I gave Selfridges my vintage Chanel handbag to repair... but was sent back a cheap washbag: SALLY SORTS IT

I took my vintage Chanel handbag to Selfridges for repair at The Handbag Clinic, which operates as a concession within the store, and paid £125.More than three months later, a parcel was delivered by a courier arranged by the firm. Rather than my repaired bag, which I estimate is worth in excess of £7,000, it contained a Juicy Couture wash bag. Despite extensive communication with The Handbag Clinic and Selfridges, both have effectively closed the case and placed responsibility on the courier, telling me that I must pursue the matter with it directly. Please help. A.F., Putney, west London.Sally Hamilton replies: You told me you have been a loyal customer of the famous London department store for more than 60 years, so you were sorely disappointed by how matters were handled when your bag vanished.You believe that somewhere between The Handbag Clinic and your home, the package was intercepted and your much-loved and expensive bag was stolen and replaced with the low-value wash bag.Although upset, you felt confident Selfridges would step in and resolve the issue. A reader was shocked when Selfridges sent her a cheap Juice Couture washbag in place of the expensive vintage Chanel Washbag she had put in for repairYou enlisted your two daughters to help as they are more tech-savvy in dealing with businesses online.Despite their best efforts, they did not get very far. Both operations denied responsibility,saying the bag had left the repair workshop in the correct packaging and that CCTV footage proved it.They said delivery images showed just a small tear in the package, consistent with normal wear and tear in transit rather than evidence of tampering.Eventually, you were told you needed to take up your case with the courier. Let Me Know Have you successfully switched to a different career? Whether your leap was big or small, I’d love to hear from you. Email me at sally@dailymail.co.uk This was incorrect advice. Under Section 29 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, goods remain at the retailer’s risk until they are in the hands of the consumer. Only if shoppers organise a courier themselves do they take on that risk, and need to deal directly with the delivery firm if something goes awry.I pointed this out to Selfridges, which hosts The Handbag Clinic on its premises, and asked forit to reopen your case in the hope of reaching a more satisfactory result.Selfridges liaised with The Handbag Clinic, and the earlier investigations were reviewed.The same conclusion was reached: The Handbag Clinic said it wasn’t responsible. However, on my intervention and recognising the upset, The Handbag Clinic decided to compensate you as a goodwill gesture.The Handbag Clinic appeared to put considerable effort into working out what your lost bag – a 1980s vintage lambskin with tortoiseshell resin strap embellishments – might have been worth.It compared sold prices across the pre-owned luxury bags market and enlisted the help of in-house specialists as well as an external expert.It also trawled its database for evidence of a Juicy Couture wash bag, in case there had been a mix-up, but concluded there had never been such a bag on its premises. The upshot was an offer of £2,500 plus a refund of the £125 repair bill. You were disappointed by this sum, saying you’d seen other comparable second-hand bags for sale online for as much as £7,000. Similar new versions cost £9,000.I suspect that sellers’ asking prices for second-hand items are not the best guide, with sold values – the prices people have actually paid – more realistic.So I could feel comfortable the offer to you was fair, I tracked down an expert myself.I sent a photo and explanation of your bag’s age and provenance to Chiswick Auctions in west London. Popsy Kundi, head of designer handbags and fashion, responded swiftly, saying she believed £7,000 was ‘overstated’.She added: ‘In my professional opinion, as it is not the classic flap style of Chanel bag, the estimated auction value would be in the region of £1,200-£2,200.’The sum on the table, therefore, seemed realistic and fair. When I informed you of my findings, you were reassured, thanked me for my help and have now accepted the firm’s offer.Can't access late husbands civil service pensionMy husband died on March 19 and I haven’t received a penny from his civil service pension since May 16.I’m 82, deaf, have atrial fibrillation and severe osteoporosis, and I live on my own.Three more months have passed and still nothing has been received. I have car and house insurance to pay this month. Please help.Name and address supplied.Sally Hamilton replies: You are one of thousands of people caught up in the chaos that has engulfed the Civil Service Pension Scheme in 2026.I have heard similar stories from several other readers facing huge delays in getting their pension paid.Capita, the administrator of the scheme since December 2025 after inheriting it from MyCSP, is continuing to struggle with a huge backlog of cases and its own failure to hit service standard levels. This may explain why you hadn’t received your rightful widow’s pension, but such an excuse doesn’t pay the bills.With £7,000 spent on your husband’s funeral and large household costs to meet, the need for your pension income has become urgent.Under the terms of your late husband’s pension, you were in line to receive his monthly payment in full for 91 days, then a reduced pension of 45 per cent thereafter. Despite complying with all the demands from the administrators, including posting the death and marriage certificates and other papers within two weeks, the payments dried up after May.By the time you wrote to me, 14 weeks had passed and you described being left without this money as ‘extremely cruel’. I agree.When the extent of the administrative problems emerged earlier this year, Capita promised that bereavement cases would take priority.So why were you still waiting? I asked Capita to pull its finger out. It spent about a week investigating, at which point it told me it had now issued your ‘finalisation letter’. This is the paperwork setting out the sums you will receive.When we caught up, you were relieved to have your backdated pension finally in your account, even if it was four months late. Straight to the point I accidentally paid HMRC £316.60 twice for a simple tax assessment and I can’t get a refund. I was originallybilled the sum in July last year but I mistakenly paid it again in February. I’ve called them four times, written a letter as requested and on three occasions was told the refund would appear in my bank account within six weeks. That never happened.D.L., London.HMRC apologises and says you should receive your refund very soon along with compensation.*** I Have my car set up on autopay for congestion and ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) charges for when we visit London. But I checked my account recently and I’ve been charged £12.50 for ULEZ some five times in the past year on days I hadn’t been in London. Only two have been refunded.M.S., Suffolk.Transport for London has arranged for the remaining £37.50 to be refunded. Its cameras mistook the ‘G’ in your number plate for a C.*** In March I sold my MacBook Pro laptop on eBay for £316.96 plus £4.06 postage. I sent the package with Evri. But when it arrived with the buyer, they told me the laptop was badly dented in two corners. I suspect it was potentially dropped by the courier. To keep the buyer happy, I paid them £40 in compensation then tried to claim this amount from Evri but got nowhere.N.T., via email.Evri says it is the retailer eBay’s responsibility to sort the issue. It adds that the suggestion the laptop was dropped by the courier is speculative. eBay says you bought the delivery label through its provider Packlink, which has now given you the £40 as a gesture of goodwill. Write to Sally Hamilton at Sally Sorts It, Money Mail, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT or email sally@dailymail.co.uk include phone number, address and a note addressed to the offending organisation giving them permission to talk to Sally Hamilton. Please do not send original documents as we cannot take responsibility for them. No legal responsibility can be accepted by the Daily Mail for answers given. SAVE MONEY, MAKE MONEYUp to £300 cashbackUp to £300 cashback£25-£300 cashback on at least £3004.87% cash Isa4.87% cash IsaTrading 212: 1.27% fixed 12-month bonus£2,500 cashback£2,500 cashback£250-£2,500 cashback when opening SippUp to £150 cashbackUp to £150 cashbackOpen a savings account with at least £5,000Welcome bonusWelcome bonusGet up to £200 when you invest £100Affiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. 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