because it was on another page with a lot of small print.
  She got really worried when she later got the insurance paperwork sent to her address in the company's name. When she showed me the lease I was livid to see what they had misled her into signing. I went with her to take the computer back and get the whole thing cancelled. The manager wouldn't cancel, but we left the computer with them at the service desk until it was sorted out. I got the original salesman on the phone a few days later and he was completely unrepentant.
  We then wrote to PC World head office with a detailed complaint of mis-selling, and we sent copies to the leasing company, Trading Standards and Which? Magazine. We told them that the mis-selling makes the contract null and void and demanded that they cancel everything and keep the computer.
  They then backed down. Head office offered to cancel everything if we would buy the computer for the list price.
  They still weren't prepared to offer any discount as compensation for our travel expenses or my elderly mum's distress and worry, but we are pursuing this further. The fact that we gave them the computer back makes it their problem, not ours.