Glitch made my 'smart' dishwasher order me enough tablets to last three YEARS: SALLY SORTS IT

My dishwasher is linked up to the internet, and I allowed it to monitor my usage and automatically reorder Finish dishwasher tablets when I was down to my last ten.

The dishwasher is connected to the Finish app on my phone.

However, when I ran low on tablets, the app ordered me a new delivery on four consecutive days.

I only found this out when packets kept turning up on my doorstep. I now have about three years’ supply for which I was automatically billed £45.

I have complained, but two months on I’ve got nowhere.

J.C., Ware, Herts.

Sally Hamilton replies: I was intrigued by the concept of intelligent ordering. It sounds a great way of ensuring you never run out of dishwasher tablets.

I’d find such a subscription service handy for other areas of domestic life such as loo rolls, though I’m not sure that many toilets are linked to the internet.

I do know some people who use a similar service for the re-ordering of ink for printers and there are smart fridges that prompt owners when they are running out of essentials.

The service you signed up to is called SmartFinish, which, as you described, tracks dishwasher usage and automatically sends out a new pack. Ideal, if it works.

Customers need to own a Wi-Fi-enabled dishwasher to take advantage of such auto-reordering.

The system is matched to the customer, so if you use the dishwasher more than usual, orders will turn up more frequently.

Gremlins seemingly got into the re-ordering system in your case, landing you with a pile of unwanted tabs.

When you initially complained, Finish said you must have made the additional orders yourself, which you said was laughable. Why would you order three years’ worth of tabs over a few days?

Scott Dixon of consumer service Complaints Resolver, suggests customers getting nowhere with an over delivery like yours quote section 25 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

He says: ‘This says the business is responsible for collecting and refunding the excess items at no cost to the customer.’

You asked Finish to do this but hit a brick wall.

I contacted Reckitt, the consumer goods giant that owns Finish, to ask it to resolve your dishwasher tab mountain pronto.

I didn’t get anywhere at first so understood your frustration at the limited response to your complaint.

But when I chased a couple of weeks later, it turned up the dial and soon Finish refunded your £45 and told you to keep the excess product. It said the problem was due to a ‘technical issue’ with the app, which was quickly resolved.

When it asked if you wanted to continue the subscription, you politely declined.

I booked a flight with EasyJet to arrive at Edinburgh on May 14, but in error reserved a rental car for pick up from Drivalia a day earlier.

I realised my mistake on May 13 and phoned the firm but was advised to sort it out on arrival.

When I arrived, I was issued with a second booking at a cost of £375 and received no refund for the first one. I realised later that I was charged again in the second booking for May 13.

I even got charged a further £115 for a parking offence that took place on May 13, before I even got to Edinburgh. Please help.

J.R., Hampshire.

Sally Hamilton replies: Any holiday that involves a vehicle rental fills me with dread as the process seems designed to catch customers out, whether it’s the extortionate price of excess insurance at the desk, high charges for extras such as satnavs and child seats or the tricky rules around whether the fuel tank should be returned full or not.

Your experience highlights the costly risk of being tardy for picking up a rental car – even though you tried to correct the error in advance.

We all make mistakes, and you were prepared to take it on the chin – up to a point. But to be charged twice for the rental is not fair.

I asked Drivalia to reconsider, emailing both its chief executive and customer services. I heard nothing back from the former, but the latter requested you complete an online complaint form.

In that process you respectfully asked for a refund of the first booking and the extra day charged on the second rental. They declined, though they did refund the parking ticket and admin fee. How kind.

Hitting a roadblock with Drivalia, I approached EasyJet, since you had booked the hire from a link on its website.

EasyJet told me that while the site enables customers to make such bookings, these are provided by third party partners.

In your case, the Drivalia deal was found through EasyJet partner CarTrawler, a platform listing various hire options.

I am pleased to say CarTrawler’s response was at the speed and standard I would have liked to have seen from Drivalia – with no hesitation in offering you a full refund of both hire bills, a total of £446.

A CarTrawler spokesman says: ‘We were sorry to hear about J.R’s experience. We understand booking errors can have a significant impact on travel plans, and we appreciate how frustrating this experience must have been.

‘Although the original issue resulted from a date selection error, and the charges applied were in accordance with the car rental supplier’s terms, a full refund of the original hire and additional rental costs has been arranged.’

CarTrawler adds: ‘We encourage all customers to carefully review the travel dates and rental terms outlined in their booking voucher.

'Should any problems arise at any stage, our dedicated customer care team is available 24/7 to support travellers before, during, or after their journey.’

• Write to Sally Hamilton at Sally Sorts It, Money Mail, Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT or email [email protected] — 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.