A shopper has hit out at a high street retailer after he ordered a brand new mobile phone - only to receive a box full of DPD parcel slips - but he was still told his delivery was 'compliant' and he would not get his money back.
Toby Kippax, who lives in Newton Abbott, Devon, had not upgraded his phone in three years and was attracted by a Black Friday deal on the Google Pixel 10 from John Lewis, which had been reduced by £200 to £599.
But he was shocked to discover that instead of a shiny new gadget, his parcel contained two books of red-and-white slips from parcel courier DPD brandishing the words: 'We tried to deliver your parcel!'
The 42-year-old solicitor was astounded by what had been delivered to him, but he remained confident that a 'trusted' retailer like John Lewis would help rectify the problem.
Mr Kippax, however, claims he was instead met with 'stonewalling' from both the retailer and DPD.
After a swift investigation, John Lewis told the disgruntled customer the box was intact when it left the warehouse and it did not look damaged on delivery, as according to a photograph taken by the courier.
The retailer initially told Mr Kippax he would need to raise a claim through his credit card to receive his money back.
But after Daily Mail intervened, John Lewis told Mr Kippax today that it would be arranging a new phone for him.
Nevertheless, the solicitor has been left unimpressed by the high street giant's 'dismissive' response to his complaint and said he had been made to feel like a 'liar' and a fraudster - instead of the victim.
Mr Kippax was shocked to discover that instead of a shiny new gadget, his parcel contained two books of slips from DPD brandishing the words: 'We tried to deliver your parcel!'
He also claimed the retailer has left customers 'at risk' by using 'completely inadequate' cardboard packaging for high-value items that he says can be easily interfered with by criminals before being resealed.
Speaking about his ordeal, Mr Kippax said: 'Ordinarily, I would probably have just bought a phone directly from Google, but because John Lewis was offering a particularly favourable Black Friday deal, and an extra £300 bonus payment for trade-ins, I thought it was worth doing that.
'So I put the order in on Friday, and it was due for delivery from DPD last Saturday.
'I was watching the England v New Zealand match on the TV when the courier came, right at the end of the match where it was starting to get exciting. So I kind of just went to the door, took the parcel from the guy, came in and watched a little bit more of the match.
'A few minutes went by when I thought I'll open the box, and just have a look at the phone and admire it.
'It could only have been five or ten minutes after the courier had delivered it when I opened the box - and all I found were those two books of the delivery slips.
'I couldn't quite believe what had happened.'
Mr Kippax called John Lewis to report the issue and said that he was immediately met with denials that the retailer was at fault.
'They initially put me through to one of their normal call handlers, then I got put through to the delivery team, who gave me platitudes about how they were pretty confident the phone was in the box when it left the warehouse.
'The lady on the phone said that John Lewis does not keep the DPD slips in their warehouse, so it couldn't have been anyone from the retailer who had switched the item.'
The disgruntled customer was told John Lewis would begin an investigation, speak to DPD, and get back to him within six working days.
He said: 'I left it, thinking I'll wait and see if John Lewis is going to come good on this, being what I thought was a respectable retailer.
'But just two days later I got a call completely stonewalling my point of view. They said as far as they were concerned, it left the warehouse in the box, and DPD say they've got a photo of me taking the box.
'It didn't look damaged, so, they've delivered it and that's the end of the matter. They told me they were closing the case.
'Ultimately they can't have done a huge amount of investigation. I mean, they've basically had it open for no more than about four or five working hours.'
He was advised to raise a claim through Section 75, a UK law that makes a credit card provider jointly liable with a retailer for any breach of contract or misrepresentation on purchases between £100 and £30,000.
However, he would need to wait at least 30 days before taking this action, and then he could wait up to another two months before discovering if he had been successful.
Frustrated, Mr Kippax contacted DPD to raise his concerns with the courier company, 'but nothing landed at all' and he was again told they could not help him any further.
Determined to discover how his phone could have been switched out, Mr Kippax said he and his daughter decided to look again at the box - and he believes he may have found the answer.
'We went on a bit of an investigatory process on Saturday evening, because we were trying to rack our brains as to how this was done. We couldn't understand it. On the one hand, you have John Lewis telling me they're pretty confident it left their warehouse in the box. The delivery label looked untampered.
'The weight - 0.4 of a kilo - was about right. So then we looked at the box and that's when we noticed it wasn't very secure.
'I pulled the tabs of the flaps that seal the box down - and underneath we could see what looked to be glue that had been completely randomly applied. It didn't look like anything a machine would do in a warehouse.
'Only one of the flaps looked like what I would expect. It had clean, hard glue with no staining from new glue.
'The other three flaps however, had randomly applied glue.
'What I believe is the scam is that the criminal lifted the edges up, because this box is not properly sealed. There's no tape, no tamper-proof system on there whatsoever that they could use to try to protect customers.
'I think the person responsible has lifted up the box, taken out the phone, put his slips in and then glued it back down with a bit of superglue.
'From my point of view, I'm really disappointed with John Lewis in their packaging. It's completely inadequate and just not secure enough to transport higher value items - and it leaves consumers at risk.'
Mr Kippax has reported the incident to Action Fraud and said he would hesitate to return to John Lewis as a customer.
Prior to today's U-turn by John Lewis, the solicitor added: 'I ordered a phone, I haven't got the phone. So, as far as I'm concerned, they've breached the contract and consumer protection laws.
'They are also effectively implying that they think I'm defrauding them to get a free phone out of John Lewis. But I'm a solicitor - why on earth would I risk a nearly 20-year career to steal a phone? It makes absolutely no sense. But that's effectively what this decision of theirs has implied.'
Daily Mail has contacted John Lewis and DPD for comment.
The latest incident comes after several consumers contacted Daily Mail asking for help after they were targeted by similar scams.
Gerard Taylor, who lives close to Bristol, said he was left feeling 'powerless' after he ordered a brand new mobile phone - only to receive a package containing a cheap moisturiser.
He had wanted to replace his aging device with an iphone 16e in black from John Lewis, priced at £544.
But he was astounded to find that instead of a new gadget, his parcel contained a 200ml bottle of Olay beauty fluid, valued at around £6.50.
The 59-year-old creative art worker admits laughing at first, but his incredulity soon turned to disappointment after a John Lewis investigation concluded the retailer was not at fault - and any refund would have to be sought through a claim raised with his credit card.
American Express however also turned down his claim on the basis that the package had been 'delivered' and he had not reported it as a crime within 48 hours.
It was only thanks to a friend who had a contact at John Lewis that his case was reviewed again and Mr Taylor was offered a full refund.
However, he said the experience had left him feeling let down and frustrated that John Lewis was 'not properly investigating' how this could have occurred.
Speaking about his ordeal, Mr Taylor said: 'I keep my phones forever. I had my first iPhone for seven years, and my current one was bought six-and-a-half years ago, so it's quite a big deal when I do actually change my phone.'
Looking around online, he spotted a deal for the iPhone 16e with John Lewis, which had been discounted by £50 off the usual price.
Believing it to be a 'good deal', he ordered the device on September 9 and his package turned up the next day.
'I was leaving the house at around 4.30pm when the parcel arrived. It was just left on the doorstep. I heard the driver's voice saying, "Alright, mate" or something to that effect and then he just disappeared by the time I got to the door.
'I picked up the package and went straight around to my friend's house with my new iPhone.
'There was nothing dodgy-looking about the parcel. It had all the proper labels and was professionally packaged. The box was about the size you would expect an iPhone to be.
'But then I opened it and saw a bottle of Olay moisturiser.
'We both initially thought that was quite funny, but then I thought I'd better do something about this. John Lewis have a good image and I thought they'd be reasonable about it.'
Mr Taylor was told by customer services however that as the package had been delivered he would need to raise a claim through his credit card company, American Express.
Within the next few hours, John Lewis then contacted him again to say he had been 'wrongly advised' and they would need to conduct an internal investigation first.
Mr Taylor was still confident the issue would be resolved, but on September 15 John Lewis informed him his complaint had not been upheld.
In an email seen by Daily Mail, a John Lewis employee wrote: 'The item you have advised you have received is not something John Lewis stock and is not an item we would hold in our warehouse.
'You also confirmed that the DPD parcel was not open and did not appear to have been tampered with.
'I would advise you to contact your card provider and raise a retailer dispute with them.'
Frustrated, Mr Taylor duly contacted American Express only to be told he 'didn't meet with their conditions for a refund' and was advised to contact the courier, DPD.
'They also said I should have reported it as a crime within 48 hours', he recalled, but said he was unable to do so as John Lewis was still at that point 'investigating' the incident.
After turning to Citizens Advice for help, Mr Taylor was informed his contract was with John Lewis - and that he should return to the retailer to discuss a refund.
Jo Davis, from North Derbyshire, purchased an iPhone 16 Pro from John Lewis, priced at £1,000, but was stunned to find a black bottle of men's aftershave instead
But the high street giant maintained it could not help.
'I felt like I had £544 stolen from me and I was being accused of theft basically, when actually it was the other way around.
'It was very stressful, the inference that you're trying to pull a fast one and you're trying to make money out of them.
'And I also just felt completely powerless - because in a situation like this they have all the power.'
It was only when his friend stepped in and asked a contact at John Lewis to help that Mr Taylor said he was offered a full refund or new handset without the retailer accepting liability - or offering an apology.
'I went for the refund, because I didn't want to risk having the same experience again.
'I've bought quite a lot from John Lewis in the past, but I found the whole thing much more stressful than I thought it would.
'It was just the unfairness of the situation. There's obviously something going wrong somewhere down the chain, that they are not properly investigating.'
In a statement to Daily Mail, a John Lewis spokesperson said CCTV footage from inside the warehouse showed the 'correct item' had been packed.
They said: 'We were very sorry to hear of Mr Taylor's case, and immediately launched an internal investigation, as well as flagging with our delivery provider.
'Our own review - which includes CCTV footage of our packing line - confirmed that the correct item was packed and that the Olay box was not present.
'We make millions of deliveries every year, and issues like this are incredibly rare. While our CCTV shows that the right item was dispatched, we have refunded Mr Taylor and apologise for his experience.'
Earlier this year, Jo Davis, from North Derbyshire, was left 'absolutely astounded' after she ordered a top-of-the-range iPhone 16 Pro priced at £1,000 from John Lewis - only to receive a parcel containing cheap aftershave worth £2.
To add insult to injury, the fragrance - ironically named Me Time - was not sealed and had been used.
The HR manager said she was left feeling 'very let down' by the retailer after an investigation found neither John Lewis or Yodel were at fault - and any refund would have to be sought through a claim raised with her credit card.
A trio of baked goodies from Yorkshire Handmade Pies were crammed into the space where her new computer should have been
After three months with no resolution, Daily Mail contacted John Lewis and she received a refund and gift voucher.
Meanwhile Anya Carroll ordered a brand new Apple iPhone 16 from Sky only to receive a package containing a large lump of clay.
After a brief investigation, she was told there was 'insufficient evidence' her package had been tampered with before delivery and there was nothing further Sky could do.
To compound her distress, Miss Carroll was advised to keep making payments for the phone she never received - because she would be the one in breach of contract if the money stopped.
She claimed that Sky 'washed its hands of her' after reaching a 'deadlock' on her case, leaving her just with a lump of white clay to show for her £25 monthly payments.
After being contacted by Daily Mail, Sky agreed to cancel her contract and refund the money she had paid to date.
Daily Mail also heard from Gemma Worley, 39, from Cornwall, who purchased a £700 Lenovo Yoga laptop from Currys only to receive three mouldy pies instead.
The trio of Yorkshire Handmade Pies had been crammed into the space in the box where her new computer should have been.
Currys subsequently apologised and offered Mrs Worley a replacement laptop.