Jumping At The Chance For A Free Trampoline

(I have a customer who bought his kids a twelve-foot trampoline for Christmas. The one he received has various missing parts, so of course I say we can give him the required parts out of one in store. Bear in mind it comes in three separate boxes weighing between 19 and 24 kgs each, which he agrees is suitable. My colleague brings it out from the stockroom and lifted everything on to the counter so I can open up the boxes and find the correct parts for the customer.)

Customer: “You’ll have to mark this trampoline as damaged now, won’t you?”

Me: “Yes, that’s right.”

Customer: “Why don’t I take the whole lot, then, instead of you going through each box?”

Me: “Sure, you can do that if you want, but you’d have to swap it for your faulty one.”

(He decides he’ll take the whole thing rather than just a few parts. I move the boxes off the counter, out of the way, assuming he will come back later with his trampoline from home and then exchange it.)

Customer: “Well, can I take them, then?”

Me: “Yes, when you’ve brought back yours, we will just swap it over for you.”

Customer: “What? I’m not doing that. Why would I go all the way home to bring back the faulty one?”

Me: “I can’t give you the whole lot without you returning yours. We need to have a damaged one to send back.”

Customer: “But I’ve started putting it together.”

Me: “It’s either take the parts you need or do a full exchange.”

Customer: “That’s ridiculous! Fine! I’ll have to take the parts!”

(I then had to put all the big heavy boxes back on the counter and open up each one. All the while he huffed and puffed as though I’D been an inconvenience to HIM. And he took a LOT of parts with him, more than he’d originally said were missing; obviously, he was just being spiteful.)