Solicitor's Shock as £599 Phone Order Turns Into Pile of Delivery Slips
A Devon solicitor has exposed serious security flaws in retail packaging after ordering a brand new mobile phone from John Lewis only to receive a box filled with DPD delivery slips instead of his £599 device.
Toby Kippax, a 42-year-old lawyer from Newton Abbott, Devon, took advantage of a Black Friday deal on the Google Pixel 10, which had been reduced by £200 from John Lewis. After waiting three years to upgrade his phone, he expected to receive his new gadget on Saturday November 23rd.
Instead of the anticipated technology upgrade, Mr Kippax discovered two books of red-and-white DPD parcel slips bearing the words: 'We tried to deliver your parcel!' The shocking substitution occurred despite the package appearing completely intact upon delivery.
Retailer's 'Stonewalling' Response Leaves Customer Feeling Like a Fraudster
Mr Kippax immediately contacted John Lewis customer service, expecting the "trusted" retailer to quickly resolve what appeared to be a clear case of parcel interference. However, he claims he encountered "stonewalling" from both John Lewis and delivery firm DPD.
"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," Mr Kippax recounted.
After a brief investigation lasting what Mr Kippax estimates was "no more than about four or five working hours," John Lewis informed him they were closing the case. The retailer stated that according to their records, the box was intact when it left their warehouse and DPD provided a photograph showing the undamaged package being delivered.
The solicitor was told his only recourse was to raise a claim through Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which would involve a potentially lengthy process with his credit card provider.
Forensic Examination Reveals Packaging Security Failings
Determined to understand how the theft occurred, Mr Kippax and his daughter conducted their own investigation of the packaging. What they discovered exposed critical security weaknesses in John Lewis's packaging methods.
"We looked at the box and that's when we noticed it wasn't very secure," Mr Kippax explained. "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 four box flaps showed clean, professional glue application. The other three displayed randomly applied glue with staining indicative of manual resealing.
Mr Kippax believes criminals are exploiting inadequate packaging security by carefully lifting box flaps, removing valuable contents, and resealing packages with superglue. The absence of tamper-proof tape or security seals makes this type of interference virtually undetectable to couriers and recipients.
"From my point of view, I'm really disappointed with John Lewis in their packaging," he stated. "It's completely inadequate and just not secure enough to transport higher value items - and it leaves consumers at risk."
Pattern of Similar Incidents Across Multiple Retailers
Mr Kippax's experience is not isolated. The Daily Mail has uncovered several similar cases where customers received completely different items from what they ordered:
- Gerard Taylor from Bristol ordered an iPhone 16e worth £544 but received a £6.50 bottle of Olay moisturiser
- Jo Davis from North Derbyshire paid £1,000 for an iPhone 16 Pro but was sent used men's aftershave
- Anya Carroll from Bristol ordered an Apple iPhone 16 from Sky but received a lump of clay
- Gemma Worley from Cornwall bought a £700 Lenovo Yoga laptop from Currys but found three mouldy pies in the box
In each case, retailers initially denied responsibility and customers faced lengthy battles for refunds. Mr Taylor's claim was even initially rejected by American Express because he hadn't reported the incident as a crime within 48 hours.
Consumer Rights Victory Following Media Intervention
Following involvement from the Daily Mail, John Lewis performed a U-turn and agreed to arrange a new phone for Mr Kippax. However, the solicitor remains unimpressed with how his complaint was handled.
"They are effectively implying that they think I'm defrauding them to get a free phone out of John Lewis," Mr Kippax said. "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."
The incident has raised serious questions about packaging security standards across the retail industry, particularly for high-value items vulnerable to theft during transit. Mr Kippax has reported the incident to Action Fraud and stated he will hesitate before shopping with John Lewis again.
John Lewis maintained in a statement regarding a separate case that their internal reviews, including CCTV footage from packing lines, show correct items being dispatched. However, the pattern of similar incidents suggests systemic security vulnerabilities in parcel delivery networks that criminals are increasingly exploiting.
